Dogecoin is pointless but awesome

We should probably talk about Dogecoin.

Currently trading above 60 cents USD and seemingly marching towards that dollar mark, the joke is no longer funny. It’s not a meme anymore. No, it’s something to figure out.

The only problem is that it doesn’t make a lot of sense.

I could pretend to have insight into what makes Dogecoin tick, but I’d be making it up on the fly. So would you. This is not a coin where value is driven by logic. It doesn’t do anything of note and should not be seen as a true alternative to Bitcoin or Ethereum or, really, any coin that has been properly developed.

Yet, here we are. It’s likely the second most known crypto currency among the general public. That’s terrifying, while also hilarious.

I wish I had any insight into whether this current boom is sustainable, but I just don’t know.  If you’re looking for advice on whether you should invest, keep looking. Trade with caution and all that.

There is little doubt that the reason people are drawn to Dogecoin is because of the joke. People that buy either want to make a statement about the absurdity of all currency, or they want to be part of the LOLs. Yet, there is a self-prophesy happening. The more people buy into the joke, the more it becomes something real.

As of writing, there are more than 20 businesses that will accept Dogecoin as payment. You can buy a Bentley at a Dallas dealership with the coin. That’s no joke.

There is plenty of reason to be cynical about the long term possibilities of a coin that has no identifiable reason to be valuable, of course. If people grow bored, it could easily go bust. I think we all understand this. But, here’s the thing: It might also remain popular.

Probably, not Bitcoin popular, but at a level where it’s a reasonable investment for an aggressive trader. 

That’s going to make some people in the investment space uncomfortable. They will call buying Dogecoin gambling and advise you to stay away. They will do this without acknowledging that there is an element of gambling in all investing, even when you do so conservatively.

They probably aren’t wrong. Dogecoin isn’t likely to be stable, or predictable.

Here’s the thing: So what? Seriously, why does it matter? If you go into an investment in Dogecoin with your eyes wide open then how is it different than anything you do in the market?

There is an element of the absurd with Dogecoin – it absolutely is calling into question the very nature of, well, everything. That’s attractive to a certain type of person. That its current boom is being driven by so-called retail investors is making people uncomfortable. 

That’s good. Those that are uncomfortable probably need to be. That average people are causing disruption in the market right now is a feature, not a bug.

To bring this back to Dogecoin, I have zero clue how long it will stay bullish, or whether it will crash and burn one day. I’m not sure anyone does, but it is yet another example of the power of the collective action of small investors.

And, that’s awesome. That power – your power – is the story of 2021 so far and Dogecoin is just another example of it.