I know everyone has heard the jokes such as "How many physcologists does it take to change a light bulb?"
One. But only if the bulb really wants to change.
I must admit, I am troubled by the lack of critical thinking and basic knowledge when people state that BTC takes more energy to make than Fiat currency.
Now, let's put that to a real test. How many people want to believe BTC takes more energy to produce than some other forms of currency? Such as Fiat Currency? This is similar to the questions such as " Have you quit beating your dog; yet?" It seems we may have been asking a loaded question, or maybe we are asking the wrong question.
Let's look at both and see what you forgot about the fiat side of currency. Let's compare the currency we use and how much it costs to launch and use this currency. You can read on or skip to the US Mint site (here) and see how this works. The question these same people should be asking is; How much does Fiat vs Crypto currency cost to use?
When we look at minting coins, we have to look at the mining process of finding and gathering precious metals. Then the metals are refined, and then after quality checks, they are shipped to a minter that will process gold or silver bars and turn them into what we know as coins.
Don't forget the mining, shipping, quality control, and security even before it gets to a US Mint that will make the coin. And don't forget the security and the energy usage of the machines, and the a/c for the people working in the mint, and the money and energy used to build the buildings that host the mint. And then the parking lots that allow the people to park at the mint. And light and security at that building, and then the cars and gasoline that people use to drive to the mint. Add maintenance to the facility and the machines. Did I forget to mention the cost of the lands these facilities sit on?
Even before the minting process, you have expensive and time consuming dies that have been approved, designed and made by artisans to stamp these coins. And these dies do not last forever. Now lets talk about moving these coins to a bank or storing them until they are sold to various concerns. Take a guess what an armored car with drivers, guards, fuel and maintenance cost. Multiply that by the hundreds. Who pays for these coins to be sent out to the smaller and then smaller banks? You do. Your tax money.
I won't get into the folding money, but you see where this is going.
"How much does is cost to mint and use BTC?"
This should be the real test question.
The cost of the mining equiptment and the energy used is born by the users. After the crypto is mined and minted, there are only transfer fees. There is some cost involved to secure your coins ( such as a hardware wallet). The cost of minting and using a crypto coin stops there. All fees are paid by the maker or taker and the nodes. Cost vs Price
There are no huge taxpayer financed ultra secure facilities and fleets of armored cars and huge bank buildings with well paid staff, and enormous fleets of cars and aircraft (Secret Service, Federal Reserve Banks, US Treasury Dept, State and Local Police, goverment lawyers and etc, etc, etc ) that consume energy, time and money to use and secure the crypto that does not wear out with use.
So, have you quit beating your dog yet?
A simple yes or no may not work when you ask a stupid question. A question comparing BTC and Fiat. To compare, you must use apples and apples, not apples and oranges . You might want to ask about the entire life cycle of both. As I have said before, there is a huge difference between price and cost.
How much does money cost?
In the end, everything you think about money is not very accurate. All money is worthless until the users give it value. Until it can be found and traded and measured and stored, it is just a piece of paper with a promise behind it.
Kinda like a printed $1000.00 bill.
I saw this on twitter a few days after I posted this article. So go on over and see a great Video that captures what you just read and adds more depth ( and pictures) Here. Explains how the entire BTC network uses about the same energy as electric clothes dryers in the U.S.
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