Stop thinking of crypto literally as a currency. Let me explain! (Also how crypto/steemit creates innovation)
Crypto currencies are not true currencies and should not be thought of as such.
My reasoning is that while we exchange them for items it is not currency. Fiat is based on a promise saying the paper is an I.O.U that can be exchange for items or credit (numbers in your bank account) Bitcoin and steem/SD are more like gold or another item. It behaves in it's own way and has it's own characteristics but it still shares the common principle of having it's own value.
Having BTC or SD you may have a virtual item but it in some sense is still a physical one. Money is the illusion of physical value. The very idea of money is control. Say the bank printed 10 trillion dollars just for giggles then the dollar is worthless. Of course never going to happen but that is not the point being made. The point is if they did it wouldn't be worth shit. You can't print unlimited items you can make unlimited gold or silver. That is the difference between money and valuable items.
Holding crypto back
If the powers that be thought of bitcoin and other crypto more as an item along side fiat then i feel it would be adopted a lot sooner and far more widely. People have always feared what they do not understand its a common human reaction to something new. I feel it is out job as crypto lovers too inform people of what crypto really stands for and how it can be widely adopted.
Innovation
Steemit is a great example of how innovative humans can be. Time and time again you push out new idea's, new software and new user applications for all sorts of different things. @ned and @dantheman are good examples of innovative! they are always thinking what could be done how could it be done better. That is what human advancement is all above. Improvement on the last model as it were! By thinking outside the box and thinking of new idea's we are pushing the world forward and tipping the scales of who controls what. VALUE controls the world not money. Well and lizard overlords from the eur'karba galaxy.
All of the above is my opinion of course and some of you may not agree with me, if you do or don't tell me why below and we can discuss. :)I don't post as much any more as i find more quality in my thought out work. Also i rarely make anything but that is my fault!
I'm a bit new to crypto, but I find your definition of money to be somewhat faulty. Paper money products have absolutely no value. The only thing that gives them value is a false belief that they are an IOU to be exchanged for a tangible item. They are not backed by anything more than a promise from the people in control of the printing press used to publish the currency. A penny actually has more value than a $100 bill. The penny can be melted down for its copper content, which can then be remanufactured into something useful. A $100 bill is the equivalent of high priced toilet paper, it cannot be recycled into anything of usefulness, and if we quit using it, those in control of it would be absolutely powerless overnight. That is why crypto has such a hard time getting off the ground, people haven't been trained to understand that there are things other than paper to trade for goods and services...future generations will laugh uncontrollably about fiat currencies, but I am not sure we will witness it in our lifetime.
i have never agreed more in my life!!! also very well written description of what money is! People forget once you could exchange value for value (gold for food for example or food for gold.)
Precisely!
I agree with You somewhat and as justusagenstum said, fiat is really a popular support of the promise that the currency holds value and can be exchanged or retain their surplus value to be drawn on later.
Wars, especially modern day wars have a common thread in that the leader or country in question was somehow bucking the established domination of the debtor/fiat models. IE the PetroDollar Fractional reserve banking.
This is not to say that fiat is control nor evil, it has allowed the creation of wealth worldwide that far exceeded the stores of Gold or Silver and other units of value, productivity and economic growth fueled that and fiat was and is the method of payment, exchange and settlement of trade. Most importantly a store of value and basis for building wealth.
Where it has gone wrong is that far too many of our governments, corrupt politicians, and corrupt corporations, have handed over the sovereign currency to corrupt overseers, rather than audit them and provide oversight to insure the integrity of the fiat currency. Yes I am talking about the privately owned central banks, and in the US in particular Congress has shirked their responsibility to oversee the FED. The last hundred years has lead us to the brink, devalued our stores of former wealth, lead to much pain and strife.
It can lead to wars if it all melts down as many predict due to the huge debts.
I am not sure about virtual currency, while I am learning more about it's inner workings and inherent securities, in order for it to truly work, it must be adopted by the masses and accepted as a secure store of their hard earned value and wealth. It remains to be seen where we end up, interesting ride though !
i have a more simplistic view i'd say but i agree, the control though can be manipulate the currency. Also currency like the comment above is more of an I.O.U where as the BTC is at least physical data which has value. So many opinions and angels that critically think about this which is good. It's thought provoking :)