"Every single co in the industry invested badly at the same time... every single competitor made the exact same mistake, in the same direction." - Caitlin Long If you missed the epic Twitter Thread from Caitlin Long on the state of the global financial markets, and how we managed to find ourselves in such a disastrous, then worry no longer. Now Audible, followed by Guy's commentary on the concepts she outlines, her excellent episode on Pompliano's show, and on the fundamental economics that had ...
Mar 16, 2020•42 min
What happens when you get Swan Signal hosting a conversation with Brady Swenson, myself, DerGigi, Yan Pritzker, Friar Hass, John Vallis, & Cory Klippsten on the state of the legacy & Bitcoin markets, corona virus, remote work, education, the halving, and where we might go from here? This episode is what happens. A great chat you don't want to miss! Check out Swan Signal for other great Bitcoin focused content! https://www.swanbitcoin.com/signal @CitizenBitcoin @dergigi @FriarHass @johnkv...
Mar 14, 2020•1 hr 33 min
I feel like we just got to live through an old piece of history all over again ... so I'll share my rendition of it. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=375643.0 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bitcoinaudible/message
Mar 13, 2020•2 min
" Not too many years from now, the number of Bitcoiners in the United States of America will cross ten million. When we hit that milestone, it’s game over: Bitcoin wins..." - Cory Klippsten Diving into our first read from the Swan Bitcoin blog by their CEO Cory Klippsten , we explore the simple, but powerful idea of the Intransigent Minority. Laid out in Nassim Taleb 's book "Skin in the Game" the intransigent minority is the target for the number of Bitcoiners that would be needed to reach the ...
Mar 11, 2020•23 min
"We, Bitcoiners, are all dissidents in the Old World of trusted third parties. [...] Laws of nature that are higher than man-made laws, being enforced by mathematics, have begun to reorganize a society." - Nozomi Hayase Bitcoin isn't merely a new money, it's a radical departure from the systems of trust. It founds a new system where incentives align in a beautiful design to enforce cooperation through the independent self-interest of opposing parties. As a technology of dissent, it doesn't allow...
Mar 10, 2020•38 min
“Bitcoin can’t be a little bit censorship resistant in the same way that you can’t be a little bit pregnant.” - Parker Lewis. Continuing the Gradually then Suddenly series from Parker Lewis with another excellent installment: Bitcoin is Not for Criminals. Check out the original at the amazing blog provided by Unchained Capital: https://unchained-capital.com/blog/bitcoin-is-not-for-criminals/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bitcoinaudible/message
Mar 09, 2020•51 min
1 • Why has the Corona Virus been upgraded from a significant healthcare problem, to a global economic catastrophe? 2 • What would be Guy's strategy as a Destroyer of Economies? 3 • Bitcoin Fixes this What I hope to be a fun Guy's rant on why Corona is a huge problem not because of the virus itself, but because of a terribly unprepared economy, and how I might go about laying the groundwork for any natural disaster to cause the most damage and lay waste to as much economic activity as possible. ...
Mar 06, 2020•58 min
"devising a scheme that handles both messaging and payments under one roof could be a killer app" - Colin Harper As part of Bitcoin Magazine's excellent set of articles on "The Technology of Dissent," we get a great piece by Colin Harper on the state of encrypted messaging over the Lightning Network. With both Shpinx and Whatsat using separate mechanisms for establishing a private, censorship resistant, decentralized messaging platform, could the combination of encrypted messaging and payments b...
Mar 04, 2020•35 min
"To fully understand any organism, we must not only look at the organism itself, but examine the organism-environment holistically." - Gigi If Bitcoin is a new organism, then where exactly does it live? Is it in cyberspace, the human realm, in financial markets and value… or all 3? Find out in Gigi’s excellent new piece on the Habitats of Bitcoin. Bitcoin Habitats by @Dergigi : https://medium.com/@dergigi/bitcoins-habitats-9ce3064bd3a7 Recommended Further Reading: Proof of Life - Why Bitcoin is ...
Mar 03, 2020•49 min
"A volatile currency for volatile times" - Timour Azhari When the banks become the volatile alternative, when your rights and control over what's in "your" bank account are a fleeting daydream, when the banks abuse your trust, take your money, and then try to sell it back to you; a volatile, independent, decentralized digital money, becomes that very thing that "puts your mind at ease." Everything is relative, and the world is an increasingly volatile place. Don't miss this one! Link to the orig...
Mar 02, 2020•34 min
Microsoft has a history of funding and developing with open source systems, and has started a new project called ION, trying to make a universal, decentralized system secured by Bitcoin, for managing and proving identities available to the globe. What are the goals and mindset behind this project, and how is Microsoft planning for its future, and the future of the Bitcoin ecosystem? Find out in today's article by Colin Harper discussing the ION system with Daniel Buchner, the project lead! Anoth...
Feb 27, 2020•36 min
Is the blockchain a critical tool that creates the power behind Bitcoin, or is it a wasteful and unavoidable byproduct, an exhaust, of the system that secures the most sound money in the world? This was a fascinating Twitter thread by Udi Wertheimer that explores what I find to be an interesting perspective on the role that "the blockchain" plays in the Bitcoin network. With added input and contrarian opinions from Eric Wall, Meni Rosenfeld, Adam Back, & Justin Moon, we take a short episode ...
Feb 26, 2020•28 min
"If you ask me how much trust is right for the Lightning economy, the answer will always be less ." - Roy Sheinfeld Today we dig into the recently implemented reverse submarine swaps in the breez lightning service. One of the many tools we have for both mitigating, and also building trust in the new economy. How exactly do submarine swaps work, what's a HODL invoice, what might they mean for the future of Lightning, and how is Breez using them? All this any more in today's article by Roy Sheinfe...
Feb 25, 2020•35 min
Today I get hyped with ck_SNARKs of BTCMedia and have the opportunity to pick his brain for all the exciting stuff happening at the Bitcoin2020 conference in San Fran! With only a month left its time to get serious about it. Stay to the end if you want to hear how you might save some sats on your tickets! Follow CK on Twitter so you don't miss the announcements and incredible things happening with the BTCMedia gang! https://twitter.com/ck_SNARKs Don't forget to check out the episodes with Bitcoi...
Feb 24, 2020•1 hr 5 min
"By design, Bitcoin exists beyond governments. [...] The architecture of bitcoin is practically purpose-built to resist and immunize any attempts by governments to ban it." - @parkeralewis The next in the Gradually, Then Suddenly series not to be missed. Governments will not ban Bitcoin until it's apparent that it actually presents a threat to their own currencies, when that happens and under that pretense, they will face the ultimate Prisoner's Dilemma, & the only winning move is to play. L...
Feb 21, 2020•54 min
"Decentralization has [...] been a vessel for achieving a concession from a centralized body it is protesting. Every decentralization play has followed a simple pattern: protest a market inefficiency, win that protest via a major concession, and then disappear back to fringes of society." - Brandon Arvanaghi What can we learn from the history of decentralized protocols and the huge battles of history during the disruption of the internet, versus the corporate and media giants of the day? Does it...
Feb 20, 2020•1 hr 7 min
"Bitcoin is a movement founded on individual monetary sovereignty, transparency and peer-to-peer auditability enabled by a breakthrough in technology. [...] The technology to provide auditability and transparency for bitcoin held in custody has been inherent to the protocol from its inception. However, the industry has been slow to incorporate" - Mauricio Di Bartolomeo Bitcoin, as a new asset class, provides us with one of the most powerful tools for financial security in a custodial context: cr...
Feb 19, 2020•33 min
I had an awesome time the other day with Daniel Prince on the new Once BITten Podcast. Diving into some of my own personal history with Bitcoin, what led me here, and the major changes I think we will see in the world over the next couple of decades. This was a really fun conversation and I think you guys will enjoy it. I was Once BITten, & here's my story. Don't forget to check out Daniel's new podcast, and the episode we mentioned where he spoke with Bruce about the best podcasts in the sp...
Feb 14, 2020•1 hr 13 min
"Unless you began your Austrian economic education at birth in some unknown Austrian paradise, on this planet at this particular time in human history, I think we can safely say we’re all Keynesians by default." - Brady Swenson @citizenbitcoin Today we read a great little piece on how our economic understandings have become so skewed, why the default has become one of centralized, top down control over money, and how Bitcoin is set to right the world of our economic foundations. We've got a fun ...
Feb 13, 2020•44 min
"The Lightning Network is best known for its fast and cheap payments. But the Layer 2 protocol could also offer more privacy than on-chain payments [...] the developer thinks that “self-payments” could be an important part of the privacy puzzle." - Aaron Van Wirdum Despite its focus on payments and scaling the Bitcoin system, Lightning may have incredible potential for privacy opportunities and improvements. Pseudonymous developer ZmnSCPxj has been detailing and expanding on these concepts in re...
Feb 12, 2020•39 min
"Not everyone understands what a pyramid scheme actually is, what the warning signs may be, or why such schemes always fail [...] The distinctions should be glaringly obvious, but because bitcoin is complex and the very idea of money is not well understood, it can easily be confused." - Parker Lewis Today we are diving back into the Gradually, Then Suddenly series from Unchained Capital with an excellent breakdown of what Bitcoin is, and what it isn't. Starting with the both obvious, yet not so ...
Feb 11, 2020•1 hr 42 min
Can you really own Bitcoins? Or do you merely have possession of keys that grant a high probability of exclusive control? A fun short read to close out the week, from the Bitcoin Rabbi on defining what it means to own or possess bitcoin. Check out the original article below on medium and drop some applause, and follow The Bitcoin Rabbi on Twitter! https://medium.com/@thebitcoinrabbi/of-course-you-can-own-bitcoins-dedcfc0c2e49 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/b...
Feb 07, 2020•19 min
"For the better part of the last decade, the combination of these two practices has given rise to an increasing number of SIM swap attacks ending in the theft of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies." - David Hollerith Another piece from BitcoinMagazine.com , this one by author and podcast host David Hollerith , that breaks down the risks and details of SIM swap attacks and how you may be vulnerable to losing your bitcoins, simply by revealing your phone number. Don't miss this piece detailing out...
Feb 07, 2020•58 min
"we have nearly 11 years of empirical evidence that the network itself has been holding and transacting bitcoin, but instead of with private key signatures, it’s in exchange for hashed electricity." - Phil Geiger Framing the scarcity of Bitcoin at first seems obvious, but with a closer look, is far more difficult than it would seem. Does the supply actually inflate at all? Does the market price in all future halvings? Do the Bitcoin exist when they are mined, or do they exist today, sold to the ...
Feb 05, 2020•47 min
An exciting development form the extraordinary team over at Zap and the Mallers Fam! The seed of the infrastructure inversion has landed, and its' called Strike! Don't miss the details on this incredible development and join the beta if you want to test out and provide feedback for this product over at strike.zaphq.io . This is a project to keep a very close eye on. Follow @jackmallers on Twitter so you don't miss the revolution ;) Drop some hella applause on the article below: https://medium.co...
Jan 31, 2020•28 min
"What’s noteworthy about this point is that, upon this particular halving, Bitcoin “inflating” at a roughly 1.8 percent rate annually will nominally — and by then, quite possibly in real terms — be “inflating” at a rate lower than both the Federal Reserve target of 2 percent per year and current, CPI-based estimates of real U.S. inflation of 1.9 percent annually." - Peter C Earle Another great piece from Bitcoin Magazine written by Peter C. Earle, detailing the reasons why this next halving will...
Jan 31, 2020•44 min
"Money is an intersubjective problem, and a choice to opt into one monetary medium is an explicit opt out of the other, which in turn causes one network to gain value (and utility) at the direct expense of another." - Parker Lewis Skipping around a little bit in the "Gradually, Then Suddenly" series, we read the most recent (#12) published on the Unchained Capital Blog . No, Bitcoin isn't a startup. No, there will not be many currencies. No, you can't create an alternative that doesn't compete w...
Jan 30, 2020•1 hr 8 min
As a follow up to Nic Carter's excellent breakdown of the efficient market hypothesis, and PlanB's piece addressing the market's evaluation of the risks in Bitcoin, I go through the reasons I feel the market both is very unwilling and unconfident about the consequences of the halving, and therefore sees it not as "known information," but more a blind gamble. For diving deeper into the many topics and works that I brought up, here are the links of all those I remembered: • Nic Carter's "Introduct...
Jan 29, 2020•1 hr 9 min
"A first reaction could be that it is a great investment opportunity. A better reaction (from an EMH and non arbitrage point of view) would be that it is too good to be true." - PlanB If the efficient market hypothesis requires that known events be priced in, then how could the S2F be a model for Bitcoin's price? When such an obvious and unchanging piece of information is available, shouldn't the market price it in? Continuing with the foundation laid from yesterday's article, we read Plan B 's ...
Jan 24, 2020•33 min
"So is the halving “priced in” or will it be a catalyst for appreciation? [...] I consider it patently absurd that a change in issuance would have been overlooked by the price-setting entities." - Nic Carter You are definitely gonna want to hear Nic's incredibly thorough argument as to why in this article! Breaking down the EMH, its origins, the many different iterations of the concept, & how best to frame it in the context of a real world market; Nic gives us another excellent work that is ...
Jan 23, 2020•1 hr 1 min