Why I'm Negative on Bitcoin

Hello Everyone,

Quick note before the description (more like script – I wrote this before making the video). I will start responding to all RELEVANT comments on Steemit, so if you want to interact with me feel free to post in the comment section below. Thanks for being a supportive community.

Description:

Today we’re going to talk about the reasons I invest and am involved with Bitcoin. You all have made clear to me just how depressing I can be and how you can slaughter people with the truth, so let’s take a step back and talk about why I am even a part of this Bitcoin movement despite all my negativity. First and foremost, I recommend everyone check out the talks done by Andreas Antonopoulos – especially his meeting with the Canadian Senate a few years back. He’s the king of pro-Bitcoin arguments.

When I first got into Bitcoin, I read and read and read like so many people do when they first learn about this exciting new technology. While this provided me the education required to understand and discuss Bitcoin, it also led my mind down a one-way path. If you listen to Andreas and other pro-Bitcoin opinion leaders, it is hard to imagine a world where Bitcoin doesn’t become adopted as the world currency – even if it doesn’t replace fiat, it would be such an attractive alternative that anyone could use it.

The reality is, Bitcoin is a long way off from what is envisioned for it. The technology is not ready for the level of eyeballs on it as is, and the majority of those eyeballs aren’t even using Bitcoin. We’ve hardly seen anything yet in terms of regulations and laws. We don’t know how businesses will respond once Bitcoin becomes a more tangible threat (right now it’s esoteric in nature e.g: Paypal average 21m transactions/day vs. Bitcoin's 350k). Governments are continuing to work on state-backed cryptocurrencies which will operate much faster than Bitcoin due to their centralization.

These uncertainties lead to the negativity you see in my videos – because I must ground price with reality. The nature of new technologies is that people’s visions often accelerate far beyond where reality is, or accelerate the timeline by which such visions will be achieved. This is what caused the dot-com bubble – people saw the possibilities, but a tad too soon. Similar trends have occurred recently, where people have jumped into AI and IoT over the past decade, yet it is taking far longer than imagined for these incredible innovations to take off. How long will it take before the world is filled with level 5 autonomous vehicles? I’ve seen estimates vary from 10 years to 100.

The point is, we’ve got a long way to go. My role as an influencer, which I have somehow become, is not to talk about what Bitcoin can do. There are hundreds of reliable sources that can provide you with that information. It’s not to sell you a pipeline dream or reinforce the opinions you already have. It is to challenge your assumptions and force you to think critically about this asset that you have placed your hard earned money into. It’s to force you to take a step back and think about other ways in which this can play out.

One of the first lessons students must learn about investing in stocks is that all blue chips will sound like phenomenal companies to invest in. Whether it is Amazon, Netflix, Disney, or Coca Cola, it’s hard to argue against these companies as brands. The analogy I provide students is that you must think about investing just like you would shopping for a new car. You want a certain set of features – maybe you prioritize mileage, or aesthetics, or how fast it can clock from 0 – 60mph.

If you hand that list of features to a sales rep, he’ll find you the perfect match easily. It's not difficult for him to find because your list missed one criterion: Price. Do you pay sticker price for a car? Don’t be like Mrs. Landingham. Always question price and valuation – my content is designed to force you to think about it critically, because otherwise it is easy to get wrapped up in what Bitcoin can do.

I like Bitcoin because it will eventually force existing financial institutions to get their stuff together as Bitcoin improves and more people utilize it. I like Bitcoin because it enables all sorts of interesting applications that go beyond peer to peer payments. I like Bitcoin because it provides one the option to exist outside of a system where monetary policy has reached the edges of what society is willing to accept. I like Bitcoin because the community has kept it alive throughout all these years to pursue ideals that cannot be pursued through traditional, corporate means.

However, my content isn't about any of that even if it does influence it. My channel is centered on investing, trading, speculation, and the emotions of the market. It’s a separate world from the technology and ideals of Bitcoin. You’ll notice that Andreas doesn’t delve into price often, because that is neither his expertise nor his interest. The same is true for Vitalik Buterin, who has sold tons of Ether at low prices to raise capital for the Ethereum Foundation. They are focused on how to change the world – not how to make money.

There are two separate worlds for cryptocurrencies – the world of investing and the world of providing solutions. If you cannot distinguish between these two worlds, you risk being blinded by your ideologies and risk your own financial future. Be cautious of that and you will be a successful investor. Thanks for watching / reading everyone.