Thank you @thecryptofiend for this post...you have definitely opened a debate here.... and I think it's a good one ( regardless of who wins) because you are getting exactly what you were asking for, a debate.
IMHO I think it should be a currency simply because that's what the majority of the population understands. Just as gold and silver are tangibles that people understand globally, bitcoin (when compared to gold/silver/fiat currency) is still in a novice stage for the general public to understand.
If you keep it as currency, it will allow more acceptance as such and will grow steadily, instead of having such dramatic high's and low's in "value".
The more people accept it as a form of currency, the more it becomes the norm and not "taboo".