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The traditional way our society builds property is inefficient. He Uber for X The model solves part of the problem by exploiting the unused value of some long-tail assets, but the reason behind the existence of such a huge volume of long-tail assets remains an enigma. In this essay I argue that they exist because our conception of property is outdated; I propose that people only need to own bitcoins. In doing so, we will embrace a large-scale sharing economy backed by bitcoin, paving the way for a hyperbitcoinized civilization.
Born and raised in China during a decade of a budding real estate bubble, I grew up hearing stories of some properties increasing in value tenfold, or of someone suddenly receiving a large sum of money from property developers for gutting their old houses. to build new ones. Indeed, reaping the sole dividend of Chinese urbanization on land values was gratifying to many. However, apart from the systematic risks inherent in the real estate market, houses are really difficult to manage: high taxes and management fees, difficult tenants, countless malfunctions in the depreciating property.
When I immigrated to the United States to pursue higher education, I discovered that for millennials, modern American family values are still widely accepted. For many of them, success means owning several vehicles, a primary residence, and a beach house as a pied-à-terre. People continue to buy and donate their life savings to megacorporations in the auto, real estate, and energy industries.
As a minimalist, I was never a fan of consumerism driven by modern capitalism. Thoreau stated that a man’s needs consisted of food, shelter, clothing, and fuel. If Thoreau were here today in our highly developed world, he would tell you that one only needs his private key.
For years, people have been trying to understand what bitcoin is. Whether people believe it is a digital version of “gold” or a speculative “stock” on the blockchain, I think neither of these definitions captured the essence of bitcoin. In my opinion, bitcoin is a currency that is not subject to any sovereignty, a belief that can be adopted by all of humanity, the “truth” that Thoreau alluded to, since no one but yourself can take it away from you.
Bitcoiners have a path to freedom. Now, one can easily borrow against their bitcoin to get any type of fiat currency to spend anywhere in the world. As the value of bitcoin increases and fiat currency depreciates over time due to rising inflation, bitcoin loan interest is not an issue. Many Bitcoiners have already practiced this lifestyle by being digital nomads, traveling around the world, educating more people about bitcoin, and living their lives to the fullest.
Eventually, I envision a civilization where we won’t need to own anything but bitcoins. One can obtain “credit” from different countries or borrow against their bitcoin to spend on daily needs (much like the fiat currency we get today). Nations will be nothing more than property managers, organizing a sharing economy where people can live in one place for the short or long term. We will live in a world where one can easily travel to meet people, learn their culture and enjoy their freedom.
Until then.
This article appears in bitcoin Magazine. “The question of withdrawal.” Click here to subscribe now.
A PDF brochure of this article is available. to download.
This is a guest post by LJ Huang. The opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of btc Inc or bitcoin Magazine.
