MATT LEVINE: The brilliant collective fiction of crypto
'I like Yuval Noah Harari's argument, in "Sapiens," that Homo sapiens's major advantage as a species is our ability to generate collective fictions'
Here's Paul Singer's Elliott Management with the bull case for bitcoin: "FOMO (fear of missing out) has solidly trumped WTHIT (what the hell is this??)," Elliott told clients in a January 26 letter seen by Business Insider. "When the history is written, cryptocurrencies will likely be described as one of the most brilliant scams in history." The fund dedicated three pages to covering what it sees as issues with cryptocurrencies. The letter said: "We all laugh at primitive tribes which used large stones (or pigs) as currency. Well, laugh as you will, but a stone or a healthy pig is something. Cryptocurrencies are nothing except the marketing power of inventors, financiers and others who love the idea of buying a black box (which is obviously empty) for the price of a Kia and dreaming that it will turn into a Mercedes. There have been times recently when this dream has materialized within hours. This is not just a bubble. It is not just a fraud. It is perhaps the outer limit, the ulti...
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