this post was submitted on 17 Dec 2024
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It can alter or reverse transfers as long as it's going on.
That would be better actually, because there might be a real thing somewhere which the writer of the IOU will give the bearer upon demand. Bitcoin is "Thanks for the $97,430.23 bro trust me bro someone will give you that much or more for that ledger entry in money, goods, or services bro I swear bro because it's scarce bro".
Yeah, today it is easier, because it's bolstered by drug dealers, nerds, and speculators who do their day-to-day living mostly in USD. But in 30 years? I'm not psychic, but I'm guessing that drug dealers will switch to more privacy-focused systems, (tech) nerds will switch to more technologically interesting systems, speculators will find other things to speculate on, and the...right-libertarian nerds might keep the network humming along at a much lower valuation if they don't all collapse in existential horror at the price drop.
"Certain" is an overstatement, but yeah, you can't really use a deflationary money, because it makes more sense to hold it. Money, as a medium of exchange, needs to be stable, erring on the side of inflation. Bitcoin is bad at being money.
That's the theory, but aside from being no way to create an economy, it doesn't follow IRL does it? People aren't exactly clamoring for my Bitcoin. My inflationary dollars are far more in demand.
And yet even the ASICs I can buy with Bitcoin, like the beer I once bought with Bitcoin, all describe their prices foremost in USD. Because that's mostly what it's actually bought with, and sold for.
You know, blockchains are neat and by virtue of that Bitcoin is neat. But there's nothing particularly good about it, and it's rife with flaws. Its principles are flawed, and it's not backed up by anything but hopes and dreams. It's a fun thing to gamble with, but there are more interesting blockchains, and no blockchains are mature enough to be really anything more than just fun to mess with.
You accept $20 because you are confident it is worth $20 tomorrow. You put it in a bank hoping the interest will cover inflationary depreciation, and hoping the bank will give it back when you ask for it. Btc does not have that 2nd risk, but you can still accept it as payment and sell it on an exchange shortly after, if you trust bank IOUs more.
You can't buy beer with gold or amazon stock, though can with bitcoin, even if cash is easier. Investments are a separate market, and they all have the buyer's hope of higher future value.