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Fools gold
Did someone just compare Bitcoin to gold?
What does a Bitcoin look like? FFS
SprogBarnes,
I can see you are outnumbered and I 100% agree with you that Bitcoin and crypto currencies as a whole are now an asset like Gold and Silver, with exception of AFC and Powerhouse energy they are by far my biggest investments for a long term asset growth.
I wont type much here as this is not the board for this, but when AFC get into charging data centres in particular I hope powering blockchains mining Green Bitcoins (I.e Argo Blockchain 'ARB') this will be a multi billion pound industry which is still in the infant stage of expansion which is in desperate need of offgrid power in renewable energy.
As always GLALTH, this is by far the most exciting year for AFC and the sky is the limit :)
Crypto mining not a target market to hang your hat on, thankfully its not been proposed either as far as I've read. Blockchain very different to bitcoin and value almost entirely dependent on QE - conceived post '08 and huge value increase during pandemic. If the FED keeps printing so the value will keep rising. Incidentally if anyone has ideas on blockchain infrastructure investment, would be interested to hear. Bring on AGM and some clarity on orders!
Also miners verify blocks of transactions so to say it is not meant to be a currency is just plain wrong.
It is a currency, but one that is only really used by criminals. The technology is not novel anymore and has no intrinsic value. In fact the only real value you can assign to it is how much energy you have to waste to mine one.
The climate decides what is a waste of energy, started and unstoppable.
Blockchain can make transactions secure without bitcoin. And it is being incorporated into the technology stacks of major banks. Bitcoin itself is only a store of value because enough people think it is who have no idea that it has no intrinsic value. When those people have spent all their money the house of cards will crumble.
Phew, thanks Athansius, that's put my mind at ease!
I can help Sprog Barnes
It is not ice cream.
Iv just added 17k at 74p I think 100p plus shortly
BTC is not meant to be a currency. It's a store of value, like gold. It's slow and energy hungy to be secure and to add material cost. It's meant protect against inflation and its doing a good job a that.
Anyway, who know which way it'll go. The point being it's a secure computing network and not just a Crypto Currency.
The deeper topic is, who decides what is a waste of energy? Crypto mining, Racing in the desert or ice cream!?
That said + 7 paragraphs :-) fully agree that blockchain is useful in some situations. However bitcoin cannot ever be a mainstream currency because it is so unstable because at the moment it is the worlds largest Ponzi scheme. It also promotes low economic activity. At the moment, governments have the lever to make stimulus boosts to the economy but that isn't possible with bitcoin. Also with bitcoin as a currency, "why would I spend them today when they would be worth more tomorrow" is a sentiment that will drive recessions.
Companies buying bitcoin as assets will lead to one of the next crashes IMHO. When it stops growing because people have finished piling into it it will go on the worlds largest bear run.
I would really be interested in debating this topic but I think that might frustrate many in the board. That said...
Bitcoin is the name of the 'token' / reward but is also the name of the world largest and securest computer network. This network forms the backbone of a decentralised global financial system and allow millions of people without access to the regular banking system to access crypto banking, investments, savings, and in the future a bank account, mortgages etc. The mainstream use of Bitcoin will reduce global banking datacentres as much of that work will be carried out on crypto networks / blockchsins.
Anyway, this is likely to be the future and the 'wasteful' mathematical calculations are the vitally important security for that global system.
I agree in principle that it appears to be a redundant user of resources but when looking at what the Bitcoin computing network and blockchain offers to the world in terms of a decentralised inflation hedged financial system, that gives financial control back to the people, it's actually a very worthwhile use of power. Furthermore, they 'only' mine were power is cheapest (low / periodic / seasonal demand / renewable), otherwise they would not survive the best market. (Note. China is changing and renewables are increasing.) Interstingly Bitcoin does act like a battery, in terms of turning power that would otherwise be wasted in eg. Iceland, into monetary energy that can be sent anywhere in the world without building impossible underwater cables etc. Many other examples available...
This raises the more fundamental question, who should decide how power is used other than market forces? This alone should highlight that is not being wasted, ie. miners would not exist without a market.
So who decides what is a wasteful use of power? Is it any consumer product I don't use or is it highstreet fashion, consumer choice, building islands in the sea, cities in the desert, global tourism...it's market forces, rightly or wrongly.
The surprise is that Bitcoin as a financial platform is a lot more altruistic that it might first seem, it's engineered to work on the cheapest energy supplies so as not to deprive others and understanding that it's more than just a hyped up crypto currency might encourage others to look beyond headlines.
Anyway, I'm loving AFCs outlook for the year and excitedly await the announcement of multiple orders...it can't be long now, can it!?
It's not a random number they are solutions to ever increasingly difficult mathematical problems
and........we’ll all be using sky taxis.
But, within five years they’ll be flying off inside an
e-vtol charged by AFC.
Bitcoin is the best definition of millennial woke hypocrisy that I can think of. All the holier than thou stuff about saving the planet while partaking in this nonsense; and doubtless while flying off on stag dos on Ryanair when circumstances allow.
Sprog, it’s not detracting from AFC, I posted it as a comparison to show the energy used to mine Bitcoin compared with data centres, but then I guess these are data centres anyway. Is there such a thing a cheap energy? Sounds like good PR from to hide an astronomical waste of power used purely to make money literally.
Sorry to detract from AFC but this topic is perfect to drive disinformation.
There are two sides to every story.
Yes BTC consume lots of power, but why is that a problem, is there a finite supply, no. Is BTC mining mainly powered by renewables? (yes - it's cheaper, even China is shutting coal powered miners) Do they get power from surplus sources (yes - its cheaper and they even use gas flaring, capitalising on waste). Do they go to the end of the earth to get cheap power (yes - often literally!) Do they deprive anyone of power? (Unlikely, its cheap for a reason eg. In 2020 the USA produced excess power and Germany frequently pays Switzerland to take their power when renewables spike and consumption is low). Is lighting empty office blocks or producing plastic tat in China a better use of global energy!?
These articles tend to be miopic on a subject that's much big that Bitcoin, the asset, and more about the future of global finance and how we should maybe rethink what is an acceptable use of power.
Here's something from the web:
https://tomerstrolight.medium.com/why-bitcoins-energy-use-is-not-environmentally-harmful-6fbba54911ed
From a Cambridge university study in Feb 2021
The University of Cambridge's online tool estimates Bitcoin's annual electricity consumption is more than The Netherlands, United Arab Emirates and Argentina
Bitcoin uses more electricity annually than the whole of Argentina, analysis by Cambridge University suggests.
"Mining" for the cryptocurrency is power-hungry, involving heavy computer calculations to verify transactions.
Cambridge researchers say it consumes around 121.36 terawatt-hours (TWh) a year - and is unlikely to fall unless the value of the currency slumps.
Critics say electric-car firm Tesla's decision to invest heavily in Bitcoin undermines its environmental image.
The currency's value hit a record $48,000 (£34,820) this week. following Tesla's announcement that it had bought about $1.5bn bitcoin and planned to accept it as payment in future.
But the rising price offers even more incentive to Bitcoin miners to run more and more machines.