[2017-12-09] 10 of the Biggest Lies Told About Bitcoin

[moriskarlov]

As British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli once averred, there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics. Bitcoin is frequently on the receiving end of them all, whether it’s exaggerated statistics about energy consumption or damned lies conflating it with terrorism. We’ve rounded up 10 of the most pervasive mistruths and endeavored to set the record straight. The next time someone brings one up, send them here.

1. Bitcoin Funds Terrorism

We’ll start with the most asinine assertion, although all of the entries in this list are pretty dumb. You know what funds terrorism? Terrorists and terrorist sympathisers. If you want to blame a currency though, try the U.S. dollar which has been used to fund more wars, proxy wars, bombings, hijackings, and insurgencies than any other.

In 2016, Europol found no evidence that terrorists were using cryptocurrencies to fund their activities. That’s not to say it hasn’t happened and won’t happen. It’s telling however that the only people linking bitcoin with terrorism are governments seeking to crackdown on digital currencies. If a major terrorist attack funded by bitcoin were to occur, we’d never hear the end of it. So far there’s been a lot of noise but nothing to substantiate this claim.

Yaya Fanusie of the Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance had this to say:

[There] are examples of terrorists using virtual currencies, but probably are not indicative of a major push. Right now, virtual currencies are harder to acquire and spend than, say, prepaid cards, or the most anonymous way to fund terrorism – cash. And most terrorists operate in a world where fiat, or government-backed, currency is needed for their expenditures, so a virtual currency where one has to figure out how to cash out without tipping off authorities only complicates a funding scheme.

2. Bitcoin is a Bubble

Where do we even start with this one? No, bitcoin is not a bubble. It’s not going to come crashing down to earth and it’s certainly not going to return to zero. We’ve long passed the point of no return for that to happen. That won’t stop the B-word being trotted out every time bitcoin gains or sheds another $2,000 however. There will be corrections along the way – no asset in history has ever ascended in a straight line – but bitcoin is not about to pop. It wasn’t a bubble at $3,000, it’s not a bubble at $11,000, and it still won’t be next week after a dozen more op-eds have posed this question.

Full article - https://news.bitcoin.com/10-biggest-lies-told-bitcoin/

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[InvoKing]

1. Bitcoin Funds Terrorism => no evidence or a significant difference between it and fiat!
2. Bitcoin is a Bubble => a giant and unbreakable one 
3. Bitcoin is Volatile => fiat getting worthless / inflation
4. Bitcoin is Tulip Mania All Over Again => 
5. Bitcoin is Used by Hate Groups => like USD wasn't
6. Bitcoin is Mostly Used for Illegal Purposes => yeah buying cars, houses and soon lands in the Moon and Mars
7. Bitcoin is a Ponzi Scheme => a good and profitable one for everybody 
8. Bitcoin Can Be Hacked => banks WERE robbed million times
9. Bitcoin is a Fad => 
10. Bitcoin Uses Exorbitant Amounts of Energy => refrigerators uses more!

[Qartersa]

1. Bitcoin Funds Terrorism => no evidence or a significant difference between it and fiat!
2. Bitcoin is a Bubble => a giant and unbreakable one 
3. Bitcoin is Volatile => fiat getting worthless / inflation
4. Bitcoin is Tulip Mania All Over Again => 
5. Bitcoin is Used by Hate Groups => like USD wasn't
6. Bitcoin is Mostly Used for Illegal Purposes => yeah buying cars, houses and soon lands in the Moon and Mars
7. Bitcoin is a Ponzi Scheme => a good and profitable one for everybody 
8. Bitcoin Can Be Hacked => banks WERE robbed million times
9. Bitcoin is a Fad => 
10. Bitcoin Uses Exorbitant Amounts of Energy => refrigerators uses more!

Laughing here! I like how you put it in one-liners. There is so much hate in the world that even others' choice of investments is subject to public scrutiny. Like as if it is their money that is being spent.

I think we have to once and for all remember that we do not even know who created Bitcoin, what makes us think we can define Bitcoin as a bubble? Yes you can undergo all sorts of studies but you cannot be totally definitive as to your findings because its core history is unknown until now. I believe we are still at a limbo when it comes to Bitcoin's status.

[CBJon]

InvoKing, you had me laughing so hard I spilled my drink 

Ja, every criticism thrown at BTC can find a parallel in the 'real world'.

I'll quietly sip my tea and wait for the late majority to join.  After all, somebody had to be first, why not us.

[warrior333]

A very primitive article. The arguments that it presents quite unconvincing. The only argument that I can agree is that it has not been proved that bitcoin is financing terrorism. The article is really needed in order to counter the fakes of the government, but to write it needs a clever man.

[J. Cooper]

A very primitive article. The arguments that it presents quite unconvincing. The only argument that I can agree is that it has not been proved that bitcoin is financing terrorism. The article is really needed in order to counter the fakes of the government, but to write it needs a clever man.

It's a pretty cheap article and it needs a lot more depth in order to increase the value of this article other than writing an article or the sake of writing an article. I feel these guys are running out of ideas. What also surprises us that this article is from bitcoin.com, last time I checked it is under the authority of Bitcoin  of Mr. Ver who personally cause the Bcash mayhem. But now it seems like they're back at preaching bitcoin again.

The B-word

LOL.

[InvoKing]

InvoKing, you had me laughing so hard I spilled my drink 

Ja, every criticism thrown at BTC can find a parallel in the 'real world'.

I'll quietly sip my tea and wait for the late majority to join.  After all, somebody had to be first, why not us.

Thank you 

Laughing here! I like how you put it in one-liners. There is so much hate in the world that even others' choice of investments is subject to public scrutiny. Like as if it is their money that is being spent.

I think we have to once and for all remember that we do not even know who created Bitcoin, what makes us think we can define Bitcoin as a bubble? Yes you can undergo all sorts of studies but you cannot be totally definitive as to your findings because its core history is unknown until now. I believe we are still at a limbo when it comes to Bitcoin's status.

Thank you both 
What made me write it, is the hypocrites that see Bitcoin as the unique evil in the world like fiat weren't. Like fiat (especially USD) weren't used to promote wars, buying guns and drugs... 

[Iranus]

This article conflates "unverified and/or subjective information" with "lies".

The reason that it's extremely important to distinguish between the two is that all the claims that the article makes are subjective and/or unverified information, so by the article's own logic, everything in it is a lie.

It also ignores that a lie is told with malicious attached whereas false information is not always a lie.

The only point in here that was objectively false information was "Bitcoin is a Ponzi scheme" - the rest are subjective.