An Open Message to all Bitcoin Investors

[BitcoinHawker]

Dear Investors:

Anyone who bothered to educate themselves on Bitcoin, would know that it faces years of opposition from governments and federal banking systems. That's the *entire* reason it was created.  It's going to get banned, outlawed, and fought every step of the way, because it is designed to take power away from governments and banks.

Weak hands and "get-rich-quick" investors saturate the buying and selling market right now. They frenzy buy, then panic sell. *They* are the reason the price is volatile. Not Bitcoin. Informed companies and investors continue to pour hundreds of millions into start ups and infrastructure because they know what's coming. While "day traders" and the ill-informed exhibit bipolar manic/panic behavior on the trading exchanges. These people have absolutely nothing to do with the technology and infrastructure related to Bitcoin.

This isn't a "stock" that's going down in value because "the company is tanking".  The crashes are just as much speculation as the rises were.  Bitcoin itself remains unchanged. Actually, its growing. The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me. If it phases you, I recommend you get out while you still can.

-BittBurger-

I hope you are right. Because in the past we could point to alot of different meaningless reasons why bitcoin was up and down. Now we are talking about federal governments, and countries saying no to bitcoin. I think it might be a little more serious now. Just my 2c

[spiderbrain]

I consider the money gone now.  Buy them.

awesome.

[Dafar]

Dear Investors:

Anyone who bothered to educate themselves on Bitcoin, would know that it faces years of opposition from governments and federal banking systems. That's the *entire* reason it was created.  It's going to get banned, outlawed, and fought every step of the way, because it is designed to take power away from governments and banks.

Weak hands and "get-rich-quick" investors saturate the buying and selling market right now. They frenzy buy, then panic sell. *They* are the reason the price is volatile. Not Bitcoin. Informed companies and investors continue to pour hundreds of millions into start ups and infrastructure because they know what's coming. While "day traders" and the ill-informed exhibit bipolar manic/panic behavior on the trading exchanges. These people have absolutely nothing to do with the technology and infrastructure related to Bitcoin.

This isn't a "stock" that's going down in value because "the company is tanking".  The crashes are just as much speculation as the rises were.  Bitcoin itself remains unchanged. Actually, its growing. The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me. If it phases you, I recommend you get out while you still can.

-BittBurger-

+1


I'm down a lot of money but after all the do diligence I've done learning about bitcoin I'm not worried. If it goes down to $1 thought I may start getting worried.. so let's not go there.

And also is it okay to think of this as a "get-rich-eventually" scheme? I don't expect to get rich quick but I do think there is a good chance this will survive and capture a good chunk of the world's economy.

[BitChick]

Dear Investors:

Anyone who bothered to educate themselves on Bitcoin, would know that it faces years of opposition from governments and federal banking systems. That's the *entire* reason it was created.  It's going to get banned, outlawed, and fought every step of the way, because it is designed to take power away from governments and banks.

Weak hands and "get-rich-quick" investors saturate the buying and selling market right now. They frenzy buy, then panic sell. *They* are the reason the price is volatile. Not Bitcoin. Informed companies and investors continue to pour hundreds of millions into start ups and infrastructure because they know what's coming. While "day traders" and the ill-informed exhibit bipolar manic/panic behavior on the trading exchanges. These people have absolutely nothing to do with the technology and infrastructure related to Bitcoin.

This isn't a "stock" that's going down in value because "the company is tanking".  The crashes are just as much speculation as the rises were.  Bitcoin itself remains unchanged. Actually, its growing. The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me. If it phases you, I recommend you get out while you still can.

-BittBurger-

+1


I'm down a lot of money but after all the do diligence I've done learning about bitcoin I'm not worried. If it goes down to $1 thought I may start getting worried.. so let's not go there.

And also is it okay to think of this as a "get-rich-eventually" scheme? I don't expect to get rich quick but I do think there is a good chance this will survive and capture a good chunk of the world's economy.

No one in the history of Bitcoin has lost anything, regardless of when they bought, if they just held long enough.  The people that lose are the ones that buy high, panic and then sell lower.  Otherwise it is just a test of our patience. 

[evolve]

Past performance is not an indicator of future performance.

[JimboToronto]

The functionality of bitcoin is not 40% less from its peak.  The functionality is almost the same or better than it ever was.  Only the price is down.

This is almost an exact replica of the conversation I had with my father when I finally convinced him to buy 1000BTC at $8.
The $8 dollar was in September 2011 after the $32 peak.

Dad:  What's causing it to drop?
Me: Fear
Dad: So the code is still good?
Me: Yes.
Dad: Buy a 1000.
Me: It's still in a down trend.
Dad: I don't care.  I consider the money gone now.  Buy them.

Smart man, your Dad. May I assume he didn't panic sell this week?

Did he buy more?

[dbasql]

two words

Love IT 

[humanitee]

The functionality of bitcoin is not 40% less from its peak.  The functionality is almost the same or better than it ever was.  Only the price is down.

This is almost an exact replica of the conversation I had with my father when I finally convinced him to buy 1000BTC at $8.
The $8 dollar was in September 2011 after the $32 peak.

Dad:  What's causing it to drop?
Me: Fear
Dad: So the code is still good?
Me: Yes.
Dad: Buy a 1000.
Me: It's still in a down trend.
Dad: I don't care.  I consider the money gone now.  Buy them.

Smart man, your Dad. May I assume he didn't panic sell this week?

Did he buy more?

The dad sold 100 BTC at every $100 interval and then started doing 50 BTC at every $100 interval IIRC.

[Anon136]

whoa and i thought i was a true believer. apparently i have been out classed. if the price dropped to one dollar lets just say i would be... phased.

[David M]

The functionality of bitcoin is not 40% less from its peak.  The functionality is almost the same or better than it ever was.  Only the price is down.

This is almost an exact replica of the conversation I had with my father when I finally convinced him to buy 1000BTC at $8.
The $8 dollar was in September 2011 after the $32 peak.

Dad:  What's causing it to drop?
Me: Fear
Dad: So the code is still good?
Me: Yes.
Dad: Buy a 1000.
Me: It's still in a down trend.
Dad: I don't care.  I consider the money gone now.  Buy them.

Smart man, your Dad. May I assume he didn't panic sell this week?

Did he buy more?

The dad sold 100 BTC at every $100 interval and then started doing 50 BTC at every $100 interval IIRC.

--JimboToronto
No panic selling.  He sold into the rallies.

--humanitee
That's correct.  He has just under 300BTC remaining.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=178336.msg3742314#msg3742314

[ringsting]

Bitcoin has two main value propositions, it is a cheap fast international money transfer protocol and also it is a decentralised store of value.  Anyone who does not have vested interests in the current system is going to embrace the money transfer part.

The store of value is the controversial part, there lots of people that are semi religious about the decentralised store of value aspect, and unsurprisingly the people who benefit from the current system hate it.  There are two very loud mouthed extremes, but to be honest I don't think that there is much mass on either side.  Most people simply care about getting stuff in a convenient, fast and safe manner.  Whether the money is government controlled or not does not matter to most people(hell,  most don't even understand).  I think that if the is mass uptake of bitcoin it is not going to be because of the store of value benefits, I think it will be because of the freedom the transfer system offers.

The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me.

I'm sorry, but if anything I owned dropped that much in value in a week it would phase them.  If not could I please have all your stuff?

[nanobrain]

...there lots of people that are semi religious about the decentralised store of value aspect...

that's a point I have raised before...there are many aspects of BTC which resemble a cult and its a shame because its this sort of behaviour which is probably one of BTC's major weaknesses.  While I agree with much of what the OP says with regard to having patience and fortitude, to stick with something new through thick and thin, there is also a touch of blind adherence that in a different scenario would be classed as fundamentalism.

[jojo69]

wow, this is the best serious thread going right now

friends have been trying to console me today "so sorry about the bitcoin news"  I'm like, bitcoin is fine, same as it ever was

[Bitbuy]

wow, this is the best serious thread going right now

friends have been trying to console me today "so sorry about the bitcoin news"  I'm like, bitcoin is fine, same as it ever was

Yes, everybody I know is doing the same to me
"So sorry to hear"
"HAHA told you it was a scam"
"Boy, you must feel such a loser right now"

I didn't even try to defend anymore
I didn't lose anything

[Anon136]

wow, this is the best serious thread going right now

friends have been trying to console me today "so sorry about the bitcoin news"  I'm like, bitcoin is fine, same as it ever was

Yes, everybody I know is doing the same to me
"So sorry to hear"
"HAHA told you it was a scam"
"Boy, you must feel such a loser right now"

I didn't even try to defend anymore
I didn't lose anything

Common sense is catching up with the Bitcoin craze. In the process, it is bringing its backers financial losses and intellectual embarrassment.
-new york times

they say to the guy who bought his bitcoins for 12 dollars a piece about a year ago

[T.Stuart]

It's going to get banned, outlawed, and fought every step of the way, because it is designed to take power away from governments and banks.

Can I just ask, what if it doesn't get banned but it gets accepted as an asset on which you must pay tax on capital gains?

I fear you may be banking on it getting banned when it looks like it is not going to get banned. What then eh?

Tax offices, the Inland Revenue, etc. will treat Bitcoiners like everyone else. They will make use of the blockchain and the cooperation of Gox, Bitstamp, and all other companies and exchanges, present and future, that want to succeed (and therefore will have to comply) to track fiat going in and out of Bitcoin, and then track the gains of your stash in fiat terms and tax it like the gains made by any other human being living in their country.

This looks like the most likely scenario for the future to me. Please tell me where I am wrong or how this doesn't make any difference to the "freedom from governments" philosophy. I'm interested to learn more.

[Erdogan]

Bitcoin has two main value propositions, it is a cheap fast international money transfer protocol and also it is a decentralised store of value.  Anyone who does not have vested interests in the current system is going to embrace the money transfer part.

The store of value is the controversial part, there lots of people that are semi religious about the decentralised store of value aspect, and unsurprisingly the people who benefit from the current system hate it.  There are two very loud mouthed extremes, but to be honest I don't think that there is much mass on either side.  Most people simply care about getting stuff in a convenient, fast and safe manner.  Whether the money is government controlled or not does not matter to most people(hell,  most don't even understand).  I think that if the is mass uptake of bitcoin it is not going to be because of the store of value benefits, I think it will be because of the freedom the transfer system offers.

The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me.

I'm sorry, but if anything I owned dropped that much in value in a week it would phase them.  If not could I please have all your stuff?

I think freedom is also a part of the store of value function of bitcoin. Now, saving in money is discouraged and made impossible. They want to manage the economy to a larger output than what it will have by its natural pace. But this is not freedom, freedom is when each individual decides for himself how much to work, when to consume, when to save and when to invest. In addition, they will not be able to force the economy this way, the result is misallocation of resources and lower economic output. So they are uninformed and makes thing worse, not counting that they can also enrich themselves. Bitcoin can fix this by allowing people to save in money.

[ringsting]

Bitcoin has two main value propositions, it is a cheap fast international money transfer protocol and also it is a decentralised store of value.  Anyone who does not have vested interests in the current system is going to embrace the money transfer part.

The store of value is the controversial part, there lots of people that are semi religious about the decentralised store of value aspect, and unsurprisingly the people who benefit from the current system hate it.  There are two very loud mouthed extremes, but to be honest I don't think that there is much mass on either side.  Most people simply care about getting stuff in a convenient, fast and safe manner.  Whether the money is government controlled or not does not matter to most people(hell,  most don't even understand).  I think that if the is mass uptake of bitcoin it is not going to be because of the store of value benefits, I think it will be because of the freedom the transfer system offers.

The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me.

I'm sorry, but if anything I owned dropped that much in value in a week it would phase them.  If not could I please have all your stuff?

I think freedom is also a part of the store of value function of bitcoin. Now, saving in money is discouraged and made impossible. They want to manage the economy to a larger output than what it will have by its natural pace. But this is not freedom, freedom is when each individual decides for himself how much to work, when to consume, when to save and when to invest. In addition, they will not be able to force the economy this way, the result is misallocation of resources and lower economic output. So they are uninformed and makes thing worse, not counting that they can also enrich themselves. Bitcoin can fix this by allowing people to save in money.

I'm not saying your wrong, I'm just saying that most people don't care (or understand) about what you have just written and so in reality it probably has very little to do with whether or not BitCoin will make it mainstream.

[Erdogan]

Bitcoin has two main value propositions, it is a cheap fast international money transfer protocol and also it is a decentralised store of value.  Anyone who does not have vested interests in the current system is going to embrace the money transfer part.

The store of value is the controversial part, there lots of people that are semi religious about the decentralised store of value aspect, and unsurprisingly the people who benefit from the current system hate it.  There are two very loud mouthed extremes, but to be honest I don't think that there is much mass on either side.  Most people simply care about getting stuff in a convenient, fast and safe manner.  Whether the money is government controlled or not does not matter to most people(hell,  most don't even understand).  I think that if the is mass uptake of bitcoin it is not going to be because of the store of value benefits, I think it will be because of the freedom the transfer system offers.

The price could drop to $1.00 tomorrow and it wouldn't phase me.

I'm sorry, but if anything I owned dropped that much in value in a week it would phase them.  If not could I please have all your stuff?

I think freedom is also a part of the store of value function of bitcoin. Now, saving in money is discouraged and made impossible. They want to manage the economy to a larger output than what it will have by its natural pace. But this is not freedom, freedom is when each individual decides for himself how much to work, when to consume, when to save and when to invest. In addition, they will not be able to force the economy this way, the result is misallocation of resources and lower economic output. So they are uninformed and makes thing worse, not counting that they can also enrich themselves. Bitcoin can fix this by allowing people to save in money.

I'm not saying your wrong, I'm just saying that most people don't care (or understand) about what you have just written and so in reality it probably has very little to do with whether or not BitCoin will make it mainstream.

I'm ok with that.

[piramida]

Common sense is catching up with the Bitcoin craze. In the process, it is bringing its backers financial losses and intellectual embarrassment.
-new york times

they say to the guy who bought his bitcoins for 12 dollars a piece about a year ago

NYT is a yellow piece-of-shit paper, read their other uneducated silly articles on bitcoin and you can stop quoting them let them speak with their ass alone.