The bullish case for Noderunners
Now that privacy is on the verge of being outlawed is the best time there has ever been to set up and run your own Bitcoin node.
This is probably going to sound like a sales pitch because it's coming from me, but that's really not the intention of this post.
It doesn't matter which node implementation you choose, just choose the one you want or whatever is the most convenient for you to get started. Run Core, run Knots, run Start9, run BTCpayServer, Parmanoodle, Citadel, my god, even Umbrel if you must.
The important thing is that it's YOUR node.
Think about it. We have ~18000 Bitcoin nodes online which is a laughable number when you compare it to the number of people on Nostr, Bitcoin talk and Twitter. At least three of those 18k are mine, and I suspect more people run multiple nodes, so the actual number of noderunning individuals is probably another magnitude smaller.
These Noderunners are serving the network, but much more importantly, they can verify that they get real Bitcoin when receiving UTXOs. And they can do so independently, over Tor, which means that, to this day, no one can stop them from doing so. With privacy services shutting down and wallet apps disappearing from appstores in certain jurisdictions, having your own money transmitter might not only come in handy, it could be the only way to transact if you have to.
No one knows what's going to happen next, but don't make the mistake to think the EU won't follow suit. Be prepared for the when your favorite wallet shuts down. Practice recovery with Sparrow or a similar wallet which allows you to connect to a node which is behind Tor. Preferably your own, but Uncle Jim Nodes work too. Ask your friends if you can't run your own.
At this point in time, individual Noderunners have not been targeted, because it's hard and the effort mostly outweighs the benefits for the gubberment, so far... And with every node coming online, it gets harder to take Bitcoin down. Which in return strengthens each and every one of us. A critical mass of NodeRunners is an unstoppable force, I don't claim to know when that critical mass is reached, but I am fucking sure it's not 18000.
So, what to do now? Bust out your Raspberry Pis, RockPros, old Laptops, iMacs, PCs. whatever you have and get to work. Build a node, run it and learn to connect to it. Do it before you need it. There's no need for a clearnet connection if you're not selling stuff or are otherwise uncomfortable with linking your public IP. Running it behind Tor is absolutely fine. No need for lightning either (but it's fun if you want to).
Too dystopian for you? GFY and take a look around. It's going to get worse before it can get better.
