Bitcoin is a different thing to different people. To the average consumer, it is a way of sending your aunt up north money without having to deal with bankers or fees, or alternatively a way of buying drinks without having to fiddle through change. To the investor, it is a commodity which can be used to get rich, sometimes quickly. To the cryptographer, it is a fascinating application of their science. To the economist, it is a fascinating and unique concept to observe. To the anarchist, it is freedom from the state and spying.  It is because of how Bitcoin can be so many things to so many people that gives it its power.