I really like the idea of Ripple, but the current problem I have with it is there seems to be no way to verify how many ripples exist.
https://ripple.com/wiki/RPC_API#account_infohttps://ripple.com/tools/infoYou're free to verify this and more also by running your own node.
There is also a bunched together amount released by RippleLabs (
https://www.ripplelabs.com/xrp-distribution/) with no further/cryptographically verifiable proof behind that. It looks like about in the right ballpark though, from looking at the distribution of XRP between wallets atm.
Unlike Bitcoin, Ripple does not mainly exist to transact XRP (ripples) though, it mainly exists to facilitade trade. Some people here seem to have a similar vision in mind for BTC (using them as "bridging, globally accepted" currency to make transactions faster by buying them on one end and selling them on the other) so these might feel a bit threatened by XRP than others - if you are interested however in using ONLY bitcoins or holding them for longer periods of time, ignoring XRP and pushing for Ripple is a smart move imho.