Posted On: Saturday - December 9th 2017 5:35PM MST
In Topics: Economics
In keeping on top of all the current news, as usual, Peak Stupidity may think of investing in bitcoin, as it seems to be at a local minimum of 14,730 dollars per, errr, coin. Wait, whaaaattt? OK, sometimes a post title or this lead sentence can get the reader riled enough to pay attention and read, right? Isn't that how the Lyin Press does it? Of course, we continue into some truth or at least truthful opinion, while the Lyin Press bullshit just streaks on for pages at a time.
Anyway, we will opine on this, as the subject of what money really is, or what is real money, has been hinted at before in posts with the Global Financial Stupidity topic key. Bottom line top, Bitcoin is in no way a stupid idea. I and the Peak Stupidity blog support any way to form a decent currency, if not money (not the same), that (a) can help evade the tax thieves of all the world's governments. Even more important is that (b) this form of currency is not "made" by any government.
Bitcoin is NOT really un-trackable, and in fact, from my understanding, the times of transactions and the accounts to/from which buying/selling is performed is tracked by definition of the mathematics of this currency. So, property (a) may not be all it's cracked up to be, but it sure beats transferring money (checks, credit cards, letters of credit, account transfers, etc.) via the big banks that take their cut every time, but more importantly, will always be the sac-hangers of the Feral Governments of the world (some say vice vera). That is the importance of property (b), the governments may try to get their grimy hands around the flow of this currency, but, without the ability to make it, cannot dilute the value. That dilution, called inflation, is a hidden large tax on the population.
Additionally, a 3rd important property of bitcoin is that (c) it can not be confiscated easily, as it's not tangible, but like our digital dollars which are most of them, is out of control of the banksters in cahoots with the Feds and FED.
I will admit right here that I wish I'd bought some of this with about 10 grand or so a couple of years back. Commenters on Zerohedge went back and forth under hundreds of articles about this digital currency over the last 3 years, and that is a pretty good way to learn, by reading other's arguments (unless they are morons). I can't say I didn't learn, as I can not be sure to this day that bitcoin will last, and more on this in a bit here. It just would have been a winning gamble. I am not a gambler and this is what I think of it. I have met people who have made a killing off of "investing" in this 2nd run-up in the dollar value of bitcoin. They were not math/computer whizes, but just speculators. You don't have to be smart, just lucky, sometimes, to do well.
Let's discuss Bitcoin in a descriptively technical manner. I.E., no I don't know that math behind it but get the idea. It takes computing energy to create more of this digital money per it's mathematical basis, and steadily more with time. It sounds like the amount of total bitcoin asymptotically approaches some value, from what "people" say (sorry that's all I got), and that it's already fairly well along toward it's total amount that can exist based on the math. If this is true, then even big leaps in computing power will not let anyone suddenly corner the market, quickly diluting the value of the rest of it. The value of Bitcoin as money, and not just a good form of currency is, as with precious metals, one can not easily mine a lot more of it. That's why the term "mining" is used for the computer calculations performed to "make it", in fact.
"It's just some computer program/data, someone will figure out how to hack it." is the typical response of those with distain for digital currencies in general, not precluding them from having made a killing in it anyway! This is a discussion we had with a proponent of bitcoin (yep, and he made a killing) and another friend who is a computer guy. The misunderstanding was in the proponent thinking that, by "hacking", the computer guy meant someone hacking into someone's wallet or better yet, the exchanges (like bitcoin banks). "Hey, people have hacked all into B of A ... etc, and that's a whole lot easier." was the Bitcoin proponent's rebuttal. Probably true, but the really worry, as the computer guy MEANT, was, what if someone can hack the whole formula or algorithm that MAKES Bitcoin?
That's where it takes a real hard-core computer/math guy to know whether this is impossible, possible, or even probable. Since I am not that guy, and haven't talked to a real expert, that is an unknown for me. I would think that the guy (a Japanese guy, as I recall) that started this digital currency, along with all the guys doing the big trading would know the answer to "Is the whole algorithm mathematically impossible to hack?" Wouldn't they all think yes? That's where you've got to wonder it there is someone inside who knows something different, but has good reasons to hold off for a while.
In the meantime, anything that can screw over central governments and big banks around the world, is greatly appreciated by Peak Stupidity. No, this stuff is not stupid. Is it stupid to buy some at $14,730 per "coin"? Probably, but that's because I'm no gambler. That's why I'm not rich. It's also why I'm not poor.
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