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Well said OP.
Early adopters have a higher likelihood of making lots of money precisely because they took proportionately more risk. This is how all financial markets work (or, at least, how they are supposed to work).
And it is illegitimate to claim this system is "unfair" in any way. Why illegitimate? Because it's voluntary. Nobody is forced to use Bitcoin in any way whatsoever. So anyone who doesn't like the release schedule of the coins can simply choose not to participate. This is thus PERFECTLY fair, because it's perfectly voluntary and transparent.
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now im getting "unknown" pay status. Please tell me this site hasnt gone off the deep end. I will be very disappointed  The site is fine. All transactions clear eventually, but some get stuck in the nethervoid. There are a number of bitcoin-based bugs which cause this to happen, and over time we've found some of them and fixed, but we haven't fixed them all. So, if a transaction ever get stuck, just please be patient and PM me if you feel something is really wrong. Bets always come through, but I apologize for any delays. |
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My most epic Bitcoin win, was learning about Bitcoin on that first day in early May 2011. It is one of the greatest things that has happened in my life.
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So I' figured I'd announce the birth of my first son is upon the world. I'm delighted and excited for this new life within my own circle. What's really neat is his birth is going to be on the same-day as my own birthday! Will update.... For those that pray... Please do  Buy a Casascius coin for him, and see how much it's worth when he's 18. |
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Now you've kicked the hornets nest. Awakened the sleeping giant. Yanked the tail of the tiger. +1 I dont know that it was wise for Erik to argue with the Dodd-Frank guy. That guy is going to go back to his organisation and spread the message that bitcoin is a tool for circumventing the law. That might just bring on the government attacks sooner. Id prefer if bitcoin were off their radar for as long as possible. We need time to integrate bitcoin with the real economy so deeply that it will be impossible to marginalise and criminalise, when the authorities decide to attack. Let's not use the word "argue." The whole event was for networking and education, and this is what happened. The Dodd-Frank guy works for the Fed, yes, but was presenting on a piece of legislation written by congress. Further, from his tone, he was none-too-thrilled with the legislation either, so me describing to him how Bitcoin might cause problems for it did not antagonize him personally in any significant way. I don't want to hide in the dark with what we're doing. I want to speak with those who are part of the status quo, and demonstrate to them how amazing this technology is. Yes, some will fight us, but my confidence in Bitcoin is such that I believe it can stand up on its own, and will prove itself to the world. I've taken it upon myself to simply inform, educate, and discuss along the way. |
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Well done Charlie and Eric.
Just a minor comment from a notorious nitpicker. Bitcoin is not the first scarce digital commodity. I found at least one precedent: IP addresses. They are scarce, digital, and have a market price.
Cheers from the Bitcoin conference.
Fair point |
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EDIT: nah, just target one or two big guys like eBay and Amazon.
The big guys will not make a move on Bitcoin until there is clear legal precedent. We should not expect Amazon to be interested in Bitcoin anytime soon. Once legal precedent happens... watch out! |
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You're brave, good at writing and just awesome. I'm now officially a fan of yours!
This was refreshing.
Thanks, I write good whenever I can  |
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"The absurd puritan tyranny of America is made all too clear when travelling abroad."
Having been in Thailand for more than a decade now I can't help roll my eyes when I hear an American acting like they invented freedom.
Very interesting writeup on your trip. Thx.
Astoundingly, only 25% of Americans even have a passport, meaning the majority have never left the country... not once. Yet, without observing for themselves, they assume they live in a bastion of freedom when a trip in almost any direction would show them the absurdity of that notion. |
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I wonder if James had his epiphany yet about Bitcoin or if he will repeat the same nonsense "it's digital ultimate fiat bla bla bla"
Well, by definition, it cannot be fiat money if it is voluntary. "Fiat" indicates a government mandate, decree or command... in short: force. As is the case with legal tender laws. As in "fiat lux" = "Let there be light" (by divine will...). It implies that governments have the power to make something just by their almighty say-so. It's almost a flashback to the divine rights of kings. fi·at [fee-aht, -at; fahy-uht, -at]
noun
1. an authoritative decree, sanction, or order: a royal fiat. Synonyms: authorization, directive, ruling, mandate, diktat, ukase.
2.a fixed form of words containing the word fiat, by which a person in authority gives sanction, or authorization.
3.an arbitrary decree or pronouncement, especially by a person or group of persons having absolute authority to enforce it: The king ruled by fiat. It always amazes me how many people who claim to "know money" have not yet learned the real meaning of fiat: value by decree. It's fine if someone wants to say Bitcoin is "not backed by anything" (intelligent people can argue this both ways)... but it is inaccurate to say it is "fiat." There is another interpretation of "fiat = let it be" where it doesn't mean a decree but rather just that it was created out of thin air, you know like how the fairly tale about god creating stuff goes where he supposedly said: "Let there be light." and there was light and it was good bla bla bla... But yeah I too understand fiat to mean by a decree rather than being created out of nothing. I think it's important to emphasize the better definition - fiat meaning "by decree." It's a very important term in that sense, to understand a money having value by force. If we want to make a new term to describe money that is "backed by nothing" then we can do so (though I'll argue gold will fall in that category as well ) |
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A week long bitcoin party in Thailand. Well, count me in.
yeah bitcoin doesn't have enough of an image problem as it is, lets get the human traffickers on board Yes, let's collectivize and slander an entire beautiful country. Thailand is amazing, btw. |
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Buying coins will typically be smarter than buying mining equipment. There are exceptions/caveats to this, but I don't recommend anyone "mine" for profit in Bitcoin unless you have a serious competitive advantage (cheap/free electricity and capital to spend on the latest BFL equipment |
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This was really cool, thanks for sharing. If you don't mind I may use some of this information for my presentation for class (see here .. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=109315.0) If you have anything that you think may be interesting to add, please let me know. Thanks- Use whatever you'd like! Can you elaborate more on what you did to transfer those coins to people that sent you an E-Mail? I wanted to do something like that for the class, but was going to pass out USB sticks with individual wallets on each. Then send them coins in real time after the presentation is finishing up. Thanks To every attendee who sent us an email, we emailed back 0.1 BTC via Coinapult.comOK. I checked out that website - when you performed this action, I am assuming you had to fill out this form individually every time? Or a unique one for each E-Mail address given? Is there a way that you know of to put let's say 20 unique addresses, separated by commas or something, and then instantly send them out that way? This coinapult is pretty nice though, I must say. I'll have to play around with it a little more. You can set something up with Coinapult's API: http://coinapult.com/api |
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how badly would gold crash if the economy recovered?
back to 300$/oz?
If the economy recovers, interest rates will rise, rendering the US Gov debt untenable, and encouraging further purchases of gold as a hedge against USD collapse. |
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This was really cool, thanks for sharing. If you don't mind I may use some of this information for my presentation for class (see here .. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=109315.0) If you have anything that you think may be interesting to add, please let me know. Thanks- Use whatever you'd like! Can you elaborate more on what you did to transfer those coins to people that sent you an E-Mail? I wanted to do something like that for the class, but was going to pass out USB sticks with individual wallets on each. Then send them coins in real time after the presentation is finishing up. Thanks To every attendee who sent us an email, we emailed back 0.1 BTC via Coinapult.com |
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This was really cool, thanks for sharing. If you don't mind I may use some of this information for my presentation for class (see here .. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=109315.0) If you have anything that you think may be interesting to add, please let me know. Thanks- Use whatever you'd like! |
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Great story! I have a bad feeling that once these bankers and regulators find out more about Bitcoin, they may become a lot less friendly. Keep up the good work!  It will take a long time before they ever take Bitcoin seriously. During that time, we need to work, build, and develop. |
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Congrats on your recovery. I'm very glad you've found solace and ambition in Bitcoinland... it's a much better mistress |
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