Oddbean

I find it very concerning. I used to think that having the ability the self custody and run my own node(s) would be enough. I now think the biggest threat to our self sovereignty is the vast number of govt simps that will fight to stay in the box.

In a hyperbitcoinised world, most people will not care about preservation of individual liberty and sovereignty. They simply want the best monetary technology, even if it has been co-opted by the State. Most people don't care about separating Money from State. They are content with the State adopting Bitcoin if it pumps their bags. The State will use NGU to bifurcate the network. Are you ready? nostr:nevent1qqsxt0ts3zpk5s8a8lnpfkpgjmwcqcpcvkqknrtesyfmljzm86a3nqgpzamhxue69uhkxcfwdaexzmn8v4cxjmrv9ejx2aszyqzvj9w6alhrsvtl5u6ygjkwuwg2sf5lukqskgjpuhnd6dpal0kvjqcyqqqqqqgwaf4jx

We might need to come to terms with the idea of such a scenario, where people don’t care/know about custody or freedom and relinquish those for convenience. However, as long as the fiat world crumbles and Bitcoin reigns supreme, then the good would have triumphed against evil.

It will also necessitate more adoption, more nodes, more mining competition… Only 3rd parties can ‘censor’ or ‘limit’ transactions, and that’s becoming more easily avoidable as privacy needs increase, even on the KYC side.

I think that is the way it’s heading but that’s because of the fiat environment we exist in. The only reason it exists is regulations which as the world heads closer to be fully adopted by everyone, those regulations won’t be able to continue to exist and once that happens we will see everything trend towards the way we see bitcoin (and the way a lot of us use it today)

Bankers, debt & centralized trust based systems will always exist, because there will always be demand for it. Bitcoin eliminates the need, but not the demand. And people just want bread & circus.

If we do not dismantle the too big too powerful organizations, both private and public, nothing will help to evade censorship and surveilance, not even bitcoin. We have to work in all fonts against statiism and any type of collectivizm at the same time. You can make perfect IT solutions preventing surveilance in bitcoin and lightning, and they will achieve the same and more throught cameras and microphones if they have enough power and will. If you do not believe me, look back at gold ceturies ago. For those times gold was as good as bitcoin is today, albeit with very slightly different incentives. Gold's disadvantages were that it was a bit easier to rob/confiscate and that it was shiny and attractive pushing to demonstrate and be proud of it. But its advantage was that then it was more difficult to be surveiled than bitcoin is today. And did it help with better life and individualizm and end of statiizm? No. Because religions and other values popular among people and especially powerful people had a stronger drive towards collectivizm, statiizm, and all that.

I've separated two thoughts; My conviction of the great change Bitcoin could bring... And the reality that it won't happen. Far too many people that would lose their privilege and position to trade for freedom....oh boy, what a laugher. Humans are mostly cowards and dullards. That's why heros are heros. It will take a true hero to lead the sheep to a better world and flush out the old power centers of banking. Will that hero emerge?

It was always going to be this way. Bitcoin would be another failed project, if so. Totally failing it’s original purpose. Humans are always the weakest link in any equation. Your money might be near perfect, but pointless if the user is not.