#Bitcoin ‘He is pic.twitter.com/hGsYHMBqot
— ⚡₿itcoinTeddy⚡ (@Bitcoin_Teddy) October 7, 2024
We can’t get past the politics of “because we have bitcoin now bro”. Sometimes I see these types of t-shirts or sentiments being shared online, but they are simply misleading.
Just to prove that I’m not good at using straws, here’s another similar example:
My condolences to everyone who cares about politicians 😅
Trust mathematics, not politicians.
– Fractal Encrypt ∞/21M (@FractalEncrypt) October 16, 2024
If you just mean “I’m not interested in politics” or you don’t like the politics of a particular party, that’s one thing, but it’s still not enough to secure your freedom. As the saying goes, you may not be interested in politics, however Politics is interested in you.
Zoom out a little bit here
Even if we exclude the upcoming US presidential elections, politics more broadly is about making decisions in groups, and a reflection of power relations between individuals. We work to determine who can control scarce and competing resources in a way that best enables people to live together while minimizing conflict. In a sense, Bitcoin helps reduce conflict over ownership of money, using cryptography.
But remember the reality here
Now yes, we can talk about freedom, anarcho-capitalism, and crypto-anarchy on a philosophical level. But the state exists today. So, in light of this reality, if you want to secure your political rights, it is still important to participate in some way. This could mean campaigning and contributing to education focused on Bitcoin, the economy and freedom, it could be writing a submission to express your opinion or lobbying for a pro-Bitcoin policy, it could mean being part of a particular party, it could even mean contributing to separatist movements and their causes.
But completely ceding political turf to your enemies is a bad decision. In some cases, politicians are not really familiar with Bitcoin, and they “follow” it by seeing news headlines. In these truly uninformed cases, it would be helpful for educated Bitcoiners to talk to them and help them not make big mistakes. It can reduce the risks of bad regulations or laws related to Bitcoin self-custody, transportation, mining, node operation and so on. This could reduce the risk of criminalization of Bitcoin users, reduce uncertainty in the system, reduce tax burdens or otherwise.
In other cases, there are politicians with a keen interest in Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies, such as Elizabeth Warren with her “Anti-Cryptocurrency Army.” In these cases, a more combative approach may have to be taken where the community supports a pro-Bitcoin candidate rather than an anti-Bitcoin politician.
But what about the cypherpunks that write the code and are in the crypto chaos?
The late Hal Finney, Bitcoin legend and crypto pioneer, was also a libertarian, and he posted the following on a Discuss mailing list (Shout out to Aaron van Werdum For this to appear in Genesis book):
“I’m not in cyberspace now; I am in California. I am subject to the laws of California and the United States even though I communicate with another person, whether by postal mail or email, or by telephone or TCP/IP connection. What does it mean to talk about government in cyberspace? It is the government in physical space that I fear. Its agents carry physical weapons that fire real bullets. Until I can live in my computer and eat electrons, I don’t see the importance of cyberspace.
It’s not that he was a philosophical opponent of freedom or crypto-anarchy, but rather that he saw the real-world limits of what it was and is.
But wouldn’t it be nice if everyone agreed? Kumbaya?
Yes, there is the ideal sense of “wouldn’t it be nice” or “what if we all respected each other’s rights and ignored the state” – but the reality is that “people wouldn’t all be like that”. They see a system that enables them to steal from other people or control other people, and they will exploit it. This can manifest itself in very simple ways as politicians promising “free stuff” or to protect you from the bogeyman in exchange for power. Since many voters in democracies are not invested in the system, they certainly will not think about the long term. They will not consider the risk or effort it takes to raise capital and build a business. For these selfish voters, they will take whatever they can get here and now, and not think about the future.
Wouldn’t Bitcoin fix this?
Wouldn’t Bitcoin fix some of these things? Yes, it is true that the state uses cheap compulsory credit and controls money to expand itself. Yes, it is true that the state works to undermine competing forms of private governance – such as family, community, and even religion and private charities – in order to establish itself as the more powerful governmental mechanism on which people depend.
As part of this process, more things become politicized, and this has happened in most of our lives. There were unwritten rules about not talking politics while on a date, or in a polite social setting. This sense of propriety has now disappeared, and nowadays we are all lectured on the latest ‘current things’ even on non-political occasions.
Even in a hyperbolic crypto world, there will still be family politics around things like family businesses, inheritance battles or divorce battles. Or if we had systems of ownership and governance of free private cities, there could still be politics. The benefit may just be that it’s easier to opt out, and regular people don’t have to participate. So, yes in the long run, Bitcoin will reduce politics but not eliminate it. But do not confuse this world now with that world later.
If you think so much can be achieved politically, why even own Bitcoin or code?
There is a division of labor here. Bitcoin and writing code is absolutely essential. But my point is that those people who are good at party politics should focus on that, and those who are good at writing and reviewing code should focus on that.
Making the political system less hostile helps those people writing the code, and it also helps the regular HODL users who hold their own keys and run their own nodes. After all, if the Bitcoin and Bitcoin application code is improved, it could technically make it easier for people to use Bitcoin. In a broader political sense, writing code reduces conflict by reducing the cost of protecting money. It helps more people HODL and use their coins the way they want.
Summing it all up
Yes, it would be nice if fewer people used the state to steal from each other, or control each other, but the way to get there doesn’t mean you have to kneel down and take a beating from the other side. Yes, it would be nice if we didn’t have to care about these things, but that’s just wishful thinking. Even if you don’t have the proverbial “stomach” to wade into the swamp of political activism on behalf of Bitcoin, the least you can do is not thwart the efforts of those who dare. Likewise, people who can engage in partisan politics or political activism should not ignore the efforts of those who write and review code to improve Bitcoin.
Bottom line, don’t confuse the community you want with how to get there.
This is a guest post by Stefan Livera. The opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.
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