Do you own Grayscale´s shares and wish to redeem it for BTC? Now you can join Alameda´s law suit as a co-defendant here up to September 1st
https://grayscalelitigation.com/
The environmental, human and economic true costs of electric vehicles
https://mishtalk.com/economics/clean-energy-exploitations-and-the-death-spiral-of-an-auto-industry/
#nature #bitcoin
A topic worth exploring from this linked article of nostr:npub1pyp9fqq60689ppds9ec3vghsm7s6s4grfya0y342g2hs3a0y6t0segc0qq
https://bmpro.substack.com/p/bitcoin-volatility-is-back
The interrelations/reflexive effects between derivatives #bitcoin markets (futures/options) and spot market. What I am trying to understand here is whether there is an opportunity for manipulation of the BTC price. Dylan says: "When market participants sell volatility through options, market makers respond by adjusting their hedges in the underlying asset, creating a stabilizing “pinning” effect near certain price levels where there is substantial open interest. To maintain a neutral position, market makers dynamically buy or sell the underlying asset in response to price movements of options, reinforcing the pinning effect. This equilibrium, however, can be shattered by unexpected events or shifts in sentiment, causing market makers to rapidly re-hedge. This leads to a sudden and significant price and volatility movement, reflecting the delicate and interconnected nature of options trading, market making and asset dynamics. This is precisely what occurred yesterday."
Then he mentions the Deribit options market as the place where all this happened. But my understanding is that this market is not PHYSICALLY settled (meaning that the option bets are settled in fiat and not in BTC) therefore there is no feedback loop between the spot market and the derivatives market as there is in the Gold futures market which can be settled physically. Only the OKEx market is settled in BTC.
I would instead make a case for manipulation in the spot market to benefit someone's derivatives bets. I would rather argue that the triggering event was a massive spot market liquidation to bring down the spot price and benefit from derivatives bets. For instance: I am a market maker selling call options to market participants who bet heavily long on a BTC price breaking above US$ 28.500 which was quite likely for technical analysis (important 100 MA and 200 MA levels converging).
I throw a load of BTC on the market and I cause this to be the peak of the moment. I clearly sell at a profit. This causes a cascading effect and compresses the price to the US$ 26.000 level. I also cash in all the call options I sold which then expire out of the money. Then I switch sides and go long the futures and options markets at the 26.000 level and reinvest the profits made from the first washing cycle buying spot BTC to lift the price. A large enough BTC whale can play this game over and over.
I wonder what are the thoughts of nostr:npub1a2cww4kn9wqte4ry70vyfwqyqvpswksna27rtxd8vty6c74era8sdcw83a and nostr:npub15dqlghlewk84wz3pkqqvzl2w2w36f97g89ljds8x6c094nlu02vqjllm5m and nostr:npub1w69ya7xs697hk3hky3gllryz8rwverfa0ylz89chf9qnhfcskc2s64zltw and nostr:npub1guh5grefa7vkay4ps6udxg8lrqxg2kgr3qh9n4gduxut64nfxq0q9y6hjy on that topic.
Let us know, this is an important topic worth exploring in more detail. #bitcoin
Today Tornado Cash Developers were Charged with Money Laundering and Sanctions Violations by US Govt.
@`ODELL`and @`waxwing` rightly expressed their concerns and worries for all #bitcoin developers in this post
https://primal.net/e/note13vn0r7gdwy6eprj8vetl4y2yp6tc5c79q6qgzy9n73fev4zuwhnsezftd7
While I am not a criminal lawyer nor US qualified to be competent on that matter however the few bits and pieces gathered from the linked articles smell of a very "ideologically" motivated case by the US prosecutor.
I think @waxwing is right "If they didn't, then this is even worse, because it means US LE are prepared to make *really* tortuous arguments to go after privacy software developers."
Let´s remember that this is just the Public Prosecutor´s thesis and that nowadays public prosecutors are very much politically/ideologically biased. That the accusations are stretched to the max to try to build a case I would point to the following: "The DOJ further alleged that the defendants knew their service was being used to launder funds from hacks and other thefts"
Does under US Law the knowledge that a software you have built has been used for a crime makes yourself (the programmer) a criminal?`I very much doubt. How could you prove beyond reasonable doubt that I had knowledge of crimes being committed? Doubtful as well.
Also: "The DAO is an entity unto itself that, through its voting members, has demonstrated an agreement to a common purpose. As the government notes, the structure is not unlike that of stockholders of a corporation who may not intend to vote in a shareholder meeting, without this affecting the structure of the entity," the judge wrote.
Not very clear here whether the judge really understands (or cares to understand) how a DAO works. Who retains a majority of tokens/votes in this case? it is only the 2 accused or a number of token holders? Should you then prosecute all of them.
Also, once established the DAO operates automatically. How can then a token holder shut it down? The fact that the US government could not shut Tornado Cash down but only sanction it is the proven fact that the 2 accused could not change the course of events and could not stop crimes if any were committed. It is like saying: even if you could not stop the crime being committed you are charged anyways because you shuld have had previous knowledge that your software would be used for criminal purposes. Ehh??? Besides Tornado Cash and all other mixers have very legitimate uses for privacy concerned people. I would say that criminal activity is likely very marginal. Therefore it is by definition not a software built exclusively for criminal activity. Quite the contrary. Then how could the DOJ infer the developer´s criminal intent?? It is like charging the owner of a factory which manufactures screwdrivers with homicide because someone killed a person with a screwdriver.
My feeling is that we are in the area of highly politically motivated fantasy criminal charges. A good US criminal lawyer should win the case.
The bad thing though is that the DOJ will try to inflict as much pain as possible to the developers to make an example of them. Therefore I would recommend ALL #bitcoin developers to be very careful about their work and about revealing their identities. Back in 2008 Satoshi had understood this all too well.
I would also encourage you developers to keep up the great work you are doing especially on the area of bitcoin´s #privacy. Unfortunately it is all too clear to me that we are in a long term battle and that the elites and their political puppets who hold the keys to this fuckery fiat monetary system will do all they can to disrupt Bitcoin adoption. Be humble and keep your privacy levels very very high indeed. Always think in adversarial terms. Bitcoin was built for that.
An extremely violent deep underwater eruption happened back one and half year ago and its climate pattern changing effects are likely still plainly visible today. And nobody talks about it. Why?
"Because this shows in mathematical terms how little influence humans can have on climate events. It was also a volcanic eruption, also at the other end of the world, which brought about a cold spell in Europe around 1860, which caused hunger and poverty and a large wave of emigration to America. It is also not known how much CO2 this Tonga volcano spewed out. Probably it was more in one day than all of us can produce in a year. And how many active volcanoes are there? Who spit every day?"
The unscientific and unproven narrative about man-made climate change is nothing more than another tool for the industry to make huge profits out of selling electric vehicles which have a proven very high environmental footprint and to add another tool to the global social credit machine being created by governments worldwide to control the populations and restrict our liberties together with more dystopian instruments such as CBDCs, health and vaccine passes.
link to the original German article https://www.anderweltonline.com/klartext/klartext-20232/die-nasa-weiss-warum-das-wetter-so-seltsam-ist/
link to the English translation https://www-anderweltonline-com.translate.goog/klartext/klartext-20232/die-nasa-weiss-warum-das-wetter-so-seltsam-ist/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
link to the NASA Tonga eruption article https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/tonga-eruption-blasted-unprecedented-amount-of-water-into-stratosphere
Since nostr:npub18ams6ewn5aj2n3wt2qawzglx9mr4nzksxhvrdc4gzrecw7n5tvjqctp424 and nostr:npub1q8w7u2ymrghfpp6v5dpg57jpgaj2djk340a2npwzq8n64ksk6wxq8aw95u have been talking about #VPN recently, I thought I would make a post since this is an area I am knowledgeable in.
First thing to note is that VPNs are not the be all and end all of #privacy. You need to assess your own privacy needs / threat model and construct a layered strategy such that if one level got compromised, the others would still be there to protect you.
For example, use a reputable VPN along with an encrypted email provider such as Proton Mail or Tutanota, an encrypted messenger such as Signal, Session, or nostr:npub1exv22uulqnmlluszc4yk92jhs2e5ajcs6mu3t00a6avzjcalj9csm7d828 , etc. If you really need it, use Tor to further protect your online presence.
Second, whoever is tunneling your Internet traffic, has the ability to monitor it. Therefore, when you use a VPN, you are not anonymous. The VPN provider can see your IP and your online activity if they want to. That is why you need to select a VPN provider carefully. You are transferring your trust from your internet provider to them. Fortunately, there are a few VPN providers such as Mullvad, IVPN, and Proton VPN that have a very good reputation in the #privacy community for not logging user activity, minimizing the customer data they collect, open-sourcing their apps, and sharing independent security audits of their service.
Using a VPN should be part of an overall strategy to protect your privacy - but only if you trust the VPN provider more than your ISP.
Third, if you are using a VPN provider that runs YouTube ads, sponsors YouTube channels, or was recommended by a YouTuber that isn't a privacy advocate, then almost certainly you are using a VPN company that has the best affiliate program, rather than the best VPN service! (Think: NordVPN, ExpressVPN)
I personally use Proton VPN because I am a Proton Visionary member and it is included in my Proton suite. I am happy with it. However, if you want to take it to the maxx, then perhaps Mullvad or IVPN is for you. These services do not even collect an email address, and IVPN even has a Warrant Canary.
This post is long enough so I will create an additional post with some #Privacy related resources to get you started on your journey. If #privacy related content interests you, follow me as I will be posting more.
LINKS:
IVPN Warrant Canary:
Thanks for the mullvad and ivpn tips. I also use Proton. One question I have: if one uses Tor over VPN is the VPN provider still able to see all the traffic requests addresses typed in the Tor browser or not? Thanks
An interview worth watching in FULL for every American and European citizen. Colonel Macgregor gives Tucker Carlson a balanced view of the Ukraine conflict, its true reasons and effects on both the USA and Europe. For most people who have been "indoctrinated" by the mainstream media narrative hearing him will be truly shocking. It is an interview full of rationality and common sense which is missing among the mainstream media and the political elites on both sides of the ocean (this is why we have arrived at this dangerous junction). He mentions that the US has spent over 14 trillion US$ since 2001 on useless wars around the world. The fact that "the economy luminaries" deem it "meaningless" highlights what every bitcoiner understands. Which is that a corrupted fiat money system corrupts everything. Those wars are like mafia-rackets artificially created to extract wealth from the populations and redirect the flows into the hands of ever more powerful, corrupted and extortionary elites. Blackrocks´ farmland grabs in Ukraine are mentioned as well as Nulands´ neocon-gang deals and the corruption of Zelensky´s circus of money launderers who will end up enjoying in their western luxury mansions the billions they have skimmed from the war machine while over half a million Ukranian young soldiers have so far shed their blood and have been coldly thrown into the meat grinder of this useless war for personal profits.
Cut away the oxygen they breath and they will die. Take away the fake corrupted fiat money they need to finance those wars and the world will prosper and will be more peaceful and egalitarian. Bitcoin is the answer, the silent and peaceful revolution which will stop most wars, increase our well-being and redirect the elites´ political incentives away from the toxic corrupted fiat donor´s/lobbies agendas towards the well-being of the populations.