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I was wrong, we need crypto

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Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#51

Post by rglover »

rosndo wrote: post #37
rglover wrote: post #11

We don't need "crypto," we need _Bitcoin_. Crypto is the scam he references here. It's clear that DHH has a very thin understanding of Bitcoin and is conflating arguments about the web3/crypto/defi/nft nonsense with it. _That_ is the psyop. If people think Bitcoin and all of the other junk (sh*tcoins) are the same thing, you're just walking into the same trap as what precipitated the nightmare in Canada. The thing to…

> We don't need "crypto," we need _Bitcoin_. But Monero is objectively better than Bitcoin if you just want to pay for things.

Perhaps, but it lacks the brand recognition. Playing the technology dick measuring contest will end up confusing people and lead them right into a trap (meaning, they end up distrusting the very thing that can save them).

Bitcoin has all of the necessary pieces to get the immediate problem of government overreach and currency manipulation fixed.

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#52

Post by qalmakka »

The problem with cryptocurrencies is not the _idea_ per se, it's that every current and proposed implementation is deeply flawed and utterly fails to deliver on what it promises, to the point that crypto mostly stands afloat only as a mean to enable economical speculation and to facilitate unregulated and illegal transactions.

I also agree with the idea that teleportation and faster-than-light travel would be extremely beneficial if not necessary for the long term success of the human species, but that does not mean that any proposal or attempt to accomplish those should be immediately hailed as a success. Cryptocurrency is definitely a failure at being what it was supposed to be, there's very little doubt regarding that I'm afraid.

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#53

Post by dylkil »

spupe wrote: post #26
dylkil wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your comment is nonsense. They can seize your gold in a bank vault. They cannot forge a signature transferring your crypto held on your metamask. They would need first physical access to your computer and secondly your metamask password. They can classify it all they want, but it is completely outside of the control of their legacy systems.

They can seize the gold only if they know where it is. And to convert crypto back into Canadian dollars, you will need to go through the "legacy" banking system at any substantial amount, where it can be flagged with standard tools and you would be arrested.

>And to convert crypto back into Canadian dollars

the ultimate goal is to never convert back

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#54

Post by dylkil »

h2odragon wrote: post #29
dylkil wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If the crypto is in the users wallet (i.e. not on some crypto exchange) the canadian government cannot seize it without asking the user to sign a transaction transferring them the crypto. We are 13 years on from bitcoins inception, and we are on a tech board, how this is still not clear to people boggles me.

How many crypto "owners" don't have a wallet? What do those who do have one do when they get told "cough up the keys or go to jail"? "Crypto" is not some magic "laws don't apply" wand.

First of all prove I have crypto

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#55

Post by dylkil »

qalmakka wrote: post #52

The problem with cryptocurrencies is not the _idea_ per se, it's that every current and proposed implementation is deeply flawed and utterly fails to deliver on what it promises, to the point that crypto mostly stands afloat only as a mean to enable economical speculation and to facilitate unregulated and illegal transactions. I also agree with the idea that teleportation and faster-than-light travel would be extreme…

The second problem is some of the smartest people in the world rather point out its flaws than recognise the potential and help fix the flaws

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#56

Post by qalmakka »

dylkil wrote: post #55
qalmakka wrote: post #52

The problem with cryptocurrencies is not the _idea_ per se, it's that every current and proposed implementation is deeply flawed and utterly fails to deliver on what it promises, to the point that crypto mostly stands afloat only as a mean to enable economical speculation and to facilitate unregulated and illegal transactions. I also agree with the idea that teleportation and faster-than-light travel would be extreme…

The second problem is some of the smartest people in the world rather point out its flaws than recognise the potential and help fix the flaws

Imagine you woke up one day set on the intention of digging a tunnel to China in your backyard by only using cutlery. Would throwing more people in the hole armed with spoons fix the inherent issues with your project?

The reason why there are lots of experts criticizing the current implementations and crypto concepts is because it's vastly easier to realize the flaws in one's idea than coming up with a new proposal. Yes, PoW works but it does not make sense, it's just a very interesting gimmick that makes cryptocurrency doable. That does not mean it actually makes sense or that it represents a stable foundation for a digital currency in practice.

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#57

Post by [deleted] »

CodeGlitch wrote: post #49
Comevius wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

> and the majority don't want these Nazi flag waving idiots distrupting their lives. Slightly off topic but the inconsistent treatment/reporting of these protestors and BLM is what gets me. BLM protestors flying "antifa" flags (let's be honest Marxists) are just as bad as Nazis in my book - seriously misled people with unworkable ideas about how the world should be run. Anyway if you're coming down hard on protestors…

[deleted]

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#58

Post by lowkey »

Comevius wrote: post #15
csee wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I read the article as connecting (not conflating) the two. He's saying that the government can no longer be trusted with this power, as evidenced by this particular misuse, and they therefore should lose that ability.

[flagged]

Please note that the Canadian government has, in the past, on multiple occasions [0], used agents provocateurs to falsely smear a protest movement by planting their own agents who attempt to inflame a situation. For example, trying to turn peaceful protests violent.

To my knowledge, there was a singular incident of Nazi flag on the very first day of a 25 day protest. There is also some evidence that it may have actually been the PM's personal photographer who took the photos of the Nazi flag [1].

It is also a curious fact that this flag incident took place at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier, a $300/night luxury hotel in the heart of Ottawa, known for hosting foreign dignitaries and heads of state, that now curiously houses a large contingent of police from all over Canada [2]. It seems suspect to think that truckers and racists would choose such an iconic and expensive venue to display this symbol of hate.

Given that most of us never expected the severe curtailing of civil liberties by a liberal democracy such as Canada, I think it is prudent for us all to be skeptical about the facts on the ground in this incident as it almost appear engineered to sow the seeds of hate against the protesters in this case.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_provocateur#Canada

[1] https://twitter.com/McloughlinGuy/status/1489468112009408514...

[2] https://twitter.com/GuitarBill609/status/1495447010291372034...

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#59

Post by lowkey »

woodrow wrote: post #42
csee wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why must we choose between doing nothing on the one hand and freezing assets without due process on the other? Why can't we just have a functioning liberal democracy that arrests the purported criminals quickly, charges them with a crime, and tries them in a court under the full scrutiny of the voting public?

Remember that these financial controls are about limiting access to donations received from outside of Canada —- over half of the contributions to GiveSendGo were _not_ from Canadians. Canada has the right (just as the US does) to limit foreign influence in its domestic affairs and its democratically elected government is exercising that right.

But the freezing of accounts wasn't limited to foreign donors, was it?

It wasn't even limited to those who actually broke any laws. Multiple incidents have been reported by Canadians who donated as little as $50 to the protest BEFORE it was declared illegal, having their bank accounts frozen without any formal charges.

Given that they are not even charging these people with crimes, they are denied due process and their economic lives are destroyed for the crime of committing a lawful act that happened to be unpopular with the ruling party.

To portray this as a reasonable step to curtail foreign influence in domestic affairs seems intellectually dishonest. This was government overreach pure and simple.

Re: I was wrong, we need crypto

#60

Post by gorwell »

Comevius wrote: post #15
csee wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I read the article as connecting (not conflating) the two. He's saying that the government can no longer be trusted with this power, as evidenced by this particular misuse, and they therefore should lose that ability.

[flagged]

One idiot or provocateur in a sea of tens of thousands does not override the 99%. That's an absurd, lazy smear.

What this episode makes clear is that many people actually love authoritarianism as long as the actions of the state in the moment appear to align with their own ideology. Next time it won't, which is why it must be resisted on a principled basis. This precedent being set is a dictator's dream come true and you will have no leg to stand on as someone that cheered on the tools of oppression.

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