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Comment by anologwintermut | Hacker News Reader

Long term someone takes the core technical advances and detaches it from the libertarian economic* ideals and creates bitcoin ++ with a fixedish rate inflationary money supply and maybe some limits on trade volumes to limit volatility. Oh, and you don't use a fucking magic card exchange as the primary way people get into or out of your currency.

*you may or may not agree with those ideals but it probably wasn't the best idea to try a new technical solution to currency and a economic philosophy about currency/central banks at the same time)

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Two quick remarks. First, there already are many virtual/digital currencies, some of which simply peg their currencies to the dollar. But nobody really cares. Why? Well, what's the point? It's just a slightly less convenient form of a dollar.

Second, we all already do use digital currency. Actual, physical currency (and deposits at the Fed) are called the monetary base or "high powered money". However, most people transact goods using debit cards, which is called "inside money". These are privately created dollars, and they change hands digitally. So, we're already there. (I'm avoiding credit cards since those are technically loans, not money).

Im general I agree with you and I'm not sure bitcoin++ will work either. But I think it has to happen and fail before the idea is really and truely dead.

I think no one cares for a large number of reasons but one of them is because you'd need to trust the people who run most of those currencies(i'm ignoring the bitcoin clones) and if you are going to trust someone, might as well trust a regulated entity like a bank.

Just look at how paypal screws people? Why trust someone else even more sketchy. However, precisely because pay pall screws people it might end up being the case that there is some market for a non centralized online payment system. But it certainly can't be deflationary and it ought to avoid rampant speculation.

I wonder what would happen if every 30 minutes the currency inflated by 100% percent. It would make sure no one ever held inflatcoin. You'd just use it as a transaction medium.

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