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Latrica 9mo ago

I too believe there is mixed messaging and hypocrisy at times.

First, let me say that people can do what they want with their Bitcoin. They can hold, invest, sell, buy, send, etc.

With that said, I often point to the white paper as a reference. Bitcoin’s creation had a clear purpose. Outside of a few examples, I don’t see the implementation. I definitely don’t see it online where Bitcoin was mainly supposed to be used.

I’m not blaming anyone. It just surprises me at this point that there isn’t a Bitcoin only version of Amazon or Ebay. I’m aware there is Shopstr here but there should be a bigger marketplace.

Furthermore, let’s assume there is a marketplace for sellers. We still need buyers. Where are the people who will buy? Are there enough of them? What items are they interested in buying? What’s the incentive to buy items using Bitcoin vs fiat?

For example, If I sell a mug using Bitcoin, who is my buyer? My buyer is someone who already owns Bitcoin or someone who has to get Bitcoin to make the purchase. The later is where there’s potential trouble. How do people get Bitcoin to spend? People scream “buy Bitcoin”! I’ve already stated in multiple posts this is a hard sell. 🙄

So, people can earn, receive (gift), or mine Bitcoin as possibilities. Well now we have more issues. Who’s paying salaries in Bitcoin? And where do the employers get the Bitcoin to pay their employees? Let assume people are gifted with Bitcoin. How many people are send ling and receiving donations? As far as mining, most Bitcoin is already mined.

Lastly, as you’ve stated in a few words or less, where are the like minded people who engage in the circular economy? There are some but I still see a lot of talking and not enough walking.

Currently, I personally have items available online for exchange and there’s been no interest thus far. I also posted an item on Shopstr and it just sat there. I was hoping to showcase a personal example of the circular economy working on Nostr but to no avail. So I gave the item away to a homeless person. Others have been successful selling items for Bitcoin while many more have not. I can dive deeper into why I believe this is the case but I’ll leave that for another post.

You seem to be a rational thinking person. How do you think this problem can be addressed? What are effective methods to change the messaging? How do we get more people to participate as buyers in the circular economy?

I’m asking genuine questions.

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alp 9mo ago

Honestly, at this point, I don’t know how to reach people anymore. In the West, there’s also the added difficulty that every transaction can be taxed additionally (depending on the jurisdiction).

It’s already hard enough to reach Muslims. For us, there’s an additional argument: the absolute prohibition of Riba (usury) and the strong recommendation to deal with sound money, which is not based on debt-driven creation out of thin air. The independence from banks or other fiat payment service providers, with whom Muslims often have more issues than other groups, is even a nice bonus on top of that.

That’s why I’ve also set up a directory listing merchants and service providers who accept Bitcoin. But the situation is the same there: it’s quiet.

As a freelancer, I’ve worked twice for direct Bitcoin payment, but that’s still the exception.

We could get all the environmentalists on board if they only understood that the biggest environmental problem is caused by our fiat system. Inflated money -> high time preference -> shorter-lived products -> more waste. But the green intellectuals just don’t get it.

Anyone who complains about societal degeneration, the decay of cultural life and fine arts, and the decline of families would be helped in the same way in the long term.

So, I don’t have an answer to your questions, and I think the right attitude can only come from the individuals and their sense of morality. Maybe most people aren’t aware of how much immorality and suffering is caused by our fiat system. Maybe the pain just isn’t enough, and people have become too desensitized.

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Latrica 9mo ago

Well said. Thanks for sharing your insights. I appreciate your perspectives from multiple angles.

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BTCrevolutionary 9mo ago

The tax treatment of Bitcoin makes it a huge headache to use and that is the whole point why it is being treated this way. If there was less friction more people would probably use it.

My thing why not just say fuck the government, not report that you are spending BTC and just have a huge black/grey market? Mass economic protest? Like why are we allowing governments to dictate what kind of money we use??

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Des Imoto マキシ 9mo ago

Agree. The enemy is us.

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alp 9mo ago

You only need one buyer, just one, who declares their purchase from you in BTC on their tax return, and then they start tracing the blockchain, find the recipient wallet, monitor it — maybe for 10 years — and if they can link it to you, because you might have made a small mistake over those 10 years, they’ll be at your door.