> If crypto didn't exist, another industry would need to be shutdown.

This makes literally zero sense. Mining adds extra load that wouldn’t otherwise exist. If crypto didn’t exist, the Texas grid would experience reduced load. This should be obvious: if paying these miners to stop has the desired effect of reducing the load on the grid, miners not existing would surely have a similar effect.

> their argument applies to every industry.

Most other industries provide actual societal value, unlike crypto. And to hear off the rebuttal I already hear coming: no, just because it has a market cap doesn’t mean it’s adding value to society. As a trivial counterexample, Mexican cartels are undoubtedly worth billions but I think it’s pretty inarguable we’d all be better off without them.