wheelskjm said:
Start with learning how the internet works, the history of money, game theory, Internet of Things, distributed systems, economic theories, physics and cryptography.
Or just assume other people have already, otherwise it would be if zero value.
Here's the thing. I'm probably roughly in the top 1% of Americans in understanding each of those things with the exception of cryptography (keeping in mind just how low the bar can be; that's more of a commentary on the average person than on myself), yet I don't get why cryptocurrencies have any inherent value.
Your last sentence is wildly unconvincing, I don't invest based on trusting that other people have worked it out. That's a good way to lose a lot of money really fast.
So basically, I'm stuck with this vague idea that cryptocurrency is either the next internet and I'm losing a fortune standing on the sidelines... or it's Dutch tulips. Or maybe it's somewhere in between: the internet circa 1999 and the techies and enthusiasts are prematurely bidding it up not realizing that (a) the supporting technologies and infrastructure aren't there yet, and (b) the great unwashed masses are at least ten years away from integrating it into their lives to the extent that webvan can make money. The dangers of trusting the tech without realizing the importance of the human element and other practical concerns.
As for value: I understand the value of commodities, commodity-backed currencies, and fiat currencies, but so far haven't come across a paragraph that explains in layman's terms why cryptocurrency is anything but a shared delusion. The words sound harsh, but I'm trying to make a point more than I'm dismissing the tech. Until the value and safety can be articulated so the layperson can understand, it's not going to be adopted as a true currency and will remain a fringe speculation. A stock's value can temporarily be incorrectly valued due to these shared delusions, but in the long run they come out to discounted expected cash flows, which may be mathematical estimates but at least they make sense.
One of my main concerns is what sort of protections there are against counterfeiting. USD is protected by men with guns as well as physical technologies that I can see and touch. I have several thousand+ dollar computers with diverse, complex security, yet I still have to worry about any information on any internet-connected device.
The really weird part is that I WANT non-state currencies to work. It would fit in nicely with my basic economic theory and libertarian leanings, I'm just not sure it would actually work with the army of people out there corrupting and infiltrating every system they can get into for financial gain or sheer perversity. It's hard enough to trust that they won't crater currencies backed by the government, given how much activity is purely electronic now.
Ps- the new Android predictive text is killing me, so this was exhausting to write. Apologies for gross errors.