Decentralize, Decentralize, Decentralize.  Did I say "Decentralize"?

THAT is the power of bitcoin.

If we are going to have other people making decisions on how we can and cannot spend, we may just as well go back to US Paper Dollars and hope for the best.

Socialism right from the get-go is evil.  Why?  Because it can exist only by the threat of force - follow these rules, give up a percentage of your earnings...OR ELSE WE WILL COME LOOKING FOR YOU.  Resist and you go to jail.  Resist further and we will kill you.  There is an unspoken gun in the room, always present, always menacing.

You say you want socialism because of the evils of capitalism.  Yet you want socialism forced on everyone at the point of a gun.  This immediately negates any discussion.  Socialism is violent by definition because it is forced upon those who may not want it.

I'll take capitalism any day.  Capitalism is not evil.  Capitalism lets the market decide.  You do not have to force capitalism upon the people at the point of a gun.  Capitalism just happens, it is peace.  It is industry.  It is Bitcoin.

Ask the US Postal Service where all their lost packages went.  Nobody knows, gone with the wind.

Well I know of at least one

 Margaret Thatcher - "The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money [to spend]."

An excellent bitcoin shopping cart for stores that have dozens of products, tied into wordpress.  The current US dollar value of bitcoin is automatically calculated for each product as well as at checkout.

Are you predicting $100,000 in three years?  I mean, $100,000 in today's US Dollars (in three years they will be worth less, and maybe even MUCH less).

Start your own business.  That is the surest way to wealth.

Chances are, your first several businesses will "fail".  If you are smart, these are not failures - they are lessons learned.  Keep applying what you learn along the way.  Persevere.  Take the risks, put in the time, blood, sweat, and tears.  Produce something that other people want and are willing to pay you for.

Yes, my friends - hard work is the surest way to wealth.  Always has been.

And then when you become wealthy, many people will talk of how lucky you have been.  But you will know the reason and that is all that counts.

Remember this: there are some things worth far more than money.  Health is #1.  Get lung cancer from smoking and you would give 100 Billion dollars and more for the chance to be cured.  So guard your health as you would all the gold in Fort Knox (if there IS any gold in Fort Knox).

Then you also believe the violence of the state must be used against those who earn their way but do not wish to participate in your vision of what the world should be...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGMQZEIXBMs

For socialism can only exist by threat of violence against those producers who do not wish to participate. Penalties, jail time, and violence if you resist handing over your earnings to those who did not earn them.

If you want to be a socialist, fine, then divvy up your wealth and bitcoins.  But do not force everyone else to follow your beautiful vision.

Socialism is not charity.  It is theft and violence, something even a child understands is wrong.

Yes, the human spirit prevails.

Here is what socialism gets us, a classroom experiment that anyone can relate to:

http://www.thecommentator.com/article/646/does_socialism_work_a_classroom_experiment

Enjoy the read!

Best hedge is food etc.  Next some cash as well as gold and silver.  Spread your investment around.  One goes bust, you have the others.

The Internet is a massive web that will likely be up in some areas baring a world wide catastrophe.  After all, that was a main reason the Internet was created in the first place.

Would a collapse tank Bitcoin?  Maybe.  But it may continue to be viable and may be the most viable currency of them all.

When the "system" gets back on its feet, and at some point it will even if that requires some years, bitcoin may be very valuable indeed.

But nobody knows.  If you are preparing for massive disaster, I'd say to get your beans, bullets and band-aids all set first, then get yourself some silver and/or gold, as well as some bitcoin.  Cover your bases and do not rely on just one thing.

HealthCoin

The main thing is, you've come out ahead and lost nothing.  BTC is worthless until it is actually used to purchase something - until then just numbers.  I'd say even if you bought a pizza with 10,000 bitcoins some time ago you are still ahead of the majority of people right now because you actually got something for your efforts.

I recommend both metals and bitcoin.

The all-your-eggs-in-one-basket method often leads to personal disaster.

Of course nobody can guess.  Catastrophes happen sometimes, that is a fact of life.  Sometimes catastrophes can have other consequences, such as if a failing currency in Greece, Argentina, China, or even the USA causes millions of people to flee government currencies in exchange for bitcoin.

I can see Bitcoin being easily worth the equivalent of thousands of US dollars, maybe even tens of thousands.  But, it could also go to Zero or maybe have some value as a simple collectors item as an experiment that didn't quite pan out.

In other words, don't bet the farm on bitcoin but it is wise to acquire a few coins just to be in on the game and see where it goes.  It is an interesting ride to be sure.

Just remember that BTC is just a number and not worth much unless you actually purchase something with it.  But it is fun being in a cave counting all your gold in a big pile!

Look closely at this pair of socks, son.  Yep, time was you could buy stuff like this....

I didn't buy much of anything with my bitcoins, because every day I woke up and looked at the charts my bitcoins were worth more than the day before!  It was great! For the economy as a whole lower demand lead to lower production lead to lower wages lead to widespread depression.  Wage earners that wouldn't accept wage reductions (in nominal terms) were laid off by the millions.  Employers didn't have a choice because, of course, they could not pay the equivalent of ten thousand dollars an hour.  But I had my bitcoins!  Still do too.  Someday I will spend some bitcoins if I can find something to buy with them.

The US Dollar is one of the most common means of purchasing drugs.  Look at the successful results of trying to stop that (sarcasm)