Linus Torvalds has said that cryptocurrencies are simply "a great vehicle for scams"
  • Linus Torvalds, creator of Linux, does not believe in cryptocurrencies, calling them a vehicle for scams and a Ponzi scheme.
  • Torvalds was once rumored to be Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto, but he clarified it was a joke and denied owning a Bitcoin fortune.
  • Torvalds also dismissed the idea of technological singularity as a bedtime story for children, saying continuous exponential growth does not make sense.
  • takeda@lemmy.worldEnglish
    12910·
    2 years ago

    If after 16 years you still have to be asked if you believe in crypto, then chances are that it is a scam.

    • MataVatnik@lemmy.worldEnglish
      352·
      2 years ago

      Good point, I always wondered if there is a way the technology will evolve and somehow find a niche that’s unexpected. But you’re right, 16 years is a long time to be meandering.

      • AIhasUse@lemmy.worldEnglish
        745·
        2 years ago

        It’s such a first-world thing to not understand all the good that crypto has done. There are countless lives that have been financially saved by having a safe place to hold wealth while their countries’ fiat collapsed. It’s just a short matter of time until many first world folks understand this as well.

          • AIhasUse@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            2 years ago

            Paying taxes is one thing, and of course it is necessary. Extra value is extracted by printing more and more money. USD used to be backed by gold, but they took that away. In addition to corrupt governments extracting value by printing more and more currency, counterfeitters also do the same. Bitcoin fixes both of these issues. There is absolutely no reason why Bitcoin and taxes can’t coexist.

            Furthermore, with bitcoin we can electronically transfer exactly how much value we want to without having to trust every single vendor with our credit/debit card numbers. Have you ever had to cancel a card because of fraudulent spends? Well, millions of Americans do every year and this also doesn’t happen with Bitcoin. You send exactly how much you want to, you don’t hand indefinite access to your funds to every single vendor to sell your information or steal from you whenever they want. In the last 2 weeks I’ve had over $400 stolen from my debit card because of this idiotic system.

            • al4s@feddit.deEnglish
              53·
              2 years ago

              Yes, because infrastructure, subsidies, education and social spending still need to happen and not paying your taxes will erode those things long before they stop a genocide. If you don’t care about getting in trouble with your government, there are more effective things that can be done.

                • DPRK_Official@lemmy.worldEnglish
                  81·
                  2 years ago

                  Our citizens pay taxes out of pure love and devotion to our Dear Leader. We don’t have room for your silly Western moralities.

        • MataVatnik@lemmy.worldEnglish
          4·
          2 years ago

          There was promise for people in Argentina livig under extreme inflation but I never heard it go anywhere.

      • baru@lemmy.worldEnglish
        11·
        2 years ago

        No clue how long scams usually last, but famous ones easily last multiple decades, though funny how unclear if is when the scam started:

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madoff_investment_scandal?wprov=sfla1

        Federal investigators believe the fraud in the investment management division and advisory division may have begun in the 1970s. However, Madoff himself stated his fraudulent activities began in the 1990s. Madoff’s fraudulent activities are believed to have accelerated after the 2001 change from fractional share trades to decimals on the NYSE, which cut significantly into his legitimate profits as a market-maker.

        Alerted by his sons, federal authorities arrested Madoff on December 11, 2008.

        • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.worldEnglish
          2·
          2 years ago

          Madoff was hidden. Bitcoin is out in the open.

          I think “bubble” could be a better description. Bitcoins bubble pops regularly every 4 years.

    • captainlezbian@lemmy.worldEnglish
      75·
      2 years ago

      Yeah I don’t believe in smartphones, I just have one. I don’t believe in crypto, I acknowledge it’s pointless.

      • Willy@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        23·
        2 years ago

        It’s not pointless. It was invented for a very good reason. You’ll find out one day. It’s a shame it’s been co-opted the way it has.

    • Rivalarrival@lemmy.todayEnglish
      0·
      2 years ago

      For all the reasons that crypto is a scam, every “value” stock - stock which does not now, and never has any intention of ever paying dividends - is also a scam.

      • RecluseRamble@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
        0·
        2 years ago

        Behind a value stock is a profitable company. Behind crypto-tokens is a hilariously inefficient database with no application in real life.

        Gamble away your money, I’ll take the stock - or “have fun staying poor” like crypto-token morons like to say.