This crypto stuff

[i am herdman]

I don't trust it. Keep telling my son and others that. No way this can be real and last. People are going to lose their ass in it. Now all these athletes and stars are promoting it. Then, people will lose their savings on it or their weekly paycheck

You really think these powerful nations and brokers are going to let that stuff hang around? You think the USA govt is going to let that stay around and undercut them? Hell, no. Somebody will get CIA'd first. They wlll start WW3 to end it.

I am not putting my money in it. It will be like money with Jefferson Davis on it or Saddamm Husseign on it one of these days.

 

[Kate Branson]

Seems worthless as of now.

I don't see anywhere at Kroger or Wal Mart to pay with this kind of shit. I'd take EBT over this any day.

 

[HerdandHokies]

They’re all dumb for different reasons.

Bitcoin is not capable of scale. The way it used blockchain has a pretty hard cap as far as how many transactions it can process per second, and it’s not nearly a high enough number to be used regularly as currency.

Most of the new meme-coins are just stupid get rich quick schemes by the creators.

At the end of the day I don’t think you really need governments to go fight against these things. They have no inherent value, and they have no government backing like the dollar. They’re somewhat useful in that they facilitate moving money for illegal stuff, but that’s about it. And that’s all traceable anyway, so if whatever you’re doing is REALLY illegal it’s not even useful for that.

 

[johns1124]

Seems worthless as of now.

I don't see anywhere at Kroger or Wal Mart to pay with this kind of shit. I'd take EBT over this any day.

In the Bay Area there are Crypto ATMS for those who use Coinbase, Binance, or offline (cold) storage.

 

[herdfan429]

In the Bay Area there are Crypto ATMS for those who use Coinbase, Binance, or offline (cold) storage.

The Bay Area also looks like a third world country with human feces and all the buildings boarded up from the looters

 

[johns1124]

The Bay Area also looks like a third world country with human feces and all the buildings boarded up from the looters

Maybe so, but right under Lower Manhattan it still has the second most expensive real estate in the US.

 

[Kate Branson]

I wouldn't get it unless there was no other choice.

Using new stupid stuff is a waste of time until it's absolutely forced. Then it's time to raise hell at whoever forced it. Like the dumb masks.

 

[i am herdman]

I wouldn't get it unless there was no other choice.

Using new stupid stuff is a waste of time until it's absolutely forced. Then it's time to raise hell at whoever forced it. Like the dumb masks.

We should just boo these mask rule makers. It is useless measures. Just boo and heckle them like the away team.

 

[-CarlHungus-]

I don’t know what to make of it.

There are very diverging opinions on it from people I generally find to be clear thinkers.

I have some bitcoin exposure with good paper gains, but I’m not all in. I have invested in a bitcoin mining farm as well, but that was more a speculative bet. I’m mostly just a VTSAX investor.

 

[Kate Branson]

Just boo and heckle them like the away team.

When it started out, I booed and cussed at the PA system in Kroger when it said to wear a mask.

I still can't believe anybody ever accepted this as a reasonable request. Everybody looks like a muzzled anteater with these on. It's not only goofy as hell and pathetic, but there's no way it even does anything.

Wearing one of these is like trying to patch up cracks in the Hoover Dam with Play Doh.

 

[herdfan06]

I threw $10 into SHIB a few weeks ago, it went up roughly 100%, now I am up a few pennies. It is mostly just for fun, I have no plans on investing any serious amount of money into crypto. My co-worker told me to do $100, while $100 is not a substantial amount of money, I do not want to lose it through "gambling."

 

[Jartard]

I threw $10 into SHIB a few weeks ago, it went up roughly 100%, now I am up a few pennies. It is mostly just for fun, I have no plans on investing any serious amount of money into crypto. My co-worker told me to do $100, while $100 is not a substantial amount of money, I do not want to lose it through "gambling."

Agreed! When China bans it and the US is looking at regulating it, it’s only a matter of time before it comes crashing down.

 

[greengeezer]

I have read several articles on this crypto stuff and I still barely understand it. Reminds me of a coin that was used in Kansas City when I started school there.
The coins were called mills, were made of plastic, came in red and green colors, and were a way for the city to raise tax revenue. I can’t remember what the red ones were worth, but it took ten green ones to equal a penny.
When you made a purchase, the price of a product was listed as so many dollars, so many cents, and so many mills. I assume the city got the mill revenue.
Im still wondering how the city got around that little loophole that only the Federal government can print money.

 

[johns1124]

If you really want to amaze yourself at internet creativity look into Axie Infinity.

 

[ohio herd]

I ventured into it with 500. So far I am down about 50. My son is up 9,000 on his.

 

[imherdfan]

I still don’t get it

 

[HerdandHokies]

There are two different (but related) things being discussed here. Crypto as an investment vehicle and crypto as an actual functional currency.

Crypto as an actual functional currency usually works like this. You use USD to buy Bitcoin with an exchange. You can then use that exchange to send money to whomever for whatever. People think it’s not traceable however what they usually miss is that they used USD to buy that Bitcoin, and that transaction is traceable. Since they can link you to it at that point they can still get you. I still use Bitcoin to shuffle money on and off of online casinos because I don’t think anyone cares enough to start busting for that, but I wouldn’t use it for anything more illegal than that (not that I do anything more illegal than that.)

The other possibility is that you acquire Bitcoin into a wallet without using one of the usual exchanges. This is a bit harder but can be done. That wallet is pretty anonymous, probably, if you don’t believe the rumors that the government has cracked Bitcoin. However, if any single transaction you perform with that wallet can every be traced to you (used a profile on a gambling site? They have your IP. If the transaction is linked to your profile now the transaction is linked to your IP. Unless you use a proxy…), it’s possible they all could be grouped together and traced to you.

Crypto as an investment is at the end of the day pretty similar to meme stocks like GameStop and AMC but those at least have some real world earnings and potential earnings (although they’re kind of moot at memestock level valuations). You’re just betting on investor psychology, basically, with no underlying fundamentals. You can make money doing that, or if you’re the last one holding the bag lose it all.

Another thing. Bitcoin is capped at 21 million bitcoins. There will never be, because there can’t be, more than that. That at least provides a fundamental scarcity that could keep prices highish as long as it’s viewed as a functional currency. Etherium, a popular alternative, has no total maximum but has an annual maximum number of coins that can be mined. This means there will be a constantly expanding (but limited in that expansion) number of coins which should over time drive value down. Memecoins (dogecoin for example) tend not to have any limit on the number of coins. These are 100% cash grabs by the initial developer of the coin and have not been designed at all to be a functional currency. You can still bet that other people are dumb enough to drive the prices up, but realize you are the dumb one driving the price up for the last guy who bought one.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

In the Bay Area there are Crypto ATMS for those who use Coinbase, Binance, or offline (cold) storage.

Bay Area hell, we have them here in the Louisville area.

Crypto as an investment is at the end of the day pretty similar to meme stocks like GameStop and AMC but those at least have some real world earnings and potential earnings (although they’re kind of moot at memestock level valuations). You’re just betting on investor psychology, basically, with no underlying fundamentals. You can make money doing that, or if you’re the last one holding the bag lose it all.

The thing to remember is, once the average person gets wind of what's hot it is too late. You can still make a few bucks, but you will not be getting rich easy.

Raleigh will make fun of me again, but it is true: I know some crypto guys, and they indeed struck it rich. Why? Because they got into this shit a LONG time ago, even back in the hobby days. I well remember when you could buy BTC for 3 for a dollar. If you were mining back then, or before, or say you dumped a couple grand into it for shits and giggles (or to buy drugs online, remember Silk Road?), and you held your BTC, you too would be stinking rich. Now those guys just trade shit like any normal investor, and play around with the new cryptocurrencies.

IMO it is fine to play around with BTC and ETH. I don't think they are going anywhere. You pump a hundred bucks or so a month in that, so what. But go back and re-read my first paragraph before you think you will get rich.

Now NFTs...I do not get that at all. I know a girl that is an artist and photographer that has been selling NFTs for serious money. I have no idea why in the hell anyone would buy that. It has to be money laundering lol.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

Memecoins (dogecoin for example) tend not to have any limit on the number of coins. These are 100% cash grabs by the initial developer of the coin and have not been designed at all to be a functional currency. You can still bet that other people are dumb enough to drive the prices up, but realize you are the dumb one driving the price up for the last guy who bought one.

Well yeah lol.

 

[-CarlHungus-]

Bay Area hell, we have them here in the Louisville area.


The thing to remember is, once the average person gets wind of what's hot it is too late. You can still make a few bucks, but you will not be getting rich easy.

Raleigh will make fun of me again, but it is true: I know some crypto guys, and they indeed struck it rich. Why? Because they got into this shit a LONG time ago, even back in the hobby days. I well remember when you could buy BTC for 3 for a dollar. If you were mining back then, or before, or say you dumped a couple grand into it for shits and giggles (or to buy drugs online, remember Silk Road?), and you held your BTC, you too would be stinking rich. Now those guys just trade shit like any normal investor, and play around with the new cryptocurrencies.

IMO it is fine to play around with BTC and ETH. I don't think they are going anywhere. You pump a hundred bucks or so a month in that, so what. But go back and re-read my first paragraph before you think you will get rich.

Now NFTs...I do not get that at all. I know a girl that is an artist and photographer that has been selling NFTs for serious money. I have no idea why in the hell anyone would buy that. It has to be money laundering lol.

I know an early BTC adopter that was mining from his apartment many moons ago back when that was feasible. He has around 50 BTC but also six figure student debt. I can’t believe he won’t sell a couple to pay off debt but he drinks the kool aid.

Regarding NFTs ….

 

[Kate Branson]

This stuff is like the Tesla of money.

Cool and exclusive, but requires going way out of your way to be able to mess around with it. I don't know where people get the time for stuff like this. I have absolutely no life whatsoever and still wouldn't screw with this stuff.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

I know an early BTC adopter that was mining from his apartment many moons ago back when that was feasible. He has around 50 BTC but also six figure student debt. I can’t believe he won’t sell a couple to pay off debt but he drinks the kool aid.

That's just foolish.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

This stuff is like the Tesla of money.

Tesla IS MONEY if you invested in that early. Or even kinda late...if you couldn't tell by say 2015 that it was a major player you are just a moron.

Or maybe I am the moron for not investing every single cent I had into it.

I don't know where people get the time for stuff like this

It takes mere seconds to trade online and with apps. Crypto, stocks, throw money into index funds, whatever.

 

[HerdandHokies]

Regarding NFTs, I want to say they’re stupid as hell, but somehow I grok how an original print baseball card can be worth a lot of money and sort of can’t figure out the difference.

 

[Kate Branson]

Only thing I've ever invested in is this 401k at work. I consider it lost money since I won't live to draw it out, but they said I could get about 70 some percent of it if I withdrew it all now.

So if I really ever have to, I guess it's there. I don't invest in anything else. I want the record, whatever it ends up, to just show whatever I was able to make and save and that's it.

I would decline all lottery winnings, extra gifts, inheritances, prize umbrellas, whatever. And the older I get, the more it looks like dying penniless means you're really the biggest winner.