"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws. - Mayer Rothschild
"Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience! People are obedient in the face of poverty, starvation, stupidity, war, and cruelty. Our problem is that grand thieves are running the country. That's our problem!" - Howard Zinn
"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will" - Frederick Douglass
I love that there is the beginnings of an alternative to fiat currencies and bank control of money. I love that it is decentralised and no one gets to control it or have monopoly over it. Love that people can make their own. If it gets too big I think the banks and governments will want to eliminate it like they have done in the past with other alternative currencies. Personally for a sane future this sort of alternative is the way to go though I think this has the potential for inflation or devaluation as has already happened. I would prefer to see units of time used as no one can mess with that and it is universal all over the globe. 24 hours a day for every one every where and all exchangable and no barriers and no inflation.
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx
"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.
“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
I follow the bitcoin phenomenon with caution. Theoretically, it makes good sense, but I'm still suspicious that those white hacker types who invented it skewed it in their favor and this needs to be corrected. There are a few bitcoin forums and I'm a member of one. Much of the talk is about building monstrously powerful parallel computer systems at home [multiple very powerful computers working in tandem generating the bitcoins]. It is the 'creation' of bitcoins that seems unfair and odd to me....and it is very complex how this is done. It is beyond my mathematics skills to fully understand and it would be nice if some mathematician would weigh in on the matter, regardless of how they feel about bitcoins.
"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws. - Mayer Rothschild
"Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience! People are obedient in the face of poverty, starvation, stupidity, war, and cruelty. Our problem is that grand thieves are running the country. That's our problem!" - Howard Zinn
"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will" - Frederick Douglass
Peter Lemkin Wrote:I follow the bitcoin phenomenon with caution. Theoretically, it makes good sense, but I'm still suspicious that those white hacker types who invented it skewed it in their favor and this needs to be corrected. There are a few bitcoin forums and I'm a member of one. Much of the talk is about building monstrously powerful parallel computer systems at home [multiple very powerful computers working in tandem generating the bitcoins]. It is the 'creation' of bitcoins that seems unfair and odd to me....and it is very complex how this is done. It is beyond my mathematics skills to fully understand and it would be nice if some mathematician would weigh in on the matter, regardless of how they feel about bitcoins.
I agree Peter. It does leave a lot of people out of the system when they don't have the skills to create them. Another reason I like time as a unit of exchange. It is universal and democratic. Every one gets that 24 hours a day regardless of skills or social connections. Still on the conceptual level I like that Bitcoin exists if only to get people thinking that alternatives actually do exist and that there is life out side the bank and money system.
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx
"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.
“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Peter Lemkin Wrote:I follow the bitcoin phenomenon with caution. Theoretically, it makes good sense, but I'm still suspicious that those white hacker types who invented it skewed it in their favor and this needs to be corrected. There are a few bitcoin forums and I'm a member of one. Much of the talk is about building monstrously powerful parallel computer systems at home [multiple very powerful computers working in tandem generating the bitcoins]. It is the 'creation' of bitcoins that seems unfair and odd to me....and it is very complex how this is done. It is beyond my mathematics skills to fully understand and it would be nice if some mathematician would weigh in on the matter, regardless of how they feel about bitcoins.
I agree Peter. It does leave a lot of people out of the system when they don't have the skills to create them. Another reason I like time as a unit of exchange. It is universal and democratic. Every one gets that 24 hours a day regardless of skills or social connections. Still on the conceptual level I like that Bitcoin exists if only to get people thinking that alternatives actually do exist and that there is life out side the bank and money system.
Its too complex to go into [as far as I understand it], but one can buy and sell bitcoins and [at some places for some things] items or services for/with bitcoins...that part is pretty strightforward [with the exception that it seems an inflation bubble may be forming with them now - or alternatively - their value is going sky high due to the failures of other funny money [the kind the central banks issue]. However, there are bit coin generators. These are computer programs that actually GENERATE from nothing but your computer's processor and memory + electrical costs of running the computer ==> bitcoins. What upsets me about these is all are not equal. There are debates about this bitcoin generator v. that one and with all of them, the more powerful [and expensive] your computer set up the faster and more bitcoins will be created*. The details are highly complex math and logic...I can follow to a point, but not verify certain assumptions and what are taken as 'facts' by the core bitcoin community [who developed the idea and system]. It needs someone independent to verify if their mathematical pronouncements are true and if bitcoins are as susceptible as other 'currencies' [I assume they are] to manipulation and bubbles. Caveat Emptor even with bitcoins! It is an interesting new model, however and may evolve into a way to undermine the central banksters - which I sure most of us here would just LOVE!
* Some bitcoin forum posts are about how this or that person, for example, has a room completely filled with a hundred powerful computers ONLY generating bitcoins and how they monitor electrical consumption to make sure they gain more wealth with the created bitcoins than they spend on computer equiptment + electrical costs.
"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws. - Mayer Rothschild
"Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience! People are obedient in the face of poverty, starvation, stupidity, war, and cruelty. Our problem is that grand thieves are running the country. That's our problem!" - Howard Zinn
"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will" - Frederick Douglass
My main concern with Bitcoin is you can't stuff any of it under your bed, or slide it into your money-clip.
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.
David Guyatt Wrote:My main concern with Bitcoin is you can't stuff any of it under your bed, or slide it into your money-clip.
Yeah, but it is all an illusion of what really matters any way. It is all just paper and metal. Can't eat gold or paper either. Can't take any of it with you when you go. Just another agreed belief system but not all are believers. And some worship other gods.
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx
"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.
“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
David Guyatt Wrote:My main concern with Bitcoin is you can't stuff any of it under your bed, or slide it into your money-clip.
Yeah, but it is all an illusion of what really matters any way. It is all just paper and metal. Can't eat gold or paper either. Can't take any of it with you when you go. Just another agreed belief system but not all are believers. And some worship other gods.
But you can put your computer[s] running the bitcoin production program under your bed!....
"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws. - Mayer Rothschild
"Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience! People are obedient in the face of poverty, starvation, stupidity, war, and cruelty. Our problem is that grand thieves are running the country. That's our problem!" - Howard Zinn
"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will" - Frederick Douglass
David Guyatt Wrote:My main concern with Bitcoin is you can't stuff any of it under your bed, or slide it into your money-clip.
Yeah, but it is all an illusion of what really matters any way. It is all just paper and metal. Can't eat gold or paper either. Can't take any of it with you when you go. Just another agreed belief system but not all are believers. And some worship other gods.
But you can put your computer[s] running the bitcoin production program under your bed!....
Indeed you can. Makes as much sense too.
"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Karl Marx
"He would, wouldn't he?" Mandy Rice-Davies. When asked in court whether she knew that Lord Astor had denied having sex with her.
“I think it would be a good idea” Ghandi, when asked about Western Civilisation.
Gold, silver, wampum, shells, cattle, tobacco (where's Len when you need him eh?) - all and more have been money at some stage. I suppose it's whatever is the current medium of exchange that works.
But all of the foregoing could, theoretically, go under my bed, and thus be used in times of crisis.
With digital money, if there's suddenly no power.... whoosh! All your wonga, wedge, ching and bunga bunga evaporates in the blink of an eye.
And me, I'm looking ahead.
And here's one reason why:
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See a large version [URL="https://twitter.com/russian_market/status/319012518087503872/photo/1"]HERE
Y[/URL]outh (under 25 years of age) unemployment figures for Europe. Almost 60% in Greece and Spain, nearly 40% in Italy - all countries that have a history of fascism. In Greece the Golden Dawn Nazi party is gaining popular support at a scary rate.
I really don't like the smell Europe is taking on.
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.
Indeed you can. Makes as much sense too.