> Cybercrime is a relatively small price to pay compared to the value provided by private cryptocurrencies.

Which is what exactly? Speculation? And...

  1. Store any amount of money easily and securely
  2. Transact quickly, easily, cheaply, globally, limitlessly
  3. Nobody knows your balance
  4. Nobody knows transaction amounts, senders, receivers, history
  5. Nobody knows about anything you do
  6. Nobody can randomly freeze your assets
  7. Nobody can move those coins without the key

Have you ever had your money taken away from you? My country suffered through hyperinflation in the 90s, the government got desperate and just froze the bank accounts of everybody. The amount of disruption this caused is legendary.

It doesn't matter how much energy it consumes or how much crime it enables. If it allows us to escape government stupidity it's more than worth it.

I mean roughly each of those points doesn’t apply to every major crypto. But also no, I’m properly invested. You get to escape government stupidity into the open arms of criminals and scammers. Out of the frying pan and into the fire so to say [1]

It’s like replacing the local police with the Sicilians. They even have a comparable customer service policy, i.e. SFYL.

[1] https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2021.02.17_-_settlemen...

> roughly each of those points doesn’t apply to every major crypto

Monero currently has all of these properties.

> You get to escape government stupidity into the open arms of criminals and scammers.

This is does not justify sacrificing everybody's financial privacy and independence. The police should track the criminals via other methods. They shouldn't be able to surveil everybody's transactions at all times or freeze people's accounts over the slightest suspicions until they prove their innocence. It's better to let some criminals escape than suffer these injustices.

> This is does not justify sacrificing everybody's financial privacy and independence.

Agree to disagree haha. Financial records are private unless revealed to authorities in a 4th-amendment compliant probable-caused based warrant. Seems like the right place to draw the line.

> The police should track the criminals via other methods.

Why? I mean it's pretty easy with basically every crypto other than Monero, and Monero is basically Narco-dollars, which are unlikely to find any acceptance.

> They shouldn't be able to surveil everybody's transactions at all times or freeze people's accounts over the slightest suspicions until they prove their innocence.

You mean... probable cause? And offer due process to resolve? Some would argue that's the foundation of the criminal justice system.

> It's better to let some criminals escape than suffer these injustices.

You're just subbing one kind of criminal for another.

Destruction of this really annoying planet we live on!