collapse will come when difficulty + cost is greater than reward, then insecurity will crumble the pyramid

About 10 years ago, a coworker told you about bitcoin. You had never heard of bitcoin until then and did not understand how someone could believe in such a stupid thing, a virtual currency with no backing, no government guarantee. Your coworker must have been crazy to put money into that. At that time, bitcoin was worth around 800 dollars.
Some time later, an old childhood friend told you about bitcoin. This time you had already heard quite a bit about the currency. Although you had never dedicated a few hours to studying the subject, you always followed the news and what the media said was that bitcoin was something for criminals. It was the currency used to buy drugs on the internet, for money laundering, and for the commission of other crimes. That was what the media said and what you believed.