Why Should Every Bitcoin Enthusiast Read The Bitcoin Standard?
As Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continue to rise in popularity, there are likely to be many books written about them. The best one to date is The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking by Saifedean Ammous, which is considered a bible by some Bitcoin enthusiasts.
If you haven’t picked up a copy of the 2018 book yet, you should strongly consider doing so. It provides a detailed history of how the money got to where it is now and discusses how the future will most likely involve cryptocurrencies replacing traditional forms of currency.
Reading Books About Bitcoin Can Vastly Improve Knowledge
More people than ever are turning to books to improve their knowledge about a range of topics. Indeed, as PIA’s blog piece points out, social media has made reading ‘cool’ again. There are now social media influencers promoting the pastime, and eBook sales have gone up drastically in recent years. In 2020 alone, they surpassed $1 billion.
Of course, there’s a lot of information about Bitcoin available in articles online and on YouTube. However, taking a deep dive into a book written by an expert on the subject is doubtlessly going to give anyone’s knowledge on the topic a significant boost.
There are plenty of books out there about cryptocurrencies, but The Bitcoin Standard is widely considered to be the best one. It has shipped more than 100,000 copies and has an overall rating of 4.15 on Goodreads. It has also been endorsed by numerous prominent figures in the crypto sphere, including Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Peter Schiff, and Michael Saylor.
You may already be someone who believes that Bitcoin is the future, but reading the book will give you even more evidence to support your argument. It explores the history of money and discusses how a decentralized option like Bitcoin has the potential to become the new standard.
What are the Key Arguments in Ammous’s Book?
Ammous puts a heavy focus on educating readers about how money came to be in the first place. He traces its lineage back o the days before paper and coins, discussing how some cultures would use items such as seashells in transactions.
There’s a lot of discussion about the flaws of the existing methods of payment, along with the ones that came before. Ammous argues how society has always pushed to evolve and improve its payment options, and how many people could soon come to realize that physical money is inferior to digital methods.
Ammous believes that Bitcoin offers the best form of money that anyone has come up with to date. He puts forth various reasons for this, including the fact that it is decentralized and scarce. He also notes how the security measures of the blockchain are far superior to other options that existed before it.
One of the most crucial arguments in the Bitcoin Standard is about how the central banking system that has dominated for years has many shortcomings. For example, inflation and manipulation are key problems. Banks can print money, and inflation leads to decreased purchasing power for consumers.
Bitcoin doesn’t have this problem, however, as it has a fixed supply of 21 million coins. This makes it a scarce asset that cannot be manipulated by central banks. It’s why digital currency has often been referred to by publications like Make Use Of as digital gold.
Some Interesting Thoughts About the Future
Aside from explaining why Bitcoin is superior to existing payment methods, Ammous writes about some interesting thoughts he has for the future. He believes that it can become a global reserve asset, thanks to its scarcity.
Ammous argues that if this comes to fruition, it could lead to a stabler global economy and decreased government intervention in financial markets. Bitcoin also has the power to revolutionize industries, thanks to its blockchain technology. This is already being seen in real estate and supply chain management.
If you’re interested in deepening your knowledge of Bitcoin, The Bitcoin Standard is the best book to start with. It is the most comprehensive guide ever written about digital currency, and it may teach you some things that you hadn’t known about before.
