Ripple vs Bitcoin

[Ares]

If ripple allows near free transfer of fiat to anyone, anywhere, anytime, then doesn't that remove one of the primary advantages of bitcoin?

What grounds would we have to sell merchants on bitcoin when they can get the same benefit using fiat through ripple?

This seems to outweigh any benefit brought by ripple to the bitcoin community


Edit: this same post (after being ignored for pages), was addressed by JoelKatz in the "Ripple or Bitcoin" thread in the Bitcoin Discussion forum. Mods - feel free to delete unless you feel this is deserving of it's own discussion

[svojoe]

Well,  I think in a way it would infringe on a benefit of BTC,  but regardless of what you do with Fiat, its still... well fiat...   You can take a piece of crap and put a dress on it,  and hit it with some Febreeze but its still a piece of crap.      I think people will continue extolling BTC 's success or failure based on its 'fiat' value.    But as more and more services come online that can help you full-fill your needs with BTC it won't matter.   

Look at Dwolla,  its offered $.25 transactions of cash up to $5k usd anywhere anytime in the US.  I thought it was 'amazing' years ago when I heard about it.  I jumped in because it was basically almost free to send cash.   I think dwolla has done well, but I almost feel like its obsolete now in the face of bitcoin (thought they are very different) because it is truly different.   If all people cared about was moving dollars around cheap Dwolla would be huge, But its niche at best.

Bitcoin is a whole new way to get it done,  Fiat be damned.

[cycloid]

Well,  I think in a way it would infringe on a benefit of BTC,  but regardless of what you do with Fiat, its still... well fiat...   You can take a piece of crap and put a dress on it,  and hit it with some Febreeze but its still a piece of crap.      I think people will continue extolling BTC 's success or failure based on its 'fiat' value.    But as more and more services come online that can help you full-fill your needs with BTC it won't matter.   

Look at Dwolla,  its offered $.25 transactions of cash up to $5k usd anywhere anytime in the US.  I thought it was 'amazing' years ago when I heard about it.  I jumped in because it was basically almost free to send cash.   I think dwolla has done well, but I almost feel like its obsolete now in the face of bitcoin (thought they are very different) because it is truly different.   If all people cared about was moving dollars around cheap Dwolla would be huge, But its niche at best.

Bitcoin is a whole new way to get it done,  Fiat be damned.

+1