>> A spike in electricity costs would directly effect existing bitcoins' value
How?
Please explain?
It makes mining more expensive, and some people may be switched off mining as a result, but the same number of BTC will be made.
Re:The first Bitcoin post on HN
by splintercell on Tuesday November 19, 2013 @04:13PM
(#6764510)
That means the rate of inflation of bitcoins will slow down, thereby causing a spike in the value of existing bitcoins.
>> That means the rate of inflation of bitcoins will slow down, thereby causing a spike in the value of existing bitcoins
Nope, the rate of bitcoin generation is fixed, it's nothing to do with how many people mine or what the hash rate is.
"Store of exchange-value" != currency, and BTC is currently behaving best in that role. Admirably, really- see how it's spreading like hotcakes in China. That's as a store of exchange value, not a currency.
You can't turn your gold "back into" ore or your diamonds "back into" carbon. The cost of an airline ticket is mostly determined by the current price of fuel.
When BTC starts to be used as a currency in earnest we can revisit the issue. Although at that point, you will be able to exchange your BTC back into electricity or other commodities through speculation or arbitrage. Which you can actually do directly right now if you know the right people, anyway. Profitably.