"Why would I want to take my bitcoins out of the ether where my wealth would no longer be safe." Precisely.
This is one of the things I love about bitcoins - safe unless you can break ME
The other thing is, precious metals are a pain in the ass... I am not going to be checking weight and purity and all that other junk when I want to make a deal
I know bitcoin is good, the network will prove it, and a coin is easy to break down into tradeable parts
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Side note - I am a tradesman in the Alberta oilsands, I spend long days on tools talkin shit with the other boys.
Sometimes that shittalking is productive, I have learned / observed a few things:
Around the time OWS broke out, everyone was talking about how fucked the government is. We all hate politicians, they have no trust.
All the old balls are telling us young bucks to buy silver. Every time gold is brought up, we are told it has no industrial purpose and is hella pricey.
Most of us have started buying silver and spending less on strippers and truck mods.
This is out in the middle of the oilsands ... we are known for our toys and partying.
Once bitcoin becomes a little more pervasive / easy to trade in and I figure out how to explain it, I bet I will be selling a bunch of casascius coins out in camp.