Subject: Re: [bitcoin-dev] Fees and the block-finding process

From: Tom Harding <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2015 17:56:05 -0700

On 8/11/2015 2:23 PM, Adam Back via bitcoin-dev wrote:
> I dont think Bitcoin being cheaper is the main characteristic of
> Bitcoin.  I think the interesting thing is trustlessness - being able
> to transact without relying on third parties.
>

That rules out Lightning Network.

Lightning relies on third parties all over the place.  Many things must 
be done right, and on-time by N intermediate third parties (subject to 
business pressures and regulation) or your payment will not work.

Lightning hubs can't steal your money.  Yay!  But banks stealing your 
payment money is not a problem with today's payment systems. Some real 
problems with those systems are:

  - Limited ACCESS to payment systems
  - High FEES
  - Transaction AMOUNT restrictions
  - FRAUD due to weak technology
  - CURRENCY conversions

Plain old bitcoin solves all of these problems.

Bitcoin does have challenges.  THROUGHPUT and TIME-TO-RELIABILITY are 
critical ones.  DECENTRALIZATION and PRIVACY must not be degraded.  
These challenges can be met and exceeded.