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Bitcoin (USD) Price 19K
Coindesk ^ | 12/16/17

Posted on 12/16/2017 7:11:23 PM PST by Enlightened1

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To: july4thfreedomfoundation

Bitcoin is worth whatever the carnival Barker can get someone to pay for it. “Step right up! See the egress for only 25 cents!”


41 posted on 12/16/2017 8:24:50 PM PST by Terry Mross (Liver spots And blood thinners..)
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To: Vermont Lt

Dont you get tired of tossing the pearls to the swine, as it were?


42 posted on 12/16/2017 8:33:06 PM PST by bkopto
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To: Enlightened1

Bitcoin actual value is zero.
I am glad for people who made money but it would absolutely crash at one point.


43 posted on 12/16/2017 8:34:11 PM PST by NorseViking
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To: Enlightened1

James Woods tweeted one time that if a currency were Bernie Madoff, it would look like Bitcoin. Good luck to those nimble and lucky enough to extract a profit from the suckers.


44 posted on 12/16/2017 8:48:32 PM PST by Stentor
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To: Enlightened1
Blockchain technology is clearly an important advance that will have wide ranging application. Bitcoin is simply an early use of this technology.

What happened to Netscape is that they thought they had unique advantages when in fact they did not. As such they were eventually undermined by newer embodiments of the technology and real competition from more resourceful entrants. And no, they weren't the first browser, just the first commercialized version of the Mosaic technology that was the first browser. The lesson for Bitcoin is apt.

Any currency is backed by something. Traditionally that has been either a physical commodity (e.g., gold) or a government that has the force of law behind it. Cryptocurrencies claim to be above such needs, being based on mathematics, but that's both their strength and their weakness. The mathematics have to be hard enough to prevent fraud but simple enough to be functional. That's a difficult line to draw and one of the biggest problems with Bitcoin. The math is sufficiently hard that the ledger system is overly cumbersome and relies on too much external infrastructure to be functional. At the same time, it's vulnerable to advances in quantum computing. It's entirely likely that in less than twenty years (possibly much sooner) its security will be fatally compromised by such advances. Real currencies are far more durable.

45 posted on 12/16/2017 8:52:54 PM PST by AustinBill (consequence is what makes our choices real)
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To: Trump20162020
They can't buy groceries or pay the electric bill with it.

Funny, the first thing I bought with bitcoin was groceries. There was a guy who ran a web site called BitMunchies and would drop ship grocery orders from Walmart, paid in bitcoin.

That was December 2013, just after the last price spike. You can't reasonably do that on the Bitcoin network today due to the high transaction fees. But look to other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin Cash for this type of thing.

46 posted on 12/16/2017 9:08:30 PM PST by Database
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To: Enlightened1

>Remember when Napster began to transform the music industry in the late 1990s? We all watched it transform in slow motion (meaning daily). Today though, twenty years later, the music industry has been forever changed today. Now at the most you pay for a song is $1 more or less or you can go to subscription base and have access to all the songs you want. Anyhow, IMO what we are witnessing in slow motion is the world’s financial markets transforming.

You’ll note that Napster didn’t survive and it was apple that conquered the music market. Digital currency is going to be a thing, but it’s very unlikely bitcoin with insanely high transaction fees or very long delays is going to be it. Enjoy the ride while it lasts.


47 posted on 12/16/2017 9:15:48 PM PST by JohnyBoy (The GOP Senate is intentionally trying to lose the majority.)
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To: cantfindagoodscreenname

“he has seen a 1,100 percent increase in his investment. He just sold it all, though.”

you can never go broke taking a profit. he MIGHT have left some money on the table, but he’ll be a happy camper when BitCoin eventually crashes and burns. Impossible to perfectly time this kind of speculative gamble anyway, so taking a 1,000 percent profit is VERY smart ...


48 posted on 12/16/2017 10:03:08 PM PST by catnipman ( Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: AustinBill

“Bitcoin is fundamentally flawed in its mission to be a usable currency, both because of its underlying structural limits and weaknesses, but also because the primary purpose of any currency is to be a stable medium of exchange. Bitcoin is anything but stable, which makes it useless for anything other than speculation.”

you’re totally correct ... bitcoin possesses virtually none of the attributes of a useful currency. it’s nothing more than the 21st century edition of the tulip bulbs and sardines of centuries past.


49 posted on 12/16/2017 10:06:28 PM PST by catnipman ( Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: JohnyBoy
The thing is most currencies are already digital. My paycheck is numbers that appear in my bank account. Almost all my purchases are done via credit card that again is just numbers that I pay by moving other numbers around each month. Actual cash is rarely used.

Cryptocurrencies differ only in that you have no recourse. If your wallet is compromised in any way too bad. It’s as if all your money was cash in a mattress and you have a fire.

Bitcoin is immune to inflation because it’s deflationary by design. The more widely it’s adopted the scarcer it becomes, so hoarding is rational and spending is irrational. But the purpose of currency is to act as a medium of exchange. Hence bitcoin can never be a viable actual currency.

50 posted on 12/16/2017 10:11:14 PM PST by AustinBill (consequence is what makes our choices real)
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To: JPJones

“Bought some at 6000.

I’m a happy puppy.”

Well played.

I got in when it was in the 700’s.... except I only put in 40 bucks!

Kinda kicking myself for that now. But hey, it’s all in fun. I just bought a little bit to satisfy my curiosity and see how it worked. At least I got out my original 40, so it’s all gravy now. LOL


51 posted on 12/16/2017 10:34:06 PM PST by Bones75
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To: Enlightened1

https://charts.bitcoin.com

19344$ right now ....


52 posted on 12/16/2017 10:52:37 PM PST by Squantos (Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet ...)
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To: Enlightened1

Litecoin has tripled in the past two weeks and Ripple has gone up 4X since Monday.


53 posted on 12/16/2017 11:15:50 PM PST by packrat35 (Pelosi is only on loan to the world from Satan. Hopefully he will soon want his baby killer back)
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To: NorseViking
Bitcoin actual value is zero. I am glad for people who made money but it would absolutely crash at one point.

Those green rectangles in your wallet also have an actual value of zero. All paper currency is fiat currency. (And it isn't even paper.) Will cash crash as well?

54 posted on 12/16/2017 11:29:18 PM PST by Teacher317 (We have now sunk to a depth at which restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men)
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To: Teacher317

You make valid point but greenbuck actually has the US economy behind it. What is behind bitcoin?


55 posted on 12/16/2017 11:32:10 PM PST by NorseViking
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To: packrat35

I know Ripple is dirt cheap right now.

Have you bought any yet?


56 posted on 12/17/2017 2:43:26 AM PST by Enlightened1
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To: NorseViking

Multiple currencies including the dollar.

It’s another currency you can change in and out much like the Euro, etc..


57 posted on 12/17/2017 2:45:18 AM PST by Enlightened1
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To: Squantos

$19,727.10... Looks like it’s going to hit 20k. I got in at 17k.

https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/bitcoin/


58 posted on 12/17/2017 2:47:21 AM PST by Enlightened1
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To: AustinBill

Mosaic was the first, but most people I have met remember Netscape.

You do know you can change bitcoins for dollars? If so, then why not follow the trend and put a stop loss?


59 posted on 12/17/2017 2:49:48 AM PST by Enlightened1
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To: Professional

Why because it’s versatile, people world wide use it to buy, sell and trade physical items, mine, shift currencies, etcll and the best part is the IRS cannot touch it.

You can exchange it for dollars too.


60 posted on 12/17/2017 3:01:52 AM PST by Enlightened1
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