Hacker News Reader

Comment by yellowapple | Hacker News Reader

> Good worthwhile valuable things were actually created on the web in the late nineties.

And good worthwhile things are being created in the cryptocurrency/blockchain space now. Likewise, there was a lot of useless bullshit on the Web in the 90's, and a lot of useless bullshit in the blockchain space today. And likewise, there were a lot of pre-Web "experts" making the Web out to be some passing fad due to all the bullshit, and there are a lot of pre-blockchain "experts" making blockchains/cryptocurrency out to be some passing fad due to all the bullshit - in both cases ignoring the potential, only to find themselves and their opinions irrelevant.

I don't know whether blockchains are going to end up being as fundamental to the world economy in the coming decades as the World Wide Web is today, but I do know that history repeats itself, and I ain't arrogant enough to assume this to be some exception.

View on HN

> good worthwhile things are being created in the cryptocurrency/blockchain space now

like what?

Aaand the answer to your completely reasonable question seems to be: <crickets>

Ask the people in the developing world using it to replace their countries' failed monetary systems. Ask the people taking out loans on DeFi platforms and not needing to worry about discrimination by some bank's underwriters. Ask the working class in my country and others who want what little savings they have to have at least some chance of appreciating in value. Ask the migrant workers in my country who are now able to send money home to their families without Western Union's predatory fees.

Cryptocurrency ain't perfect, but people are using it for its intended purpose, and it ain't going away anytime soon.

> Ask the people in the developing world using it to replace their countries' failed monetary systems.

Where oh where is this happening?

The El Salvador experiment failed: https://restofworld.org/2022/el-salvador-bitcoin/

And I hope you don't mean millionnaires of the developing world because they're people who've escaped the rigours of being in a developing world.

> Where oh where is this happening?

broadly gestures at Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe

not-so-broadly gestures at Ukraine

> The El Salvador experiment failed

A few growing pains != "failed"

And from that same site:

https://restofworld.org/2022/ukraines-tech-community-rallies... <---- Bitcoin donations serving as a critical part of the initial lifeline for Ukraine's self-defense.

https://restofworld.org/2022/were-still-very-afraid-of-failu... <---- It ain't just me saying that cryptocurrency is a solid bet to unshackling the Global South from the Global North's financial hegemony.

https://restofworld.org/2021/stablecoins-find-a-use-case-in-... <---- People in Nigeria using stablecoins in the midst of local currency inflation and restrictions on accessing foreign currency.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com