There is a lot of confusion around what is Bitcoin and what it is not

Originally published on Dec 13, 2017

There is a lot of confusion around what is Bitcoin and what it is not. This is only natural at this point in time. The problem seems to be that people are putting Bitcoin under one definition or another based on their existing mental models, which leads to narrow views and sometimes to dogmatic arguments.

My personal view is that it is too early to say what will become of Bitcoin, how it will be used and by whom. Enforcing an existing mental framework on oneself would be a disservice. This is a new very complex groundbreaking technology with unlimited potential and it needs time to become what it is supposed to be.

I have summarized all arguments I could find for why Bitcoin IS or ISN’T comparable to existing frameworks. I will update this with time as new developments occur. Please feel free to suggest anything that I’ve missed.