(Not) As Good As Money In The Bank

(Not) As Good As Money In The Bank

Originally shared by Rick Wayne (Author)

A bunch of article about cryptocurrencies in my feeds today. Regulators are taking note and warning people of the danger:
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-41240803

The head of JP Morgan blasted them recently, calling anyone who buys them "stupid" (including his own daughter), and calling the current bubble "worse than the tulip craze":
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/sep/13/bitcoin-fraud-jp-morgan-cryptocurrency-drug-dealers

And it turns out that, besides facilitating ransomware developers, identity thieves, drug dealers, and hired killers, Bitcoin is also the new favorite currency of nuclear-powered dictators, per the article below. So if North Korea does progress with their program, breaking UN sanctions, it may very well be because they had access to a financial instrument that didn't previously exist. Wonderful.

A common theme among cryptocurrency supporters seems to be the idea that they're a "good alternative" to the corrupt global financial system. That's really naive and troubling.

I'm not against Whoppercoin, Burger King's new Russian cryptocurrency, and the like.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/8/29/16219468/burger-king-russia-cryptocurrency-whoppercoin-blockchain-trading-waves

Rather, I'm for transparency. Saying cryptocurrency is the answer to unfettered speculation is saying that what the big banks really needed was MORE SECRECY and LESS REGULATION and everything would've been great! If you actually believe that, I'm not sure there's anything anyone could say that could change your mind.

There's a speculative bubble going on now in the cryptocurrency market, just as there was in the internet in the 90s and housing in the 00s. The difference is, none of your crypto deposits are regulated or federally insured. So... good luck with that.

Just watch. Once the market does collapse, the crypto folks will say it was because of meddling from the traditional banks, not human nature, and that -- sure enough -- what they needed was even less oversight, that if they would just be left alone, everything would've been fine. Anarchy as a mantra.

Here's a free course in Econ. Take it: http://www.core-econ.org/
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-11/north-korea-hackers-step-up-bitcoin-attacks-amid-rising-tensions

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