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It's no secret that Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger hate Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. The Oracle of Omaha has repeatedly declared Bitcoin to be a “rat poison squared”. The two guys who make Berkshire Hathaway an extraordinary success never miss an opportunity to attack Bitcoin.
Charlie Munger went on the attack again in early December 2021 at the Sohn Conference in Sydney, Australia.
After explaining that he was not a fan of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, Charlie Munger went further:
“I wish they’d never been invented. I admire the Chinese, I think they made the correct decision, which was to simply ban Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.”
This media outing by Charlie Munger has triggered the fury of Bitcoin and crypto-currency supporters. And it makes sense in a way. When you fundamentally believe in a revolution, and someone comes along and attacks that revolution, you feel personally attacked. You tend to overreact.
That's what we saw this weekend on social networks.
I strongly disagree with Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett about Bitcoin …
My opinion on the subject is not going to be popular, but I will share it with you anyway. It may not be what you want to hear, but it's probably what you need to hear.
I'm a Bitcoiner as you know, and so I'm an advocate for the Bitcoin revolution. I disagree with Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett on the subject. However, I still listen to what they say and analyze their successes. When I write about the stock market and talk about the advice of these two Wall Street legends, many people blame me.
And yet, just because Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett don't understand anything about new technology doesn't mean that their views on other topics aren't interesting.
There's no denying that these two men have an investment philosophy that has allowed them to generate billions of dollars over the years. We have to respect that. While respecting that, we need to step back to know what their limitations are. After all, no one is perfect. No one is capable of being good and insightful in all areas.
This basic truth of life, of course, also affects Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett.
… But I still listen to what they say on other subjects
While their advice on the stock market, entrepreneurship, and business is often a gold mine, you have to understand that given their age, they are out of date with anything disruptive. Beyond 90 years old, you have a hard time understanding the technologies that are going to change the world of tomorrow.
Their limitations were already felt 20 years ago in the early 2000s. That's how they missed Google, Facebook, or Amazon. Warren Buffett then admitted his mistake on Amazon by buying massively shares, but it was at a high price. If he had been less closed to technological novelty, he could have made much more money for Berkshire Hathaway shareholders.
With Bitcoin, it's the same thing.
Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett find it hard to understand why the general public would want decentralized hard money that they own. Such a vision is beyond them because it calls into question all the fundamentals of their success. Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett became rich by taking advantage of the unfairness of the current monetary and financial system. They know all the ins and outs of it.
Bitcoin is a major paradigm shift that sets things straight by giving all its users an equal opportunity. Something unthinkable for old-world men like Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett.
Feeling threatened by the success of Bitcoin, Charlie Munger mostly adopts the posture claimed by governments and central bankers who hate Bitcoin:
“Of course I hate the bitcoin success. I don’t welcome a currency that’s so useful to kidnappers and extortionists and so forth, nor do I like just shuffling out of your extra billions of billions of dollars to somebody who just invented a new financial product out of thin air. I think I should say modestly that the whole damn development is disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization.”
You must learn to take the best of each to continuously improve your knowledge
Charlie Munger's comments are extremely violent, but above all, they show his complete lack of understanding of what Bitcoin is. To say that Bitcoin is contrary to the interests of civilization is just plain stupid. It just goes to show you how difficult it is for a man who will soon be 100 years old to evolve.
As the saying goes: “Evolve or Be extinct”.
Unable to evolve, Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett are like dinosaurs on the way to extinction. With that in mind, keep listening to what they have to say, but confine yourself to listening to their advice in areas they have mastered: areas of the old world. When it comes to the world of the future, forgive them their difficulties in adapting, and simply don't listen to them.
By taking the best from everyone, and leaving out the mediocre, you can continually improve your knowledge.
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