Creative Commons Aotearoa New Zealand discussion

[Hamish MacEwan <hamish.macewan AT gmail.com>]

On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 00:56, Danyl Strype <strypey AT disintermedia.net.nz> 
wrote:

> Esoteric arguments about the textbook meanings of 'money', 'asset',
> and 'currency' aside, BitCoin's usefulness as a currency is dependent
> on
> 1) how many people will accept it as payment for things
> 2) how difficult it is to create new BitCoins

A good summary to which I would add:

3) How difficult is it to convert existing fiat currency to Bitcoin
(echoing telecommunication's interconnection disputes)
4) Danyl's reference to the response of the incumbent monopolists in
value exchange.

> Since there are already vendors accepting it as a payment, and the
> network architecture keeps the supply of BitCoins under control
> (keeping the value from spiralling up or down), it seems to me that it
> has potential as a way of trading online, or making microdonations,
> which is where it becomes relevant to CC.

While deflation, increasing value is possible, and if excessive
represents the risk of a bubble, deflation is less likely given the
software's management of both the rate of creation and the maximum
number of coins.

The divisibility of a Bitcoin, to 8 decimal places, plus automation
(it is a computer based system), adds to its micropayment for donation
capability.

> The most interesting problem with BitCoin for me is the one Hamish
> brings up. What happens when the bankers try to use the state to
> maintain their monopoly on the means of exchange, the way the
> entertainment corporations are trying it on? ;)

Worse, what happens when the State's predilection for printing its way
out of financial difficulties of those same banks is challenged?  Or
when the State's power to starve Wikileaks (or others) of funding by
indicating its displeasure and having the current incumbent
beneficiaries of the State's imprimatur choke them off by proxy?

I used to joke the one thing I didn't want to see open source was
money, now I'm very much less certain about that.

> Danyl Strype


Hamish.
--
http://tr.im/HKM