Quote from: bitcool on August 08, 2011, 01:33:29 AM

Quote from: vulgata on August 08, 2011, 01:11:05 AM

Quote from: bitcool on August 08, 2011, 01:05:16 AM

US dollar is a mess, euro is a mess, the whole fiat world is a mess.
And yet bitcoin is in a continuous downward spiral? Give me a break...

It's completely unrelated; Bitcoin is still way too small, untested, and "unsafe" for normal people to use. It's like asking why WOW gold isn't reacting to the recent financial crises.

True, bitcoin is too small, young, and somewhat "untested", but there's no comparison between bitcoin and WOW gold.

Obviously they are completely different, but from the mainstream financial world's point of view there is no difference. Actually, there is; Blizzard is a huge corporation that has time-tested servers running the world's largest MMORPG for years, while Bitcoin is an underground P2P network with a history of repeated thefts, security breaches, scams, black markets, illegal drugs, gambling, and crazy bubbles/speculation/market manipulation.

Quote from: bitcool on August 08, 2011, 01:33:29 AM

Its valuation should follow the direction of physical gold and silver, not in the opposite direction.

It "should" only if people treat it similarly, but while the ideas are similar, the trust placed in them by the market are not. I could draw a piece of modern art by throwing paint on a piece of paper, and it would be impossible to recreate (since only the original is worth anything), rare, stored/transported relatively easy, etc., but I couldn't sell it for the billions a real masterpiece is worth until everyone else agrees. Actually the art trade is very similar to precious metals/Bitcoin as they also have no value until people say they do. (Yes, art can be used for decoration and gold can be used for electronics, but we have more than enough gold/art for those needs.)

Don't get me wrong, I am a full supporter of Bitcoins, I believe it is brilliant/revolutionary, and I own some myself, but I think we have to be a little more realistic and not start comparing it to the worlds' major reserve currencies right off the bat...