Then you don't use any Bitcoin exchanges, since they also just give you IOUs?
You are correct, they also give you IOUs (see mtgox debacle for the risks). But to minimize the risk, you can immediately withdraw the asset to your wallet after trading.
There is no IOU-less interface between Crypto and Fiat currencies though...
well, that's because of the fiat shortcomings. No way to do atomic swaps with EUR.
However, there
are decentralized exchanges like bitshares for example.
so instead of creating the IOUs on a server of MtGox, why are you against creating them on a public blockchain? Wouldn't that at least be a step forward in the right direction?
Yeah, maybe a step in the right direction. I have nothing against IOUs in general. Just people should not get lulled in and neglegt the associated 3rd party risk. Even with ripple (it presumably being a public blockchain or not doesn't change this), you still have that risk. It's inherent to IOUs (by design).
It's just that I'd rather hold the larger part of my value in some commodity-based money (or other "tangible" assets (yes, I consider crypto tokens to be "tangible", but that's a philosophical detour)) like BCH or ETH or whatever. That way I "only" have to trust that there will be a liquid market allowing me to pull that value back out when I need it. I do
not have to trust some 3rd party (however too big to fail, insured or whatnot it may be) to honor the IOUs I have with them and I do
not have to trust that (or another 3rd party) to not inflate the money supply into their own coffers at will, maybe even in an opaque way.