Bitcoin (BTC) community members took to social media in response to the claims of Peter Zeihan, a recent guest on the Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast.
In a recent JRE episode, Zeihan, an American geopolitical analyst and author, claimed that crypto was always a “hot dumpster fire” and that Bitcoin has no intrinsic value. The analyst claimed that the number one digital asset by market capitalization is now being priced “more appropriately.”
Additionally, Zeihan argued that Bitcoin, which is trading at around $17,000 at the time of writing, will go down by $17,000 more, saying that its appropriate price is within the negatives. He added:
“The craziest thing about Bitcoin is that there will never be more than X number of units of Bitcoin. By default, it means it can’t be used for trade.”
Zeihan also argued that the “whole idea of economic activity is that there’s expansion, which means you need more currency to lubricate and manage that expansion.” The analyst argued that if a currency’s supply is locked, there will be monetary inflation and this could “destroy an economic model.”
Because of Zeihan’s comments, Bitcoiners almost immediately offered their responses and provided counterarguments to Zeihan’s claims. Some community members instantly pointed out that the analyst has not read and understood the Bitcoin white paper.
Swan Bitcoin executive Alex Stanczyk also criticized the JRE guest and said his comments were ignorant. “Almost every single thing this ‘expert’ said in this short span of time is complete nonsense,” Stanczyk wrote.
Jeff Ross, the founder of the Vailshire Capital Management hedge fund, also pointed out the flaws in Zeihan’s arguments. He tweeted:
Three critical errors in @PeterZeihan‘s logic that I see:
1. To be valid, money must be created and controlled by a central authority. ❌
2. Scarce money limits human productivity and economic expansion. ❌
3. #Bitcoin and #crypto are interchangeable. ❌cc: @joerogan https://t.co/gA5szpZe7L
— Dr. Jeff Ross (@VailshireCap) January 8, 2023
Meanwhile, one community member proudly defended Bitcoin and argued that some of its characteristics give it intrinsic value. They include scarcity, deflation, divisibility into smaller amounts called satoshis and decentralization.
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While Rogan didn’t argue with Zeihan’s claims in the episode, the popular podcaster has previously voiced positive sentiments toward Bitcoin. On May 4, 2022, Rogan said that BTC is similar to the early internet and that the government did not see it coming. The podcaster also highlighted that it is a “viable form of currency” and can be used to purchase things.