I believe massive amounts of people misunderstand the title of the Bitcoin white paper.

Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System I believe massive amounts of people misunderstand the title of the Bitcoin white paper. Think of this casual statement "Don't forget to grab a pack of smokes while you're out. There's some extra cash on the coffee table if you need it." From this frame of reference, it is easy to see Bitcoin as a system used to buy a pack of smoke using some kind of electronic infrastructure. However, if we dig deeper it seems to be actually much more nuanced than that. (Example: Bob buys milk from Sally.) Prior to Bitcoin, it was impossible for Bob to do a cash transaction with Sally over an electronic medium (VISA, Mastercard, debit, e-transfer, Fedwire, etc...) All of these traditional methods require middlemen, IOUs, or another mechanism to settle transactions. This is fundamentally different than a cash transaction. By that I mean, Bob places a $10 dollar bill in Sally's hand. Sally then places the milk in Bob's hand. THIS IS WHAT BITCOIN INVENTED. Bob and Sally can tap phones and Bob's Bitcoin will go from his wallet straight to Sally's wallet. Exactly like a $10 bill going from his hand to her hand.