EVERY informed person needs to know about Bitcoin because it might be one of the world’s most important developments. As so little is known about it and by so few, here’s a dummy’s guide to the Bitcoin revolution. Bitcoin might revolutionise more than money or economics. It could transform the role and nature of government. Optimists expect it to promote liberty by eroding government power. Pessimists see it as a "pure bubble" that will implode and vanish.It is too soon to say which, or whether Bitcoin is a new kind of money that will endure alongside traditional currencies.Bitcoin’s potential effects arise from its extraordinary characteristics. Bitcoin is "virtual" money not produced or issued by a central authority. It is quick, cheap and easy for everyone to acquire, own, spend or transfer anywhere at any time, and can be highly anonymous. It is essentially impossible for governments to track or tax Bitcoin transactions if the owners of bitcoins rebel and anonymise their bitcoin...
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