>Proof-of-work requires, by design, that the electricity value expended on mining is proportional to the total market cap of Bitcoin.
This is mostly true, but I think you're conflating a couple different things here. At market equilibrium, you would think it would look like the cost of power + hw depreciation = crypto price * (block reward + fees).
>if it takes an Argentina's worth of electricity to run Bitcoin now
It might be justified if bitcoin could replace the traditional financial system (think about how inefficient that is), but I do not think it can.
>how does the world manage if Bitcoin has a 10 or 100 times greater market cap?
I don't think bitcoin's market cap can multiply by a factor of 10 or 100
This is mostly true, but I think you're conflating a couple different things here. At market equilibrium, you would think it would look like the cost of power + hw depreciation = crypto price * (block reward + fees).
>if it takes an Argentina's worth of electricity to run Bitcoin now
It might be justified if bitcoin could replace the traditional financial system (think about how inefficient that is), but I do not think it can.
>how does the world manage if Bitcoin has a 10 or 100 times greater market cap?
I don't think bitcoin's market cap can multiply by a factor of 10 or 100