Exchanges ar bad for BTC

[wobber]

I am writing in here because I only speculate on exchanges not having funds.

Bitcoin was intended to be a currency, not a commodity. Exchanges centralize bitcoins and practically kill the decentralized trading idea.

While trying to get some funds out of MtGox for the past week (about $200 so no big deal) it struck me the following idea: What if they don't have money? One week is unacceptable and the lack of funds it is the best explanation I can get. So, where all the money went? I cannot simply see other reason to have Mtgox/Tradehill etc accounts if I cannot withdraw my money when I need it. Ahem... Other reason than speculating.

So, I'm converting all my money into bitcoins minus $1000. Fucking stupid, while bitcoin goes down, right? Not really. I'm still short with a great amount on Bitcoinica and will use the 1k usd to buy at mtgox if bitcoin goes to $1. And yea, I could keep like $5000 in mtgox to buy at $1, but what the hell I'm gonna do with lots and lots of coins? Hoard them to be billionaire at 80? I need to eat today and tomorrow. I have my share of coins and I'm fine with it.

And all my coins go out of MtGox, because I was stupid enough to keep there a great amount without thinking. I'm going to hibernation mode until economy is big enough to provide me things I want.

LE: For the people that will compare me with the "I move all my savings to btc"-guy---- All my money are made selling coins. Not a single dollar bought. So even if BTC crashes to -1, i still had my share of profit.

[cbeast]

Exchanges are used for all types of currency, that's not necessarily bad. A big problem is that in order to acquire Bitcoin, you need uber geek powers. You can't just bring in a stereo to a pawn shop and have them hand you Bitcoin that you can use to pay your electric bill. It needs to become that simple before folks will accept it.

[ElectricMucus]

If I ever have enough bitcoins worth cashing out I'd buy gold on coinabul.
This also supports bitcoin and has the advantage that you aren't tempted to spend your profits so fast

[FreeMoney]

You think they didn't have $200? What it's all been used to buy... what? If they have coins they can sell them on their own exchange instantly. Do you think they've used the million (?) dollars of fees and then millions more of customer money to improve the website?

If you are just realizing that this is a possible thing, okay, whatever. But not getting you your $200 means they are slow and incompetent not that they somehow spent all the money. I mean even if they were going to yank the money out from under us it wouldn't show up as a delay on random small amounts.

[tvbcof]

...
Bitcoin was intended to be a currency, not a commodity.
...

Can you (or anyone) provide the best evidence available about Satoshi's feelings about how the invention should and should not be used?

I hear a lot of people declaring one viewpoint or another, but rarely with anything authoritative backing them up.

[Dan The Man]

Bitcoin was intended to be a ham sandwich. Everyone who is exchanging and mining bitcoins is preventing it from achieving its tasty tasty potential. You are HURTING BITCOIN! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!

[paraipan]

Bitcoin was intended to be a ham sandwich. Everyone who is exchanging and mining bitcoins is preventing it from achieving its tasty tasty potential. You are HURTING BITCOIN! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!

+1  

my opinion atm, bitcoin is a store of value backed by all it's users. You can use it as commodity today, by hoarding some coins, and as currency in the future, you never know...

[repentance]

It doesn't matter a damn whether Bitcoin was intended to be a currency or a commodity.  How people use it in the real world will determine its ultimate purpose, not how its inventor envisaged it being used.  There may or may not one day be a huge demand for Bitcoin as an alternative currency.  There is currently a demand for it as a commodity.  The exchanges exist primarily because people want to buy and sell Bitcoins.

[ElectricMucus]

It doesn't matter a damn whether Bitcoin was intended to be a currency or a commodity.  

I strongly disagree.
The only way bitcoin is valueable is by an economy behind it, it cannot be a commodity only.

It can only be that for a short time, after that it will collapse in value.
Anybody who claims the opposite is either in denial or is trying to get another pump & dump going.

[tvbcof]

It doesn't matter a damn whether Bitcoin was intended to be a currency or a commodity.  

I strongly disagree.
The only way bitcoin is valueable is by an economy behind it, it cannot be a commodity only.

It can only be that for a short time, after that it will collapse in value.

Ya, so what?  If BTC not a commodity, who cares what the value is?  If the value is to lower, just use more for transactions (which is, in my opinion, the only thing a 'currency' is good for.)  I'm all for using BTC as a currency and will do so whenever it makes economic sense to do so.

Anybody who claims the opposite is either in denial or is trying to get another pump & dump going.