| Yeah, I think you have a point regarding gold. I think the same way the author treats Bitcoin in regards to the way 'most people are using it' when defending its categorization should apply to gold as well. Once we accept that the price is defined by speculators, the industrial and decorative applications of gold set a floor price rather than necessarily redefining the category. There are a few key differences. (1) Gold is zero-sum. Once out of the earth, it simply continues to exist. It produces nothing, consumes nothing, reacts with nothing, and doesn't really get lost or destroyed. (2) On the other hand, if Bitcoin miners are turned off, 100% of the value evaporates instantly. (3) Bitcoin therefore is negative-sum because miners require a steady influx of new capital in order to purchase coal to burn to 'secure' the network. This new capital is raised in the form of block rewards which are sold, exerting negative price pressure in the amount of ~$60M USD per day. If new capital stops coming in, Bitcoin bleeds value slowly, and then drops to zero all of a sudden. The difference between a zero-sum vehicle and a negative-sum vehicle is enormous at the limit. > People like to own gold jewelry for the same reason people like to own bitcoin. I do disagree with this however, most people buy gold because it's shiny and a status symbol. They want others to see it. People buy bitcoin because number go up. |