GM!
Also fortunate, optimistic - but also prepared.
2024 gonna be a crazy year!
Maybe true, but that whole sordid tale showed what’s behind the curtain in the mind of the anti Bitcoin crowd in DC. All of SBF’s besties in DC are the ones now attacking self custody. The really remarkable thing about DC is that most of them haven’t even returned the contributions, and absolutely nobody gives a damn. Important to know what kind of fight you’re in. (Hint - not a clean one)
As we all prepare to scatter for the holiday, a few things for Bitcoiners to chew on over the holidays. 2023 has been a milestone year in Bitcoin's relationship with politicians and regulators. I think the most significant development on that front has been the pulling back of the veil of the lie that establishment concerns about Bitcoin had anything to do with concerns about people's safety or welfare. Consumer protection, scams, etc had little if anything to do with why the establishment expressed concern about "crypto." The only "crypto" that ever sent shivers down the collective spine of Bitcoin’s opponents in the financial industry establishment, their allies among the regulatory class, and proponents of state domination of your financial life was Bitcoin. Buy Shiba Inu or Dogecoin, the same people who sell you lottery tickets don't care. But Bitcoin - teeth chattering shivers.
2023 also brings an end to the belief, or maybe the hope, that this opposition somehow resulted from a lack of understanding of how empowering Bitcoin could be for the communities these politicians claim to work to help. There remains an important role for education of policymakers and legislators, but for Bitcoin's most irreconcilable opponents, it is in fact their good understanding of the protocol that makes them irreconcilable. The desire to control, surveil, and punish is deeply ingrained in the ideological DNA among a certain cohort in Washington. Financial privacy died long ago, now what remains is to perfect financial control. No place for Bitcoin in that world.
Money laundering. Do some money launderers use Bitcoin? Yes. Do almost all money launderers use banks and other regulated financial institutions? Yup. Has reporting everyone's $10k deposits stopped money laundering? Nope. Is a transparent and immutable ledger a good choice for concealing and facilitating illegal activities? You get the point, all standard pretexts for putting you on a shorter leash. BTW - the initial $10k reporting requirement in the BSA inflation adjusted from 1970 is about $77k, thus netting more and more transactions every year. No legislation needed. Clever.
Another challenge Bitcoin will face in 2024 is the growing threat of extreme financialization. This concern is increasing my skepticism of coming ETF approvals. Only a fool would doubt the ingenuity of the financial industry when it comes to finding ways to make money, regardless of the qualities of an underlying asset. Furthermore, the establishment knows how to deal with ETFs, they represent levers of control over markets trading a given asset. I fear that Bitcoin will not be an exception.
A lot of challenges. Yet despite these, a word that comes to mind to describe the Bitcoin community is resilient. Relying on this resilience, I think there are three things Bitcoiner's need to focus on in 2024 if we are to protect the integrity of this protocol: adoption, freedom tech, and engagement. This community already excels at the first two, builders and advocates who deserve credit for the strength of the community I feel a part of today. By engagement, I mean political engagement. There are a lot of people here in Washington doing a great job fighting legislative and regulatory battles, a daily grind most Bitcoiners would never know was being fought on their behalf. But what we need now is for Bitcoiners to let their representatives know we are here, in their districts, and will hold them accountable come election day. I'll share more thoughts on things I think we need to start doing now.
Finally, this is a community, and we're fortunate to have some incredible voices educating us on the full breadth and depth of Bitcoin. Engage your fellow Bitcoiners who have a louder voice, tell them what you think, and help put your mark on this movement. After all, we're all in this together.
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GM ODELL!
To the contrary, I think the true importance of what you’re doing will only be fully realized as we enter this next phase, with regulators on the hunt and big speculative money waiting to jump in. The best ways for the integrity of Bitcoin to withstand the coming wave of financialization are adoption and freedom tech. I dare say you have good claim to be one of this community’s leaders in both. 🙏
Merry Christmas…..? 😥
May Santa treat you and your family well this year!
GM!
2024 is going to be the year for Nostr and freedom tech overall.
My last on chain transaction was on October 29th, for which I paid a $.35 fee. Never again!
As the debate over the future of privacy and individual sovereignty starts to heat up this year, it’s always important to understand who is working for whom.
Elizabeth Warren is up for reelection in 2024. Despite being in a very safe seat, her friends on Wall Street are still stepping up.
In a world full of bullshit, we’re grateful to have something that isn’t!
Keep stacking for your kids.
GM.
I’m sorry…who did you say will never be Treasury Secretary????
I think we need to start a serious discussion about how to respond should proposals such as Warren’s gain momentum. The hand of the state can be very heavy, and there are segments of the anti Bitcoin crowd who enjoy nothing more than the throwing around the hammer of state power against people they believe are heretical. I definitely do not think that “boating accident” should be the only default way forward. Bitcoiners might have to more seriously start participating in a process I know most find distinctly nauseating….politics. There are some good people involved right now, but more is needed.
I’m going dip my toe in the mining pool with a Bitaxe running with Ocean.
The Citadel Dispatch discussion with those guys was great.
Get into mining for $200. Pretty good deal.
GM….will be there🫡
With very few exceptions - and the US is definitely not one of these exceptions - people have the government they deserve. Thus, you get what you deserve. And the tragic part, we’re actually asking it.
This discussion, like so many you and others host in this space, really highlights the depth of the intellectual bench in the Bitcoin community. I readily accept that well-meaning people can be skeptical about Bitcoin and the revolutionary discussions about the nature of money it provokes. But try as I do to steelman the opposing arguments, there’s just no there there. Flippant cliches and tired apologetics about crime and terrorism, as if these didn’t exist at scale prior to 2009. But we know this isn’t a fair fight..