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by cryptoanonymous 1988 days ago
Author here. I really appreciate your kind words about the post - thank you!

I'm also broadly in agreement with your conclusions as to what this means for a crypto trader or holder. I've zeroed my net exposure to this ecosystem myself, both in anticipation for such an event, and out of recognition that I frankly understand it far less well than I originally thought.
2 comments
christiansakai 1988 days ago
I am not a Bitcoin holder, but Ethereum. I zeroed all my Ethereum except the ones locked due to staking (32 ETH, but I bought them when they were $600) because of these Tether news lately. I will wait for more clarity before jumping back in.

It is kinda sad that in this technology there are so many frauds like that.

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ur-whale 1987 days ago
>I will wait for more clarity before jumping back in.

Probably wise given how correlated ETH and BTC prices are.

>It is kinda sad that in this technology there are so many frauds like that.

It is, but it is also unavoidable.

As the author correctly points at towards the end, many of the properties of cryptos (high liquidity, non-reversible, pseudo-anonymous), while very useful to legitimate users, are a wet dream for crooks.

As a matter of fact, Bitcoin has been used to scam people for its entire existence, e.g.[1][2], sometimes even in new and innovative ways.

There is one aspect of Bitcoin that many people entirely overlook, especially newcomers: [3]

[1] https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Trendon_Shavers

[2] https://archive.is/PZdxu

[3] http://trilema.com/2013/the-story-of-pointless-and-witless/

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christiansakai 1987 days ago
Indeed. It is part of the game I guess.
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mikewarot 1987 days ago
Long ago I spent $100 on a graphics card, and mined 1 Bitcoin over the course of a year... then lost it on MtGox... that was a cheap lesson compared to what appears set to happen.

Thanks for taking the time and effort to put this together. I'm sure it'll help some people avoid a costly lesson.

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spiralx 1985 days ago
I remember reading the first announcement of Bitcoin on Slashdot over a decade ago, and every time I begin to feel regret over not having downloaded it then, I realise that I would almost certainly have lost anything I had from one of a thousand ways its possible to lose your coins - MtGox being a major one in the early days!
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