In his Reddit AMA (a session where people 'Ask me anything') when asked about cryptocurrencies he said:
"The main feature of cryptocurrencies is their anonymity. I don't think this is a good thing. The Governments ability to find money laundering and tax evasion and terrorist funding is a good thing. Right now cryptocurrencies are used for buying fentanyl and other drugs so it is a rare technology that has caused deaths in a fairly direct way."
It's that last sentence that really has people angry, and it seems to be a recurring theme among the older generation - blame cryptocurrencies for things that have been happening long before the existence of cryptocurrencies.
One twitter user '3ideRaven' had my favorite response...
"Dear @BillGates,
If you can blame cryptocurrency on deaths resulting from the purchase of Fentanyl on the dark web, can we blame your Windows computer for facilitating the transaction?
Signed,
People who aren’t idiots"
Oddly enough, until now Bill Gates seemed pretty positive about cryptocurrencies. In 2014 he made headlines when he told Bloomberg:
"Bitcoin is better than currency in that you don't have to be physically in the same place and, of course, for large transactions, currency can get pretty inconvenient."
It's disappointing to see someone who once seemed to get it, make a complete 180.
Author: Oliver Redding
Seattle News Desk
