“Cryptocurrency: A Frightening New World”
An article by Peter Hengst 07/09/2021
There are so many changes occurring in the way we think about money. After the gold standard fell off in 1933, the actual idea of money has completely transformed. We now know that all money only holds value based on the belief of the people that it is worth something. As a consensus, we all agree that a single US dollar note is worth only one dollar and no more. We all know that there is no longer any silver in new quarters that are created, and even pennies are made with copper plated zinc to avoid the use of expensive minerals. This means we are at a major crossroad in the way we view currency. Why is it valuable, and why do we prefer to be able to see it with our own eyes? Cash, coins, checks, and credit cards have always been the preferred way to conduct commerce. This is an old way that worked well, before the digital age propelled us into a computer-based lifestyle. Now we order everything online. From groceries delivered by Wal-Mart, to pretty much anything else that exists delivered by Amazon. This preference to have items brought straight to your home by retail giants makes using paper and coin money less sensible. What if there was a way to pay for things anywhere in the world using a currency that remains the same relative price regardless of location, and can be securely transmitted within minutes using a smartphone? That is cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrency is a concept that many people have been avoiding because they truly do not understand it. The most common statement I have heard by folks who have yet to adopt the idea of crypto is “it’s not real money, it’s fake.” Well, I want to know what makes money REAL? The United States prints money with almost no regard for various reasons including keeping up with population growth and this causes inflation to occur. That means by design, the dollar becomes less valuable overtime and we must spend more to get the same products. This monetary system is failing miserably.
It used to be that people could trust their money to a banking system and they would be obliged to use the conveniences of this industry so that they didn’t have to walk around carrying a fortune in cash. Perhaps before my time, banks were set up to be more trustworthy and less expensive. That is no longer the case. Now banks charge fees for every type of transaction, and when you walk into a bank with a plan to pull out all your money, it generally isn’t possible as they no longer have access to large sums of cash. This seems unfair to me. If I want my $20,000 in cash that I have in an account immediately, I am forced to wait multiple days because the bank doesn’t have that much money in it! The bank, where people go to deposit thousands of dollars everyday, doesn’t have the money for me when I immediately need it. This will never happen with cryptocurrency.
When dealing with cryptocurrency, an individual can access their funds in full or partially at any time, anywhere, for any reason. The control of your funds becomes completely decided upon by you, the owner of those funds. If you want to send $5 or $500,000 worth of Bitcoin from one wallet to another, it will occur within 10 minutes on average and the fee for either amount will remain the same. This is the ultimate form of financial freedom. A cryptographic algorithm is attached to every transaction that hits the blockchain so that miners must collectively agree that a transaction is correctly verified before finalizing it which keeps your funds as safe as possible. That is not the case with traditional banking. A central hub for each bank is easily hackable giving criminals access to your account funds and all of your personal information. They could hack into your bank’s central computer and steal your identity as well as all of your money leaving you with no available funds and a multitude of credit issues. This is impossible when dealing in cryptocurrency because it is completely anonymous.
When we consider the differences between the current banking industry, and the newly available financial option of cryptocurrency, it seems like a no-brainer to me. Crypto is more secure, convenient, fast, and logical given the digital age we are in now. If you are still on the fence about changing the way you view money, then by all means continue to get used and taken advantage of by big banking until you become broke. Otherwise, join the revolution and get yourself set-up with a digital wallet and buy some crypto. It will be your first step toward true financial freedom.