There are many other attempts to create a cryptocurrency before, but all of them failed. Do you know why? Because they were centralized. Bitcoin was the first truly decentralized.
As it is decentralized, it cannot be shut down. A powerful government cannot shut down bitcoin now.
Proof of Work algorithm protects the network, as it is required the energy of a small country to 51% the bitcoin network.
There is no place where you can nuke with missiles and destroy bitcoin database. You can sure track some important actors and neutralize them, but it would not kill bitcoin.
I agree
Decentralization is what made bitcoin possible.
IMO, censorship resistance and lack of central authority are endgoals of a world currency, not a mean to an end.
The goal is the decentralization and the lack of central authority. This is why bitcoin was created.
I meant that decentralization is a means to an end and that the 'end' is censorship resistance, no central point of failure, no collusion, yadayadayada. I mean you don't look at the sun and say "I don't like it because it centralizes power at its core." So decentralization does come with benefits in crypto but its not the only thing that gives it value though. I mean the users are really valuable to the ecosystem.