- Bitcoin’s real world value has always been a topic for debate
- The recent crash has sparked another frenzy of opinion
- Robert Kiyosaki and Paul Krugman recently offered very different viewpoints on the matter
Bitcoin’s recent collapse had brought bears out of the woodwork as well as bulls trying to rally the troops and prevent a longer term correction. At times like this, anti-crypto media outlets revel in wheeling out their most fervent Bitcoin critics for a clickbait article, and the past week has been nothing different. However, we have also seen a few influential individuals standing up for Bitcoin this week, resulting in some interesting exchanges of opinion on the topic.
Krugman Criticizes Bitcoin’s Impracticality
One of those who took the opportunity to bash Bitcoin while it was going down was Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman, who like many has predicted Bitcoin’s demise on many occasions and been wrong on every single instance. He was allowed to savage the cryptocurrency in a New York Times piece during which he pointed to its lack of everyday use, the lack of a problem to which blockchain is the solution, and, of course, compared Bitcoin to a Ponzi scheme.
One of the more ironic statements Krugman made was when he used Venmo as an example of everyday use of money – the same Venmo that recently introduced cryptocurrency trading on its platform and may well soon allow spending of crypto on its platform.
Bitcoin and Gold Have Failed as Currencies
Krugman sees Bitcoin as a failed currency, which is something that many Bitcoiners actually agree with, but he doesn’t see its further use as an alternative store of value either. This is evidenced by his confusion over why gold has retained its value, despite not being a practical way to buy goods and services any longer. Clearly Krugman is a huge fan of fiat currency and only fiat currency.
There was a pin prick of hope however for those looking for a chink in Krugman’s armor – he admitted that “it’s conceivable that one or two cryptocurrencies will somehow achieve similar longevity” to gold. Krugman’s article came a few days after he said he had given up predicting Bitcoin’s death, comparing it to a cult that is always able to recruit new members.
Kiyosaki Says Buy The Dip
One opponent to Krugman’s views was noted Bitcoin bull and rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki who informed his YouTube channel viewers that in the long term it almost doesn’t matter what price you get into Bitcoin, as long as you do. However, he did add that the current dip was a chance to “stop whining and take ACTION”, reiterating his anti-fiat position:
Kiyosaki has long said that the value proposition of fiat currency was destroyed the day that the U.S. government came off the gold standard in 1971, since when he has been preaching followers to buy gold and silver and, latterly, bitcoin, which he continued this last night:
DEMAND UP. SALES DOWN. US Mint April sales of US gold eagles down 41 %. Silver eagle sales down 75%. WHY? Demand too hot. US Mint by law unable to buy gold and silver above certain price. USMINT, FED & TREASURY in trouble. Buying more gold, silver, Bitcoin at great prices.
— therealkiyosaki (@theRealKiyosaki) May 23, 2021
Of course no one knows at this stage who will end up being ‘right’ about Bitcoin, but it seems that Kiyosaki at least understands the value proposition and Bitcoin’s potential use case while Krugman seems fixated on money he can use every day, which is no longer the goal for Bitcoin developers and supporters.
