https://github.com/kayabaNerve/fcmp-ringct/blob/develop/fcmp%2B%2B.pdf

New paper from some Monero researchers (really new it seems - update date is last week!), in which they're proposing to use CurveTrees (the same construct I put into aut-ct as per my recent work) to get much larger anonymity sets (and I do mean *much larger*, from like 10ish to 100000000!).

One very notable thing (to me) is that the very easy and natural secp/secq 2-cycle (you realistically need a 2 cycle of curves for CurveTrees), has to be replaced with something more complex, because their DJB ed25519 curve has a cofactor of 8 (yet again non prime order curve biting them on the ass, lol).

Another interesting tidbit is that they propose to use Liam Eagan's recent work https://eprint.iacr.org/2022/596  (posted almost contemporaneously with Curve Trees); I remember Andrew Poelstra pointing me at this work in '22 and I said to him "I don't understand this" and he responded "yeah it was difficult so I got Liam to come round to my house and explain it" 😁 .. so yeah i'm sure some people can follow the ideas there but I am alas not yet one of them :)

They've also done a review of the generalized bulletproofs construction that Kamp et al used in their CurveTrees implementation: https://github.com/cypherstack/generalized-bulletproofs

Also interesting is that they talk about acheiving a "forward secrecy" property here, which linkable ring signatures can't have, by design: if a future ECDL breaker is found, it can always see the trace of payments in prior Monero because the linking tag reveals the private key if you can crack ECDLP. I'm not sure how this works but I believe it's to do with the Liam Eagan research just mentioned.

Finally, the extremely esoteric and dense mathematical concepts aside, it's worth mention a 1000 ft view: this proposal ditches ring signatures (and somehow they get backwards compatibility for the historical chain, though I absolutely don't understand that yet), and goes to a full ZKP proving system (bulletproofs arithmetic circuits) for full anon set. I can't help wondering if this direction makes sense - if we look at Zcash, they do the same thing, but using bilinear pairings they can get far more performant proof, proof size and verification stats, I believe (but, curvetrees can be very efficient so I'm not 100% sure about the details here). Ring sigs, as I've observed elsewhere, even with the fanciest algorithms, never quite cut it at the verification step to be able to support huge anonymity sets. If you're going to ditch them, you may just as well go with a Zcash style design, no?


Wired article about the Tornado Cash trial with some quotes by yours truly.
https://www.wired.com/story/tornado-cash-money-laundering-case-crypto-privacy/


Yeah. The US is too powerful to escape while it’s unified. The modern “Berlin Wall” is made out of federal agents and extradition treaties in almost every country that isn’t a tyranny itself like China, Russia, Iran, etc. The answer lies in  significant scale secession within the US. Doesn’t have to be formal. It really just needs to be the refusal to enforce federal laws and taxes and stick to it when the violence arrives from the feds.


Looks like one could land without a parachute in one of these wing suits. Pull up and stall at exactly the height of a landing platform and step on to it. I wouldn’t try it but I’m sure someone will!

nostr:note1xxfs8j4umh2ls69psswwkahnzgwgyww475p6yxtn9r6vt7wk9kys8xdvlz


Even with P2PK-locked receiving?


On a flight with no Internet. Sent my friend a few Satoshis worth of ecash and possibly set an altitude record doing so.

From phone to phone. We're both offline.

Try it out on Cashu.me
 https://image.nostr.build/63c0601a240159e5e84702982c4df80d530b36c1551b9c8f3e25f86cc8280737.jpg


Before the 1990s most computing was done on mainframes that were expensive and difficult to access, because that was simply the state of hardware.

Then we had a couple decades of software running on personal computing hardware because networking hardware sucked.

Now with broadband we're back to running software on servers because cloud computing has made it cost efficient, and software companies can have far greater control over the user experience.

The looming question in my mind: can we swing the pendulum back in the other direction by focusing on development of p2p apps and infrastructure?


Wow the gulags are being constructed. Looking grim. nostr:note1m6swrzvkzh22s70tw0nxm0rng078cydmrtuycwg4ledl5qajsw4s73vyzj


Yeah. You basically have Africa and the familiar anti-American tyrannies like China, Russia, Iran, etc.

note1lxugzdqdnn7s3xaywhhdste3dnggwtx2u7tm75nmn7sce6f7xvjqe05mnl


As I understand it even the Liquid functionaries can’t see amounts and asset types in confidential transactions. If forced to KYC they could probably follow transaction graphs in ways that make CT not too useful though. They should work to have 50%+ of their functionaries in jurisdictions that don’t have extradition treaties with the US at this point if they’re serious about avoiding the KYC future.


Gm, I had a horrible nightmare last night.

Bitcoin privacy companies were shutting down their service, some devs were put in jail.

Lightning service providers were fleeing the US due to ridiculous requirements.

OGs were being hunted for taxes in countries where they renounced citizenship.

Some clown was claiming that using Bitcoin as money is a distraction, while thousands of ”cyber hornets” were praising him for his genius and hundreds of others were propagating the ”Trojan horse” theory.

So glad I woke up and none of this is real!


At least confidential transactions mitigates the effectiveness of KYC in Liquid somewhat. For custodial LN, perhaps chaumian ecash is some kind of answer.


Also heard that the materials and gamma ray conditions for life arose relatively recently in the timeline of the universe. Seemingly provides the answer as to why we haven’t heard from aliens yet - we’re early.


As Carl Sagan said, “We are made of star stuff.”

https://sciinsider.com/2024/05/04/groundbreaking-discovery-dna-and-rna-bases-found-in-meteorites-what-this-means-for-life-beyond-earth-will-blow-your-mind/


That thing is toast in a poor neighborhood.


“It still runs on our servers, but it’s yours!”


"After analyzing the optical/NIR/MIR photometry of ~5 x 10^6 sources, we found 7 apparent M dwarfs exhibiting an infrared excess of unclear nature that is compatible with our Dyson sphere models,"

https://www.sciencealert.com/mysterious-objects-in-space-could-be-giant-dyson-spheres-scientists-say


I’ve been giving this a lot of thought after the Lightning Summit in Tuscanny. I understand the concern. But stablecoins on Lightning and (the attempt) to regulate LSPs are both inevitable given massive incentives. These are also not things we can control. I think it’s more helpful to focus on things we can control.

First of all we can all learn to run open source code. Regulators can capture fiat rails easily because banks ultimately require access to a central clearing house. But anyone can spin up a lightning node, a LSP or a Fedimint. Lightning is a permissionless system after all.

Secondly we can focus on driving broad adoption of BOLT12 to improve receiver privacy. That way the sender does not know if they’re paying a recipient running a self-custody wallet, a Fedimint, or some random raspi on tor. BOLT12 is also an essential building block to enabling async payments for offline receive on self-custody mobile wallets. This should further reduce reliance on custodial Lightning solutions and centralized points of failure. nostr:note10lknnp2u2cktvgyye9qgmvyzelwqjph3l556w9av236g4g3crjxs6nnf3t


Nice!


Wyoming, Tennessee, and Florida are looking pretty tempting.

https://m.primal.net/IFUA.jpg


What do you think is holding back miners from adopting SV2?


Are there plans for any kind of automated routing node like CLboss for CLN?


Cashu Overview

#cashu

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwMzNE1D3so&ab_channel=Bitcoinology


✨ Announcing the release of Cashu.me – a Cashu wallet for the web! ✨

Cashu.me is a Chaumian Ecash wallet for Bitcoin built as a progressive web app (PWA). Today, we're excited to announce its first release and would like to thank all developers and users who have helped to build and improve this wallet. Cashu.me is free and open-source software released under the MIT license.

https://m.primal.net/IFMf.jpg

To get started, open Cashu.me in your browser and install it to add it to your home screen. We recommend to use your device's native browser for the best experience. Beware that Ecash is a bearer asset which means that if you delete your browser data or lose access to your device without a proper backup (see below), you will lose your funds. Use this wallet only for small spending amounts.

New Features

Countless new features for this release give you the best possible Ecash experience. We're bringing this ancient crypto technology back into the 21st century and present you a modern interpretation of the original cypherpunk vision - built on Bitcoin.

At a glance

- Modern UI
- Support for Bitcoin and USD
- Seed phrase backups
- Animated QR codes
- Intelligent coin selection
- Send Ecash offline
- Receive Ecash offline
- Lock Ecash with P2PK
- Discover mints via Nostr
- Swap Ecash between mints
- Remote control with NWC

https://m.primal.net/IFMh.jpg
https://m.primal.net/IFMi.jpg
https://m.primal.net/IFMj.jpg

Read the full release notes here: https://gist.github.com/callebtc/67da3f586ef273df80bf679e464bc3f3

You can host the wallet on your own server. Find the images on Dockerhub or build it yourself with the GitHub repository
https://github.com/cashubtc/cashu.me


Probably made with Udio, a music generating ai. It’s fun to mess around with! https://www.udio.com/


The US bailing out Japan in an attempt to prevent them from dumping their US treasuries is a signal that you should be paying attention to.

https://www.tftc.io/us-bails-out-japan/


Interesting approach and nice that it’s using Bitcoin/Liquid instead of shitcoins. Looking forward to seeing updates on how affordable housing in Suriname advances.


Nostr’s future is a front line in a global information war, with multiple state actors wanting to take it down.

As soon as the attacks come, 50% of nostr devs will roll over and run away. Maybe more. Others will try to make friends with the Feds. Talking about… “we need to work with regulators…”

The money and people behind removing anonymous internet activity would blow your mind.

Devs who are working to make themselves less of a central target right now are being wise.


📣 Introducing zap.store 0.1.0

For months I have been dreaming of a better app store, frustrated by big tech's permissioned bs, GPG's complexities, and Obtainium's reliance on centralized services and poor UX.

Here's the first (very alpha) iteration of zap.store, a permissionless app store leveraging the nostr social graph.

✔ Android only (for now! Desktop coming soon)
✔ Obtainium drop-in replacement (smaller catalog but growing)
✔ App releases are signed/curated by this account, as developers start self-signing
✔ Web of trust check before installing an app

Get it at https://zap.store or https://github.com/zapstore/zapstore

(SHA-256 hash of the APK version 0.1.0 is 8540bd492064c17d83bcdc6d2a463c2aea46f13c2b0d13b8a96023df95bd0c9d)

Feedback more than welcome, it's also possible to send directly from the ⚙ screen in the app

s/o to nostr legends nostr:npub149p5act9a5qm9p47elp8w8h3wpwn2d7s2xecw2ygnrxqp4wgsklq9g722q and nostr:npub1zafcms4xya5ap9zr7xxr0jlrtrattwlesytn2s42030lzu0dwlzqpd26k5 for their invaluable help


Is this the Next Bitcoin President?  Maya Parhoe

Watch it now and see for yourself
https://youtu.be/avMDT176xgw?si=SU4iLh9SWsKvf89I


Synonym for fiat brain.


That’s pretty wild. Could be the oldest still actively used homes in the world I imagine.


Meymand is an ancient village in Iran, dating back to 12,000 years ago. Many of the residents live in the 350 hand-dug houses amid the rocks, some of which have been inhabited for as long as 3,000 years https://image.nostr.build/d8b492686d6e6c83b68ef6ed9e5f764fe8a29322b59008932584d12566a5d7b4.jpg


Another mullvad W

https://mullvad.net/en/blog/introducing-defense-against-ai-guided-traffic-analysis-daita https://i.nostr.build/DjQKv.jpg


#Coinjoin everything.

Get an old laptop or mini pc, install start9 or raspiblitz -> GET #JOINMARKET and use it with #JAM.

Simple and effective for your #privacy and #freedom.

https://start9.com

https://jamapp.org


Can’t wait!


🚨My Q to US Treasury's main cyber crimes advisor here at the FT Crypto summit in London:

QUESTION: Why is the US gov't more focused on arresting open-source developers creating self-custody tools for privacy (Samourai Wallet, TornadoCash) than specific ransomware actors whom you can, and have, tracked, those who actually carry out and benefit from these crimes?

ANSWER: "I do share your concerns, I cannot speak for other actors or agencies in the government, but there is a method to the madness. Everything else is above my pay grade, I'm afraid"

https://m.primal.net/IEuu.png


Does this mean the ETFs go away?


2/3 multisig is the ultimate travel wallet. Imagine:

You have one key on your phone, one on a HWW, and one with a trusted friend/family member who is not travelling with you.

Load it up. $10K+ worth of ₿ at your disposal with virtually no risk.

Travel protocol:
- keep your phone on you
- HWW stays at hotel
- trusted friend knows they're your lifeline

Mugged on the street and lost your phone? No problem.

Hotel maid steals your HWW? No problem.

You have multiple options to access the funds in case of emergency.


Seen some of the open designs for tracking turrets using openCV. Almost all are for nerf, paintball and airsoft guns, so they’re toys and not weapons. For weapons you’d need a more stable platform for heavier weight and recoil. Saw a video of one guy from a CNC shop in NY build one. As far as I know the design wasn’t released and he’s since taken the video down.


Here’s one. Probably needs some scaling up for the purposes referenced above. https://github.com/Yerbert/DingoQuadruped


I believe there is a mostly printed open source version of that dog robot.


US special forces have been used to train terrorist around the world. Made possible by black budgets to secure control over foreign natural resources.

What are we going to do about that?
 https://image.nostr.build/ceda07176c25f54153a3363de59056d6e9a2397d96f4781b9da30c2188f89c71.png


The money is broken*
https://m.primal.net/IEet.jpg


Anyone have a list of countries that don’t have an extradition treaty with the US and aren’t also tyrannies like China, Russia and North Korea? #asknostr


Don't let them scare you

https://m.primal.net/IERt.png


“The closer the collapse of the Empire, the crazier its laws are.”
― Marcus Tullius Cicero

https://m.primal.net/IDqj.png


I believe bitVM can be used to create a decentralized, non-KYC Bitcoin exchange.

I call it Know No Customer (KNC). It’s a simple idea, but I think it will work.

https://github.com/BTCapsule/knc


New Novel attack allows your ISP to see your VPN traffic!

Remember all the people calling me a tinfoil hat wacko for insisting on open source routers?
There is a new critical VPN vulnerability from Leviathan Security group, which they call “TunnelVision”.  It allows the ISP or local router to see the VPN traffic by abusing the DHCP client and option 121

Here’s the basics:
--It uses the local area network, so we’re talking about a hostile router
--Android is safe by default and unaffected.
--Linux may be safe if used correctly.
--Microsoft Windows and Apple are highly vulnerable.
--While Leviathan created it, they think it’s been used in the wild since maybe even 2002
--Abuses the DHCP server to incorrectly route packets
--Random devices can pretend to be the router with DHCP attacks

How it works:
DHCP is when a home router assigns IP addresses to devices in your local area network.  There is “ option 121” which allows that router (DHCP server) to route the VPN user’s system in a way that is more specific than those used by most VPNs.  TunnelVision abuses option 121 to purposefully route the system through their fake interface.

Why Android is immune:
Android ignores option 121

How Linux users can protect themselves, quote from Leviathan:

“Using network namespaces on Linux can completely fix this behavior. However, in our experience, it is less commonly implemented.  WireGuard’s documentation shows how it’s possible to use a namespace for all applications with traffic that should be using a VPN before sending it to another namespace that contains a physical interface. However, this appears to be Linux-specific functionality and it’s not clear if there is a solution for Windows, MacOS, or other operating systems with the same amount of robustness.”  Source: https://www.leviathansecurity.com/blog/tunnelvision

And of course, Linux PLUS an open source router is the real protection.  Check out the router section of our site,
https://simplifiedprivacy.com/category/routers/


Watching those University students boo the mention of Bitcoin made me realize that the shitcoins and scammers are doing a lot of the government’s FUD and psychological warfare against Bitcoin for them.


Emessbee: Constructing Coinjoin Transactions Without a Coordinator

 nostr:npub1yxp7j36cfqws7yj0hkfu2mx25308u4zua6ud22zglxp98ayhh96s8c399s shared a proof-of-concept implementation of the Emessbee protocol for performing coinjoin transactions without a central coordinator.

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/introducing-emessbee/


KYC is here to stay, and it will get much worst–It's brutal

What we need is new and better tech that removes the capacity of clients (Bitcoin & Nostr) from ever needing to be middle man for the "easy" experience.

It's on us to create the future we want to live in, pushing back against legacy corrupt incentives doesn't do much, except suck our energy.


More people need to follow  nostr:npub1mznweuxrjm423au6gjtlaxmhmjthvv69ru72t335ugyxtygkv3as8q6mak

The Rabbit Hole digging here is next level based

https://www.therage.co/meet-fatf-the-financial-bullies-memberclub/


Pretty big L for California. Defense Distributed is forcing them to ban general purpose tools.


#asknostr nostr:note18ktyddq32ax7c63yylfr58h8c2sremr4y9x27e9uqts74hkwy2gqnqzaex


Interesting that Android would be immune but not Linux. The only detail provided there is that Linux is still vulnerable to a side channel attack.


Your VPN connection might only be safe when using on your own network or a cell phone hot spot. 👀 Or if you’re on Android 🏆  https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/05/novel-attack-against-virtually-all-vpn-apps-neuters-their-entire-purpose/

#opsec #security


All you have to do is stop paying taxes.


A fiat brain demeanor that I can’t seem to shake:

Continuing to blame inanimate objects of “trying to…” during my bouts of terrible dexterity, coordination and spacial awareness and never taking any time to try to improve those things.


Meta af.

Zapping from my Cashu wallet via NWC. Where were going, we won't need any super apps anon.
 https://video.nostr.build/a3d6dcbb6beec81d9a0a073bacadfd19e7ad1dd43371b5df77258dbdebef22e7.mp4


Looks like Primal users on iOS will not get KYC-free zaps, unfortunately.

nostr:note18ry0cnuqn6tjgzkve2sm8qum9gejh8g4cux0un8l2xmtnc6zuq5q5lz7f6


Any ETA on connecting to Mutiny with Primal for iOS?


Primal Wallet KYC info is connected to the npub. We don’t share this info, per our privacy policy, but the connection exists.

Users who want to ensure that their privacy is preserved should not use KYC-based wallets. Within Primal, you can do so by using NWC to connect to your Mutiny Wallet. This is only available on Primal for Android atm.


My latest invention is Emessbee 🐝: Unstoppable Coinjoins with No Coordinator

https://stacker.news/items/529905


That would be a problem.


Meant for your other note about full anonymity on Bitcoin. 🤦♂


If it doesn’t compromise 21M and doesn’t make running a node much more of a burden, I’m for it.


Modern equivalents of the Berlin Wall are made out of taxes and federal agents instead of concrete.

nostr:note177hu8mgsfj7ajkl5lkhue2kg2zu9ame74qz3xct2nsgn30sg57qqc5g4tx


Devs, do not sleep on Nostr Wallet Connect. Nostr allows you to link any app with any other app in this world. No IP addresses, no ports, no NAT, no firewalls, no bullshit.

Soon coming to a Cashu wallet near you.
 https://video.nostr.build/f3331c19afdf233db91937161e9f8369e374662f409a75194cfb49b48ebb3e61.mp4


I suspect it‘s only a matter of time until encrypted messengers and bitcoin wallets disappear from app stores.

I hope for push back on the policy front but I‘m not hopeful here. There are a growing number of boogymen to invoke, and there seems to be little to no political incentive with a lack of awareness and public discussion.

I suspect the only way to use Signal or wallet apps will be using open source mobile OSes and app stores. This is one area I‘d love to see more grants funding for.

Re PWAs … they are a nice short term backup to get your funds out in case of an app store ban of wallets. But they are not the answer longterm as they rely on trust of web servers and SSL CAs. nostr:note13m6sh5tggy6uk4gntnhfu6zkz45ekxq9c3qphw5pfurzy82j22gseu5lv4


It seems the argument is that every upcoming presidential election is the most important of our time. I would argue the opposite. Any candidate that has a chance of winning will continue to perpetuate the status quo.

Elections are becoming less and less important.


I'm excited to see what happens with "#lightning v2" dual-funding,  bolt12 and splicing.  Still early but, lets go!


Would miners in the US and in US allied countries steal from a privacy-focused drive chain in order to enforce compliance with anti-privacy laws?


👀

https://github.com/gudnuf/bolt12-covenant-zapper


Our brave ATF officer is at the range practicing so when the time comes he can operate in the field safely.

https://m.primal.net/IDLD.webp


joinstr web app will use orion explorer/visualizer for coinjoin txid link now

https://github.com/coinables/orion


It would probably have to operate out of a red place. That’s basically Africa or <pick your anti-US tyranny (China, Russia, Iran, etc.)>
https://primal.net/e/note1lxugzdqdnn7s3xaywhhdste3dnggwtx2u7tm75nmn7sce6f7xvjqe05mnl


Unsurprisingly, the attack site joinmarket DOT net is succeeding in stealing people's funds (at least one person reported having their wallet swept).

Reported it to Google literally years ago (me and one or two others at least).

Nothing happened. Any ideas or actions welcome.


GM FAM!

Today is day one of my third year on nostr.

I feel like this is the year things really start getting wild because we are entering phase two of Bitcoin's war against the State.

As we enter this more dangerous phase, recall that danger is a gift because it brings out the best in us and forces us to up our game.

Make your purpose in life to conquer new territories of freedom, and to never surrender them.

Let your instinct for victory dominate over the desire for comfort and pleasure. The free individual is a warrior, because sovereignty can only be taken and not given.

Nostr and Bitcoin can only reach their full potential if all of us reach our own full potential. So become great. Then be great. Then remain great. And make others great along the way.


How to Make Use of BOLT12 in LDK

"BOLT12 is a new payment protocol for Lightning that offers enhanced privacy, reusable payment codes, refunds, and much more, all natively over the Lightning Network."

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/how-to-make-use-of-bolt12-in-ldk/


New LSP in #Bitcoin #Lightning Market: nostr:npub1l0ans4w4psmcv6hsqjz2v3mxszhputlsfn4emkynv3jlwrfez59s35q0ug
https://lightningnetwork.plus/stores/ln-server


If it’s a virtual girlfriend with the right disposition, affirmative.


To be fair, it’s the training of the AI that takes all this energy. The human equivalent would be all the energy consumed over the decades of learning up to productive adult life. The AI is probably still much less efficient, but this should improve massively with more optimized hardware.

nostr:note1s28fjh8nrky88fekxthvee9g2dpz2dqyfaff7ct3cszc44l23tlqrmt4gh


Tough times in Nigeria https://image.nostr.build/2fb3842fc27288969f7607075a8dd2c1fed8f767716c09bdfefd64e723cdd052.jpg https://image.nostr.build/2254fa81bd82e00fe17854eea7324236ab29f164907f160f3d6845772d2d3dbb.jpg


why people put their bitcoin into this hell machine will never make sense to me https://i.nostr.build/0jPZ9.jpg


Lightning nodes are resuming growth following the halving and recent news events.

There's a growing desire to build self-sovereign infrastructure and systems that respect privacy.
 https://image.nostr.build/0934b70bb53ac44932b0bef9e51cf5ab6668560d5cb57ae06184924a7696b938.jpg
#lightningnetwork


Even with SSDs?


If you exit the US with a stack of Bitcoin and don’t want the IRS to reach out and Ver you for failing to pay the exit theft, pick a red place.

nostr:note1lxugzdqdnn7s3xaywhhdste3dnggwtx2u7tm75nmn7sce6f7xvjqe05mnl


The US government declaring war on open source software has no good outcome for the government. Either the software continues to proliferate or the US government has to eventually admit that the 1A doesn’t protect code if that code “threatens national security.”


Agreed. Implement Confidential Transactions. The suits, ETFs and regulated exchanges will probably dump the Bitcoin price to sub $10k, but it’s a good thing in the long run.


“I've been warning Bitcoin developers for ten years that privacy needs to be provided for at the protocol level. This is the final warning. The clock is ticking.”

  - - nostr:npub1sn0wdenkukak0d9dfczzeacvhkrgz92ak56egt7vdgzn8pv2wfqqhrjdv9


El Salvador has an extradition agreement with the US, so no, he wouldn’t provide safe harbor. https://www.oas.org/ext/Portals/33/Files/TreatiesB/USA_biltreat_elsal_eng_1.pdf


Will Bukele provide safe harbour for the Bitcoin devs working on privacy solutions?

Or is he LARPing? https://i.nostr.build/AaEyj.jpg


Won’t be soon if it’s that way. A lot of resistance to BIP300/301.


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.


Anyone tracking Joinmarket volume? Should see a massive increase.


–Samourai Wallet developers arrested and accused of conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating w/o money transmission license (1)
–Roger Ver arrested and accused of tax fraud (2)
–Binance's CZ will do a 4-month jail stint for a lax AML program (3)
–Tornado Cash developers on trial in the US for "facilitating" money laundering (4)
–Another Tornado cash developer awaiting sentencing of up to 5 years in Dutch prison for money laundering (5)
-An alleged founder (not proven) of Bitcoin Fog mixer found guilty on money laundering charges (6)
-Privacy services now shutting down completely or cutting off access to US users for fear of future prosecutions (7)
-Silvergate and Signature Bank face liquidity crises and bank runs when various government agencies begin probing around their AML programs and connections to the cryptocurrency industry (8)
-New US legislation aimed at surveilling crypto transactions and lowering the bar for Suspicious Activity Reports (down to $2,000 for bitcoin and crypto)(9)

What binds all of these accusations, cases, and prosecutions that have flooded out in a manner of months and even weeks?

They all deal, in some way, with the next-generation of cryptographically secure money outside of government control.

Beyond Operation Chokepoint, the significant amount of government resources dedicated to sinking businesses and criminalizing otherwise decent individuals offering tools for citizens to use peer-to-peer digital cash demonstrates there are powerful forces at work here to quash the parallel crypto economy.

The undoing of FTX and SBF came not at the hand of his future jailers, but rather the journalistic work of a few sleuths who caught on to the actual scam that is easily one of the largest crimes of our time. All the the while, SBF and his platform were the toast of the town: Silicon Valley, Washington, and among New York financiers. His crimes compare in absolutely no way to any of the previous cases mentioned here.

For the independent developers, financial entrepreneurs, and activists mentioned above, they empowered people to handle better versions of code and money.

As national debts balloon, and governments offer no solutions on fixing their fiscal positions, they weaponize different agencies and law enforcement to stamp out the system they cannot control.

Cynics might say this is just an effort to squeeze the population and innovative industries out of the need to fiscally sustain government largess. Or perhaps cutting off the ability for an alternative monetary system to develop that would endanger the Central Bank fiat monetary system.

What is overwhelmingly true, however, is that financial freedom is at stake more than ever. And that goes hand in hand with economic freedom.

Will we allow this to continue? Or will be resist the anti-progress kinetic forces that are denying us the ability to freely associate and exchange value how we see fit?

There has to be true moral clarity on what is at stake here, and how we can steer the forces that wish to deny us financial and technological autonomy.

I know what side I'll be on.

(1)
https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/04/24/samourai-wallet-founders-arrested-and-charged-with-money-laundering/

(2)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2024/04/30/roger-ver-known-as-bitcoin-jesus-arrested-and-charged-with-tax-fraud/

(3)
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/04/30/binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-cz-sentenced-to-four-months-in-prison-.html

(4)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/doj-counters-roman-storm-s-defense-in-tornado-cash-case/ar-AA1nLicc

(5) https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/03/27/dutch-prosecutors-seek-64-month-jail-sentence-for-tornado-cash-dev-alexey-pertsev/

(6)
https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/pr/jury-finds-russian-swedish-operator-bitcoin-fog-guilty-running-darknet-cryptocurrency

(7)
https://blog.wasabiwallet.io/zksnacks-is-discontinuing-its-coinjoin-coordination-service-1st-of-june/

(8)
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/fed-orders-silvergate-complete-wind-down-while-protecting-depositors-preserving-2023-06-01/

(9)
https://www.theblaze.com/return/the-feds-are-trying-to-stifle-bitcoin-and-crypto-with-draconian-new-regulations


Agreed except mining centralization should be at least on the same level. Privacy tech + centralized mining = compliant miners censoring the private transactions.


Narrator:  Paying chain anal did not save them.


Old news. Today they announced they’re shutting down completely.


JoinMarkets, ecash, mint swaps, nostr, silent payments, and more coming. The incentives for decentralized privacy are finally here.

Never been this bullish for uncapturable privacy.

(ノ ゜Д゜)ノ ︵ ┻━┻


Apologies for the crosspost.

If you are passionate about our project and planning to attend any conferences this year, please reach out to the organizers and ask them if they have invited anyone from our project to present on it. This is the only way we may be considered to appear at many of these events.

For reference, my plans so far for the year are to attend the Oslo Freedom Forum, to speak & operate a donated maker booth at the Nashville conference, and will also be at BTC Prague as an attendee. https://image.nostr.build/4874129af926f3f58da5b224aa67e2c6424cf05f407218feef314479593fa4b9.jpg


If Bitcoin was able to integrate privacy tech that didn’t have huge costs in terms of running a node but it scared away the suits, ETFs and regulated exchanges, causing the Bitcoin price to drop below $10k, I’d be all for it.


content warning: nerdy bitcoin thoughts after a day of btcplusplus.dev

If we had some form of covenants we could have hundreds of L2s instead of just a few that barely work. Covenants are not spooky. They just mean being able to look at information of the transaction in the script that unlocks bitcoin for spending.

Before I didn’t really care about transaction introspection but many smarter bitcoiners are starting to convince me otherwise.

We could have channel factories that would solve many lightning onboarding problems, not to mention replacing the “i steal all your money because you restored from backup wrong” to “i just fix the channel state”.

It would also enable non-interactive versions of Ark and would open up tons of potentially more efficient L2s that make onboarding onto bitcoin easier and safer.

With op_txhash and other introspection proposals you could do “stacking”, a way for anyone to take a bunch of transactions and make a more efficient bundle translation to reduce fees, which will be increasingly important when fees get higher. This can be seen as a less hacky way to do sighash flags.

rusty’s great script restoration with a proper op budget has played a huge role in my shift of thinking, things like op_cat can be re-enabled, fixing the concerns which prompted satoshi to disable it at the last minute.

You can bizarrely get introspection from op_cat itself in a super inefficient way, but if we end up fixing script ideally we would just do something smarter like #lnhance

I can’t help but thinking of the future risks to bitcoin in a high fee environment if we don’t have tools to deal with it.

This is all theoretical of course, as engineers all we can do is come up with the best possible solution, ultimately its up to the node runners if they think its worth the opportunity to fix these problems.


Freedom is not possible without privacy.


Thought it’s automated but convenient access via web UI is run by someone. Or something like that. Idk much about the tech.


Hate to say it, but Ethereum might actually be beating Bitcoin in censorship resistant privacy right now. Tornado Cash got sanctioned by World Police and it’s still in operation. Bitcoin devs who care about privacy have lots of work to do.


Wow. Any other authoritarian country can GFY but when the WoRlD PolIce says stop it’s time to throw in the towel, huh?

Guess JoinMarket is the last bastion of on-chain privacy until some kind of protocol privacy improvement if it ever happens.

nostr:note1m47ew6hkdxr82gkvcd20k37y68trcxf0r7p6z98lf4wvmh26tceqgzeamr


BREAKING: zkSNACKs to Suspend Its Coinjoin Coordination Service on June 1st

zkSNACKs, the company pioneering the development of Wasabi Wallet, is shutting down its coinjoin coordination service, effective from June 1st, 2024. Wasabi Wallet will continue to function as a regular bitcoin wallet.

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/zksnacks-to-suspend-its-coinjoin-coordination-service-on-june-1st/


Carry on lawlessly https://image.nostr.build/099a698ed209aea648a55e021345d0e42392b92a3b5fafcafab92b7869642fb9.jpg


mRNA Cancer Vaccine Reprograms Immune System to Tackle Glioblastoma in 48 Hours

Comments ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40231515 )

https://www.insideprecisionmedicine.com/topics/oncology/mrna-cancer-vaccine-reprograms-immune-system-to-tackle-glioblastoma/


all of the donations to the lobbyists in washington "educating the political class" on the benefits of bitcoin and "crypto" were well spent

all of the pro bitcoin regulations these days are wonderful

🤦


nostr:npub180cvv07tjdrrgpa0j7j7tmnyl2yr6yr7l8j4s3evf6u64th6gkwsyjh6w6 ?


Stratum Fact No. 6:

If you just installed SV2 firmware on your device (your ASIC) and *nothing* else, Braiins estimates a ~35% efficiency gain compared to the SV1 firmware that the manufacturer initially puts on the device (OEM)!

Miners that switch their firmware to SV2 are rewareded with smaller SV2 message sizes and added security.

Source: page 16 of this doc  https://docsend.com/view/szk48syby33q28zq


What’s your take on VCs moving out from the US into bitcoin friendly (if we can say so) jurisdictions?


extortion is illegal and immoral
must be rejected under any circumstances

https://void.cat/d/ATwEjB7xWmRqaXi41qMdvV.webp


I think they could raise the limit. Especially for wire transfers and other methods of fiat transfer that work for large amounts. Zelle limits amounts you can send and a whole Bitcoin worth of cash by mail would be…quite the package.


Piece by piece over Bisq. Hope to see more liquidity.


Now we need an AI that’s trained on laundering Bitcoin to defeat the anti-laundering AI.

https://www.wired.com/story/ai-crypto-tracing-model-money-laundering/


Nice to see some support.

https://decrypt.co/229020/bitcoin-senator-cynthia-lummis-blasts-doj-stance-crypto-wallets


pretty sure rusty just saved bitcoin script. An actually useful ops budget so we can safely enable more opcodes. Incredible. This is the most exciting thing I have seen in bitcoin in a long time. #greatscriptrestoration https://i.nostr.build/oM6g7.jpg


Great video from Naomi Brockwell on why you might want to ditch your SIM for better privacy; how to do it, the benefits, and downsides.

https://v.nostr.build/KGnvq.mp4

See comments for the additional steps I recommend (hint it involves 2 phones :)

"Your phone is more than just a communication tool; it’s a powerful tracking device, and the SIM card inside is a key reason why. "

#cybersecgirl #nbtv #privacy

https://youtu.be/RyirQOCUUK8?si=97kzdJXNOtjfshUH


ROASTr: A Fedimint Module for collaboratively signing NOSTR events

I made a Fedimint module for signing Nostr events! The module uses ROAST to collaboratively create and sign nostr notes. This can be used to make Nostr the "official" communication channel of Fedimints. Fedimints can broadcast signed notes about their liquidity, maintenance schedules, or discovery announcements.

Github: https://github.com/m1sterc001guy/roastr


Not a fan of the woke left, but probably when there’s a leader or something going on that makes them revolt. Lost hope that the right will do anything. Biden could win again and bring complete communism and the right will just hold up in their hermit remote cabins with 10,000 rounds of ammo and get drunk about it. Any that are actually capable of organizing are in prison or closely watched.


Bolt 12 comes to LDK.

https://lightningdevkit.org/blog/bolt12-has-arrived/


Yup. Should have picked a place less friendly to the US. Not sure where that isn’t China, Russia or North Korea though.  🤷♂


Simply takes noncompliance. Otherwise they just keep passing more laws and their problem is solved, because people stopped doing the thing they don’t like.

nostr:note100vte2dee9rgjkkxdntw3vjz6aaxhqj2zwf7jaeskj3xtrdhqv7q0n6mn2


"At what point do we respond? At what point do they see our response? At what point do they stop marching off our developers to prison, and at which point do we start taking their authorities away?

Because that is what #Bitcoin is set out to do."

- Edward nostr:npub1sn0wdenkukak0d9dfczzeacvhkrgz92ak56egt7vdgzn8pv2wfqqhrjdv9

https://btcapsule.com/snowden.mp4


I'm quite bullish on Bitcoin scaling tech and privacy tech.

Fee spikes are incentives to build more scaling solutions and to use the ones that have been built. Without fee spikes or the mindfulness that fee spikes can materialize at any time, there is no significant demand to build them or use them.

It's painful when it happens but it's necessary to grow. And stress tests help ensure that you are building the tech correctly rather than relying on shortcuts that only work temporarily.

Same thing for privacy solutions. Privacy tech has to be like a hydra; if one head gets cut off then it grows more. Privacy solutions behind every blade of grass.


I look at the current Bitcoin FUD/ attacks/ crackdown all through the same lens ...

In the next 12 months they know they will have to rescue the fiat system with more printing and they want to scare and block people away from the solution  to the problems they will create


I have no idea what Stratum V2 is and at this point I'm too afraid to ask.

Sound familiar? 😄 That was me not that long ago. But now it's not me and it doesn't have to be you because I made this pocket guide about Stratum V2!

It's a short 8 page zine that you can print at home and share with your friends. Just print the double sided PDF, cut, and fold!

It's perfect for anyone that wants a quick overview of the project, including a brief history and timeline.

You can find this and more of my zines at: https://satsie.dev/zines

https://technicaldifficulties.io/zines/sv2_zine_nostr.jpg

https://technicaldifficulties.io/zines/sv2_thumbnail1.png
https://technicaldifficulties.io/zines/sv2_thumbnail2.png


Not sure how they could enforce this without banning communications with loved ones completely.


Ross is about to get silenced
https://i.nostr.build/5Go0z.jpg


They are finding everyone with obvious vulnerabilities and taking them out. This infers a very large, well funded investigation task force.  Funded by you. 🙂🤓


Despite the chaos of the last few days and the uncertainty that lies ahead, we have to move forward and keep building.

We’re in the middle of testing out our new LSP service with multiple wallet provider. We hope that it will be used by many, many users.

We can’t wait for you all to get your hands on it.


Berlin Wall but made out of taxes and FBI agents.


Voting in the US doesn’t give you any options that would remove the dictatorship-like powers the US government has and is using more. The things the “polarized” parties fight over don’t actually matter that much. It’s by design.


Not a fan of Ver, but that they can arrest a non-US citizen outside the US for failing to pay US taxes is complete BS. Can’t wait for the US collapse.

nostr:note1h50lc588rrm5n6myjnuk9f5m2jm5tpsehahrgd0falw7lz4ds2yqfne6mj


“Even though Ver was not then a U.S. citizen, he was still legally required to report to the IRS and pay tax on certain distributions such as dividends from MemoryDealers and Agilestar, which were U.S. corporations.”

Don’t even have to be a US citizen to be arrested (outside the US) for taxes huh? The sooner the US collapses the better.


Privacy is facing a full frontal assault by the US government at the moment.

nostr:note1mr7v83czak42usa25gegqsps3sswu44ax08mefudaa292hn2te8shhtwpm


READ: My comments on the Commerce Department's rule requiring cloud service providers KYC customers to stop "malicious" foreign actors.

This rule puts consumer data + privacy at significant risk, overrules due process and would be ripe for abuse.

It would mean that every cloud service you use: bitcoin and cryptocurrency nodes, VPNs, data storage, cloud servers, and more, would be required to collect significant amounts of information they would need to make readily available to law enforcement.

We should wholeheartedly REJECT this rule.

For more on this, follow the Consumer Choice Center.

https://consumerchoicecenter.org/consumer-choice-centers-comment-on-the-us-governments-proposed-kyc-regulations-for-cloud-servers/


In a few decades the packaging of food and drinks in plastic will be looked back upon like lead pipes. Hopefully it happens sooner.


Let’s be clear, if no one steps up and decides to run LSPs because everyone is worried about regulatory concerns, every bitcoin L2 system is toast - every one that has a reasonable security model relies on some kind of centralized or federated party that has similar concerns, even if they can’t seize funds.

Without any L2 systems everyone using bitcoin will simply use custodial platforms because that’s the only way to get reasonable fees and payment latency.

And don’t go yelling at ACINQ for deciding not to operate Phoenix in the US, the software required to run an LSP is open source, with only relatively minimal liquidity allocation logic required to get started. We need new entrants, and that means new companies who think the risk is manageable (I’m confident it is, but I can’t fault anyone for not wanting to take that risk).

If you see someone suggesting ACINQ should just keep running, the correct response is “well why aren’t you running an LSP”.


Samourai Wallet Co-Founder Keonne Rodriguez Pleads Not Guilty, Released on $1M Bond

Samourai Wallet co-founder Keonne Rodriguez pleaded not guilty to two criminal charges tied to creating and marketing the privacy-focused bitcoin wallet in a Manhattan courtroom on Monday.

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/samourai-wallet-co-founder-keonne-rodriguez-pleads-not-guilty/


I assume people wouldn’t swap back the same amount in a single transaction. Especially shortly after swapping to Monero. Is this what you’re referring to?


Really cool, this way even if your private key is leaked they won't be able to decrypt your dm.

Adding furthermore the decentralization of the process.

nostr:note1a7fyrgd542lu3gzykfwfwx54pdvdfzcj9uyd5wf4hcqekmgzq82q8j8dsq


The governments are scared.

nostr:note1p4wmtw7s7d2skf65ypyh05h8npdeffgpjdjauv8aemzc07g6kz2ssxmhnd


UK seized new powers:

--Police will no longer be required to make an arrest before seizing crypto from a suspect.
--seize anything, such as written passwords, flash drives, or memory sticks
--destroy crypto assets, such as privacy coins, for the "public good", like Monero
--goes into effect today

This has the text copy-pasted from the official UK website, but without having to have your IP address literally connect to the official cybercrime division website, (ironically, I seized their text)

https://rebelnet.me/news/0x02fcc902af8d6cedd9


Half the time correct, half the time incorrect because I can’t be bothered to check the orientation when putting it on. 2 seconds added to my free time is a win.


I don’t think it’s going to get better until the US collapses internally. But at that point Texas will be as good as El Salvador.


I don't think the parasites understand that if bitcoin fails then our freedom will become dependent on their extermination.


It is an attack on privacy. They’re almost certainly going after the Join Market makers eventually, arguing that they also provided mixing services for criminals without doing KYC.


Hey, nostr:npub1klkk3vrzme455yh9rl2jshq7rc8dpegj3ndf82c3ks2sk40dxt7qulx3vt  is this issue still something that might be added?

https://github.com/zkSNACKs/zIPs/issues/16

nostr:note19fumcydk79kryjyj5dml8v78js2f6xwczcwukunvppscp7sg82hqjv02wk


Llama3 is trainable with consumer hardware!  I just fine-tuned it a bit and made Emu.

Emu has slightly better alignment than Llama3 in these domains:
- bitcoin
- health
- permaculture
- herbs

https://huggingface.co/some1nostr/Emu-70B-Llama3

I will continue trainings and alignings. Emu has worse Nostr knowledge than Ostrich, because all the training on Llama2 based models had to restart, since Llama3 is such a big leap!


NASA's Psyche hits 25 Mbps from 140 million miles away – enough for Ultra HD Netflix
Laser beam comms are fast, so long as the weather cooperates

https://www.theregister.com/2024/04/27/nasa_psyche_data_speeds/


I don’t think attempting to block Americans from accessing Wasabi Wallet is going to make the FBI look away. They have their tendrils in many other countries, especially the European vassals of the US in the EU. 🤷♂


No regerts


Want to be strong and masculine? Be polite and kind to women.


Fear is the mind-killer.


They will simply find the semantics that let them ban what they want to ban.


SimpleX Chat v5.7 released:

- quantum resistant e2e encryption with contacts enabled by default.
- forward messages without revealing the source and save them to private notes.
- in-call sounds and switching sound sources.
- customizable profile images - from square to circle.
- better network connection management.

Also, we added Lithuanian interface language to Android and desktop apps - thanks to our users!

Read more: https://simplex.chat/blog/20240426-simplex-legally-binding-transparency-v5-7-better-user-experience.html


Probably would mean you’re doing the right thing.


Bitcoin exists outside of the law for a reason.


Just so you know what they are going to try and go with: https://image.nostr.build/6356e6cc01fc771d84a6464affd68d6e0602cfc690cc781a796a08920be610f2.jpg


Let it sink in that if you live in the US today you are in a country where you have to use a vpn or tor to access certain products and services. “Land of the Free”


Add Confidential Transactions to Bitcoin.


Any Bitcoin company that asks for your name is really just an agent of the government

If you don't see that, maybe you're an agent too 🧐

They'll say they are "building bridges" with legacy finance

But it's no bridge; it's a leash

GFY


“Using Wasabi Wallet”. Will US users of Wasabi be able to withdraw their BTC? nostr:npub1klkk3vrzme455yh9rl2jshq7rc8dpegj3ndf82c3ks2sk40dxt7qulx3vt

nostr:note1m4zegxr6yrzrqfm2z648fu5tfx82nfesypalk3jv0zmkgff9akzqrmv3ct


It’s been used successfully as a form of mixer for Bitcoin, I.e. swap to Monero, then swap back. I suspect this use case will drastically increase in popularity now.


If it takes that little to get it on the list then everyone should be on it.


El Salvador with Nayib Bukele is absolutely winning 🔥 https://image.nostr.build/582f8237a14c932f8114d99dbf600d74411feeb9ac908b6ef401c3d7327eab47.jpg


Does coinjoining in the app still work? Weird that it wouldn’t if it was supposedly using tor.


https://image.nostr.build/5555958c4f23d84c482803217c91b802f9b567c207c9befdd6d92c7789d55bf7.jpg  nostr:note1wwhu4ekltm98svn004wfmk7xtcs5mmwxpuhf94qj6jle4un78vcqv35c62


JUST IN: If you are a 🇺🇸 US Citizen or
Resident, you are not allowed to download Wasabi Wallet or use the Wasabi Wallet coinjoin feature 😮

This includes if you are a U.S. permanent resident or if you are an individual that holds a U.S. passport. https://image.nostr.build/5f2c74fc92cd3f881ef55f6eff8d728d137e76d2ee2d09ea3b59363896aff87b.jpg


Any evidence of them actually doing it? I remember looking for code in their GitHub repository for their coordinator but couldn’t find anything related to filtering for sanctioned UTXOs. Doesn’t mean they aren’t actually running different code on their end though.


Does the coordinator have the info to de-mix?


A lot of coinjoin demand will probably move to Wasabi. How long will they (the coordinator) stay in operation?


A lot will bend the knee and already did! We see you!


fork & run phoenix 🤷♂


About Liquid, Cashu and Fedimint.

As you may know I have recommended the use of these solutions to gain privacy, especially Liquid versus the expensive and inefficient coinjoin, but this does not mean that I am not aware of the risks.

My point of view is strictly pragmatic, I use these solutions for my own benefit being aware of the risks.

The example to follow is eMule, which in many ways I have always considered the precursor of Bitcoin. eMule has been around for more than 25 years and has not been able to close down, why?

- Open source
- Distributed

Any layer that is applied to Bitcoin to gain privacy and be able to resist state censorship will have to be.

- Open source
- Distributed
- Its creators must be anonymous.

All centralized and federated solutions will be closed and if their creators are known, they will be jailed unless it is a honeypot. In the same way for decentralized solutions, if their creators are not anonymous, they will also be imprisoned.

You have already seen with Samourai that for the USA there are no jurisdictions, wherever you are from you will be arrested, so both Liquid, as Cashu, as Fedimint are temporary solutions that will end up closed in one way or another.

If you can use them to your benefit then use them, but be aware, I hope that now you understand my defense of Joinmarket against other alternatives and my hope with Joinstr.


The United States is turning into exactly what we always feared it would become.


There is actually something new in this statement from the FBI:

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/markets/fbi-warns-americans-against-using-non-kyc-crypto-money-transmitting-services

If you actually read the second and third paragraphs, they are quite explicitly telling you that the primary risk is that *they themselves* are going to steal your money.

So by 'something new' I mean that this is the first time you are explicitly being threatened with confiscation. It would not be surprising if this is the start of a trend, but, who knows.


Calling it “p2p” is ceding ground.

It’s just commerce… it’s trading.

p2p is not the anomaly; intermediated commerce is.


Does Bolt12 fix?


It simply comes down to will. If people mostly don’t have the will to use Bitcoin without submitting to the restrictive KYC and censorship laws that INEVITABLY will come, Bitcoin doesn’t have a future. No will, no way.

nostr:note1aqq203tzetrvyha3l4qudu8d0tzt7ml3wrcv86czfjwgnm0ctzlstdmukj


We are all officially unlicensed cryptocurrency services. Do you feel naughty, anon?


Interpretation of the law seems to be in flux. It was always obvious that they would eventually crack down on self-sovereign money/store-of-value. That doesn’t make it smart comply and, for example, run a LN node that censors transactions associated with OFAC sanctioned UTXOs. Fuck compliance.


Run your own lightning node.

nostr:nevent1qqs8p83yqg7aga8x8j58xu4evhur26fj9yxj4wwrzpu2572lpdfg2hspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfdupzqyu3x7tfc8zkh7psdnt3yuhks8k4ggrtu90we6u7hxy4d5hanal0qvzqqqqqqysh46mk


Does anyone have change for a $20?

Yes, I do, but I need you to show me your Money Services Business license first.

Perfect! Do you have yours handy as well?


Legal system = “Take down these bad things to send a message and let the legality get worked out in court later.”


You can sort of do a smash buy by taking an offer, but then the wait for the other party to send it is a crapshoot that can be anywhere from instant to 4 days later.


It takes some getting used to.


Bisq as well.


Names are important to track, share and distribute with all of us - the names i see are. These people need to be systemically tracked especially DOJ, CIA, FBI:
Merrick Garland
Alejandro Mayorkas
Elizabeth Warren
Bill Cassidy

nostr:nevent1qqs0xzzkwvv6506ysa7ex364zlvgjnk0exzxy70e8mfftslypre8kkgpzamhxue69uhkummnw3ezuendwsh8w6t69e3xj7szypec76gcftk6vagq9d58leru360z77c6ye7kly29kyvnxyhe0svw7qcyqqqqqqgtew469


I’d say move it through coinjoins (Wasabi or JoinMarket) and keep it rather than selling through KYC, thus paying the State their theft, and then rebuying.


Expect this all to ramp up!
I am not surprised at all as it was always going to be the case. Either companies, devs will self censor over now justified fear of going to jail and pull their apps off centralized app stores, close repos or they will be forced to by state sponsored violence.

The existing system does not want you to be free or have control over your own life.

Do you care? Are you prepared? or still being an iOS apologist justifying mass adoption at all costs, watching Saylor and NGU charts on your iPhone.

I dislike being negative these days but if this isn’t a wake up then wtf is? People are going to jail for freedom tech.


Letting it collapse to Haiti-esqe anarchy kind of sounds a little better at the moment TBH.


Many don’t realize we actually live in authoritarian regimes


ITS TIME FOR THE UNCLE JIMS TO RISE TO THE OCCASION

#Bitcoin  #Lightning https://i.nostr.build/aQPj6.jpg


Not long ago it was the Tornado Cash case but that was on Ethereum and largely brushed off by many Bitcoiners. Then it was the Bitcoin Fog case but that was custodial and again largely brushed off by many Bitcoiners.

To some, the trajectory has been clear for several years. Often times those warning of real and present dangers are met with skepticism and dismissed as FUDsters.

Yesterday it was Samourai Wallet, a non-custodial Bitcoin wallet with the ability to coordinate CoinJoins. If you brushed off Tornado Cash & Bitcoin Fog, don't make the same mistake this time.

The language used by the FBI is so broad and generalized in their PSA and their recent actions have been so over-reaching that it should now be crystal clear to any Bitcoiner that any Bitcoin wallet project not implementing KYC measures runs the risk of having the developers arrested for operating an unlicensed Money Services Business. Node projects and miners are not far behind.

The entire pretext to this narrative is false because Bitcoin is software, software is code, code is speech, and freedom of speech is a God-given right. Ask yourself, where do you draw the line? What rights are you willing to defend? And if push came to shove, how far are you willing to go to defend those rights?

"Give me liberty or give me death" are not hollow words because a life without liberty is not a life worth living. Many have already made the ultimate sacrifices and many more will follow in their foot steps. Every dialogue consists of a call and a response and right now the FBI is having a one-sided conversation. Make a stand and respond loudly and clearly that the erosion ends now.

nostr:nevent1qqs99ct0slaz53exxr2z7qmu8c76kqqzzu6qqgjcwa42hpyvla5jzzcpr3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmqzyzu62d6j8wazlndws47epk98vr0y7gfee8usmxr0w37w058vp5tn6qcyqqqqqqg2hccdp


Confidential Transactions. It would raise the block weight of each transaction, but if cash-like transactions are moving off chain onto Lightning and ecash anyway, I think it may be worth it.


BREAKING: 🇪🇺 The EU reportedly prohibits use of anonymous hosted 💰 Bitcoin  wallets and cash payments > €10,000

 https://video.nostr.build/c287bcd92d3e33f191704b34b4566475686c7cdff7c0ea55c771a451398a9643.mp4


I’d be OK with protocol-level privacy being added to Bitcoin. CT maybe.


HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund has made several grants to JoinMarket projects and contributors

Now would be a *great* time to apply for funding to do this kind of work!

Feel free to DM me if you need the link to apply


This samourai take down will be the begging of a million decentralized alternatives.

Information wants to be free, bitcoin is just information.


Cannot say how much I appreciate this initial, well thought-out response.

I think it’s important in these things to remain cognizant, knowledgeable, and also to keep in mind that Fiat money will always incentivize the Obfuscation of things. In other words, systems designed to defend privacy can and will be attacked a million ways to Sunday in ways that “obey the rules”.

Every Revolution is a breaking of the chains of enslavement. Literally. Period. End of Sentence.

If you consider yourself a Bitcoiner, you’re now at war. There’s no middle-ground anymore. It’s go-time. Shit or get off the pot. Let this sink in if you haven’t already.

Samurai wasn’t the straw, it was just another straw. They’re coming for us. All of us. And they know who you are.

We need to decide now what our response is.

Fight, Freeze, Flight.

Those are the choices in matters such as this. nostr:note1den70hpaptvzcstyq5uvfjcaa7cax06th9wtjvt06epra37pqdpq96n3yw


Something optimistic to think about: the fact that the US gov went so aggressively against Samourai likely means that coinjoin works well and they don’t have reliable de-mixing methods.


What are some non-extradition countries that won’t bend the knee and also aren’t Iran, North Korea or Russia?


Unfortunately if you are working on privacy tech, your best course of action to protect yourself is to renounce your U.S. citizenship, move to a non-extradition country, and do everything possible to stay anonymous.

Privacy is a crime in the eyes of the USG. If you produce privacy tech, they will eventually come after you. It’s not a question of if, but when.


The drain will continue!


#Bitcoin #Privacy #SamouraiWallet https://image.nostr.build/40f8247c998524734a8b0c6bc3350e956c6846306583a22422bf72efa95a233c.jpg


Damn I lose a lot of sats on the based takes around here.


I’m actually more bullish on effective (if not formal) secession by states in the US. Can be done without formal declaration by refusing to enforce and protecting local violation of federal tax law. Until this happens the US will continue to be so powerful that other non-authoritarian nations will be vassals of the US.

nostr:note1jgntm6ufsmn46uxsp3l84jp5anut6843g0alv22ttvwq2v5sm9eqw2fc6z


The overall response we should be having right now is ‘fuck you I won’t do what you tell me’.

Anything less validates their authority. Cypherpunks, back to work!


operation leave the US *accelerates*


Needs to be a place that isn’t a vassal of the US and also isn’t an authoritarian shithole itself, which seems to be slim pickings.


Nope. I may be behind on progress.


Partially. UX needs to get dramatically easier.


The Samourai repo not being available anymore reminded me of some nostr note I saw a couple of days ago where someone seemed to have a working git-on-nostr thing going on. Does anyone know what I'm talking about here?


They were always going to fight us. If they aren’t going to ban Bitcoin entirely, they’ll ban private usage. Voting means nothing. Noncompliance is the only solution. #privacy #coinjoin #nokyc


They were always going to fight us. If Bitcoin’s not banned entirely, they’d ban private usage.


Eventually Bitcoin would either be made illegal or certain ways of using (I.e. privately) would be made illegal. They were always going to fight us.


A lot of you are too comfortable with your KYC permissioned corn and it shows.

There is an old Chinese proverb that says: “Kill one, warn a thousand.”

The system is breaking down and they won’t just let you walk away peacefully. Prepare yourself early on. Now they’re fighting us. nostr:note1rea30qc9m4ptlj69r85f26ey935p5rxwg7ejg24nnrucgkmeuwfqrkdf85


Are the funds still in control by the users, or were they somehow seized?


#Bitcoin privacy is under attack, but you guys are freaking out over jpgs.


The FBI and CIA Are Enemies of the American People
https://mises.org/mises-wire/fbi-and-cia-are-enemies-american-people

By Ryan McMaken
> The only answer lies in eviscerating their budgets, abolishing their enabling legislation, and encouraging aggressive lawfare against the regime in retribution for these agencies’ many crimes.


Filled with memecoin degens, so pretty much. 😂


Thank you for bringing attention to this.


Don't look now but bitcoin mining pools are critically centralized and it could be existential to the network if miners don't act.

https://www.tftc.io/bitcoin-mining-pool-centralization/


But also, ecash mints don’t have data on their users, so they would help a lot.


At least not with KYC and massive custodians like Chivo.

nostr:note16rq4jsfd82tgq7dlmkxe0at99vv6c2qfgxnu5cgn23afhyz2w3kqnmafcd


Ecash is custodial. Can at least be mitigated with federations, but in this case it was a data leak, which is a problem I don’t think federations solve.


Why? I do it all the time.


Bitcoin can also be used as P2P cash via second layers.


Bitcoin facilitates peaceful secession.


Step #1 of Texas (or any state) secession - refuse to enforce federal tax laws like this one. Hope to see them have the balls to do it one day.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/biden-is-asking-congress-to-kill-the-american-bitcoin-mining-industry


Step #1 of


“Self-hosted” wallet, I.e running your own node. How would they enforce a ban on it?

nostr:note1et58xmrmh2ag8xmjc7r98crzn8fq0f97ngda90vq6d6hatfdsm3q7ew4yd


Indeed Zelle may be considered 0.5 KYC since the banks still get the info that Alice sent Bob $1000, just not necessarily what it’s for. F2F meeting and cash by mail are also available. Hardly any F2F offers on Bisq though. Maybe Vexl is where to go for F2F. 🤷♂


Is there anyone still arguing that fees will eventually fail to pay for Bitcoin’s security when the block subsidy stops? If so, how does the argument go?


Haven’t tried them but they look like a good idea.


Working on ankle flexibility to eventually be able to do overhead squats without putting plates under my heels.


Fake until it’s not.


Narrator: It was the beginning of the end for the global banking system for no sovereign nation ever trusted it again. nostr:note1n42yh4g2twjzwlc06w5ksl3235yh7y56p594p0zvtacz3kfg93rqw7dwrj


Use Bisq and avoid KYC records of Bitcoin purchases. #noKYC

nostr:note1d63e2k4empm8vev5llhshqw6m3njn2nxdwmesr4s4lzyg73w722sutuj3w


A Cashu gateway is a Cashu user who uses their own Lightning node to offer anonymous services for anyone on the same mint.

You give me ecash and I make a Lightning payment for you. Everything is atomic. Nobody needs to know this ever happened.

Cypherpunk cryptoanarchy is now.


I think SDXL might just be too much for a 1080 and I’ll have to do my best with SD 1.5 until I’m able to upgrade my GPU.


—medvram is what I’ve been using because not using it causes an out of memory error before anything can be generated with SDXL. —lowvram seems to crash similarly to when I try a Lora with —medvram. Haven’t tried forge yet.


#endstupidity
https://m.primal.net/HyXS.png


i exit
https://m.primal.net/HyNS.mp4


Got 16GB ram and a GTX 1080. Can run SDXL base models, but using any Lora with it crashes my system.


Texas and any other state with enough popular support don’t need to formally secede, just stop enforcing federal law and federal taxes. Citizens can use Bitcoin for confiscation-resistant asset holdings. Hope to see it in my lifetime.

nostr:note1thdwzhmap6dmfnn9jrgc00l090hzpr8drknhv8g9zm0xq8m55ysq4tvuvl


Whenever politicians clutch pearls or attempt to brow beat bitcoiners about money laundering it is important to remind them that the US government is the biggest money launderer on the planet.

The Treasury issues debt out of thin air, the money gets handed to the Department of Defense and they overpay defense contractors 900x for commonplace nuts and bolts, among other things. This leads to obscene profits for the war industry and they shave off a small chunk of those profits to ensure the politicians that will vote for bigger defense budgets stay in power. Rinse and repeat.

This isn’t confined to the war industry either. It happens across the spectrum. Another example is Operation Warp Speed, which was an example of the Federal government directly funding and obscenely overpaying for a COVID vaccine that poisoned people.

What we’re witnessing is the largest “looting of the treasury” in human history. Politicians and the corporate interests that back them are robbing the American people blind. Taking their money directly via taxes, indirectly via inflation and at the same time running up the biggest government debt bill the world has ever seen.

The politicians who enable this and then clutch pearls about bitcoin’s potential to enable money laundering are the scum of the Earth.

We are all being robbed in broad daylight and the thieves are making you out to be the criminal. Truly diabolical

The government is not your friend. It exist to strip you of your wealth and your freedom.

https://m.primal.net/HyRl.mov


"Money laundering" is financial thoughtcrime.

This argument "lol, the USD is way more used for money laundering" is terrible.

If bitcoin is good money, criminals will use it.


People were able to send smol amounts of sats to my node with lightning during that main chain fee apocalypse.  No channels were lost.  I'm impressed.  Lightning haters gonna hate, but you go to war with the tools you have, not the ones you wish you had. ⚡⚡⚡⚡


Pretty nice pad this guy built. They let squatters take over private homes but they’ll probably tear down this guy’s house because he took up residence on public land.
https://youtu.be/K1D-F_8MP0o?si=4ucDhlMmpopKmhAv


Woke media hating that game is fun to watch.


This was an epic rip  nostr:npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx,  nostr:npub1lunaq893u4hmtpvqxpk8hfmtkqmm7ggutdtnc4hyuux2skr4ttcqr827lj,  nostr:npub1ye5ptcxfyyxl5vjvdjar2ua3f0hynkjzpx552mu5snj3qmx5pzjscpknpr. 👏👏👏

Stu and Hzrd are already legends of Nostr. Such refreshing pragmatic thinking. Everyone should try Satellite.earth and noStrudel.ninja web clients, but their biggest contribution is probably the blossom protocol for decentralized file storage. Insanely bullish.

nostr:note13h9uwmy9w7dqgcdv58nlc0nt43pla3upczrsrdzd06vzqgvkeasqklk5xc


*not retarded enough


Price in USD. Makes sense that volatility will decrease over time. I’m basically responding to the confusion I’ve seen as to why there was a new ATH before the halving for the first time.


Looks like there’s even been a capacity increase since the halving.


Pretty funny that the car doesn’t know what to do. Even more funny that the cop has nobody to threaten. 😂


Real propellantless thrust or EM Drive 2.0?
https://thedebrief.org/nasa-veterans-propellantless-propulsion-drive-that-physics-says-shouldnt-work-just-produced-enough-thrust-to-defeat-earths-gravity/


Ordinals don't threaten bitcoin's fungibility, they merely showcase the lack of it.
The fact that degens are inscribing garbage on a distributed ledger is merely a symptom, not the disease.

CT/MimbleWimble is the only credible solution. Fuck your filters.


Julian Assange and nostr:npub1sn0wdenkukak0d9dfczzeacvhkrgz92ak56egt7vdgzn8pv2wfqqhrjdv9 were essentially that. It’s dangerous for sure, but we need more.


To no one’s surprise, a law that neither side of the polarized political spectrum wants was passed. The issues that are actually put up for debate are mostly a distraction. Real issues you don’t get to vote on. All by design of course.

 https://amp-cnn-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2024/04/19/politics/fisa-senate-negotiations?amp_js_v=0.1&amp_gsa=1#webview=1&cap=swipe


I hope they find their way back to Ethereum.


https://m.primal.net/HxhK.png

# Halving Fee Chaos

The Bitcoin halving is an anticipated event, one of those Bitcoin holidays that happen every once in a while. Along with Soft Fork Activation and various financial instrument introduction days, it's one of those not-quite-predictable days that occur every few years which give Bitcoiners reason to pay attention and mainstream media to speculate.

This year's halving was much anticipated, as halvings usually are, but we had a bit of an incident that requires some further explanation. The block subsidy decreased from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC on block 840,000 as expected, but what wasn't expected was the 37.626 BTC in fees that came along with it. To give some context, that's easily the highest ratio of fees to block subsidy that Bitcoin has *ever* had. [One transaction](https://mempool.space/tx/152b928e97bb9e874da1bd4abdf766ae0cdc7a2f260dad5542967cb414c58489) paid nearly 8 BTC in fees by itself.

## More Fees

It wasn't just block 840,000 that had high fees, over the next 5 blocks, we had fees of 4.486, 6.99, 16.068, 24.008 and 29.821 BTC respectively. The fees are the highest it's ever been. This situation in Bitcoin is unprecedented.

Up to this point in Bitcoin's history a block whose fees were higher than block subsidy were pretty rare. There were a few in the 50 and 25 BTC eras, but these were mistakes by the user (usually forgetting to put in a change address) and almost all of the fee came from a single error transaction. In the 12.5 BTC subsidy era, there were a few transactions toward the end of 2017 when the cumulative fees exceeded the 12.5 subsidy. In the just-ended 6.25 BTC subsidy era, there were many blocks during the ordinals craze which exceeded the 6.25 BTC subsidy.

Still, these were relatively rare, and most blocks even in the most recently completed era mostly didn't exceeded 1.5 BTC. Yet in this new era of 3.125 BTC subsidy, every single block as of this writing (block 840018) has had fees exceed the subsidy, some by many multiples. So what happened? Why was the halving block getting so much in fees?

## Runes

The reason has to do with a new protocol called Runes. It's yet another colored coins protocol on top of Bitcoin that Casey Rodarmor designed back in [September of 2023](https://rodarmor.com/blog/runes/). The main idea is to allow coin issuance on Bitcoin that uses the UTXO set natively.

Now to back up a bit, colored coins have been around for a long time. The main idea is that you can "color" certain Bitcoin transaction outputs as meaning something in addition to the Bitcoin amount in the output. It could be another "asset" and issued as a token. The first implementation of such a protocol happened 11 *years* ago in 2013 and there have been many attempts since, including MasterCoin (renamed Omni), CounterParty, and more recently, RGB, Taro Assets and BRC-20.

As Rodarmor states in his blog, his motivation for making another protocol is to bring some of the asset issuing from other chains to Bitcoin. To make the launch of this protocol more interesting, Rodarmor decided to start the issuance on block 840,000, leading to the chaos we saw.

## Simplification vs Game Theory

Casey Rodarmor is also the creator of ordinals, and he took one of the concepts, which was to name assets using the capital latin alphabet on Runes. This is a normal fine choice, but what happens when there's a conflict? If two assets have the same name, how do we distinguish between them?

To simplify things, the protocol just looks up what assets exist already and if the name conflicts with something that exists, then the new asset isn't issued. This indeed simplifies the client and gives a global unique name to each asset. Unfortunately, it also makes for some terrible incentives.

## Sniping Asset Issuance

The first incentive problem is that if the transaction issuing the asset is sent out to the Bitcoin mempool, then as that transaction is gossiped to nodes around the network, other observers can snipe the name by getting the transaction in earlier.

Now "earlier" in Bitcoin is a strict concept. Blocks are ordered and transactions within a block are ordered. Whichever comes first gets the symbol and the asset issuance. But if you want to squat on a good symbol name, you can just look for mempool transactions that are attempting to create a new asset and create your own with a bigger fee. That's the essence of sniping.

What's really terrible about a situation like this is that *both* transactions will likely go into the block, but only the first will successfully issue the asset. The second will not issue the asset but *still pay the fee*.

Miners generally order transactions by fee rate, so a higher fee likely means that they'll get to issue the asset. I say likely, because there's a second incentive problem here I'll discuss later. But game-theoretically, both participants are incentivized to increase fees continually to one-up each other. The dynamic is similar to the [One Dollar Auction](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dollar_auction), where participants end up making rational choices, but end up with an irrational result (like paying $1.50 for $1). Every loser pays lots in fees for nothing.

## Second order Game Theory

Now given this first-order incentive playing out, it's not a surprise that a lot of issuers purposefully put in a very high fee initially to discourage anyone from trying to snipe the symbol. After all, if your sniping attempt fails, then you lose out on the fees you tried to snipe with. There's also a significant uptick in the usage of RBF for this reason, so that you have the option to one-up the sniper and the sniper to do the same to the issuer.

Note that RBF isn't useful here to *get out* of paying the fee, as a replacement transaction has to pay more than the previous transaction in fees. Either way, the miner ends up with the fees.

Now back to the miner's role. The miner can, if it so desires, give preference to the *lower* fee transaction by including it earlier in the block. Indeed, the incentive is to give miners off-band fees if possible to order transactions in such a way as to win by not revealing how much you've paid. Miners in this protocol have a lot of leverage.

## Conclusion

Runes have resulted in some really high fees, though it's hard to know if the design was intentional or unintentional. What we do know is that Runes have been hyped up for the last few months and have been anticipated for a while, and certainly being one of the first assets issued under the protocol has some marketing value for the eventual goal of getting them listed on an exchange.

Sadly, in addition to the normal scamming of altcoins being completely centralized, there is a deeper cost in terms of block space congestion, where fees of 1000 sats/vbyte are currently not enough to get into certain blocks. The Runes asset issuance has overridden almost every other use case at the moment.

That said, the current rate of Runes issuance is completely unsustainable. Just in the first 18 blocks, there's been over $20M in fees spent, most of that in Runes issuance. At this rate, Runes issuers would be spending $150M a day or $1B a week. I honestly can't see them doing this for much longer than a month or two. In the meantime, it must be great to be a miner finding these blocks.


The nostr:npub155m2k8ml8sqn8w4dhh689vdv0t2twa8dgvkpnzfggxf4wfughjsq2cdcvg coinjoin plugin now supports automated, private coin consolidation during low-fee markets.
https://void.cat/d/Cd8y8XNRyvTYhLRztZcBkG.webp


Now just need someone to de-lobotomize it.


The Bill of Rights has no legal meaning when it can be interpreted any damn way by judges and juries.

nostr:note1tvppn4ah5v48hwmmntpll9gaqhv5ecx9fh6xlaq9nf8ed5wafmgs8fdq0u


This or something like it would be awesome, especially for smaller miners. nostr:note18klwc9zleky8vvzqj78m6yt20apm8l6r4n2fxkyqs5g4wqxzlprqpwhve2


Only way it reverses is when some states stop enforcing federal income taxes and protect residents from federal enforcement. Time for tax sanctuaries.

nostr:note163ylwkuuk8w63nhman4cct2sqfr0s3hphp8lcaj55z7wc37tazqsa0vzhq


Look it up. https://image.nostr.build/438eadcfb91a349ead33a6dc29cf9fd71f6c92710998a5765c31252dbaed7099.jpg


rights aren’t given, they’re taken.

bitcoin and nostr help you take and defend them, peacefully.


Nothing wrong with having some physical assets. Just need to understand that it can disappear at any time via guys with big guns funded by inflating fiat.


It turns out some pools are, without telling anyone, just acting as proxies for other pools.

This should scare you.

This should scare you very very much.

https://x.com/0xb10c/status/1780611768081121700


Call me naive, but doesn’t it make sense that Bitcoin’s price trend will transition to a more gradual increase over time with less drastic hype cycles and crashes?


Also refuse to comply if it becomes law and they ask you to spy.

nostr:note1et56fk8tpls8qee9d3cm03m59sc2020vkfzsee6vkmn4rxw3j0cslgp3tz


https://i.nostr.build/Rmr5M.jpg

"URGENT: Please read thread below. We have just days to convince the Senate NOT to pass a “terrifying” law that will force U.S. businesses to serve as NSA spies. CALL YOUR SENATOR NOW using this call tool (click below or call 202-899-8938)."

#cybersecgirl #law #section702

https://act.demandprogress.org/call/no-on-section-702-call-page/

 https://i.nostr.build/mlwox.jpg

https://act.eff.org/action/tell-congress-absent-major-changes-702-should-not-be-renewed


“Emergency Powers” in force in NSW after 2 stabbing incidents within the past week.

Once the State tastes extraordinary powers, the urge to keep going back for more is irresistible. https://i.nostr.build/KGx0W.jpg


It’s gonna be Bitcoin or this. Be prepared.

nostr:note1frqukerdxc3qlxgrm8rvpvs25fap5v838hefu7thhupfaz36lsxqlwlwhf


Sounds like it requires a lot of trust, but the benefits are nice.


Here's a simple idea that bitcoin accepting retailers could do to save costs. The basic idea is that consumers overpay by sending a UTXO for the product in its entirety, and the retailer returns the change in lightning/liquid OR creates a balance of credit in that retailers mint.
Here are some of the main advantages:

It makes good use of onchain UTXO's by not breaking them up and creating unwanted dust.

It looks like a "self spend" to any chain analytics.

It helps retailers balance their LN channel by creating more inbound liquidity.

It encourages more retail adoption of LN.

It saves block space.

Source:

https://stacker.news/items/506979/r/halalmoney


Bullish. nostr:note1aj5ty9n06e8d7a8fpfg2rqas9y98et9q045n6jps96kjt80402kq8mha8l


So Iran likely spent over $100M attacking Israel and Israel spent over $1B shooting down nearly all of Iran's drones and missiles.

What a fucking waste.


It’s time for miners to wake up and start migrating to Sv2.

Mining centralization is as bad as it’s ever been and the bullishness on bitcoin is totally unjustified given miners don’t seem to care about bitcoin in the slightest.

If it doesn’t get better nearly every PoS chain is literally going to be more decentralized and censorship resistant than bitcoin.

If you care about Bitcoin you are responsible for fixing this. Pressure miners.


Convenient timing.

https://m.primal.net/HurX.jpg


It would be nice to see i2p tested as well as tor, since i2p supposedly has better performance.


are the folks who run good and beefy paid relays generally running a profit, or are you having a hard time? I would hope there'd be enough economic incentive to keep these running by now


“BuT aLmOsT eVeryOne uSes iT cUstOdiAllY”

Like that destroys its permissionless nature and you can’t just route around poorly behaving nodes.


Satoshi 7B: Open-Source Bitcoin-Centric Large Language Model

Satoshi 7B is a large language model fine-tuned on a Q&A dataset related to Bitcoin principles, technology, culture, in addition to Austrian economics and non-woke political perspectives. It is intended for use as a bitcoin education, culture and economics assistant.

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/satoshi-7b-open-sourced/


Preaching to the choir here, maybe? Though IDK why he’d delete his nostr npub on X.


❤ pura vida https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/costa-rica-first-country-moratorium-spyware/


I find it a little worrisome that Bitcoin is NOT banned in Europe. We need better #privacy. #nokyc


How about we build on principles instead of just recreating the existing system.

People don’t care about eating healthy either but that doesn’t mean we should shovel them garbage just so that they will consume our product.

KYC is the illicit activity and fuck anyone who is bringing that shit into the future with us just to comply with the state or to win in the short term. nostr:note1ajazmpwymp2xu7200968qd6256a9gyuyj5t5vx8uhxwhmacyrvjskwet8u


Edward nostr:npub1sn0wdenkukak0d9dfczzeacvhkrgz92ak56egt7vdgzn8pv2wfqqhrjdv9  gave us all a stern warning, and despite the standing ovation, I don’t think most people understood or cared.

Snowden agrees that Bitcoin is the best tool we have to fight the surveillance state, but "Bitcoin has a privacy problem".

The reason we see talks of ETFs and acceptance from the SEC is BECAUSE Bitcoin is not private.

Snowden says it’s not enough for a few to know best privacy practices. Those who have good OPSEC should use that skill to provide privacy to the masses.

Privacy must be the default.

Notice he doesn’t say we should switch to Monero. Monero is a shitcoin. He says the technology to make decentralized, private payments with Bitcoin exists RIGHT NOW, and the minority of us who truly care about freedom need to pay attention to the discourse and stop asking for permission.

In other words, we have to stop accepting "Bitcoin shouldn’t do that because it might cause legal issues".

Separate money from the fucking state https://v.nostr.build/yw85.mov


GM ☕

https://image.nostr.build/3c4db334cadf461b4b1e45be5abd002ddee9347e73462cc6b98425fa994d51ab.jpg


as you stack #Bitcoin remember that privacy can only be lost, and never regained. https://i.nostr.build/3PYmP.jpg


Kek..
 https://image.nostr.build/00155e2e53dc21fb67fba5bd82b07b75a0d0f2e903fd15b82b7803fcc2601a03.jpg


The best thing to come out of nostr:npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx's insight into Saylor and the ETFs... The CIA is scared of FOSS

Keep building.


Saylor is just a compliant suit who wants to see Bitcoin stay in government’s good graces. I’d bet he’s a hater of privacy tech.


THIS IS NOT CONTROVERSIAL.

IF PEOPLE STOPPED SIMPING AND ASKED SAYLOR HIS OPINION HE WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO NOT SUPPORT OPEN SOURCE DEVS.

HE HAS ACTIVELY KILLED DEALS TO SUPPORT DEVS. HE IS PROUD OF IT. HE IS WRONG AND EVERYONE IS TO AFRAID TO SAY SHIT.


Is anybody using local AIs like chat gpt and can recommend one? Preferably open source, and isolated from the internet...

#asknostr


And just like that I have my own simple, non-custodial, entirely self-hosted LN stack in seconds.

Bravo, amazing work Phoenix and 1f52b_xyz

https://sethforprivacy.com/lnurl

If you want to test it out, don't tip me, tip the creator of this awesome LNURL tool 1f52b_xyz!

https://1f52b.xyz/lnurl

Once we finalize the Docker image + publishing for this and phoenixd, you will literally just register a domain, create a text file, run a single command, and have self-sovereign LN, LNURL, Zaps, etc.

nostr:note1468crxa4u0yd99h5g76uavn0h0y3vlma5ctxnnvf8np5g69sstdq9evukf

https://m.primal.net/Hrdj.jpg


https://fortune.com/europe/2024/04/05/germany-law-sunday-rest-tegut-teo-automated-stores/

🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂

Robots need to rest on sundays and pay social and health taxes.

So, I'm fully expecting an EU regulation that forces on-line stores/marketplaces to be closed on weekends/holidays. I mean the same rules that apply in the real life have to apply on-line, no buts. Right? Right?


We posted about https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/11860-vulnerabilities-exploited-in-the-wild-fixed-based-on-grapheneos-reports on the Digital Forensics Discord (.gg/digitalforensics) used by DFIR students, law enforcement, employees of Cellebrite, MSAB, GrayKey etc. It's on-topic and they've regularly talked about GrapheneOS, but they got upset about it and banned our project account. 🤷

People who work at Cellebrite, NSO, law enforcement agencies, etc. are welcome to use GrapheneOS and participate in our community. We would appreciate posts from people working in these secretive industries "helping" us improve security for GrapheneOS, Pixels and Android 😉


Pretty sick site. #KYC is a scam! https://kycnot.me/


GrapheneOS posted about fixes to vulnerabilities that allowed surveillance to the Digital Forensics Discord and got banned. Govt and its shills hate privacy.
https://m.primal.net/HrUW.jpg


🟠 Bitcoin miners hashing in Ethiopia 🇪🇹 https://video.nostr.build/bcde16e6b25a88364ca53ffe7f1dcf5002092d51a8ae49aabbd9a4c1f71cd156.mp4


Who is working on the nostr silk road but this time no CEO?


Human metabolic pathways (h/t burney_hat)

No one knows what they are doing...

https://faculty.cc.gatech.edu/~turk/bio_sim/articles/metabolic_pathways.png


PCMag have reported our recent affair about #GrapheneOS and our success in reporting vulnerabilities. You can learn more about the background of the incidents leading up to this report:
 https://uk.pcmag.com/mobile-phones/151710/new-zero-day-attacks-target-google-pixel-phones


An open source DIY FPV quad. https://youtu.be/h6chNEaXb-o?si=2i4xyR2HbKGkSyOR


Custody on layer 2 is a bit of a different (less bad) beast than custody on layer 1. Still need easier self custody solutions.


Selling something scarce for something they can print

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/markets/us-government-preparing-to-sell-30000-silk-road-bitcoin-on-chain-data-shows


Kill your heroes. https://bitcoinist.com/argentina-milei-first-mistake-bitcoin/


lol at the usg selling confiscated corn, get those sats boys


It’s good that some states like Florida and Georgia are beginning to remove squatters rights laws.


Someone paying $389 to move $1.94.

547,000 sats to move 2730 sats.

Why?

Because this has nothing to do with Bitcoin and doesn't make any sense from the network's perspective.

People who take comfort that behaviour will remain predictable thanks to economically rational decision making need to know it goes both ways when you start taking in external factors.

You have to do it with miners too.

If a miner can make more money in ways that have nothing to do with bitcoin then you can no longer rely on simple assumptions like "miners will do X because if they don't then they will make less than a miner who does"

The simple example I've used many times is compliance.

If you have a choice between expensive legal battles and exclusion informed by government blacklists (i.e censorship) then it's economically rational to do what's economically irrational.

"You left $500 in TX fees on the table! Why?"

"Because our lawyers advised us that this would save us several million dollars."

We have a case-study of this exact scenario with Wasabi Wallet.

So if this is true, what does it have to do with spam? From a miner's perspective, spam is simply a free lunch.

What's the downside?

The issue is we've been standing on shaky ground when it comes to the assumptions we've made about the choices of miners. Myself included.

It turns out there are instances when economic rationality works *against* the interests of the wider network. It's obvious, but apparently we're all surprised that this it the case, or straight up in denial about it.

Spam is that exact scenario. Blocks are far larger than was ever supposed to be possible with the introduction of witness-discounted data. We see block after block at what was meant to be a theoretical maximum of just under 4MB.

There is no room for interpretation. This is simply harmful and the result of a nasty attack.

The entire basis on which the blocksize wars were fought was that encumbering nodes with way more data would lead to centralization. (Along with a host of other issues, like centralization of mining & pools).

The simple solution is that it needs to stop. Blocks cannot be stuffed with arbitrary data placed there by ambivalent miners.

The way this stops is as a natural extension of a bitcoin community that recognizes attacks and responds accordingly.

It means using node software that isn't designed to hurt its users which is already happening with migration away from Core to Knots. The most popular plug-n-play nodes have all begun offering this.

They did not this time last year.

It means miners choosing pools that at least give them the option of not participating in the attack -> currently well under 1% of the hashrate, 6 months ago not even an option. Hard for me to talk about because obviously I'm employed by the pool in question.

It means people who never mined doing it for the first time.

And mostly it means maintaining an understanding of what makes bitcoin bitcoin. That in itself has always been enough to evict crypto scammers to something other than Bitcoin. Those who wanted to turn it into "paypal 2.0" with the same disregard and contempt for nodes that the spam apologists display now forked themselves off to bcash and craigcoin.

The one thing that will *not* solve this problem is high transaction fees. This is an argument made by those who at least understand an attack when they see it, but are in denial about what surviving it actually involves.

Throughout the last few months the conversation has rapidly progressed and the tide has been turning.

I am under no illusions that this is an easy fix, but that is because of the nature of politics and how much larger the ecosystem is now.

But it's also just history repeating itself.

Bitcoin keeps having to fight the same battles again and again. Always in service of importance of being able to run *and use* a node, affordably and trivially, by complete noobs.

To maintain decentralization.

To resist the corrupting of what we have.

Bitcoin is money. Other features cannot come at the expense of that.

OP RETURN wars, bcash, segwit2x, shitcoins, coloredcoins, hostile BIPs, malicious devs....

We've done it a million times before. Every single time the "laser-eyed toxic maxis" win.


Bisq has a F2F payment option.


#FreeSoftware vs Propietary.

https://m.primal.net/HqEN.png


Learn to use dex and p2p platform like robosats and nostr:npub15369wu3wzzar5fclhecyqfv683x69n6nhlg7rxqnsg2dydgxflpq3apswl
Nobody can stop you to make p2p buy/sell.
The choice to stay anonymous is fundamental freedom. https://image.nostr.build/8297f50c80256940a8ba272623e2bad2c6c9807ecc7950949419fde70d33620f.jpg


Tending to lean the same way. Infrastructure like this can be used to train open source AI models.


Coinjoin worth 890 bitcoin

https://mempool.space/tx/da90d4fcee3d3965d23aef486065d317ce069f7e43751018443b3a4e0901394e#vout=0

nostr:nevent1qqsr4jj60q3mvax8kdgrvxvtydydnf9xtvwcy3djrqnk88nhhle4v4gpr3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezumt4w35ku7thv9kxcet59e3k7mgzyzm7669svt0xkjsju50a22zurc0qa589z2xd4yatzx6p2z64a5e0cqcyqqqqqqgv0kva2


HOME REMEDIES 🍲

I want to gather all the -tried and tested- home remedies from you guys and girls on nostr.

I’m guessing there’s a TON that we can share with eachother on here.

People seem to be built differently on nostr.

It seems like the best advice and remedies are passed on and kept in a notebook somewhere.

The problem is that those notebooks, and the people who wrote in them, are fading away.

I do have a longer term plan for this - depending on the quality of info we get here.

I’d like to compile the replies and compensate the contributors.

But let’s start with this thread and see where it goes.

Leave a note with your best home remedies. It could be for the flu, an open wound, unplugging a toilet, etc.

Anything that you can think of that has WORKED for you.

Drop them below and let’s have some fun with this.

#asknostr


Looks like someone managed to get a backdoor into ssh in Fedora and Debian testing. Patch systems ASAP.
https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2024/03/29/4


What a fucking joke the American judicial system is. Ross gets a double life sentence for running a website and SBF gets 25 years for fleecing Americans and funneling funds to politicians.


I was under the impression that some pools push a portion of the fees onto the miners in the payouts. Maybe I’m mistaken. Anyway, privacy is another benefit.


Less fees and more routine payments when your hashpower contribution is low.


Is there any pool to recommend now that supports stratum v2 and lighting payments?


Somehow skipped over the boldest part of the instructions. 🤦♂😂


If you don’t believe it or don’t get it


Always good to share this.

I feel that this could be one of those important documents of our time.

nostr:nevent1qqs8sql9dy23y5cyg860nc76vltn24pcqtn27pkd45dyrn9e72srfqcpzamhxue69uhhyetvv9ujucm4wfex2mn59en8j6gzyzm7669svt0xkjsju50a22zurc0qa589z2xd4yatzx6p2z64a5e0cqcyqqqqqqg3t38hu


They do, but those are usually within the borders of one that defines itself by war.


Tomorrow is Ross Ulbricht's 40th birthday. He's been in jail since he was 29, serving a 2x life sentence, all for creating a website where people could freely trade

It's time to free Ross. #Bitcoin
 https://image.nostr.build/d84d75154991c4f51c9921b1c2f1d1d96d0aec2bf7f0e78a7c87924070ea42c3.jpg


That’s the idea behind “second amendment sanctuaries,” but there isn’t any evidence yet that they won’t fold when pressured. I’m sure their resolve varies wildly between communities.


Hedgehog: Protocol for Asynchronous Layer 2 Bitcoin Payments

Hedgehog is a protocol for two party payment channels. Hedgehog channels are similar to lightning channels but with a few comparative benefits such as offline receive capabilities.

https://www.nobsbitcoin.com/introducing-hedgehog/