[jfengel]

They're more "collectable" than wooden nickels. The world is full of bits of claptrap that nobody actually wants for itself, but nonetheless are proud to own.

I'd say they're closer to baseball cards. You can't buy anything with a baseball card, and I doubt anybody actually looks at theirs, but there's nonetheless a thriving market for them.

I suppose some government could decide to monetize baseball cards, and the coin advocates seem certain that the US government is about to start letting you pay your taxes in bitcoins. They might even be right about that.