Set aside what Bitcoin enthusiasts
want it to be for a moment, and think about the transactions that are actually happening.
Is the majority of the usage pattern currency-like, where people are getting paid in BTC and buying things with BTC?
Or is the majority of the usage pattern that of a commodity, where people are mostly buying and selling it for fiat currency, and trying to do so at a profit?
I would strongly suspect the latter: the vast majority of BTC transactions (other than transfers between personal wallets) are the buying and selling of BTC for fiat currency.
Even most "Pay with Bitcoin" businesses are this way: in reality, all you're doing is selling your Bitcoin to an exchange who will convert it to USD and pay the USD-denominated price of the item you're buying. Gold certainly can't do this so conveniently, but the principle is the same: I want to buy something, so I sell some gold and use the USD to buy things.
Is the majority of the usage pattern currency-like, where people are getting paid in BTC and buying things with BTC?
Or is the majority of the usage pattern that of a commodity, where people are mostly buying and selling it for fiat currency, and trying to do so at a profit?
I would strongly suspect the latter: the vast majority of BTC transactions (other than transfers between personal wallets) are the buying and selling of BTC for fiat currency.
Even most "Pay with Bitcoin" businesses are this way: in reality, all you're doing is selling your Bitcoin to an exchange who will convert it to USD and pay the USD-denominated price of the item you're buying. Gold certainly can't do this so conveniently, but the principle is the same: I want to buy something, so I sell some gold and use the USD to buy things.