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Posted (edited)
36 minutes ago, plenzmd1 said:

Hey @Foxx , is this a big deal? I mean Square is pretty big deal, but I am not 100% positive i understand what this lightening stuff is? Help a brother out? I am thinking of buying some bitcoin as it seems to have found a base...

 

https://www.coindesk.com/square-bitcoin-jack-dorsey-lightning-cash-app

yes and no.

 

yes it is a big deal whenever a major player recognizes a crypto currency solution. i'd be willing to bet that not many people here know that there are a large number of businesses that accept cryptos. i will include a info-graphic from April of last year below to illustrate just how mainstream it has become.

 

as for the lightning network, i am not a big proponent of off chain settlement layers. essentially what the lightning network does is to settle transactions outside of a respective blockchain. all of which has to, at some point, be reconciled on the respective blockchain. they are set up as just another middleman, who will require a fee over and above the transaction fee upon the, to be  reconciled blockchain. there is no need for that, really. 

 

all of these off chain settlement layers are just scams to be honest. BTC is slow and cumbersome by design, the devs could have made it much more user friendly (thus speedier) by increasing the block size but they refused to do that. they wanted BTC to be true to it's inception and didn't see a real need to change it's core. this was a very heated dispute and remains so to this day within the community. so much so that there was a hardfork which created a spin off of BTC, called Bitcoin Cash. they increased the block size which made payments not only remarkably fast but also very cheap (pennies). shortly after the split, BTC transactions were delayed by days with some being over a week to confirm and they were very costly depending upon what you were willing to pay to have it confirmed.

 

Bitcoin Cash has rely had issues of it's own whereby they also split via a hard fork. prior to his latest for Cash, i was a big proponent of it, now... not so much. 

 

i guess what i am trying to say here is that there are other cryptos that will emerge as everyday payment mechanisms, that utilized their own blockchain and are very fast. it all depends upon consumer acceptance and which ones are forced down our throats by TPTB as to which ones will ultimately be the retail layer of crypto. it may be that several are accepted. there is also the layer where a company can issue it's own crypto (which theoretically would technically be called a 'token' (i also created a Cryptos thread to track these tokens)) that you can buy using, 'coin'. Kodak had it's own ICO last year. i haven't received any emails from them of late so i don'tow where they stand right now but just to give you a little teaser of what is out there and what is coming.

 

i am still of the opinion that BTC will ultimately become an international settlement vehicle. if that is the case and i am correct, you can guess the value of each BTC as there will only ever be 21mm of them.

 

jan-22-2018-who-accepts-bitcoin-01-1.jpg

Edited by Foxx
Posted (edited)
43 minutes ago, plenzmd1 said:

Thank You @Foxx , poys to chew on there. So let me see if I understand. Lightning lets me settle transactions outside the blockchain, but eventually that all has to happen there anyway?

correct.

 

again this is just my opinion and should not be considered financial advice, i am just a stupid keyboard jockey, wtf do i know, but ... i am not convinced we have bottomed out. with that said, i don't see much downside whether you buy in at today's prices or at my projected level of three figures. the current bubble has to complete it's cycle before the next (and possibly last bubble before it becomes a true conveyance vehicle) one can begin. i see nothing, outside of a collapse of the USD, that changes my opinion at this point.

Edited by Foxx
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  • 1 month later...
Posted
On 2/17/2019 at 6:07 AM, Foxx said:

what have i been saying about BTC becoming an international settlement vehicle?

 

the first ever international settlement.

Argentina Settles Export Deal With Paraguay Using Bitcoin

another step in the settlement layer progression.

 

Afghanistan, Tunisia to Issue Sovereign Bonds in Bitcoin, Bright Future Ahead

... Khalil Sediq, the governor of the Central Bank of Afghanistan, confirmed that they were looking to utilize cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to raise around $5.8 billion. Sediq said they would pair bitcoin with a form of metal futures, such as lithium. The move would make it easier for Afghanistan to expose its $3 trillion lithium sector to investors across the world. The metal’s short supply against its booming demand in the electric-vehicle industry would pose profitable opportunities for Afghanistan.

 

Sediq went on to explain the situation that led them to opt for bitcoin over other fiat assets. The governor blamed the post-war conflict scenario that raised Afghanistan’s risk of debt. It prompted the IMF to expose the country to severe restrictions on non-concessional financing. In layman terms, developed economies were less likely to invest in Afghanistan owing to its risks limited to or beyond a geopolitical crisis, as well as to a perceived lack of fiscal and debt discipline.

 

Crypto solutions, explained Sediq, could allow Afghanistan economy to access global markets. He stated that they would use hyperledger’s blockchain technology financial services platform to issue their sovereign bitcoin bonds. ...

  • Like (+1) 1
Posted

What's the story on energy consumption/environmental impact from bitcoin mining?   I've only read enough to be what I presume is badly uninformed.

Posted (edited)

 I don’t get this whole crypto-currency stuff.  At first, I thought BitCoin was an actual coin - now I understand it’s basically a debit card.

 

I have a friend that’s very knowledgable in the subject and has tried to explain it to me, without success.  I still don’t understand the difference between BitCoin and my MasterCard.

 

He is somewhat invested in several crypto-currencies (recommends Bakkt, btw) snd insists that it will completely replace paper currency.

 

I call bullsh*t on that one, and will invest my money in marijuana stocks instead.

 

I do know that computer security software pioneer John McAfee has promised to eat his own d*ck if BitCoin doesn’t hit $1M in 3 years. I’d say he and his d*ck are in trouble...

 

https://diegorod.github.io/WillMcAfeeEatHisOwnDick/

.

Edited by The Senator
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Posted
44 minutes ago, KD in CA said:

What's the story on energy consumption/environmental impact from bitcoin mining?   I've only read enough to be what I presume is badly uninformed.

i guess that depends upon how you want to look at it.

 

if you want to base it against the various fiats around the world, the impact is infinitesimal.

 

are we comparing it against gold mining impact? gold is more impactful.

 

as of Dec '18

gold_vs_bitcoin.png

Posted
58 minutes ago, The Senator said:

 I don’t get this whole crypto-currency stuff.  At first, I thought BitCoin was an actual coin - now I understand it’s basically a debit card.

 

I have a friend that’s very knowledgable in the subject and has tried to explain it to me, without success.  I still don’t understand the difference between BitCoin and my MasterCard.

 

He is somewhat invested in several crypto-currencies (recommends Bakkt, btw) snd insists that it will completely replace paper currency.

 

I call bullsh*t on that one, and will invest my money in marijuana stocks instead.

 

I do know that computer security software pioneer John McAfee has promised to eat his own d*ck if BitCoin doesn’t hit $1B in 3 years. I’d say he and his d*ck are in trouble...

 

https://diegorod.github.io/WillMcAfeeEatHisOwnDick/

.

I think most people are afraid and skeptical of what they don’t understand....i fall into this category...i do not fully grasp the idea of cryptocurrency or block chain technology but I’d be hesitant to say that it wont become the future....i just don’t know enough about the subject to make an educated guess one way or the other.

Posted
18 minutes ago, zevo said:

I think most people are afraid and skeptical of what they don’t understand....i fall into this category...i do not fully grasp the idea of cryptocurrency or block chain technology but I’d be hesitant to say that it wont become the future....i just don’t know enough about the subject to make an educated guess one way or the other.

 

My 92 Year old dad and my late mom have/had problems using an ATM, don’t understand voicemail, and have never used a computer, and generally paid for things with cash.

 

What will older folks do if paper currency is eliminated?

.

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Posted
4 minutes ago, The Senator said:

 

My 92 Year old dad and my late mom have/had problems using an ATM, don’t understand voicemail, and have never used a computer, and generally paid for things with cash.

 

What will older folks do if paper currency is eliminated?

.

 

I don’t think a 92 year old will have to worry about this. I mean......had lunch with my 91 year old mom today, and I doubt she’ll ever even hear of cryptocurrency! Sad but true. (Of course, she could barely hear ME at lunch!)

 

 

Posted
1 hour ago, The Senator said:

 

My 92 Year old dad and my late mom have/had problems using an ATM, don’t understand voicemail, and have never used a computer, and generally paid for things with cash.

 

What will older folks do if paper currency is eliminated?

.

I don’t think we are talking in their lifetime...

Posted
2 hours ago, Augie said:

 

I don’t think a 92 year old will have to worry about this. I mean......had lunch with my 91 year old mom today, and I doubt she’ll ever even hear of cryptocurrency! Sad but true. (Of course, she could barely hear ME at lunch!)

 

 

 

 

No..... she simply does not want to hear you at lunch .... her auditory abilities are just fine .... :D 

Posted
52 minutes ago, BuffaloBill said:

 

 

No..... she simply does not want to hear you at lunch .... her auditory abilities are just fine .... :D 

 

Well, she did keep saying “shut up!” But I thought I was making wonderful conversation.....so I kept going. 

 

 

...and she kept saying “SHUT UP!”  I though she was loud so she could hear herself. I may have misjudged that one. 

  • Awesome! (+1) 1
Posted

this is kinda what we are waiting for... the influx of institutional investment money.

 

E-TRADE IS READYING BITCOIN TRADING FOR 5 MILLION CUSTOMERS: REPORT

 

https://twitter.com/nathanielpopper/status/1121868559330598912

 

So no official news, but stay tuned… great help.

...OPENING THE FLOODGATES FOR INSTITUTIONAL INVESTORS

Even talk of such mainstream institutions as E-Trade and TD Ameritrade considering cryptocurrency trading is highly positive for Bitcoin. If one, or both, make any official announcement regarding this, it could further legitimize cryptocurrency in the minds of wary investors.

 

With around 5 million brokerage accounts and assets of over $65 billion, E-Trade enabling BTC and ETH trading could considerably boost adoption.

 

Having an institutional-grade spot-trading solution would also complement forthcoming institutional futures and custodial platforms from firms like Fidelity Investments and Intercontinental Exchange.

 

Many expect an influx of institutional investment as early as this year, taking bitcoin and cryptocurrency prices to new highs.

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