Bitcoin press hits, notable sources

[Longmarch]

http://www.tribbleagency.com/?p=8188

Venture Capital Firms expressing interest in bitcoin companies

Several of the larger players in the bitcoin world have noticed a serious uptick of venture capital firms requesting information regarding bitcoin related firms.

“we’ve had nearly 1/2 a dozen VC firms asking for information regarding our services in the past week alone” stated one of the owners of a bitcoin exchange.

[julz]

Try Bitcoin

2011-08-30
http://www.practicalecommerce.com/podcasts/episode/1668-Try-Bitcoin#

"Bitcoin is a new virtual currency, designed for use over the internet. It works with a free, open-source program, and is independent of any centralized banking system. It offers a free API for easy integration with your website, and has transaction fees on the order of 0.02%. Though Bitcoin is still a fairly new and volatile currency, it might be worth trying out."

The quoted text is the entirety of the piece, and the audio is the same.

It's interesting to see a no-nonsense item like this being communicated to people in ecommerce.  When it comes to the point that merchants are most focused on 'what does it cost' and 'how do I make it work with my system' - it'll be a sign that bitcoin has ridden out the storm of side-issues and FUD.


About Practical eCommerce:

Practical eCommerce was launched in July 2005 by Kerry and Joy Murdock in Grand Junction, Colorado, U.S. Its mission is to provide down-to-earth articles and advice to help smaller businesses succeed online.

We originally delivered this editorial content primarily through a monthly, printed magazine. But it now (2011) includes this website, three audio podcasts, two email newsletters, educational webinars and a companion site, Ecommerce Developer, for coders, designers and developers of ecommerce sites, but no printed magazine.

We are a small business ourselves, and we take seriously the task of helping other businesses migrate online or improve their online operations.

[julz]

BetaBeat picks up on the indybay.org article about goldbarrick.

Bitcoin as a More Socially Responsible Alternative to Gold

Adrianne Jeffries
2011-08-30

http://www.betabeat.com/2011/08/30/bitcoin-as-a-more-socially-responsible-alternative-to-gold/

I think it's an interesting concept - but I imagine the 'green' credentials of Bitcoin aren't exactly strong given the current reliance on inefficient GPU mining.
Perhaps it's reasonable to argue Bitcoin is 'least worst' from a social responsibility standpoint, but I'd be a little hesitant to trumpet this line as a serious PR argument.

I guess if someone raises electricity consumption as an argument against bitcoin, this does make a good comparison and helps put the tradeoffs in perspective.

[julz]

Riding the Silk Road: the flourishing online drug market authorities are powerless to stop

James Robertson
2011-08-30

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/riding-the-silk-road-the-flourishing-online-drug-market-authorities-are-powerless-to-stop-20110830-1jj4d.html

"The "postmen" offer one gram of marijuana for around $20 – or 1.87 bitcoins, the currency used on the website. According to the Australian Crime Commission this price is roughly in line with national median street prices for a gram of marijuana.
Bitcoin is the peer-to-peer online currency favoured by people who prefer to keep their transactions anonymous. Their value fluctuates wildly: one bitcoin is today worth around $11 Australian dollars; at the start of June it was worth $30."

While stories like this are a bit annoying as far as failing to provide more balance when referring to bitcoin - I think it's interesting to note that Hawala money transfer systems have also had much bad publicity but of course remain in operation throughout the world.

e.g Time Magazine in 2001 wrote about Hawala as a 'Banking System Built for Terrorism'
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,178227,00.html
and the world bank talks of 'The nexus of drug trafficking and hawala in Afghanistan'
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/SOUTHASIAEXT/Resources/Publications/448813-1164651372704/UNDC_Ch6.pdf

[julz]

Online Currencies on the Rise

Alyssa Carducci
2011-08-31

http://news.heartland.org/newspaper-article/2011/08/31/online-currencies-rise

“Most electronic currencies have not been currencies at all, but rather online clearinghouses for trading traditional currencies or commodities,” says Jim Harper, director of Information Policy Studies at the Cato Institute.

Bitcoin is closer to an actual currency that travels from hand to hand than PayPal, Harper says..

Just counting up the good things and the bad things, I think Bitcoin falls on the good side. But I think it will take some time for people to trust it, and people should be cautious with it,” Harper said.

[payb.tc]

Paypal isn't a currency.

If people want to call Paypal a currency, then perhaps the Royal Bank of Scotland also a currency.

[EskimoBob]

here is one:

Bitcoin: FBI Admits To Engaging In Infiltration, Disruption and Dismantling of Competing Currencies
http://www.libertariannews.org/2011/08/30/bitcoin-fbi-admits-to-engaging-in-infiltration-disruption-and-dismantling-of-competing-currencies/

...
The FBI writes:

“Attempts to undermine the legitimate currency of this country [ie. unconstitutional Federal Reserve notes] are simply a unique form of domestic terrorism,” U.S. Attorney Tompkins said in announcing the verdict. “While these forms of anti-government activities do not involve violence [ie. they are voluntary systems with no victim], they are every bit as insidious and represent a clear and present danger to the economic stability of this country [ie. their widespread adoption may collapse the corrupt banking system],” she added. “We are determined to meet these threats through infiltration, disruption, and dismantling of organizations which seek to challenge the legitimacy of our democratic form of government.” [ie. we will engage in acts of domestic terrorism to prevent the voluntary trade of private property.]


Enjoy the read.


 

[grondilu]

here is one:

Bitcoin: FBI Admits To Engaging In Infiltration, Disruption and Dismantling of Competing Currencies
http://www.libertariannews.org/2011/08/30/bitcoin-fbi-admits-to-engaging-in-infiltration-disruption-and-dismantling-of-competing-currencies/

Those guys seem to forget that bitcoin is not a USA-based currency.  It's international.  As a french person, it seems to me that the US government is not minding its own business.

Fucking bastards.

[giszmo]

BetaBeat picks up on the indybay.org article about goldbarrick.

Bitcoin as a More Socially Responsible Alternative to Gold

Adrianne Jeffries
2011-08-30

http://www.betabeat.com/2011/08/30/bitcoin-as-a-more-socially-responsible-alternative-to-gold/

I think it's an interesting concept - but I imagine the 'green' credentials of Bitcoin aren't exactly strong given the current reliance on inefficient GPU mining.
Perhaps it's reasonable to argue Bitcoin is 'least worst' from a social responsibility standpoint, but I'd be a little hesitant to trumpet this line as a serious PR argument.

I guess if someone raises electricity consumption as an argument against bitcoin, this does make a good comparison and helps put the tradeoffs in perspective.

I doubt that there is much of a difference between mining gold and mining BTC in terms of "efficiency".
People will invest into mining BTC/gold close to the expected value of BTC/gold at time of sales. If prices go up, they will invest more.
In today's capitalism, there are ecological/social costs that the miner does not have to cover. Gold miners pollute rivers and destroy forests, BTC miners pollute air and also to a degree need resources for their equipment that destroy the environment free of charge.

Comparing efficiency of the transactions I'm sure BTC is very competitive as again people will not invest as much into the BTC backbone as people pay fees once the mining of new BTC is over. Gold transactions and storing gold costs much more.

[Clipse]

...
The FBI writes:

“Attempts to undermine the legitimate currency of this country [ie. unconstitutional Federal Reserve notes] are simply a unique form of domestic terrorism,” U.S. Attorney Tompkins said in announcing the verdict. “While these forms of anti-government activities do not involve violence [ie. they are voluntary systems with no victim], they are every bit as insidious and represent a clear and present danger to the economic stability of this country [ie. their widespread adoption may collapse the corrupt banking system],” she added. “We are determined to meet these threats through infiltration, disruption, and dismantling of organizations which seek to challenge the legitimacy of our democratic form of government.” [ie. we will engage in acts of domestic terrorism to prevent the voluntary trade of private property.]

I find the last part extremely hilarious, "legitimacy of our democratic form of government.”

Yeh, very democratic of you. Someone should really explain to the American government what democratic means.

[MoonShadow]

...
The FBI writes:

“Attempts to undermine the legitimate currency of this country [ie. unconstitutional Federal Reserve notes] are simply a unique form of domestic terrorism,” U.S. Attorney Tompkins said in announcing the verdict. “While these forms of anti-government activities do not involve violence [ie. they are voluntary systems with no victim], they are every bit as insidious and represent a clear and present danger to the economic stability of this country [ie. their widespread adoption may collapse the corrupt banking system],” she added. “We are determined to meet these threats through infiltration, disruption, and dismantling of organizations which seek to challenge the legitimacy of our democratic form of government.” [ie. we will engage in acts of domestic terrorism to prevent the voluntary trade of private property.]

I find the last part extremely hilarious, "legitimacy of our democratic form of government.”

Yeh, very democratic of you. Someone should really explain to the American government what democratic means.

It's newspeak.  They know what it means, they also know what most readers believe it means.

[someotherguy]

By CHARLES JAFFE

http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=52&articleid=20110831_46_E4_Manyre115585

[julz]

Can a virtual currency save our global economy from collapse?

2011-08-31
Jon Irwin

http://news.killscreendaily.com/post/9634412270/canavirtualcurrencysaveourglobaleconomyfromcollapse

This piece comments on the recent Bitcoin article in technologyreview.com regarding speculators (http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38392/?p1=featured)

killscreendaily is a Texas based  magazine/site for people interested in videogames.

[BitLucky]

http://www.channel4.com/news/dark-web-the-internet-behind-our-own

[cengique]

Another nice feed of bitcoin news can be found here: http://bitcoinwatch.com/headlines.html

In the feed of yesterday, I found an interesting blog article about the bitcoin conference and an anectode about a mediterranean food place accepting bitcoins. Very positive:

http://silverunderground.com/2011/08/bitcoin-bernanke-and-my-lunch-money/

[lemonginger]

Good (if not entirely positive) article by James Surowiecki  of the New Yorker in MIT's Technology Review

https://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38392/?p1=featured

Points out the current problem of the BTC economy being dominated by speculators/savers rather than spenders/users

[julz]

"Virtual money" and then into focus Bitcoin you go?

Shu Tong
2011-09-02

http://www.chinanews.com/it/2011/09-02/3301709.shtml

http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=zh-CN&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chinanews.com%2Fit%2F2011%2F09-02%2F3301709.shtml

"To some extent, Bitcoin was very successful, because it is a pioneer, not a Terminator. For the future development of virtual currency terms, Bitcoin be regarded as a meaningful starting point. In the long run, this is a good thing, because now Bitcoin is, the more crazy, more people from all participants to draw more lessons, all may be just the beginning "

I love the choice of pictures in this article!
Gavin Andresen  as Chow Yun Fat 

[julz]

Shadowy figures:
Tracking illicit financial transactions in the murky world of digital currencies, peer-to-peer networks, and mobile device payments

James A. Baker III
Institute for public policy
Rice University
2011-08-29

http://www.bakerinstitute.org/publications/ITP-pub-FinancialTransactions-082911.pdf

[julz]

Network analysis deflates Bitcoin’s anonymity myth

2011-09-01

http://www.technollama.co.uk/network-analysis-deflates-bitcoins-anonymity-myth

This is basically another commentary on the recent Paper by Fergal Reid  http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/arxiv/pdf/1107/1107.4524v1.pdf

[julz]

Boot up: Microsoft Windows 8 tablets, interview with ex-Anonymous hacker, and more
Plus, an update on the Bitcoin economy, and Apple iTunes Match – streaming or downloads?

A quick burst of 9 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team

2011-08-31


http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2011/aug/31/technology-links-newsbucket

Not much on bitcoin here.. but they link to bitcoinwatch.com and the recent technology review article:
https://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38392/?p1=featured

What's of interest here is just that the tech section of the guardian appears to be keeping a 'watch' on bitcoin stories and linking them.
Betabeat has a 'bitcoin' section..  so I guess we're gradually seeing at least the tech sections of some media outlets maintaining an ongoing interest in Bitcoin.

I wonder how long before the finance sections similarly keep tabs on it?