Nouriel Roubini, an acclaimed global economist, recently spoke at a US Senate hearing to give his expert opinion on blockchain and crypto before they introduce some bills that some say are blockchain-friendly.
He pretty much had only negative things to say about the whole concept and backed it all up with the losses that Bitcoin and all other altcoins faced this year. The most noteworthy things he said were "Crypto is the mother or father of all scams and bubbles," and "Blockchain is the most over-hyped - and least useful - technology in human history." He sees it as more useful for scammers than any other practical use.
After the hearings he has been barraged with tweets from crypto supporters defending their beliefs in the crypto world.
One of his responses:
While he states a lot of facts in his official statement, I think there are 2 sides to this coin (pun intended). Many experts and non-experts would agree with his views on cryptocurrency, however, not as many share his views that a blockchain is "a glorified spreadsheet" or that there is no point for widespread adoption. In one tweet he said "blockchain is a solution that is looking for an question to resolve."
Well, I can think of at least one problem that is actively being resolved by a blockchain known as STEEM: Starving artists!
Steem is literally financially rewarding people for their efforts in art, writing, video, photography, music, comedy, poetry, podcasts, I could go on...
*You won't see this as a problem that needs resolving if you're not an artist or content creator and don't know anyone who is.
Here is another problem Steem is resolving: Shameless censorship of certain viewpoints by corporate giants!
I'm looking at you Google and Facebook. Express whatever viewpoints you have on Steem without fear of being shadowbanned or regular banned by the platform. But spammers are dealt with by the community itself.
*You won't see this as a problem that needs resolving if you share ALL of Google's/Facebook's beliefs and you perceive ANY other viewpoints to be hate speech and dangerous to the common good.
I'll keep going. Problem #3: Relying on online advertisements to earn money!
No ad banners, widgets, popups, etc. on any Steem apps. Suck it, AdSense... and your measly payouts.
*You won't see this as a problem that needs resolving if you sell ads or you REALLY LOVE scrolling past 37 adverts when you're reading an article.
Problem #4: Transaction fees!
You pay none of these with the Steem blockchain.
*You won't see this as a problem that needs resolving if you like paying transaction fees.
And a direct answer to one of Roubini's biggest blockchain critiques - Problem #5: Scalability!
Steem has already scaled to capacitate 10,000 transactions per second and could be scaled even higher, in theory. That is competing with VISA.
*I am reserving this space here to add to this list other problems Steem resolves. Add yours in the comments to this post.
Steem is just one public blockchain I am talking about. How many are out there now? Dozens? Hundreds? All built for different purposes. Of course, if they don't solve a problem, they most likely won't last long, and they shouldn't. I don't see Bitcoin having any use in the future. But other blockchains are being developed to do so much more than what Satoshi Nakamoto could ever dream.
Blockchains aren't solving the war in Syria or the global human trafficking crisis or government corruption... yet. But just look at what the United Nations is saying about how blockchain could help boost action to tackle climate change. Or how about saving millions of lives by ensuring people's medications are not counterfeit. Or making it easier for healthcare providers to obtain your medical history so they don't accidentally kill you in a medical emergency. ODEM, while not their own blockchain (it's built on Ethereum), is out to solve the overpriced education market. You can't tell me that high tuition isn't a problem for underprivileged Americans.
All of these ideas have their obstacles to overcome, which will take more time, but ODEM is actually ahead of schedule and ready to bring on-demand education to the market. Part of their team are with Harvard, Stanford, and Hamburg Universities so it is already being adopted by the big guys.
Maybe someday, the right people will come along and start solving even bigger global issues using blockchain. Government corruption/transparency comes to mind, but that might be wishful thinking.
I respect Nouriel Roubini's views because most of what he said is truth. But I think he is so focused on shitcoins that he hasn't stepped back to take a look at the real potential of blockchains. To say that blockchain is looking for a question to resolve, well, dig a little deeper, Mr. Roubini.
What are some other potential uses of blockchain that I missed? If you know of other awesome blockchain initiatives or problems being solved, let me know in the comments or find me on Twitter @ CryptoSuprtramp.
P.S. I use Steem specifically in this example because it's the blockchain I'm most familiar with and a believer in even though I'm well aware it's far from perfect. I mean, I am writing this article on the Steem platform, so yeah.
P.P.S. I'll see all you Steem lunatics at the epic cesspool that Steemfest will be. We'll turn Krakow into one GIANT cesspool! CESSFEST!!! Scatalogical obsessions and everything! Or is Steem that 1% that isn't in Crap Land?