Replying to Avatar gsovereignty

Bitcoin is not a democracy. If "the majority" of nodes get to decide what the bitcoin protocol is then a government could just spin up a a couple million nodes and change the 21 million hard cap. That isn't how it works.

The rolling set of nodes that *verify bitcoin received in exchange for something else* have 100% of the hard power over the protocol rules.

You need to be producing/trading something of value in exchange for bitcoin in order for your act of transaction verification to have an impact on the network. If the bitcoin you receive does not comply with your version of the protocol then verification fails and you stop providing economic value to whoever sent you the "bitcoin". The rolling set of people doing this determine what the protocol is.
Avatar
average_bitcoiner 2mo ago

Mining helps too. More people should be mining.

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

Avatar
gsovereignty 2mo ago

Miners provide immutability as a service, they don't have any hard power over the protocol.

Avatar
average_bitcoiner 2mo ago

Immutability is pretty powerful and one of the assumptions. They can't force changes but they are more economically relevant, if only while the subsidy is over 1 whole coin.

08
Morten Lauritsen Khodabocus 2mo ago

Mining is not profitable at current electricity cost where I live. I still plan to do it, for education purposes. ;-)