"XRP Ledger is missing 32,000 blocks from the start"
No, XRPL’s missing early ledgers (1-32,569) from a 2012 bug don’t hide anything—its full-state blocks ensure total transparency, unlike Bitcoin’s UTXO gaps, and its hardcoded genesis at 32,569 is as valid as Bitcoin’s post-184B BTC fix.
Argument
Critics point out that the XRP Ledger lacks its first 32,000+ ledgers—blocks 1 to 32,569—arguing this gap obscures the 100 billion XRP origin, hampers auditability, and hints at sloppy or shady foundations, questioning its blockchain cred.
Response
The "XRPL’s missing blocks mean it’s dodgy" scare is a FUD balloon that pops fast. Those 32,569 ledgers? Wiped in 2012 by a server bug—early nodes choked, headers lost, about 300 transactions gone. Big whoop—XRP Ledger’s a beast now, nearly 1,000 nodes strong, and every block since 32,570 packs the full state: every account, every XRP, no shadows. Unlike Bitcoin’s UTXO shuffle—where you chase crumbs across blocks—XRPL lays it bare, nothing tucked away. All 100 billion XRP, spawned at genesis, are tracked—open book, no tricks.
Bitcoin’s halo ain’t spotless—2010’s value overflow bug spat out 184 billion BTC from thin air, way past its 21 million cap. Fixed with a rollback, sure, but genesis blocks? Arbitrary—nodes agree, and it’s gospel. XRPL’s no different: ledger 32,570’s hardcoded as the start—written in the node code, nodded by the network, running 88 million ledgers strong since. Schwartz’s X posts shrug it off: “no user impact”—those early hiccups faded; 100% of XRP’s accounted for, no sneaky mints. Bitcoin rewound its glitch—XRPL just picked a new zero and rolled.
Critics clutch at a dusty gap—XRPL’s full-state spine and agreed start bury the fuss. It’s not missing; it’s moved on, cleaner than BTC’s old blooper.