The Netherlands must ban crypto currencies as soon as possible before the ‘invitable crash’ happens, according to Pieter Hasekamp, the director of the government’s economic think-tank CPB. Unlike in other countries, the Dutch authorities have been slow to legislate on crypto currencies despite warnings by the CPB of its inherent ‘bad money’ characteristics, such as ‘fraud, criminal use, gambling addiction, financial instability and the dependence on huge amount of energy’, Hasekamp wrote in an essay for the Financieele Dagblad. The...
There’s one feature, not common to ALL crypto currencies though. Decentralizing finances. We’re currently at the mercy of banks, which get richer and richer… Actually I believe that is which motivated the bitcoin creation, get rid of banks intermediation… Every single fiat currency transaction has consequences benefiting only banks…
The other, also associated only to decentralized crypto currencies, which I like, is respecting privacy. Though that can and has been misused. But with current way of managing fiat currency, be that credit/debit cards, be that bank transactions, you’ve been tracked all along, your consumption habits (what you buy), your location (where you buy), and your whole life can be inferred with current ways of handling currencies.
And central and government controlled crypto currencies are as bad as fiat currency, though for some countries that might be a way to escape from the $s transactions which can ban any country they like from participating… But otherwise, they are as bad…
So yes, I like the idea which originally motivated decentralized crypto currencies.
And for those who believe there wouldn’t been illegal traffic of whatever, just because decentralized currencies might go away, think twice. There’s always been currency laundry, and there have always been fiscal paradises. And illegal commerce and abuses of whatever nature have always existed, even before there were decentralized crypto currencies… So I don’t buy the idea that by killing decentralized crypto currencies that evil goes away…
I’m only sad most countries don’t allow using decentralized crypto currencies for legal transactions, so most people would benefit from that, and not only the ones using them for illegal ones. I’m wondering if the interest is more in favor of banks than regular people, which in the end keep enriching bankers with current way of things…
I guess that might be another way of looking at things, :)
That’s not true at all, many go bust or whatever. I think that they are too powerful but I’d rather have them be in reach of legislation than out of reach instead.
You seem to think that cryptocurrency is anonymous, which is totally untrue. Actually for many the opposite is true, since they literally have it baked into them to keep track of all transactions, by design. That’s what a blockchain is, a chain of blocks that each validate the ones that came before.
So cash money is actually more anonymous and versatile than what you have been describing. I go to the ATM and cash out money and from there it can’t be tracked remotely. I could hand it to some kid with a lemonade stand, buy drugs on a street corner, go to a supermarket and pay cash or hide it all in my pillow. I lost my phone, bank card, ID and keys? If I have cash I can still do some things. If my phones battery is dead, I just have cryptomoney and a virtual bank card, I am fucked.
I am not trying to argue against the existence of anonymous ways to transfer money, I would love that if there was a good way.
I am actually arguing for and against money being within reach of legislation here, let’s ignore that, I think all points I have made are valid at the same time
yeap, my mistake… Though if you forget about finance speculation, which big players do, and affect the currency value, the original idea of not depending on banks to do transactions is a very good one. Sadly big players, when seeing an opportunity, will definitely take it… an yes, I always forget blockchains make transactions identifiable and traceable…
Perhaps the original intend is what’s not bad at all, though crypto currencies ended up not fulfilling them…