It’s proof of identity granting authority to speak on behalf of said identity. It’s not nothing. Can I have yours?
Discussion
It’s not proof of your identity. If you lost it you wouldn’t lose your identity. You would just tell everyone you had to start using a new key and start spreading that info around. People that care enough would follow your new key. If mine ever gets publicly compromised I’ll be happy to send it to you.
It’s absolutely proof of your identity. Just like a passport or any other form of information which is unique to you the individual. It’s literally an identifier, but in a system of trust built on self-attestation there is no way to have it reissued. Yeah, the stakes here are lower but to pretend it’s worthless is to dismiss the value of self sovereignty.
Did I say it’s worthless? It has function and that function gives it value as long as you control it. But losing a key is not the same as losing your identity, not in the least bit. It is not remotely the same as a passport you dumb fuck.
Lordy Corn, that was unexpected. I was talking about the concept of identification and identifiers, not crossing the border with your nsec. Apologies if I touched a nerve, best of luck to you with your memes and your music.