Trial by Ordeal was I believe, originally intended as a tool to determine guilt or innocence. It is not used as much for this purpose these days and even the most nostalgic of us will admit that this is probably a good thing. It must be admitted however that an ordeal does sometimes serve as a test of character or strength ....or perhaps even....value.
The recent travails of Bitcoin and indeed most of the crypto-currencies has been traumatic. The losses are substantial and approach ''crash'' proportions. Predictions of the Bitcoin evaluations of $1000 or less (? zero) abound and there is a reported ''flight to gold''. Is this the burst of the bubble, the end that comes to all ''Ponzi'' projects ? My guess is : no....but my guess is not worth much.
Much good could come from this.
Obviously, if the concept of a block-chain currency is a total scam and this ''correction'' turns out to be terminal, we are all better off knowing this, and the sooner the better.
However there are a lot of people who believe in the concept, want it to be true, and believe block-chain will change the world for the better. These people will probably continue to invest their money in the project(s) at least for a while. If they are wrong, they will be sending good money after bad. Generally the practice of investing according to one's political inclinations doesn't end well. (Unless one is trying to sell uranium to the Russians and is investing in the Clinton Foundation ).
I am neither a true believer nor a crypto-skeptic, but my sympathy tends to lie with that group of pie-in-the-sky optimists rather than the nay-sayers. They risk ending up as martyrs to a failed and false faith. They will be regarded as fools. St. Paul warned his flock that they would be fools were certain basic tenets in fact not true. Of course he knew that they were true.....so I guess the message was : Do not be afraid to be called a fool....if you are not. I think we see this kind of ardour in the crypto-believers. I hope they are right, but if they are not I hope it is over quickly.
In the end market forces will respond to real value of course...but when will that ''end'' be ?
Less than a month ago we were told by many that the value of Bitcoin was going to $100,000. These projections seem risible today. Yet I am not yet sure these predictions are wrong. Indeed my guess is that they are more likely to be correct than those which now tell us that the crypto-currency is dead and worthless.
My hope is that this market trial by ordeal will help us all to know what the truth is.