I remember with acute clarity when the US started dropping bombs in Afghanistan and Iraq. I could not stop wondering "why?". Why are we bombing countries as a response to non-state terrorism. How does this solve any problems? What does Iraq have to do with any of this? It didn't make any sense.

I was just a high school kid. My dad was really gung ho about the whole thing. I was skeptical. Ironic, because he's the one who taught me to be a skeptic. Double irony: Dad's copy of "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" rested just a few feet away on the bookshelf as we watched the news footage of B2 bombers destroying a country on the far side of the world with little to no justification and thunderous applause.

I've learned a few things about how the world works since then. I know why we went to war back then and why they lied about it. Watching it all play out again 20 years later brings a profound sadness to my heart.

At least this time I am not helpless. I know the solution and I have the will to see it through. I have vowed to spend the rest of my working days to implement it.

The sadness is still there. But I also have a deep and motivating sense of purpose. And I have friends and colleagues who share this purpose. This fills me with optimism. We have to defund the war machine for the sake of all who come after us.

We have a plan. And it's working. This is why I bitcoin.