Bitcoin

KeithE

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Hard to believe there are no discussions on Bitcoin. I guess after a decade or so, I'm still just a young whippersnapper around here. Any other crypto investors?
 

A. Gorilla

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I bought 100 bucks a few weeks ago. I have 300 now.

I bought it through coinbase via credit card.

I'm not even entirely clear where the money goes once I cash out.

:confused:

I guess I'll find out.
 

A. Gorilla

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This whole cryptocurrency thing is just weird. Where does it get its value? I guess it's being traded on the futures market now. I miss the gold standard:D.

It has value because enough people have agreed that it has value. Otherwise, it's pixie dust on computer servers.

It is modeled after a tangible material, ...let's say gold.

It is "mined" with computers. Computers sort through some number stuff which results in "unearthing" new bitcoin. Like a real mine shaft, the more that it's mined, the harder it is to get and slower it's retrieved. New bitcoin is therefore being "mined" progressively slower. It will eventually all be in circulation, with no more to be mined.

It has no basis in anything tangible. As soon as nobody wants it it will be worth zero. When you put it like that, it should be a bit more relatable. Other than dividends, what good is GE stock? Can you ever redeem your stock for a chunk of the building? Or some airplane rivets? Or do you transfer it back to cash? And why is it worth anything at any given time? In large part, because enough people agree that it does.
 
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A. Gorilla

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I still don't know what's stopping someone from pulling the plug(s) and saying "I'm tire of this. Bitcoin no longer exists. Sorry, bye."

Then it all disappears?
 

Dav4

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It has value because enough people have agreed that it has value. Otherwise, it's pixie dust on computer servers.

It is modeled after a tangible material, ...let's say gold.

It is "mined" with computers. Computers sort through some number stuff which results in "unearthing" new bitcoin. Like a real mine shaft, the more that it's mined, the harder it is to get and slower it's retrieved. New bitcoin is therefore being "mined" progressively slower. It will eventually all be in circulation, with no more to be mined.

It has no basis in anything tangible. As soon as nobody wants it it will be worth zero. When you put it like that, it should be a bit more relatable. Other than dividends, what good is GE stock? Can you ever redeem your stock for a chunk of the building? Or some airplane rivets? Or do you transfer it back to cash? And why is it worth anything at any given time? In large part, because enough people agree that it does.
Well, GE stocks do have intrinsic value, representing a portion of the cash value of GE. Bitcoin, I'm not so sure.
 

A. Gorilla

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Well, GE stocks do have intrinsic value, representing a portion of the cash value of GE. Bitcoin, I'm not so sure.

I'm not sure either, which is why I only gambled $100.00.

It kinda sorta makes to call your dollars something else, make your transactions in the shade, trade out with willing buyers and then call it dollars again. If you want to remain relatively undetected.

When I cash out, I guess I'll just tell my accountant that I....."invested in bitcoin", and he'll do the rest? What do you even call that? I don't think Coinbase is going to be sending me a statement on this stuff. Seems like it would defeat the whole purpose.
 

Dav4

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I'm not sure either, which is why I only gambled $100.00.

It kinda sorta makes to call your dollars something else, make your transactions in the shade, trade out with willing buyers and then call it dollars again. If you want to remain relatively undetected.

When I cash out, I guess I'll just tell my accountant that I....."invested in bitcoin", and he'll do the rest? What do you even call that? I don't think Coinbase is going to be sending me a statement on this stuff. Seems like it would defeat the whole purpose.
Sounds like regular old earned income or short term capital gains?
 
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I just noticed that American Bonsai Tool Co. is accepting bitcoin as payment.

I remember considering buying some of this back in 2010 or so after listening to a podcast. If I had I would own some sweet material from Hidden Gardens by now along with a few Million in the bank.

At this point I am pretty skeptical and if I did own I would consider cashing out.
 

A. Gorilla

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It's funny that out one side of their mouth, JP Morgan said they wanted nothing to do with it, and then promptly got into it.

I like the aesthetic of a currency that "the man" can't control. I like that it's not on their respective leashes, but at the same time they can't resist the prospect of these kinds of irrational profits. Whores.

I hope entities like JP Morgan lose their asses. Meanwhile, if it goes to a million, I'd leave with 20k. If it tanks, I lost 100 bucks.
 

Dav4

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It's funny that out one side of their mouth, JP Morgan said they wanted nothing to do with it, and then promptly got into it.

I like the aesthetic of a currency that "the man" can't control. I like that it's not on their respective leashes, but at the same time they can't resist the prospect of these kinds of irrational profits. Whores.

I hope entities like JP Morgan lose their asses. Meanwhile, if it goes to a million, I'd leave with 20k. If it tanks, I lost 100 bucks.
Ride the wave!
 

leatherback

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Yup. In Bitcoin, Ether and IOTA. Across the board up by 150% in the last 6 weeks. Smiling. Yesterday cashed out partially, and now I am only in with the profits, and the core investment is back in regular stock. I am expecting a lot of movement with the futures starting up, so am planning a few buy/sell cycles till newyears with a spread of some 10 percent.
 
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It's like a dollar bill. It is worth money as long as people that want to exchange it for money get money. As long as the "gouvernement" is trust worthy it works. Once in doubt there is way more worthless paper than actual "gold" or value. It's a risk i will take if i can miss the money. I don't play on the lottery as well. Mathematically it is not a sound choice, but yes some lucky bastards win and the majority pays.
 

A. Gorilla

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me. won. But not insanely like some with 5000% profits.

There was some regular city police officer somewhere in the U.S. who asked his city to pay him in Bitcoin. And this was several years ago, and I remember reading a small unremarkable article about it. Let's say he kept just $20,000 in BTC over the course of a few years when it was around $100, he'd have about 3.5 million right now. Not a bad retirement chunk.

And there's all these kids on reddit who talk about having bought a $1,000 and cashing out at $1200 back when it was worthless. That's gotta sting.
 
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