Bitcoin

[slang]

Originally Posted by tw

It is necessary for a productive society.

Yes, I absolutely agree. And in the beginning this government as well as a few others were needed. And a positive force in peoples’ lives.

Yes, absolutely.Then over time with great expansion, they become corrupt. It’s much easier on a large scale to hide misdoings. Budgets swell and there is more to lose with “interference” by the American people or their elected representatives.

Something that they do well today will most likely be swerved into something detrimental to the American people, in one way or another.

They will become political. Work against the will of the people and the law. For their own means which is always…larger government.

But only for our benefit. Not theirs.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

That does not mean people such as Cheney will not manipulate government for a self serving agenda.

Cheney for certain but don’t forget Obama too. And Clapper, and Brennan, et al.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Obviously the existence of a Central Bank cannot prevent a Mugabe or Maduro. Your logic - blame a Central Bank for that corruption.

Your promotion of the Central Bank being required led me to believe that, in your opinion, it was a pillar of virtue and respectability.

It encourages stability. Not fidelity.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Please don't mock me with that wacko extremist logic. A central bank cannot prevent corrupt leaders. But a Central Bank has been repeatedly proven essential for a stable currency.

I’m sorry that you think I’m mocking you. Instead I’m making arguments with citations and quotes and references.

You could do the same if you would like.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Throughout history, currencies that remain most stable are maintained by a Central Bank. We know government must be part of a solution.

In the beginning, yes, they do add to the stability of a currency. With time, in their plateau and decline, they are not a benefit to the population. They stray from their mandate. Exaggerate their importance and become detrimental to the people that they originally served.

In time a country doesn’t have a government, a government has a country. It’s a natural progression.

Originally Posted by tw

Which flies in the face of extremists who are told by Hitler, Mussolini, Alex Jones, Sean Hannity, or Rush Limbaugh what to believe.

Have you ever watched an entire Hannity program? Have you vetted his sources? Not by reading a Soros funded website, but actually looking through his citations?

Ok, ok, he’s a bit ridiculous. Have you ever listened to Rush Limballs? Not the soundbytes, we’ve talked about those already. Sound bytes are not for people of officer material. We already agreed on that.

Rachel Maddow has a very popular program. Or she did until the Mueller report exonerated Trump. She’s not persuasive to me but interesting to watch.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Extremists never bother to learn details or ask why. They only want to be told what to believe.

That’s probably your observation. Or are you talking about radical left wing democrats?

You have to be cautious about who you listen to and what their agendas are. Like CNN And MSNBC

One could end up believing some demonstrably false ideas if they aren’t skeptical.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Then just know something must be true because it agrees with their political biases.

We completely agree on this issue. It’s rampant and it doesn’t seem to be going away.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

I heard same nonsense from so many Bernie Sanders supporters during the Democratic Convention. Details quickly identified them as extremist. Told what to believe rather than first learn how things work.

Completely agree.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by tw

Again, it is no accident that Bitcoin is popular among the anti-everyone else extremists. Bitcoin cannot even do what credit cards do to advance mankind.

Not yet but there’s still time. Bitcoin is abused. It doesn’t seem to be burdening people with high interest debt, at this time anyway. Cards have reached a trillion bucks of debt. How much in questionable payments has Bitcoin provided?

Bitcoin has ripped people off but it’s nowhere near the amount of money that card debt has saddled people with. One trillion is one million times one million.

It is true that credit cards are a big benefit to many people. I’ve benefitted from them too. They are convenient many times. They do have a tendency to be issued with a limit that is not suited appropriately for the applicant.

Are these lenders criminals? Not from my experience. I spent their card money. It was difficult to pay back though. They even upped my limit as I was working to pay it off and cancel the card. Again, it was my lack of discipline that created my problem. And it’s long since done.

Originally Posted by tw

It is seriously flawed for so many reasons - many already identified.

It is flawed. And it’s abused. It does appear that its’ popularity is growing though.Why would that be since it’s so flawed? Even a third world country like the Philippines has a Bitcoin ATM.

Originally Posted by tw

Only a wacko extremist sees all government as evil. Fails to learn that the most successful societies existed when government was doing its job.

The Florida DMV was effectively doing it’s job when I needed their assistance last year. I don’t believe that they are evil. They’re small.

[Undertoad]

wacko extremist concepts of 'good vs evil'

Unit 731

I defy anyone to read that link, and come back here and tell us evil doesn't exist.

[Clodfobble]

Originally Posted by UT's link

Researchers mostly slipped back into civilian life in occupied Japan as if nothing had ever happened, many of them becoming prominent members of university faculty.

The scary thing about evil is it's a "capacity for," rather than an inherent behavior pattern that makes itself known from the get-go. How do you figure out who has the capacity for evil? And what do you do with that person if they aren't currently perpetrating evil?

[Undertoad]

We all have the capacity.

[slang]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

I defy anyone to read that link, and come back here and tell us evil doesn't exist.

It didn't seem possible before reading from the link, but maybe bean counters aren't so bad after all.

[tw]

Originally Posted by slang

Yes, absolutely.Then over time with great expansion, they become corrupt. It’s much easier on a large scale to hide misdoings. Budgets swell and there is more to lose with “interference” by the American people or their elected representatives.

One factor was observed throughout history. Many leaders become corrupt after ten years. The soundbyte is "power corrupts". But many exceptions exist. King Hussein of Jordan was one. Queen Victoria apparently was another. Omar al-Bashir of Sudan is the current perfect example of why government no longer serves it function - to work for the nation. And why term limits have been so useful.

Term limits may be necessary even in Vatican City.


Forces always have a dark side - not just in Star Wars. A credit card is a powerful tool because it make borrowing so easy - as needed. Unfortunately, many use it like an alcoholic. That is the dark side. If one cannot pay off his balance at the end of a month, then he must stop using that card. Some just cannot. Meaning they will remain debtors their entire life.

Same applies to derivatives. Future contracts are so essential to provide, for example, stability for farmers. In the oil industry, futures are a powerful tool that informs all in the world that supply and demand are working (or not). Causing even the most greedy to work for the benefit of all (and to sometimes reap a massive profit in doing so).

The dark side? We all saw it when Enron intentionally created an energy shortage. Or the near economic disaster in 2007. In these cases, the problem was (in part) trading under the table - not in open and regulated markets. There are cases where some business must be conducted privately. But a majority of economic activity must be done in open markets when regulation means all counter parties (can) prosper. The only good business deal is when both parties prosper.

What made broadband possible? Regulation. Not regulation to restrict business. Regulations that halted the strifling of broadband communication.

DSL existed when the IBM PC came about. Modems in IBM PCs could only do 1200 baud. DSL could do about 1,000,000 baud. We could not have it for 15 years because companies all but conspired to stifle it. That 1981 technology was withheld for 15 years - until finally liberated by laws - the 1996 Federal Communication Act.

More laws can be good or bad. One cannot make blanket conclusions (as too many do). Government, laws, and leaders determine whether the 'powers that be' advance or stifle mankind. The devil is in the details - and not in a philosophy.

BTW, Bitcoin's major contribution to mankind: it was an experiment. It demonstrated what can happen. But also demonstrated the limit, potential corruption, and weaknesses. Like 'letters of credit' eventually created bank checks. Like Diner's Club eventually resulted in credit cards and Paypal. Well, Bitcoin is necessary to discover if that concept can / might work and what has not yet / must be solved.

[tw]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

We all have the capacity.

US Army did same to some 60,000 black, Puerto Rican, and Japanese= American soldiers in the 1940s. Intentionally exposing them to toxic gases. This has remains secret until 1993 and is only recently been exposed for the scope and inhumanity that was implemented. Apparently other America experiments also existed and are still secret.

Milgram's Electric Shock experiment in Yale demonstrated that most anyone will be as evil if ordered to do so.

[slang]

Another anti-everyone else extremist group now authorized to use Bitcoin.

Where will this end?

[tw]

Originally Posted by slang

Another anti-everyone else extremist group now authorized to use Bitcoin.

Nobody said all users of bitcoin are 'anti-everyone'. But that exchange is especially popular with criminal elements. And cannot be scaled large enough to replace standard currencies.

France did not authorized bitcoin. France permitted people who sell insurance (protect from risk) to work with crypto currencies just like they do with derivatives (SIVs, CDOs, etc). Those derivatives also are not currencies even though they too can be traded like one.

France is establishing a standard so that better future options can be created. Casinos can aslo sell and trade gambling chips. France did not have to liberate those transactions.

Also changed is private ownership of airports. That is also not legalizing a new currency. That is Macron opening new markets in France's economy. The Euro remains legal tender.

[slang]

That is actually a pretty good explanation tw. And it's not long.


And you worked casino chips in, which is always worth a chuckle.

Are you a gambler by any chance? a casino gambler?

[xoxoxoBruce]

What do you do with casino chips for a casino that closes?

[sexobon]

There are collectors for them, just as there are for Mardi Gras tokens. Put them on eBay.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Do they sell for more than face value, I'd guess not unless the Casino is kaput.

[slang]

You should have bought something illegal on the dark web. That's what Bitcoin is for, you know.

[henry quirk]

it disappears