Jamaica Cryptocurrencies Are Here To Stay: Let's Be Pioneers - Not Mere Followers

The More Things Change....

When Abbas ibn Firnas first professed the concept of humans flying most people thought he was crazy and they were right. When Christopher Columbus apparently set sail for the "New World" there were many who thought he was crazy and they were right. I'm sure I don't need to bore you with the challenges people had with concepts such as transitioning from bartering, to using money, to putting their monies in a bank versus under the safety of their mattresses. Cellular technology and the internet were not received warmly either.

...The More We Prove That Experience Only Teaches Wisdom; It Can't Learn For Us

We again stand at the cusp of another paradigm shift in technology and how we use technology to make our lives better...or if you ask some...make our lives worse. Either way, that decision should be made only after interrogating what we think we really know as opposed to a position we hold until new information is revealed.

In a recent article in one of Jamaica's newspapers the Bank of Jamaica (BoJ) "cautioned" Jamaicans regarding investing in cryptocurrencies. I won't post the content of that message here but I'll make reference to @dongiovanni who posted the said contents in his post titled "Bank of Jamaica warns against Cryptocurrency" on February 06, 2018.

I described BoJ's advisory as "cautioned" euphemistically; in "Cryptodom" it is synonymous with "FUDed" the Jamaican population. The article pretended to use responsible language to advise the public to approach Cryptodom and, given the source of the message, why wouldn't the average Jamaican, who has little experience in basic banking, economics, finance, IT, cyber security, and so on, accept it as "gospel?" My answer to that question reminds me of a some comments made by @Bitrated in a youtube video in response to a similar unscholarly article my a journalist regarding cryptocurrencies.

It would be irresponsible of me if I didn't fully endorse the BoJ's obvious warning that involvement in crptocurrencies at this time is extremely risky and fraught with many uncertainties - I agree 100% . Therefore, a decision to not get involved at all until there is greater certainty would be rational. I am in no way suggesting otherwise. Where I take issue with with the BoJ message is in the "spirit", not the "letter", of what was said. Almost everything in that message (probably deliberately) played on the typical human emotion of fear. No wonder @dongiovanni interpreted it as dooms day for HODLers. There may be other selfish considerations, which @dongiovanni skillfully alluded to - well played @dongiovanni. I'll follow your wisdom and not say too much.

Interestingly, withing 24 hours, the same Jamaican newspaper published an article titled "Israel bourse bullish on blockchain, cagey on crypto." In this article the Israeli officials expressed all of the cautions the BoJ did but none of the FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) emanating from the latter. The Israeli public would likely have gleaned from their advisory that there is real potential in this new era but approach cautiously, not so for Jamaicans, if they delegate their thinking to the "wise" Boj.

History is replete with examples of people who are intelligent enough the prove MATHEMATICALLY that nothing heavier than air can sustain flight and that the earth is flat. My question to my fellow Jamaicans is, "when are we going to take responsibility for learning the wisdom experience teaches, as opposed to delegating our thinking to some so-called brilliant minds?"

Well, @dongiovanni I can assure you of one thing...people say I'm crazy...and they are right. HODLing coz I hear that it possible for mankind to travel to the moon...how ridiculous!!!

Btw, I hope you guys like my new term for the crypto kingdom...or fiefdom for warlords like you know who. @originalworks Hahaha

As the Jamaican motto informs us...we come from many origins but we are one people.