Alexander C. Kaufman pfp
Alexander C. Kaufman
@kaufman
Kuwait is cracking down on crypto mining due to the strain it's causing to the grid, which is roughly split between oil- and gas-fired generators. What do you guys think of this? https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/kuwait-cracks-down-cryptocurrency-mining-amid-power-crisis-2025-05-01/
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shazow pfp
shazow
@shazow.eth
IMO categorically, bitcoin mining (and honestly many other industries too) should not be subsidized and externalities should be accounted in pricing/taxes. If industries are compromising the electrical grid, the industrial electricity price should be higher! If industries are producing negative byproducts in their process (eg. pollution/climate impact of oil/gas generators), they should be made to pay for those (e.g. carbon taxes). In a vacuum, I think bitcoin mining is fine when there is excess of electricity and no immediate better alternatives to use it for (hopefully an increasing trend). Otherwise, I generally believe that Ethereum-style non-delegated PoS has better consensus mechanism properties for blockchains.
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