Bitcoin owns its meteoric rise to the fact that it provides real value that other currencies can't - partly, that it's pseudonymous and doesn't require going through a 3rd party like a bank.
Silk road was just a demonstration of these practical attributes in the real world. It helped to add some demand for the currency, but not a majority of it. Mostly, it bolstered public awareness. At the same time it was being used on SR, it was being widely derided by the majority of the media as only having one specific illegal purpose and should be shut down for that reason, causing others who may have taken a look out of interest to write it off completely. You could argue that the effect of SR was neutral, if not negative.
Bitcoin was being traded before SR and it's being traded after. The most recent big bubble happened partly as a result of SR actually collapsing. The day it went down, the price dipped from ~$125 to ~$85 and it was back up in about a week.
Combined with the government hearings at the time, the facts that bitcoin were (1) legal to use, and (2) still had value outside of drug trade, made it explode.
Silk road was just a demonstration of these practical attributes in the real world. It helped to add some demand for the currency, but not a majority of it. Mostly, it bolstered public awareness. At the same time it was being used on SR, it was being widely derided by the majority of the media as only having one specific illegal purpose and should be shut down for that reason, causing others who may have taken a look out of interest to write it off completely. You could argue that the effect of SR was neutral, if not negative.
Bitcoin was being traded before SR and it's being traded after. The most recent big bubble happened partly as a result of SR actually collapsing. The day it went down, the price dipped from ~$125 to ~$85 and it was back up in about a week.
Combined with the government hearings at the time, the facts that bitcoin were (1) legal to use, and (2) still had value outside of drug trade, made it explode.