Hacker News Reader

Comment by TedShiller | Hacker News Reader

Funny how people talk about the problem of Bitcoin using a lot of energy but then they live in a big house, drive an SUV, and fly to far away places on vacation.

Your life style is the problem, not crypto.

View on HN

A single bitcoin transaction uses roughly 707.6 kilowatt-hours of electrical energy–equivalent to the power consumed by an average U.S. household over 24 days, according to Digiconomist

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2021/03/09/bil...

Bitcoin Does Not Waste Energy: https://unchained-capital.com/blog/bitcoin-does-not-waste-en...

> Based on national averages in the U.S., the bitcoin network consumes as much power as approximately 6 million homes. Yeah, it is definitely a lot of power, but it is also what secures and backs the bitcoin network.

> Bitcoin Does Not Waste Energy

Please come up with an algorithm for Bitcoin that does not use so much energy because if one exists, then Bitcoin wastes energy. I am certain that Bitcoin is not the crypto that will win in the long term if it sticks to PoW, so I probably don't need to waste my energy opposing it.

And who is to blame for so few transactions fitting in a single block? What is the energy consumption of the petrodollar-backed wars in the middle east? Presenting numbers without discussing the alternative is sophistic misdirection.

The "alternative" to bitcoin is the "energy consumption of wars"?

I think you're going to have to provide a bit more evidence, there.

Tell me more about how Bitcoin uses a reasonable amount of energy while it grows and scales to use exponentially more. My SUV/Vacation energy usage doesn't need to grow. I'm putting Bitcoin energy usage in context compared to daily life. You are the one who is misdirecting. "Whatabout!?" driving an SUV, that's bad amirite?

Generalization much ? I live in 38 m^2 apartment and commute to office on cycle. Except for trip abroad always used Train and since Feb 2020 have not gone on any vacation due to Covid.

Can I critize bit coin ?

A big house, an SUV and exotic vacations are all actual real things with real world values.

Not strictly necessary and sometimes extravagant but they are not just burning energy for nothing.

This is like dismissing Al Gore's climate advocacy because he flew private. It's perfectly possible to have a valid criticism of waste in one specific area even if you have unaddressed waste in your own life.

It's possible, it just makes the argument less relevant. Nobody will listen to a private jet setter preaching about the environmental impact of private jets.

hi I live in a modest apartment in an actual city, and bicycle everywhere, and I think cryptocurrency's absurd energy usage is a problem too

It's not binary, both of these things are problems.

When a some one points out a problem, if it turns out person is a hypocrite, that does not make the problem vanish in a puff of smoke.

True. It also points out a new problem.

Exactly, terrible people can still be right about something.

Inconvenient truths often elicit negative responses.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com