Swedish Regulators Urge Europe to Ban Bitcoin So It Can Meet Obligations of Paris Agreement

[Tsing]

Image: TheDigitalArtist (Pixabay)



Swedish authorities that include Erik Thedéen (director of the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority) and Björn Risinger (director of the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency) are calling on the European Union to ban Bitcoin and other similar forms of crypto mining. Naturally, the reason relates to energy usage: regulators say that Bitcoin mining has become so intensive that it’s threatening the Nordic country’s ability to meet the demands of the Paris Agreement. Otherwise known as the Paris Accords or the Paris Climate Accords, the agreement was drafted with the goal of keeping mean global temperatures below certain levels to combat the effect of climate change.



From Euronews’ report:



Between April and August this year, the energy consumption of Bitcoin mining in the Nordic country rose “several hundred per cent,” and now...

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[Zarathustra]

I support this.

Do it here in the U.S. too!

Crash those crypto prices!

 

[Uvilla]

Don't care either way. I am getting tired of these climate circle jerk meetings .

 

[MadMummy76]

Don't care either way. I am getting tired of these climate circle jerk meetings .

Well, it's not just about the climate, even if you think that is not important you must acknowledge that we live on a planet with finite resources, and if we start using more and more of those to support this self perpetuating machine that is crypto, that does not produce anything of value, we'll get trouble, sooner rather than later. Actually we already have problems due to the chip shortages where we can't make enough to support actual beneficial uses of computing, because greedy crypto farmers buy up every last bit of supply.

I mean it is the best scam ever, getting paid literally for wasting resources and energy, brilliant. You think the hydrogen bomb is a doomsday device? Compared to Crypto it is a toy.

 

[Brian_B]

Hmm.

I'm always leery when government wants to step in to do something.

In this case, I could see a ham-handed effort to ban mining, and it inadvertently banning legitimate uses for blockchain and distributed cryptography. It's always better when the market, or the general population, can figure things out for themselves. That said, I also recognize when you have a sector that is incentivizing all the wrong things, sometimes it needs an official spanking to get it back on track, and governments are often the only ones that have any authority to do so.

I think digital currency is a great idea. I think distributed computing is a great idea. I think mining for currency is a horrible idea. I don't really think the version of "digital currency" that is currently in use, where we have essentially let industry take it over in the form of the credit card industry, is the best solution either.

 

[MadMummy76]

Hmm.

I'm always leery when government wants to step in to do something.

The government always has to step in, without that we have anarchy.

In this case, I could see a ham-handed effort to ban mining, and it inadvertently banning legitimate uses for blockchain and distributed cryptography. It's always better when the market, or the general population, can figure things out for themselves. That said, I also recognize when you have a sector that is incentivizing all the wrong things, sometimes it needs an official spanking to get it back on track, and governments are often the only ones that have any authority to do so.

People left to their own devices doing the right thing? Like for example brawling for 20% off on a new TV on black friday?

I think digital currency is a great idea. I think distributed computing is a great idea. I think mining for currency is a horrible idea. I don't really think the version of "digital currency" that is currently in use, where we have essentially let industry take it over in the form of the credit card industry, is the best solution either.

I think digital currency is a horrible idea, it is centralized and can be stolen or taken away from you at a press of a button. Or you can be prevented from using it because you said something that the ministry of truth disliked. Everything that blockchain has produced so far is awful. An untraceable way for criminals and extortionists to get paid, the scam that is NFTs, mining for profits. There isn't anything that would make me see it as a good thing.

 

[Uvilla]

Well, it's not just about the climate, even if you think that is not important you must acknowledge that we live on a planet with finite resources, and if we start using more and more of those to support this self perpetuating machine that is crypto, that does not produce anything of value, we'll get trouble, sooner rather than later. Actually we already have problems due to the chip shortages where we can't make enough to support actual beneficial uses of computing, because greedy crypto farmers buy up every last bit of supply.

I mean it is the best scam ever, getting paid literally for wasting resources and energy, brilliant. You think the hydrogen bomb is a doomsday device? Compared to Crypto it is a toy.

I do care a lot about our future... Tbh, I just no longer ' think' but I have realized its hopeless. These meetings are nothing but hot air on a massive scale its almost comical. Its literally the art of doing nothing while talking about it... It incredible the more I think about it. My realization is, there will be no significant change without pain. I truly wish there was change without much pain but it won't be so. I mean the pain itself will force the change, I don't think there is any questions about it. Incredibly the only country I can read taking this seriously is currently "I can't breathe due to pollution" China. Its sad really. They are dead serious about solar, wind, energy storage, electric transportation, and molten salt thorium reactors. The crypto thing, in the end, its just another token change.. for which there will be talk talk talk and probably won't even happen.