Dear Bill,
If you recall what happened to your fish house, then you're probably looking for a blockchain expert. But you're not going to find one. At least not in the traditional sense. I know it's hard to hear, but the truth is, Bill, no one is a blockchain expert.
Have you ever been to law school, Bill? Me either. And I'm glad. It sounds boring. But if you did go, can you imagine showing up on the first day and no one knows anything, including the professors, and the textbooks haven't even been written yet?
Now on top of this ridiculous scenario, imagine your classmate looks around the room, understands what the terms "legal" and "court of law" mean, stands up and says "I'm the expert in this field and I'm going to tell you all how it's going to be."
Third Eye Blind aside, that's pretty much what's happening with blockchain today. It's an entirely new field of new technology with pretty much no precedent. Not only that, the uses of it now are probably not going to look anything like how it's used in ten years.
For context, just look at how "experts" talked about the internet, or information superhighway back in the 90's. For a prediction that won't make you cringe, in 10 years, Kai Stinchcombe's cringe-worthy blockchain predictions will be laughed at.
It's worth noting he's very articulate and has used the anti-blockchain platform to garner a lot of publicity.
Is he an expert? Well, no. Mostly because his opinions are just wrong, Bill, but also because no one is a blockchain expert.
There are a few different types of blockchain fans, and they all see a different vision for the future and they all look to different "experts" for guidance. Here's who they are:
Crypto Enthusiasts
Arguably the worst kind of blockchain fan, these are the ones who ruin twitter and every conversation they take part of. Sitting around arguing and FUDing about coins is a waste of everyone's time. Because no experts exist, crypto enthusiasts love to make bold predictions about bitcoins big return, and hope they flipped the coin right so others will think they're experts. They're not unlike economists.
Then they use their "expertise" demagogue platform to try and control the prices of other cryptos so they can twist the system to their benefit. Combined with the general meme nonsense of those who spend too much time at a computer, these are an insufferable bunch.
Engineers
Every engineer wants to be the next Vitalik. So much so that they all call him by his first name. And ethereum is definitely more useful than btc, but is that the reality of developing blockchain?
It's not. And most engineers should be ready to satisfy themselves building a utility token for some start-up CEO who doesn't really understand the game, but hustled enough 16-hour days to fund a team long enough to launch an ICO who's token value will soon hover around $.0001.
That said, a few good engineers will really change the way blockchain is adapted and used in the world. It's just that innovation matters more than money in the long run, and that's hard to convince people of.
Big Picture Folks
IBM has the leisure to spend a lot of time thinking about the big picture of blockchain. They can toss tens of millions of dollars at it because they make enough in about a few hours to cover that.
Does that make them experts? No, it does not. At this point it's worth remembering that some of the most major disruptions to blockchain at this point have come from either single people or small groups.
Does that mean that IBM won't come up with blockchain applications? No, it does not. In fact, they already have some and are working on more. But here's a key difference - they are not employing hundreds of people to try and short some cryptocurrency. You know why? Because that's not the future of blockchain. It's like one small potato in the whole scheme of Ireland's potatoes.
Blockchain will change the way we ship computers, grow food, watch ads, buy groceries, save money, donate money, pay taxes, vote and whatever else people come up with.
Is it worth spending your time on the crypto exchanges? I guess, Bill, you should just HODL and find out.
In the meantime, I hope you get your fish house sorted out before next season.
Blockchain and tackle, Bill, blockchain and tackle.
4Track Jack