Let's Not Destroy Bitcoin: What's Wrong With MIT Technology Review's Article

On April 24, the MIT Technology Review published an article with a catchy headline, titled "Let's Destroy Bitcoin".

"Let's Destroy Bitcoin" is a part of Technology Review's special issue on the future of cryptocurrencies and Blockchain.

He then introduces the concept of the article in question: "Morgen Peck draws out three futuristic scenarios in which Bitcoin, the original and still the biggest cryptocurrency, might become irrelevant, supplanted by rivals".

Whilst it's unclear why the headline of the article in question imitates a public appeal for bringing Bitcoin down, as if getting rid of the largest cryptocurrency is generally a good idea.

The article starts with the author assuming that "While Bitcoin has established an economy in which it's impossible to forge transactions, it provides no defense against replication of the idea itself".

Peck goes on to suggest that "No one can copy an individual Bitcoin, but anyone can copy the idea of Bitcoin" and outlines three scenarios in which "a government, or a corporation, or even ordinary people" might make Bitcoin "Useless or redundant".

"The second option is basically Facebook quietly taking over Bitcoin. The social media outlet creates a BTC wallet for all of its users, rewarding them in the cryptocurrency for interacting with ads, and giving them an ad-free experience if they let Facebook mine on their computer's unused power, similar to what news site Salon offered earlier this year."If Facebook could persuade a large enough fraction of Bitcoin users and miners to run its own proprietary version of the Bitcoin software, the company would thereafter control the rules.

According to Technology Review, Facebook gets an opportunity to take control away from Bitcoin by issuing their own cryptocurrency, just like Telegram.

As a Reddit user puts it, "the argument that Facebook could use the spare cycles of their customers computers is about the same as saying a botnet could take over Bitcoin.

Which can lead to the failure of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies as an idea, as there is a never-ending discussion on these scenarios.