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Comment by zigradett | Hacker News Reader

Bitfinex (which has been outlawed in the USA) keeps printing Tether to prop up the price of Bitcoin, graphics cards are snatched up as soon as they are manufactured, and they're using an Argentina-sized amount of power to keep the whole thing going. Yes, it works, but no one on earth will ever use these Bitcoins to buy two pizzas ever again. What's the end-game, at this point? As many bagholders as possible?

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Who is using GPUs for bitcoin nowadays?

Yes. Someday Tether will implode like all scams do. The results will be spectacular.

The end game is to transition to Proof of Stake, which doesn't have these problems and has other security advantages.

Not for Bitcoin. PoS is a broken system that reinvents oligarchies. Proof of Work is the only secure protocol that works today -- possessing the real, desirable properties like decentralization and censorship resistance.

Don't tell me about vaporware ETH2.

The end goal for Bitcoin is Dyson spheres around stars. And it can be no other way.

A Kardashev Type III civilization, but all it does is mine bitcoin at the same rate as today.

You might be joking, but I am not. When put on a Kardashev scale, all these energy concerns seem pathetic. Terrawatts? Lol. Zettajoules of energy await us in the stars!

I agree that terawatts seem pathetic when you're thinking about even Kardashev Type I, but I would hate to see those zettajoules of energy spent on zero-sum competitions instead of goods and services that improve our standard of living. That's still true even if the competition consists of Bitcoin instead of the nuclear arms race, Wheel of Fortune, Democrats vs. Republicans, World War II, and NASCAR. I mean, at least Bitcoin and NASCAR don't burn cities, but they aren't building space habs either.

0.1% of our energy being spent on Bitcoin mining is fine, 1% might be a little worrisome, 10% would be a real wakeup call, 50% would be a crisis, and 90% would be ruinous. Is there a natural limit? Competition from alternative currency systems with cheaper transaction costs, maybe?

Lol, this got me good

If you don't want to hear about ETH2 (which is, for the record, not vaporware), Cardano has been PoS from the start and is the #3 crypto [1]. I wouldn't be surprised if it overtook Eth soon.

[1] https://coinmarketcap.com/

Do you think speculators/retail investors really care about the decentralization properties?

Yes, I think the informed Bitcoin investor is well aware of the value that decentralized peer-to-peer censorship resistant electronic money brings to the table.

I care. Everyone I know cares. The core developers care. The ecosystem cares. I think you are radically underestimating the value of such things.

I'm pretty sure most of them just see mining as quick easy cash. If people actually valued the decentralization aspect then more would be using it for day to day transactions rather than just speculative investments.

Miners? Not a chance. They know exactly what they are doing for decentralization and censorship resistance. It requires large capital investment over many years, and often includes long energy contracts with providers. If you believe mining Bitcoin is 'quick easy cash' I am afraid you are mistaken (in 2021).

Some Retail investors? Sure -- but I'm sure you could find misinformed investors in all fields.

The point nocoiners miss is that holding Bitcoin IS using it. It is storing value over larger periods, and especially through jurisdictions with poor fiscal policies. Many like me will not sell their Bitcoin at any price -- especially not for dirty fiat.

Cool, when is Bitcoin moving to Proof of Stake? Before or after the FSF release Hurd?

There are no such plans, and it's extremely unlike there ever will be.

Bitcoin will never move to PoS. The community is far to fractured, without a leader they'll never agree.

Learning the hard way why having a central authority managing your currency is probably a good thing

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