Imagine for a second that gold was discovered 17 years ago.

Certainly, it becomes recognized for its unique properties, but also valued because of its rarity. However, its value could not be fully understood in those first two decades, nor may it even be now, 650 decades later.

New properties or use cases could still be discovered, of which we would be unaware of in our current epoch. But to anyone who appreciated its luster and also comprehended its scarcity, may have either used it sparingly or protected their keep steadfastly.

Gold does not expire, rot, or corrode like food or other materials, so there would be no reason to give away excess to family or neighbors unless value was received in return. Therefore, could simple deceptions have been perpetrated by cohorts who did understand its value to prevent everyday folk from knowing as well, let alone owning even small amounts? That’s human nature right? Preservation by any means necessary…

Similarly, with bitcoin in its nascency (17 vs. 6,500 years), there seems to be an overall misunderstanding of its potential. A variety of factors can be attributed to this, but one that isn’t 100% implausible is intentional disinformation to prevent a new world and way of being in it from taking root.

The amount of bitcoin today that remains to be mined is relatively minuscule compared to the circulating (+ locked) supply. Gold will continue to be discovered and harvested, maybe even from celestial bodies beyond our own, so it seems safe to anticipate another rush to a new deposit since the value of it is understood by enough people to risk their lives to obtain it. What does that imply about a valued resource with a fixed supply?

I used the term locked only to signal Satoshi’s wallets, which are considered to hold over 1 million BTC, which is essentially 1% of total supply. Lost UTXOs, on the other hand, are a different story.

Currently, more than 95% of the supply has been mined.

A few plebs and a handful of suits understand this protocol to the best of their ability and as much as it can currently be understood within our frameworks and mental models. It therefore, more or less, gets valued accordingly. Over time, and together, more and more people may reach a much stronger understanding of this protocol and in turn its value. Would this cause an “orange rush,” like previously seen with gold, and in turn increase the hash rate exponentially? Even then, FUD campaigns would continue, with the hope of prying sats from wallets in exchange for bogus products or shiny new coins that don’t actually rely on real-world energy through proof of work every ten minutes.

All this to say, any sort of orange rush has yet to begin. Maybe though, when a tiny 1% remains to be mined (comparable to the amount within the wallets of Satoshi), things could get (insert favorite adjective).

A whisper echoes, gradually, then suddenly… and an ancient future is born.
947472