A Chinese economist and deputy director of Renmin University, Qu Qiang, predicted that "We will all die" if bitcoin is widely adopted as a currency. He predicts that our society will fall into "a deadly spiral of deflation", noting that "the whole of society will shrink and explode by itself."
We will all die if Bitcoin is widely adopted, the Chinese economist predicts
The economist was interviewed on the CGTN about bitcoin. CGTN is owned by the Chinese state media China Central Television (CCTV). The video of her interview was shared on Twitter Thursday by Hailey Lennon, who claimed she walked into her hotel room and was broadcasting on TV.
Qu was asked: "Can you give me the worst case scenario, what kind of systemic shock it will give to the current financial system if bitcoin is widely used in China or the rest of the world?" He replied:
“I can tell you exactly what will happen… We will all die. This is not a joke."
His response was what he called "The worst-case scenario or the must-see scenario" that will happen if bitcoin were to become "the ultimate type of currency" and "adopted by all of human society".
Qu then pointed out that "Bitcoin has a very, very strict and limited total number, which means this is a deflationary currency," noting that it will not increase the amount as human development grows.
Consequently, he claimed that invest in bitcoin it is wrong and our society will fall into "a deadly spiral of deflation". He elaborated: “The whole society will shrink and self-explode. This is what happened at the end of the Ming dynasty, when they were short of silver ”.
The unleashed comments of bitcoiners
Bitcoiners had a field day on Qu's comments on social media. Many laughed excessively, some called the whole thing a "definitive FUD" and a "state-authorized bullshit propaganda".
Some have disproved his silver theory. One person tweeted: "The Ming dynasty collapsed for many reasons, but a deflationary silver spiral is not one of them," citing the work of Richard von Glahn, who wrote: "This hypothesis rests on dubious theoretical grounds. and empirical ".
Many have mocked his knowledge of the fall of the Ming dynasty. One person suggested: "This could easily be an SNL [Saturday Night Live] skit except more fun." Another: “End of the world. Attention". A third person said: "I didn't know bitcoin put an end to the Ming dynasty." A fourth person intervened: “Imagine if he was trapped in the XNUMXth century”.
One user became more serious and stated that "for the record, he [Qu] has no idea of the Ming dynasty." Citing the British Museum's world history, he wrote: “The Ming state… issued too much paper money, however, causing hyperinflation. In 1425 paper money was only worth one seventieth of its original value and the use of paper money in China was suspended.
