The casino on Mars

The article argues that crypto speculation, though often unsavory, is a necessary bootstrapping process for a new system of digital property rights and financial infrastructure. It says speculation drives attention, investment, talent, and infrastructure, and that trading activity is a natural result of people experimenting with newly recorded scarce assets. It cites crypto money's use by ordinary people in Argentina, Turkey, and Ukraine as evidence of its value. The author also notes real risks, including scams, rug pulls, and short-term extraction by sophisticated traders, and says some self-regulation or regulation may be needed. It compares crypto's skepticism to earlier doubts about Apple and the telephone.