I am reading on steemit that #bitcoin will be the end of gold and money as we know but I beg to differ.
Make no mistake, I love the whole Crypto boom and also have a few bucks invested but we have to be realistic when making statements such as the one above.
Let's look at some facts. Crypto is a virtual currency. It only exists in in the ether. It is not real or tangible. Yes, today it has value but it is perceived value. This is what is confusing. Say the US Dollar no longer exists or has no value, then the price of a bitcoin will be 1 bitcoin. Yes that's right. Everyone who owns a single bitcoin will have a single bitcoin because you can't exchange it for Dollar.
Secondly, lets picture this scenario. The world is at war and a country decides to use an EMP (electromagnetic pulse) as a weapon. This would cause utter chaos! What does it mean not to have electricity?
No electricity, no treatment works or water pumps, therefore no water. If it is in winter then many would die due to the cold. You could buy a jacket but your crypto currency is useless because you don't have internet. This doomsday scenario will lead to utter chaos. If you do manage to survive, commodities like gold will be extremely valuable to trade or barter for food and drinking water. You cannot look past it.
In 2003 we all saw what happened with a relatively short power outage in New York. 40 000 police officers were deployed to maintain order. Can you imagine what would happen if there is no electricity for months? No one would have that that something as simple as electricity can cause a doomsday scenario worldwide.
Are we at risk. Well you don't need a war. EMPs can be caused by a single solar flare from the sun. Some call it a solar storm. In 2012 we were nearly sent back to the dark ages by a solar storm. You can read more here: https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/186805-the-solar-storm-of-2012-that-almost-sent-us-back-to-a-post-apocalyptic-stone-age
Anyway, this article is not about solar storms and EMPs. It is purely to demonstrate the value of today's currency and how easily Cryptos like Bitcoin could become absolutely useless. As I said before it is virtual. If you don't have internet, you have no money. As simple as that!
Another funny story is that of James Howels who in 2010 spilled milk over his hard drive. He used it for spares and the rest ended up on a landfill site in Newport, UK. His hard drive contained 7500 bitcoins which equates to $109725112.50 in today's money. Crying over spilled milk? I'd be in tears. But once again it goes to show that something as simple as your crypto wallet breaking could see you go from millionaire to broke-ass by accident.
So that's my 2 cents. You really cannot make blanket statements that gold and tangible money would be replaced by Bitcoin. Unless these coins are physical coins, I just don't see it. But who knows...
PS: I'd like to coin the word #cryptocrash Haha!