Saying Bitcoin isn't real money is like saying email isn't real mail
"Email isn't real mail. It's not physical so it has no value!"
Have you ever heard someone say something so stupid like that? I don't. But when I talk with friends about Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies like Steem some say it can't be real money. Also many so called gold-bugs argue Bitcoin has no intrinsic value because it's not physical. How can something that is only digital be real money?
Each time someone tells me Bitcoin is not real money I pretend to agree with them and I tell them ironically that I don't believe email isn't real mail either. Email is only digital, it's not physical, so it can't have any value! Then they look at me with a questionable face knowing I said this sarcastically.
image source: pixabay.com
We all understand why email has value. The old-fashioned mail is slow and expensive and maybe even more important, we rely on other people to deliver our message correctly. The same is true with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Steem. It wasn't possible to send money over the internet without a middleman until 2009, when blockchain technology was invented. We could send money online before with online banking or services like Paypal, but we rely on the banks to make the transaction. When the crisis of 2008 hit people began to realise we can't always rely on banks in the future. We need an alternative payment system. We need to cut out the middleman. This is why Bitcoin is such a blessing! You no longer have to trust your money to a bank, but you can be your own bank. Using Bitcoin you can send and receive money peer to peer. No middleman, no banks!
So each time someone tells you Bitcoin isn't real money, tell them email isn't either. Hopefully they get the point.
image source: pixabay.com
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Bullish BITCOIN. Great post. Upvoted and shared on twitter. Stephen
https://twitter.com/StephenPKendal/status/827106338346041344
To be honest, it's still a hard concept for me to wrap my mind around. Your explanation is sound and looks quite simple, yet no matter how much I read about it, it still hasn't hit home for me.
I'm sure it'll come some day. Until then, just knowing is enough :-)
Bitcoin is real money you can buy anything with bitcoin.
you can exchange to usd and enjoy your money
Maybe in your country, but that's not a given
Funny you say this I just had the same conversation/arguement with an accountant the other day, it's complete denial. Thanks for sharing!!
Brilliant comparison!
There's a lot of irony in this argumentation. Bitcoin certainly makes for a challenge in these discussions, because it's unlike anything else.
If you're talking to a regular Joe (not Another Joe) on the street who is likely ignorant of Austrian economics, you're right because they compare it to state issued fiat. It's the closest thing to money we have available, falling into a new no-man's land between precious metals and centralized fiat.
If you're talking to an Austrian economist, they'll point out that bitcoin does not actually fully fit the definition. It fits most of the definition. It fits better than centralized state issued fiat. But it falls slightly short in that it does not have inherent value (some use the word "intrinsic" here, but it does not fit. Only life has intrinsic value).
But, because of mining, BTC has a sort of new version of inherent value that state fiat does not. At the same time, it does not have inherent value in the same way gold does.
So, if someone thinks state issued fiat is money, they are already wrong in their thinking. It is not, from a historical perspective. But, from their standpoint, BTC would be considered money, even more so than the empty promises they already call money.
BUT, if someone has an Austrian perspective, then they also won't be able to think of BTC as fully fitting the historical definition. That doesn't take from BTC's value or importance. It's just a challenge to categorize it using historical definitions.
BTW, if email is mail, then how about emailing me some tomato seeds? ;) It highlights the same challenge.
Good points in this post. I was about to post a similair thread. There's a lot of exchanges out there. I found that coinmarketcap.com gives quite a decent overview. Besides coinmarketcap.com there is: https://www.coincheckup.com They give great insights in the team, the product, advisors, community, the business and the business model and other techincal insights. Check for example: https://www.coincheckup.com/coins/Bitcoin#analysis For a complete Bitcoin Analysis.