Quote from: CharlieContent on October 09, 2012, 02:30:02 AM

Let me put it in a more simple way. Let's say I don't currently hold any Bitcoins. I want to buy a product or service. What am I going to do? If I am paying for it online, I would use my Visa card. I punch in the numbers on the website, and I am done. If the product does not arrive then I can put in a dispute to Visa and get my money back. I think it's a good system.

For you, not for the merchant who don't get his money because you took the product and filed a dispute with VISA. Actually it is not good for you either, because VISA's merchant fees of 3% or more is added to the price tag, and the losses due to fraud. PayPal is even worse.

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Now, why the fuck would I, instead of going through that simple process, go through the hassle of buying Bitcoin, try to find a merchant who accepts Bitcoin for the product I want, pay him, and then have no recourse either through a payment processor or the police if something goes wrong? Why the utter fuck would anyone do that? It's so utterly bizarre that anyone thinks they would...unless of course it is a product that isn't available through the usual (legal) channels.

If the item is offered for sale in bitcoins, and you own bitcoins, it is the simplest way to pay. It is like paying with cash on the net. The police and other agencies are already investigating a number of Bitcoin related crimes. I agree we need to work out a legal status for Bitcoin, so they can aid more and the tax status is clarified.

There are plenty of legal things you may not want on your credit card bill, btw. I'm sure you can think of a few for yourself.

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Also, as to your second point, I was actually on the internet in 1995. It was a million times more useful than Bitcoin is now. It had so many uses, even back then, that the comparison is actually hilarious.

Say 1992 then. Before the WWW. The number of internet users then is probably comparable to the number of Bitcoin users now. Basic services like E-mail, Usenet, IRC, games (MUD), gopher and FTP were in place. Typical transfer rates were rather low. Or internet banking in 1995.