Hey Bruce, would it kill you to lay off on the CAPs usage? Tbh you come off as kinda mentally retarded.. Especially replying to a reporter.

pretty much, yes 

I think as long as reporters find these types of "mouthpieces" for bitcoin, you're going to continue to see these types of articles.  This one honestly isn't too bad, as far as tech journalism goes.  Anyone that thinks otherwise simply has not dealt with the media before.   I do agree it *is* a wake up call as to how inaccurate things are reported if you're first becoming exposed to this.  Bitcoin is being treated no differently than any other tech in that regards, however.

Honestly, after seeing the e-mail sent to this reporter by who appears to be the primary contributor to the story, I'm very surprised this article was as fair as it was.  We deserved worse, given that input.  Garbage in, garbage out - most people here should realize that.

Bitcoin definitely needs at least a few people who can be counted on to give professional, rational, and accurate responses/interviews to the media.  Those who cannot really should take a step back and consider the damage they are doing to the perception of Bitcoin, regardless of how technically "correct" they are in their paranoid rants.  A well reasoned and properly toned e-mail/conversation/interview goes a hell of a lot further than some idiot on the internet flaming a reporter in all caps.  You can be correct, but still horribly wrong at the same time.

My advice?  If you're talking to the media, pretend you're talking on behalf of an employer.  Is what your saying accurate?  Is it professional?  Will saying this get you fired?  Can you disagree with someone in a more reasonable sounding manner regardless of how idiotic or wrong their statements are?  Take the high road.

Remember folks, a US Senator has a hell of a lot more immediate trust instilled on the media and general populace than some otherwise well reasoned and respected person on the Internet.  It's not even a competition when it's against a few whacko-sounding net kooks talking in a disjointed, disrespectful, and completely embarrassing manner.

Also remember, the media will *always* try to contact the net kooks for stories once they become known, since they provide good antics and quotes to write about.  Hey, it's probably some of the only fun a reporter gets to have these days

To those whom presented themselves professionally in this piece - for what it's worth you have my thanks!

Just my .02btc, coming from someone who could care less about the speculation angle and wants this project to be an overall long-term success.

I find it odd that in just about any forum whenever you mention Bitcoin there is always a troll that will dedicate the day to trying to sway people from Bitcoin...for a while I thought it was other miners trying to keep the difficulty down...now I am starting to wonder...there is a media attack for sure and I do suspect someone is trying to cause a mass exodus.

It wouldn't take much invested to cause ripples...couple million.  How much annually does the banking industry stand to lose in fees?

You can be dam sure there are all kinds embedded in these pages. All kinds with different agendas. Miners who want to keep the difficulty down. And certainly, certainly gov agents and agents (i use that term loosely, aka, actors), of banks, corps, etc, who are trying to sway opinion.

It took many, many years for the Fed member banks to convince people that fiat was valid currency and they are incorporating the digital world into their fraud. Bitcoin will be a clear and present danger to their world and it will be acted upon. I'm curious beyond words how this will play out as the gov's previous foray into the world of bittorrent was an utter failure. It backfired and they brought more interest into something they tried to shut down. So now what the fuk do they do?

If they're smart they will not combat it openly through litigation but rather subterfuge. They will paint such a negative picture in the media in an attempt to keep it grounded in hopes that it will only be used in small niches. Eventually there will be competing currencies and this will become more clear to the larger mass of ignorant gov stooges. You can be sure some know it is an unstoppable train at this point.

We need to be aware of their tactics. Catalog the methods they use (it WILL be primarily media based attacks) and somehow counter them. It'll be a grassroots ground war spreading the gospel like an apostle. Many will not have the fortitude for it. Unfortunate too. This is the beginning of something that is sending shockwaves through the world that will be felt for ages. Many can't see that.

I agree...to quote a line from the movie "Strange Days", "...it's not whether you are paranoid...it's whether you are paranoid enough.."

The hit pieces are getting bolder. I can smell the fear from here.

The same people cannot understand why someone would open source anything. "You just gave it away...Why?"  Sometimes things are bigger than money.  I am currently involved with RepRap's, Arduino, and Bitcoin...it is difficult to explain to anyone what kind of an impact things like this have...in the coming weeks when my RepRap site is online I am planning to accept Bitcoin.

Just like my business plan
Step 1)Build RepRap
Step 2)Source parts for a bunch of RepRaps
Step 3)??
Step 4)Profit? Emphasis on question mark.

Everything can use more paranoia...it keeps us safe.

Even more with the latest security fails surrounding Bitcoin paranoia could only help the cause.