Avatar
bitcoms
3c35d359c5ab69e822b138c3e08925ab267ff6bd3118da274e9c868e356ea543
Writing and photographing Bitcoin

BITCOIN IS EVERYWHERE AND NOWHERE

So where is this Bitcoin ledger which can be used and seen by anyone?

It lives on many thousands of ‘nodes’ – typically dedicated and inexpensive computers – which together form the Bitcoin network. Each node contains a copy of the Bitcoin ledger.

Anyone can run a node, and no permission is needed. Nodes can join or leave the network at any time without restriction. You don't need to run a node to use Bitcoin, and you don't need to use Bitcoin to run a node.

As there are nodes in most countries, Bitcoin is everywhere. But because the ledger has no specific location, Bitcoin is nowhere.

Bitcoin is everywhere and nowhere.

https://www.bitcoms.xyz/bitcoin-is/bitcoin-is-everywhere-and-nowhere

BITCOIN IS NON-GOVERNMENT MONEY

Many people think that money has to be issued by the government. But this is not the case, and it never has been.

First, consider currency. In London, the pound is money, the euro is money in Paris, and Bitcoin is money in El Salvador: all of these are legal tender, endorsed by the respective national governments.

But money can also be whatever currency people agree is money without the government’s say so. The US dollar remains money in Cuba even though the government says it isn’t legal tender, and Bitcoin is widely accepted in Madeira without the government there saying anything much about it at all.

The same goes for banknotes. They are of course often issued by governments via their central banks. But notes have historically been issued by private banks as well. In some places they still are, such as Scotland, where Virgin Money subsidiary Clydesdale Bank (amongst others) still issues sterling banknotes, and Northern Ireland, where (amongst others) Danish multinational Danske Bank does the same.

And what about ledger money, which makes up most money in circulation today? The world over, this is mainly not issued by governments at all, but is instead created by non-government banks such as Banco Santander and Wells Fargo when they make loans. In the UK for example, retail banks such as HSBC and Lloyd’s create around 80% of the money in the economy in this way.

So while some money is government money, most money is not. Yet people the world over still agree it is money.

Similarly, Bitcoin is not government money, yet people all over the world agree it is money.

Bitcoin is non-government money.

https://www.bitcoms.xyz/bitcoin-is/bitcoin-is-non-government-money

BITCOIN IS THE BANK

Say I pay you using bank ledger money: I instruct my bank; my bank grants permission, updates its private ledger and tells your bank; your bank grants permission, and updates its private ledger.

But if I pay you with Bitcoin, there are only two steps: I make an entry in Bitcoin’s public ledger, and the Bitcoin network confirms the transaction. And that’s it. I’ve sent you the money, and the transaction is complete.

Nothing physically moved: the money stayed where it always was, on the Bitcoin ledger. But now the ledger shows publicly that the money was transferred from me to you. Our names aren’t recorded in the ledger – just our Bitcoin addresses, virtual locations which we control.

We didn’t need banks to hold our money, receive instructions, grant permissions, or transfer our funds by updating their private ledgers.

Instead, we just used Bitcoin’s public ledger. We didn’t need banks at all.

Bitcoin is the bank.

https://www.bitcoms.xyz/bitcoin-is/bitcoin-is-the-bank

BITCOIN IS MONEY

Money can be one of two things.

It can be a tangible object: I can pay you by handing you a coin or a banknote which we both agree is money.

But if I send money from my bank account to yours, our banks don’t pass each other coins or banknotes or any other physical objects. So how does the money move?

Well, nothing really moves at all. Our banks simply make entries in their ledgers, and we accept these book entries as money. Most money is this second type: ledger money.

As we’ve already seen, Bitcoin is a ledger. And just like a bank’s books, Bitcoin is a ledger which people all around the world agree is money.

Bitcoin is money.

https://www.bitcoms.xyz/bitcoin-is/bitcoin-is-money

Fascinating chart.

Suggests mainstream media is just as much an echo chamber as social media.

Replying to Avatar Rune Østgård

In view of the French police arresting Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, I thought it might be interesting for you to read this part of my conversation with Perplexity AI on cencorship and monopolization attempts after the invention of the printing press.

Me

I guess it didn't take much time after Gutenberg launched the printing press in 1440 before rulers understood that they had to censor, monopolize or give privileges related to the use of the printing press and distribution of printed texts.

Answer

The introduction of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1440 indeed led to significant reactions from rulers and authorities across Europe and beyond, primarily due to its potential to disseminate information widely, which could challenge established powers, religious doctrines, and societal norms.

Here's how rulers and authorities responded:

Censorship:

One of the immediate responses was censorship.

Authorities, particularly religious ones, were concerned about the spread of heretical or subversive ideas.

For instance, the Catholic Church, during the Counter-Reformation, established the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Index of Prohibited Books) in 1559, which listed books that Catholics were forbidden to read or possess due to their content being deemed heretical or contrary to Church doctrine.

This was an attempt to control the spread of Protestant ideas and other unwanted knowledge.

Monopolization and Privileges:

Rulers also sought to control the printing press through monopolies or by granting privileges.

In Venice, for example, the government issued printing privileges to specific printers, giving them exclusive rights to print certain texts.

This not only controlled what was printed but also who could print, effectively creating a form of monopoly.

These privileges were often granted in exchange for loyalty or financial benefits to the state.

Regulation and Licensing:

Beyond outright censorship, many states implemented systems of licensing where printers had to obtain permission to operate or to print specific works.

This allowed authorities to keep tabs on what was being produced and distributed.

In England, for instance, the Crown established the Stationers' Company in 1557, which had the power to regulate printing, including the right to search for and seize illicit presses.

Ottoman Empire's Response: Interestingly, the Ottoman Empire initially resisted the adoption of the printing press, fearing it would lead to the spread of ideas that could challenge Islamic orthodoxy or Ottoman rule.

Printing in Turkish with movable type was only allowed in 1727, significantly later than in Europe, which some historians argue contributed to the Empire's relative decline in intellectual and technological advancements.

Public Burning of Books:

In some instances, particularly during periods of religious fervor or political upheaval, books deemed heretical or seditious were publicly burned.

This was not just censorship but also a public spectacle meant to deter others from similar activities.

Control Over Content:

Beyond outright banning, there was a push to control content through pre-publication censorship.

Manuscripts had to be reviewed by ecclesiastical or secular authorities before they could be printed, ensuring that only approved ideas reached the public.

The response to the printing press was multifaceted, reflecting a broader anxiety about the loss of control over information.

While some rulers saw the economic and cultural benefits of printing, leading to a more nuanced approach of regulation rather than outright suppression, others viewed it as a direct threat to their authority.

This tension between control and the free flow of information has been a recurring theme throughout history, with the printing press as one of the earliest technologies to bring this conflict to the forefront.

Timely post.

Shame you’re unlikely to come across such an enlightening parallel in the mainstream media.

BITCOIN IS A BOOK

About five thousand years ago, people invented writing to keep track of their dealings with each other. This started on clay tablets, and eventually moved onto paper bound into books. In accounting speak, such books have a technical name – ledgers.

With the advent of money came cash books, or cash ledgers. Just think of them as private diaries for money.

Businesses today still maintain their own proprietary cash books. It may be on a computer rather than paper, but the purpose of a modern multinational’s cash ledger hasn’t changed since the paper cash books of old: to record and keep track of payments, receipts, balances and dates.

What’s this got to do with Bitcoin? Everything. Because even though it’s public rather than private, that’s essentially what Bitcoin is: a cash ledger, or cash book.

Bitcoin is a book.

https://www.bitcoms.xyz/bitcoin-is/bitcoin-is-a-book

Anyone out there still using nostr:npub1mutnyacc9uc4t5mmxvpprwsauj5p2qxq95v4a9j0jxl8wnkfvuyque23vg ?

I’ve tried a few times to send sats via Lightning over the past week with no joy.

I have sats in self custody with Flow/ Voltage as LSP.

Any troubleshooting tips?