Bitcoin: More Trustworthy than Some Academic Critics

Historian Harold James of Princeton University, known for his scholarly writings on the gold exchange standard and on the euro, has turned his attention to Bitcoin in a recentProject Syndicate commentary on “The Bitcoin Threat.” His commentary labors under a surprising number of misconceptions about Bitcoin and the history of privately issued currency. If even a reputable academic historian falls prey to these misconceptions, they are likely to be widespread. Scrutinizing them may then be of wider interest.After noting some of the optimistic claims made on behalf of cryptocurrencies and the blockchain technology underlying them, James cautions us:But others are rightly suspicious that this new technology might be manipulated or abused. Money is part of the social fabric. For most of the history of human civilization, it has provided a basis for trust between people and governments, and between individuals through exchange. It has almost always been an expression of sovereignty as well, and private currencies have been very rare.To say that government-issued currencies have “provided a basis for trust,” and to imply private currencies have not, is a curious summary of centuries of monetary history. Anyone familiar with the long history of debasements by ancient and medieval government mints, or with the history of fiat money inflations by modern government central banks, knows that governments have often been untrustworthy issuers. Sovereigns have frequently abused rat...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs