Last Watch Out Bitcoin Miguel Ángel Fernandez Ordóñez, ex governor of the bank of spain, told something that let me thinking: "If bitcoin finally success and we all adopt it as a global paymment method, are we ready to put prices and wages down every certain period of time". We here for sure understand this, but is the society ready for this? To my mind It will be kinda difficult to explain some people that even your wage / price is lower it stills worth the same aprox. What do you think about this?
Right now wages don't keep up with inflation so increases are just an illusion. They are constantly decreasing in purchasing power. Everyone got used to this arrangement and accepts it so I don't see why we won't get used to Bitcoin.
reply
I'll take some time to adapt to it, no doubt. But I don't see anything that could prevent people from getting used to it.
When it comes to wages: it's not that much of a change. Nowadays, people have to fight with teeth and claws to get pay raises or face poverty. In the deflationary utopia, people will have to fight with teeth and claws to not get pay reductions. It is exactly the same thing: protecting your purchasing power. The fact that the numbers are going up or down is pretty much irrelevant.
On the other hand, I'm pretty sure people will be very happy to see prices falling. Specially financially responsible people that save money.
Finally, it doesn't really matter that much if people are gonna swiftly adapt or struggle: they will have to. As Saifedean succinctly states: "History shows it is not​ possible to insulate yourself from the consequences of others holding money that is harder than yours."
reply
T Great point of view @pillar bookmarked.
reply
He's wrong. Is not about Bitcoin price in fiat. Is about the value of things in bitcoin. And that value is determined by free market.
reply
You're right that it isn't about the Bitcoin price in fiat. What the OP is getting at is that the actual number of sats people get will go down over time, even though the value of their wage is going up. That is what will be hard for people to grasp. This hurdle is going to exist regardless of whether fiat still exists.
reply
[...] the actual number of sats people get will go down over time, even though the value of their wage is going up. That is what will be hard for people to grasp. [...]
Well, I have the feeling that this is exactly as hard as the current fiat situation: the actual number of dollars people get will go up over time, even though the value of their wage is going down.
I think people like Argentinians have already understood this pretty clearly. I don't see how they would have a hard time with the same concept, just the other way around.
Or is there something I'm missing?
reply
I don't think this will ultimately be a big deal: "Sticky Wages" were a known problem on the gold standard, but it didn't cause major issues. People generally just didn't expect to get nominal raises.
If there were economic issues arising from sticky wages on a Bitcoin standard, companies could move to revenue or profit sharing with a smaller defined wage. That way employers wouldn't have to reduce wages, it would just be that the employee's fixed share of the profits would be shrinking.
reply
thanks for the clarification.
reply
It will take time to getting use to but it is possible
reply
Exactly: slow but steady and inevitable
reply
are we ready to put prices and wages down every certain period of time
He's looking at it backwards, they keep printing more fiat and it's value is decreasing steadily.
reply
Companies will have to if they want to remain in business.
Most likely there will be other currencies in the future. None as valuable as bitcoin though
reply
When those merchants will discover the power of Bitcoin will have all their products priced in sats. But yes, is hard to escape from the fiat mindset. Guaranteed.
reply
This is part of the "Sticky Wages" problem from gold standard times. The issue they were most concerned about was that recessions lasted longer because people resisted falling wages.
On a hard money standard wages can be pretty stable, because people become more productive over time.
I don't think people will get used to falling wages (they never have before), but they can get used to no longer getting cost of living increases if the cost of living stops rising.
reply
A dollar in 1913 bought the same amount of basic goods as in 1877.
Imagine living with stable prices for a generation.
In fact there was deflation in many products as productivity increased.
reply
Purchasing power increases so yeah... It'll be fine.
reply
It's the mindset from inflationary to deflationary. It'll take time for sure. Though I do think they'll like actual value appreciation
reply
Embrace the volatility and accept the deflation freaks
reply
I think the beauty in this is that families and laborers will have more power because the default will be their real wages increasing (vs decreasing).
Ok boss you want to renegotiate my wage lower? Here are my terms...
Way better than Lumberg holding your purchasing power hostage in exchange for later hours to make him rich...
reply
It's not that difficult to explain and it will make them understand why fiat is trash.
Wages will go down nominally, but they will go up in real terms.
reply
Of course it worth
reply