Xu Zhuoyun: The emergence of Bitcoin is like a gamble set by a magician

Written by: Xu Zhuoyun

This article was published in April 2020

The credit card system is already very common in the United States. The popularity of credit cards also affects the circulation of money; Due to the rapid circulation of money, even if the issuance is still stable, because the speed of flow increases, it is equivalent to increasing the amount of money provided several times.

The world's first credit card was invented by Frank McNamara

In my memory, before World War II, credit cards were not common, and only individuals or companies with deep relationships with banks could pay outside with letters of credit, and then paid by banks.

At that time, there were probably only three most famous cards, one was for wealthy merchants, who were used to entertain guests in luxurious hotels, restaurants, etc., called "Diners Club". The other type, which is more flamboyant, is the "Card Blanc", which means that the card holder can fill in any number of expenses and let the other party collect money from the bank.

The third type is the popular "American Express" card in the United States, which is a card in which the cardholder has an agreement with the American telegraph company, and travelers can use this card to pay at any time when they are away, and the local telegraph company will advance the payment and settle at the end of the month.

American Express

These cards can only be used by privileged people or people with special status. Their membership fee is also quite expensive. Because the number is not large, and every cardholder has a considerable deposit in the bank, the bank is not afraid that they will not admit the account. Therefore, the operation of these cards will not affect the entire currency circulation.

After World War II, the United States experienced economic prosperity, especially because of the rapid development of the U.S. highway system and the rapid development of the aviation industry, which made travelers willing to hold cards for their convenience during their travels. As a result, in addition to the above limited cards, various banks have issued credit cards, and some department stores, even oil companies, have also issued similar cards.

Cards have become so popular that large units, such as schools, can also issue credit cards and cooperate with banks to recognize that a colleague in the school can carry a card and register the account when shopping.

Harvard students in uniform

The proliferation of credit cards has caused a crisis: some people use large numbers and do not repay the debt in real time, and run away, because the card issuance is very easy, many issuers should check the credit of the applicant, but they do not do it, which causes another problem.

A cardholder, although he knows that the card is overdue, must pay more than 19 to 20 percent of interest. The cardholder may apply for another card to pay off the debt of the previous card.

Around the 80s, a common phenomenon was that a dozen or twenty cards could be taken out of a person's wallet, "raising cards with cards". In the end, a huge amount of debt, as soon as the cardholder leaves, or files for bankruptcy, the previous debt will be completely erased.

Card maintenance often leads to personal credit bankruptcy

In order to resist this malpractice, the current credit card system is divided into two, one is a traditional credit card and the other is an advance card. The advance of the latter is directly deducted from the account in the bank; When swiping the card, the machine immediately reflects whether there is enough deposit in the account to be claimed? After such an arrangement, it is relatively rare for cards to be swiped.

However, a large number of cards are circulating on the market, and the time limit between the cardholder's swiping and the cardholder's payment is usually one month. The gap in this period is calculated by the use of many cards, which is equivalent to several times the amount of credit in currency circulation, circulating outside.

This kind of inflation is actually not easy to control; Its impact on the market, on the surface, can promote prosperity; But in fact, it hides the seriousness of unchecked inflation. The above questions about credit cards also reflect that today's currency has been separated from the security guaranteed by the government back then.

A large number of credit cards are in circulation, which can lead to inflation

Money itself, in the form of credit, swells several times in the market, and no one can restrain it. A country's economy, or the economy of a market, is almost based on an empty bubble. These bubbles will stimulate the production of money, causing the embarrassment of overproduction and inability to pay. If left unregulated, too big a bubble bursts, and the economy collapses.

Recently, there has been another phenomenon, and virtual symbols have replaced real currency. On November 19, 2017, Chicago's Merchandise Market announced that it would officially include "Bitcoin (Bit Coin)" as an exchange commodity.

Bitcoin is a specially designed virtual unit in the computer program that calculates the currency comparison of various countries. The value of this unit is very small, so it is called bit, and after this process, you can obtain a price comparison standard at any time when converting currencies from all over the world. This calculation standard is a virtual unit, not the currency of any country, and cannot be used to pay any debts, but now it has become a "commodity" that can be bought and sold.

There is no Bitcoin in the world, but it can actually become an investment object

In the market, the price of Bitcoin increases and falls at any time, which is very sensitive. Some people are opportunistic, buying more than the coin in the last time, and selling how much the next time they are in the same coin. At this point, the exchanged goods are not real products with independent value, and they do not mean that there is credit to support the goods later.

There is no Bitcoin in the world, such a virtual unit, empty and empty, can actually be used as an exchange investment object. The modern economy has indeed left the relationship between production and consumption, the market has become a gamble, and the economy has become a game.

This is not capitalism as we understand it, but the illusion of money piling up. However, because it is profitable, there are people who make waves in it. The illusion created by humans can actually affect the economy that should be balanced by itself. Let's just say that the magician is playing with his wand.

The magician is playing with his wand

The economic development of the United States is based on the development of wasteland, increasing the purchasing power of farm products, and then setting up factories to produce basic raw materials, such as steel, and machinery, and finally to produce daily consumer goods. This capitalist mode of production pays for equipment and labor in money, perhaps with the addition of transportation and the acquisition of land.

On this production cost, the price per unit of product, plus the interest that the original capital should receive during this period, becomes the price of consumer goods. When investors make profits, they are represented by interest.

Workers at all stages, including workers on the production line, to the last stage, the clerk who bandages the goods for customers: on this line, many laborers receive wages – this is formal capitalism, and the system of production and exchange constitute the economic system.

Workers on a meat and poultry production line in the United States

Today, after more than 100 years of evolution, high industrialization, and due to scientific and technological research results, the production model has been continuously updated; Such a superior modern industrial civilization has actually fallen into a false bubble credit economy!

the credit economy continues to maintain prosperity through expansion; To stimulate desire, increase consumption, and fear that the speed of its circulation is not fast enough. The above behaviors maintain this bubble and continue to expand. No matter how mysterious the explanation of economic theory is, in terms of common sense, this institutional constitution is not solid.

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