Columns Man is basically endlessly greedy, and that’s why we have the climate crisis and Bitcoin

What wondering when sleep doesn’t catch your eye? I’m thinking about Stig.

“I still regret buying one bitcoin in 2015 and didn’t recover the password,” my favorite artist said In an interview with Apu magazine in January.

In terms of investment, the deal was ingenious. The value of the investment has risen from a few hundred dollars to over $ 42,000. No world stock index can do the same.

To the world, it was murderously bad.

On Monday February 28 The UN Climate Panel released the reportwhose message was crushing: living conditions on Earth are deteriorating faster than expected if people do not change their lifestyles in a more sustainable direction quickly.

So grab something. And so it was. Computers around the world solved calculations and tried to create more cryptocurrency for investors thirsting for it. Mining Bitcoin requires a huge amount of computing power from a computer, so the hustle and bustle consumes a lot of electricity.

At the date of publication of the climate report, bitcoin mining and cryptocurrency maintenance University of Cambridge about 14.86 gigawatt hours of electricity. During the year, approximately 137 terawatt hours of electricity are consumed.

Electricity consumption is so high that the head aches. More than ten nuclear power plants, such as Olkiluoto 3, need electricity every year to maintain the system.

Why is this a problem? After all, other currencies and the banking system consume a huge amount of electricity in general.

Bitcoin was created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Underlying this was the disappointment with the centrally managed banking system and the financial crisis, which resulted in many ordinary people becoming unemployed and losing their savings. Bitcoin differs significantly in its philosophy from the traditional currency in that central banks do not regulate the currency but the users themselves are responsible for regulating the amount of the currency. There is no central bank in Bitcoin, but the “central bank” is made up of all the members of the bitcoin network.

Bitcoin is not essentially a currency but an investment product. Its value began to rise sharply in the fall of 2020. At the latest since then, a huge business has developed around cryptocurrencies as more and more people want to get rich with them. The desire to get rich also increases the electricity used for mining. This electricity is often produced with fossil energy like coal. It will exacerbate the climate crisis.

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I hope Stig someday remembers his password.

The combined market value of all cryptocurrencies was on Thursday morning According to Coinmarketcap nearly $ 1,900 billion. The overheating of the market has also caused minor effects. The EU recently warned consumers from falling into the cryptocurrency ads of sham activists and public figures. According to the EU, there is a clear risk that consumers will be overwhelmed by the possibilities of cryptocurrencies and end up losing all their money.

So during the climate crisis that threatens humanity, we have created a completely speculative investment vehicle that will accelerate our journey towards destruction. If this greed is not human, then what would it be?

Let’s get back finally, losing the password to the regrettable Stig.

“I still haven’t remembered it. But it will not overthrow the world. I think one day I will remember it, ”he told Apu magazine.

I like Stig. I hope he still someday remembers his password. The proceeds of the sale can be donated even to those affected by the war in Ukraine.

The author is a news producer for HS Financial Services.