This is why i have written several posts about why bitcoin is not really the future of money. It is because bitcoin only solves one or two of the REAL issues with money.
But, we have lived in a world where food and material goods are abundant, or at least attainable, so we never run into the major problems of money.
And we rarely run into hyperinflation, which bitcoin does fix a part of.
And we haven't seen the other side, where there is no money. Where towns started making wooden nickels to have something to use for trading. Haven't seen this since the great depression.
What i am afraid of is, what will bitcoin be like during the next famine?
Places where money breaks down - Famine
How much is that loaf of bread worth?
When there is lots of wheat, and lots of bakeries, the loaf of bread is worth between $1 and $20 depending on what quality/artistry you want.
When there isn't enough bread, how much is it worth? Well, how much do you got?
The loaf of bread becomes priced in "ALL YOUR MONEY", and then it disappears.
And the time between $1 and $∞ is very short. Far too short to do anything about it.
Govern-cement usually puts price restrictions on the bread, just after it is all gone, and the only way you are going to get more is for the price to be sky high, attracting bread maker extrodinares to bring new sources of bread.
This is why i look at the COMEX wheat market with such suspicion. We are allowing people to bet on our food. Of course, helping the market balance itself out over time (wheat users buying wheat futures, and such) but then, allowing people to bet on the price of wheat in the future, allowing the sloshing money supply to decided what farmers will get paid is absurd, and should not be allowed.
And, in the future (i believe the near future) that wheat will become very scarce. And so, there is much money to be made on the wheat market. However, the people that may be holding onto to wheat to sell at a better price will, A) have their wheat stolen or confiscated. B) be hung from a lamppost. You simply should not make money off of people's suffering/starvation.
But, this is just "normal" in so much of our financial system. Where the farmers are squeezed (yes it is because of manipulation) out of every penny, from both sides. These systems should be verboten!
Anyway, this is about where money breaks down, and the biggest place is in life essential goods. When there is a shortage in food, money loses its meaning.
Places where money breaks down - No money
During the Great Depression there were towns where there was only ONE five dollar bill. It wasn't a problem of not having stuff you could sell, there wasn't a problem of people wanting to buy things, there was a problem of people not having any money. Like collectively, the town had ONE $5 bill.
Many towns started printing/making wooden nickels. So that there was "money" to start exchange happening again. Many towns that created a town script were very successful. So successful that all the central banks got laws passed that outlawed that.
But, it is really a bad thing when there isn't enough money flowing in an economy to let transactions happen.
And that is what is happening to the dollar right now. Although we don't see it so much in The US yet, all around the world, people are saving/spending in dollars, because that is what is valuable in the local area. (the pesos are toast)
When too many people horde the money (like the "rich") or the banksters start tightening the money supply (Fed raising rates) then one of the biggest problems of money is faced, not having enough money to do daily transactions.
Of course bitcoin fixes this by being infinitely divisible. But, how many lightning nodes are set up for mili-sat transactions right now, today?
And the thing i hate the most is, during this time, people will take their last dollars and go and use them to pay their mortgages so they do not lose their house. The very act of doing this destroys the very few dollars that are left. When you pay off a loan, the money goes poof. When you give the money back to the bank, it stops circulating.
Places where money breaks down - govern-cement intervention
Most Rothbard'ians know about the horrors of govern-cement price intervention. From rent controls to price fixing.
The govern-cement believes the lie that it is price gougers that are causing the prices to skyrocket.
(it could be that govern-cement officials believe their own lie, that they are that shtupid, but it could be that they are evil, and are just waiting to make scarcity even worse)
House prices too high? Make more houses available. It is almost always govern-cement that is in the way of making more houses. They caused the problem, and then make it worse with rent controls.
The same can be said about food. The govern-cement creates the problem, then makes it even worse with price controls. Where only the black market actually works to fix the problem. The price needs to go up so that people will do extraordinary things to bring in more supply.
But, govern-cement "in their infinite wisdom" (sarcasm) does their best to stop this.
One thing about the future is that everyone will be a part-time farmer. And, money will not buy food.
If you are a farmer, and had a bad year/bad harvest, there will be people who will share food. But if you are not a farmer, people will not sell food to you.
You could say that food and money will break apart. Or, there will be food-money, and non-food-money.
It will get this way because the evil people on our planet do not grow food. They get serfs (slaves) to grow them food. And we, collectively, will not want to support them any more. No food for soldiers who blow up children. No food for goon squads/thugs controlled by rots-childs.
Bitcoin may becoming the world reserve currency at this time. However, there may chain that comes out, like a FoodCoin. Or maybe it will be a computer-backed-barter tracker thing. But, it will start, be local, where farmers exchange things they grow for things they do not grow. And it will grow, to include oranges grown in Florida and wheat in Arkansas.
This, and many other things we will have to work out in "money".
Solutions are coming.