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Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

stephendiehl.com

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Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#51

Post by cypress66 »

valdiorn wrote: post #27

Crypto absolutely has value, and the price of Bitcoin will never go to zero. NFTs are useful. That's because the value these things provide is money-laundering, bypassing of international financial regulations and tax fraud. Yeah that's a superb value proposition right there, and definitely something we want to keep free and available /s The current system is flawed in many, many ways, but none of it happened arbitra…

> The current system is flawed in many, many ways, but none of it happened arbitrarily; the restrictions we have are the because malicious actors abused the system.

And from that you can tell you live in a nice country with reasonable laws. You can't fathom that not all countries are like that.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#52

Post by djha-skin »

OP's arguments:

- Like indulgences, crypto made value out of thin air

- Indulgences were a scam so crypto is a scam

- Crypto doesn't fit with Keynesian economics and is therefore false

I am not Catholic, but his tone implying that anyone who is religious is a fool feels more like an ad hominem attack than anything.

As to the veracity of Keynesian economics, I am less than convinced he got everything right.

That said, I am personally suspicious of crypto but I don't think it has no use just because it has no intrinsic value. We do not use paper dollars because of their material or their craftsmanship.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#53

Post by throwaway98797 »

mabbo wrote: post #37
ShowalkKama wrote: post #16

I'd like to remind the readers that some people use crypto as a payment method and do not speculate. As far as I know there is no alternative with the same level of convinience that crypto provide (KYC-less and fast payments to anyone in the world with just one secret). Remember that next time you suggest something among the lines of "crypto should be made illegal".

The killer app for crypto is "KYC-less" which usually means "I can evade taxes or sell illicit goods". Otherwise, real money is faster, more scalable, and more resilient to users making mistakes. Nothing I do is illegal; I pay my taxes; sometimes I make mistakes. Why would I ever want to use crypto over real money?

i wonder what you think of tampons and hair extensions

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#54

Post by graybies »

valdiorn wrote: post #27

Crypto absolutely has value, and the price of Bitcoin will never go to zero. NFTs are useful. That's because the value these things provide is money-laundering, bypassing of international financial regulations and tax fraud. Yeah that's a superb value proposition right there, and definitely something we want to keep free and available /s The current system is flawed in many, many ways, but none of it happened arbitra…

It also props up a large part of the international drug market in addition to money laundering.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#55

Post by jqpabc123 »

medo-bear wrote: post #23

all money is a scam once people stop believing in it https://alphahistory.com/weimarrepublic/wp-content/uploads/2...

Those selling crypto are some of the biggest true fans and believers in fiat --- they never refuse to accept it in exchange for their electrons.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#56

Post by _cenw »

empthought wrote: post #30
ShowalkKama wrote: post #16

I'd like to remind the readers that some people use crypto as a payment method and do not speculate. As far as I know there is no alternative with the same level of convinience that crypto provide (KYC-less and fast payments to anyone in the world with just one secret). Remember that next time you suggest something among the lines of "crypto should be made illegal".

> KYC-less Is your argument seriously that crypto shouldn't be illegal so it can remain a convenient method of payment for illegal activities?

Some illegal activity is commonly considered a moral good.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#57

Post by rom-antics »

valdiorn wrote: post #27

Crypto absolutely has value, and the price of Bitcoin will never go to zero. NFTs are useful. That's because the value these things provide is money-laundering, bypassing of international financial regulations and tax fraud. Yeah that's a superb value proposition right there, and definitely something we want to keep free and available /s The current system is flawed in many, many ways, but none of it happened arbitra…

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3942181

> For example, illegal transactions, scams and gambling together make up less than 3% of volume.

Note that:

1. This quote is talking specifically about bitcoin, not crypto overall

2. This paper is written by a notable crypto skeptic, so he's not using bro logic. He found the main usage by volume is speculation, with very little illegal activity.

In fact, the US underground economy is 11-12% of US GDP[1], which is a much worse proportion than bitcoin.

[1]: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/u/underground-economy.asp

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#58

Post by throwaway98797 »

empthought wrote: post #30
ShowalkKama wrote: post #16

I'd like to remind the readers that some people use crypto as a payment method and do not speculate. As far as I know there is no alternative with the same level of convinience that crypto provide (KYC-less and fast payments to anyone in the world with just one secret). Remember that next time you suggest something among the lines of "crypto should be made illegal".

> KYC-less Is your argument seriously that crypto shouldn't be illegal so it can remain a convenient method of payment for illegal activities?

should all money transfers be traceable by the state?

should it be possible to transfer 100k to a friend without the government knowing?

i support paying taxes btw

i also hope that cash never goes squat but i great it will within 50 years

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#59

Post by luckylion »

mabbo wrote: post #37
ShowalkKama wrote: post #16

I'd like to remind the readers that some people use crypto as a payment method and do not speculate. As far as I know there is no alternative with the same level of convinience that crypto provide (KYC-less and fast payments to anyone in the world with just one secret). Remember that next time you suggest something among the lines of "crypto should be made illegal".

The killer app for crypto is "KYC-less" which usually means "I can evade taxes or sell illicit goods". Otherwise, real money is faster, more scalable, and more resilient to users making mistakes. Nothing I do is illegal; I pay my taxes; sometimes I make mistakes. Why would I ever want to use crypto over real money?

Bitcoin will not freeze your assets for 90-180 days if you suddenly make twice as many sales.

Re: Yes, Crypto Is All a Scam

#60

Post by nroets »

mabbo wrote: post #37
ShowalkKama wrote: post #16

I'd like to remind the readers that some people use crypto as a payment method and do not speculate. As far as I know there is no alternative with the same level of convinience that crypto provide (KYC-less and fast payments to anyone in the world with just one secret). Remember that next time you suggest something among the lines of "crypto should be made illegal".

The killer app for crypto is "KYC-less" which usually means "I can evade taxes or sell illicit goods". Otherwise, real money is faster, more scalable, and more resilient to users making mistakes. Nothing I do is illegal; I pay my taxes; sometimes I make mistakes. Why would I ever want to use crypto over real money?

Swift transfers are slower than crypto. And governments have placed various restrictions on it called "capital controls". They say it's to encourage investment into their own economies, but investors knows it doesn't achieve that.
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