Quote from: bobdude17 on April 14, 2013, 12:06:52 AM

We already have more "working employees", all incentivized with "stock options", than they EVER will.

Yup, and here's an article by BitPay's Tony G in which he was describing how owning bitcoins is like investing in the whole Bitcoin ecosystem:

Quote

The niche bitcoin space is unlike anything in history. Its not necessary to invest in a Bitcoin startup in order to profit from the space. Many bitcoin companies are self-funded and the capital requirements are low. By simply owning bitcoins, you can profit from the success of every bitcoin company. Theres no need to pick the winners. BTC is the investment that gives you exposure to the currency, to the payment network, and to every business building products and services on top of bitcoin.

How Owning Bitcoin Is Owning An ETF On The Whole Bitcoin Space
- http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/PYMNTS-International/2013/02/How-Owning-Bitcoin-Is-Owning-An-ETF-On-The-Whole-Bitcoin-Space/

Quote from: bobdude17 on April 14, 2013, 12:06:52 AM

You must understand, this is the first project of it's kind in human history. All these petty beginning-stage problems will be overcome - why? Simply because because for the first time we all WANT them to be overcome. You must account for the solutions to problems that we don't understand yet - because they are being attacked by a motivated workforce quality we have never seen before. The problems will eventually be solved, and this is why Bitcoin will make it to the mainstream.

Well, this isn't the first time that mass collaboration around an open protocol has changed the world. You might have heard of things like Wikipedia, or the world wide web itself -- both great examples of this. Look up Don Tapscott's work for more on this.

What is unique to Bitcoin is the others all were mostly web-based/online. There will be a growing amount of collaboration with a local impact. Patronizing a merchant versus that merchant's competitors specifically because that merchant accepts bitcoin is something that will be recognized at the local level. Here's an example of someone drawing from the global Bitcoin community to provide local help:

- https://www.smore.com/e36w-sean-s-outpost

What is also unique to Bitcoin is that with other mass collaborations, the contributor generally receives no compensation or receives less compensation than could be obtained through other means. The mass of collaborators were mostly participating as a labor of love. Bitcoin could be the first mass collaboration that is financially rewarding to nearly all participants. Bitcoin could be so rewarding to where the collaborator can justify allocating greater and greater involvement -- including obtaining all income needs as a result of that collaborative work.

Stepping back and looking at this "mass collaboration", it is simply the re-discovery of the concept of free markets.