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Does anyone here use Bitcoins?
eleman:
Now did my reading, but I'm still none the wiser as to why do we burn power? Assume that I'm not a huge fan of Ron Paul, so the "alternative to government conspiracy" brand of arguments would also not make much sense to me.
wraith808:
Anything we do that generates revenue in some way has a cost. Why should this be any different? What makes this the thing that makes power the consideration?
eleman:
But it doesn't.
The other things we used to generate money, for instance mining gold, had an actual use other than just generating money. Actually, the original function of gold (making shiny things women like, using in alloys to make rust resistant weapons etc.) predated the use as legal tender.
This one doesn't have another function. You just burn electricity, and assure yourself that you'll be paid for it. No intrinsic purpose whatsoever.
wraith808:
But it doesn't.
The other things we used to generate money, for instance mining gold, had an actual use other than just generating money. Actually, the original function of gold (making shiny things women like, using in alloys to make rust resistant weapons etc.) predated the use as legal tender.
This one doesn't have another function. You just burn electricity, and assure yourself that you'll be paid for it. No intrinsic purpose whatsoever.
-eleman (January 23, 2014, 09:42 PM)
--- End quote ---
Gold has no intrinsic value. The only value is what people place on it. When people mine gold, they use power for all sorts of things, under the assurance that they will be paid for it, out of the fact that people want it.
eleman:
Gold has no intrinsic value. The only value is what people place on it. When people mine gold, they use power for all sorts of things, under the assurance that they will be paid for it, out of the fact that people want it.
-wraith808 (January 23, 2014, 10:18 PM)
--- End quote ---
I'd disagree with this. Cavemen (or perhaps cavewomen) were attracted to shiny things, so they were attracted to gold, even before it became a medium of exchange. In the iron age it was also used as an ingredient in copper alloys to make them more sturdy. And yes, it predates the minting of the first coin by Lydians. Today we still make jewelry, in addition to substantial use in industry. 10% of all gold mined is used in industrial purposes. If it had been cheaper, the ratio would undoubtedly increase.
So, gold always had and always will have an intrinsic value. What's the intrinsic value of bitcoin hashes? It looks more and more like the shares of the South Sea Trading Company.
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