Bitcoin was supposed to be the currency of the future: secure, fast, independent of any government. But if there's one feature a currency needs, it's to let you pay for things. And, recently, that's been a problem for Bitcoin.
The idea was always that when technical problems arose, the bitcoin community would come together to solve things. But that hasn't happened. In fact, behind the scenes, a kind of civil war has broken out.
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For more, read Nathaniel Popper's companion piece in the New York Times.