Survey Says Most Americans Want to Ban Bitcoin: Highlighting Need for Education

BADecker

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Quote from: jonald_fyookball on June 23, 2014, 12:19:17 PM

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:52:01 AM

The fact that plants and animals change (evolve) only suggests that they did it.

Yes, but not everyone agrees even on that. ( Biblical fundamentalists ).
I thought that's what we were talking about.

Natural selection always sounded plausible to me... but i'm certainly
open to other theories and evidence...although doesn't seem like
anyone can really explain those mechanisms.

Complex mechanism may be able to be described, but it won't be easy. It would be like have a hundred Bitcoins systems, that were all radically different from each other, and yet did the same job, and worked together as one. Who could hold such an operation in his head? It could be written down, but it almost wouldn't be understandable. Someone with a reasonably clear picture of it might be able to describe it to us lay-folk, but we would have to trust that his explanation was accurate and truthful, rather than that he was simply propagandizing and politicizing his own points of view.

rext

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Bitcoin is like in the dawn of the internet era when people used to skeptical and negative about it. Look how it has grown. Same thing is gonna happen.

allthingsluxury

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It's very sad how so many are completely uninformed about Bitcoin. The mainstream media painted such an ugly picture of it for so long, and still they are not a fan of it. We just need to keep doing our part and explaining the huge benefits of it. Anyone who takes the time to learn about it, sees the huge potential.

hologram

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Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:31:58 AM

Older folks and the poor (who are often on Social Security or welfare) in the U.S. don't like Bitcoin because it has to do with money. They fear Bitcoin because it might disrupt the money flow from the "system" to them. The little these people understand tells them that the money system is in danger of collapsing as it is. And Bitcoin is only something that might make it happen, or at least make the fall faster.

While it is a fact that Bitcoin would help the money system to crash, if it had the chance to become a little stronger, it won't happen that way. The money system will fall on its own, not because of Bitcoin, but because of the trust people place in untrustworthy bankers and government people. The whole fiat money system is inherently flawed. It simply cannot uphold the weight of its own stupid bulk. At least not the way the money managers are using it.

It's too bad that folks don't use what energy they have to investigate Bitcoin. It just might wind up being our salvation when the money system DOES collapse in the near future. And if they are dependent on the money system, they need all the preparation that they can get before the crash.

this

QuestionAuthority

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You lead and I'll watch you walk away.

Quote from: jonald_fyookball on June 23, 2014, 12:19:17 PM

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:52:01 AM

The fact that plants and animals change (evolve) only suggests that they did it.

Yes, but not everyone agrees even on that. ( Biblical fundamentalists ).
I thought that's what we were talking about.

Natural selection always sounded plausible to me... but i'm certainly
open to other theories and evidence...although doesn't seem like
anyone can really explain those mechanisms.

I can explain them - the Angels did it. lol

jonald_fyookball

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Core dev leaves me neg feedback #abuse #political

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:52:01 AM

The fact that plants and animals change (evolve) only suggests that they did it.

Yes, but not everyone agrees even on that. ( Biblical fundamentalists ).
I thought that's what we were talking about.

Natural selection always sounded plausible to me... but i'm certainly
open to other theories and evidence...although doesn't seem like
anyone can really explain those mechanisms.

BADecker

legendary

Activity: 3906

Merit: 1373

Quote from: jonald_fyookball on June 23, 2014, 11:39:54 AM

I think at some point it will go viral...old folks putting at least a portion of savings into Bitcoin...the idea/meme will catch on...and it will snowball... at least that is my hope.

I agree with you. More and more people will start to make Bitcoin a part of their lives. The thing we bitcoiners should not do is wait around. Perhaps the average Bitcoin user can't develop Bitcoin further, because we are not guru Bitcoin dev-like people. Yet, we should strive in other areas, and add our talents within the Bitcoin realm in other ways.

Take a look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu1hTE-Gqms for example. Then look at all the Youtube associated videos. Think up ways that you could use Bitcoin in conjunction with Karl's wisdom to open freedom up further.

Just a thought.

Chris_Sabian

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Quote from: cr1776 on June 23, 2014, 11:37:05 AM

Quote from: Chris_Sabian on June 23, 2014, 10:47:22 AM

Quote from: cr1776 on June 22, 2014, 10:45:51 AM

It would be really nice to see the exact questions. Sometimes they are biased to obtain a specific result (e.g. push-polling), so knowing the questions and the context in which they are asked is important. E.g.

Q 1. "Bitcoins have been used to buy drugs. Have you heard that?"

Q 2. "Should bitcoins be banned?"

v.s.

Q 1. "Bitcoins have been used to send money to charities around the world. Have you heard that?"

Q 2. "Should bitcoins be banned?"

:-)

Both sets of those questions have heavy bias for or against bitcoin. A better question would be:

Q 1. Bitcoin is a currency that exists without the backing of a country. Are you for or against Bitcoin's regulation by the United States Government?

There are entire graduate level courses that focus entirely on asking survey questions without bias. That way you can gather accurate data.

That was the point.

Both are biased and if you don't know the poll internals, you don't know which way it is biased or whether it is biased at all.

(and by the way, your sample is heavily biased too - "regulation" is an emotion heavy word, as is the phrase "without backing of a country.")

Very true as well. I was typing quickly. This is why well thought survey questions are difficult.

I totally agree with you on wanting to know the questions. Sample size is also very important as well as sample location. Was this survey conducted in rural Midwest with old farmers or Silicon Valley with 20 somethings?

Nerazzura

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Quote from: cooldgamer on June 22, 2014, 10:29:37 AM

Just means that the propaganda media has done it's job making BTC look like some evil online drug money. It's an uphill battle to legitimize it, but in time we'll win. I did find the part about religious people wanting to ban transactions with it interesting. Brainwashed people tend to believe anything shoved down their throats Cheesy

yes, bitcoin has to work hard to be able to fight to be recognized by the countries in the world. even though you have a lot of bitcoin but the circulation bitcoin reject your city, it will be useless and can eliminate all the bitcoin that you have

BADecker

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Quote from: jonald_fyookball on June 23, 2014, 11:30:15 AM

Obviously things evolve. Species evolve. (There were dinosaurs and now there ain't) Some of it may be based on natural selection, some of it may be due to other factors that can't be explained, at least right now.

Evolve. Semantics.

The evidence that suggests that species evolve along the lines of the The Theory of Evolution is that same evidence that can be used to show that they did not do so. It all has to do with where one decides to place his faith.

The fact that plants and animals change (evolve) only suggests that they did it. It doesn't close the door to the strong possibility that they have it in their programming to do so under the right conditions.

rext

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It all depends on the way bitcoin was presented to them.

If bitcoin was presented in a way that would cause fear in their hearts, make them feel skeptical, no way will there be support for bitcoin in their eyes.

Similarly, if bitcoin was presented in a way that benefits them immensely, I'm pretty sure their views will change.

BADecker

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Quote from: Beliathon on June 23, 2014, 11:23:47 AM

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:16:11 AM

Oh, this is SOOOO good. I just got to this topic, but there is the answer to evolution, with Bitcoin thrown in to prove it.

We Bitcoiners trust Bitcoin. Well at least we are hopeful. And our trust is based on the fact that the Bitcoin encryption-breaking odds are way too great for Bitcoin encryption to be broken. And even if the encryption were broken once, it would have to be broken over and over again to make it practical to "steal" bitcoins.

For me it's not about trust or hope, it's about mathematics and reason. Bitcoin is based on hard, verifiable, observable science. Fiat, by comparison, is largely based on myth, deception, and illusion. The choice is clear, the future is clear. Fiat is obsolete.

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:16:11 AM

The thing that tickles is that life and existence are encrypted so immeasurably greater than Bitcoin, that there is not even the slightest chance that evolution (as we theorize about it in the general public) could even be a theory, much less have really happened.

You really need some chaos theory in your life. Here's a taste.

While close-to-home mathematics works very well for practical, everyday life, distant math is still very much unknown. For example, we haven't found a form of mathematics that explains Pi (π). We still don't know for a fact that PI is infinite, although it seems that it is.

Reason suggests that chaos has to do with everything. Yet chaos theory is still only a theory and will probably always be, because, chaos theory suggests that reason doesn't hold the answers.

jonald_fyookball

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Core dev leaves me neg feedback #abuse #political

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:31:58 AM

Older folks and the poor (who are often on Social Security or welfare) in the U.S. don't like Bitcoin because it has to do with money. They fear Bitcoin because it might disrupt the money flow from the "system" to them. The little these people understand tells them that the money system is in danger of collapsing as it is. And Bitcoin is only something that might make it happen, or at least make the fall faster.

While it is a fact that Bitcoin would help the money system to crash, if it had the chance to become a little stronger, it won't happen that way. The money system will fall on its own, not because of Bitcoin, but because of the trust people place in untrustworthy bankers and government people. The whole fiat money system is inherently flawed. It simply cannot uphold the weight of its own stupid bulk. At least not the way the money managers are using it.

It's too bad that folks don't use what energy they have to investigate Bitcoin. It just might wind up being our salvation when the money system DOES collapse in the near future. And if they are dependent on the money system, they need all the preparation that they can get before the crash.

I think at some point it will go viral...old folks putting at least a portion of savings into Bitcoin...the idea/meme will catch on...and it will snowball... at least that is my hope.

cr1776

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Quote from: Chris_Sabian on June 23, 2014, 10:47:22 AM

Quote from: cr1776 on June 22, 2014, 10:45:51 AM

It would be really nice to see the exact questions. Sometimes they are biased to obtain a specific result (e.g. push-polling), so knowing the questions and the context in which they are asked is important. E.g.

Q 1. "Bitcoins have been used to buy drugs. Have you heard that?"

Q 2. "Should bitcoins be banned?"

v.s.

Q 1. "Bitcoins have been used to send money to charities around the world. Have you heard that?"

Q 2. "Should bitcoins be banned?"

:-)

Both sets of those questions have heavy bias for or against bitcoin. A better question would be:

Q 1. Bitcoin is a currency that exists without the backing of a country. Are you for or against Bitcoin's regulation by the United States Government?

There are entire graduate level courses that focus entirely on asking survey questions without bias. That way you can gather accurate data.

That was the point.

Both are biased and if you don't know the poll internals, you don't know which way it is biased or whether it is biased at all.

(and by the way, your sample is heavily biased too - "regulation" is an emotion heavy word, as is the phrase "without backing of a country.")

BADecker

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Activity: 3906

Merit: 1373

Older folks and the poor (who are often on Social Security or welfare) in the U.S. don't like Bitcoin because it has to do with money. They fear Bitcoin because it might disrupt the money flow from the "system" to them. The little these people understand tells them that the money system is in danger of collapsing as it is. And Bitcoin is only something that might make it happen, or at least make the fall faster.

While it is a fact that Bitcoin would help the money system to crash, if it had the chance to become a little stronger, it won't happen that way. The money system will fall on its own, not because of Bitcoin, but because of the trust people place in untrustworthy bankers and government people. The whole fiat money system is inherently flawed. It simply cannot uphold the weight of its own stupid bulk. At least not the way the money managers are using it.

It's too bad that folks don't use what energy they have to investigate Bitcoin. It just might wind up being our salvation when the money system DOES collapse in the near future. And if they are dependent on the money system, they need all the preparation that they can get before the crash.

JustBetweenUs

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bitcoin is not a bubble, it is the pin

Quote from: Beliathon on June 22, 2014, 08:25:30 PM

Quote from: bananaControl on June 22, 2014, 08:14:22 PM

The societies of primitive primates [lol redundant much?] ~~are~~ were also very much controlled by violence.

That is a myth, and is wholly untrue. Hobbes was an idiot who totally misunderstood human nature. Read Sex at Dawn.

Quote from: bananaControl on June 22, 2014, 08:14:22 PM

If you had to pick one point in all time of history to be alive as a human, you couldn't pick a better time than now...

I'm sure the noble families of the feudal age thought the same thing, oblivious to the endless suffering of their peasants. If you're an American or European white person (especially male), you're living in a bubble of privilege. You're clueless to the reality of the lives of most people on Earth.
Life is not so great for the folks who make your clothes in Bangladesh, or the kids who assemble your electronics in Guangzhou, or the wage-slaves who harvest your coffee beans, or the undocumented migrant workers in your own nation. Ask them what they think of capitalism.

Oh wait, you don't care. Far easier to remain blissfully ignorant, apathetic, and tacitly complicit in their suffering, while in utter denial about your own.

Just want to say that I appreciate your posts a lot. Spot on.

jonald_fyookball

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Core dev leaves me neg feedback #abuse #political

Obviously things evolve. Species evolve. (There were dinosaurs and now there ain't) Some of it may be based on natural selection, some of it may be due to other factors that can't be explained, at least right now.

Beliathon

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https://youtu.be/PZm8TTLR2NU

Quote from: QuestionAuthority on June 23, 2014, 11:24:29 AM

I’m not sure whether to be amused or frightened by this juxtaposition of polls by Blake Hounshell:
Percentage of Americans who believe in angels: 55
Percentage of Americans who believe in evolution: 39
Percentage of Americans who believe in anthropogenic global warming: 36
Percentage of Americans who believe in ghosts: 34
Percentage of Americans who believe in UFOs: 34

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/more_americans_believe_in_angels_than_global_warming/

Don't be so disturbed, what you need to understand is that there are (at least) two Americas. There is the America of the East and West coast cities - the places connected to the world, thought, and technology. Think of them as surfing the wave of "new" knowledge.

And there is the South, the midwest - places far from the hyper-connected coastal cities, with all their icky culture and learnin. Many states in the South still insist on teaching "Christian Science" (lol!) alongside evolution, implying there is some kind of controversy.

The only real controversy is that actual children are allowed anywhere near these "schools" and their "teachers".

QuestionAuthority

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Activity: 2156

Merit: 1393

You lead and I'll watch you walk away.

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:16:11 AM

Quote from: foggyb on June 22, 2014, 10:40:47 PM

Quote from: Beliathon on June 22, 2014, 08:58:44 PM

Stuff.

Quote from: jonald_fyookball on June 22, 2014, 08:56:28 PM

More stuff

Irrelevant stuff.

American insanity.

More Americans Believe in Angels than Global Warming

I’m not sure whether to be amused or frightened by this juxtaposition of polls by Blake Hounshell:
Percentage of Americans who believe in angels: 55
Percentage of Americans who believe in evolution: 39
Percentage of Americans who believe in anthropogenic global warming: 36
Percentage of Americans who believe in ghosts: 34
Percentage of Americans who believe in UFOs: 34

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/more_americans_believe_in_angels_than_global_warming/

Beliathon

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Activity: 784

Merit: 1000

https://youtu.be/PZm8TTLR2NU

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:16:11 AM

Oh, this is SOOOO good. I just got to this topic, but there is the answer to evolution, with Bitcoin thrown in to prove it.

We Bitcoiners trust Bitcoin. Well at least we are hopeful. And our trust is based on the fact that the Bitcoin encryption-breaking odds are way too great for Bitcoin encryption to be broken. And even if the encryption were broken once, it would have to be broken over and over again to make it practical to "steal" bitcoins.

For me it's not about trust or hope, it's about mathematics and reason. Bitcoin is based on hard, verifiable, observable science. Fiat, by comparison, is largely based on myth, deception, and illusion. The choice is clear, the future is clear. Fiat is obsolete.

Quote from: BADecker on June 23, 2014, 11:16:11 AM

The thing that tickles is that life and existence are encrypted so immeasurably greater than Bitcoin, that there is not even the slightest chance that evolution (as we theorize about it in the general public) could even be a theory, much less have really happened.

You really need some chaos theory in your life. Here's a taste.

Topic: Survey Says Most Americans Want to Ban Bitcoin: Highlighting Need for Education (Read 2980 times)