@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

---

If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

---

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 90152b7f:04e57401

U.S. troops would enforce peace under Army study

The Washington Times - September 10, 2001

by Rowan Scarborough

https://www.ord.io/70787305 (image) https://www.ord.io/74522515 (text)

An elite U.S. Army study center has devised a plan for enforcing a major Israeli-Palestinian peace accord that would require about 20,000 well-armed troops stationed throughout Israel and a newly created Palestinian state.
 There are no plans by the Bush administration to put American soldiers into the Middle East to police an agreement forged by the longtime warring parties. In fact, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld is searching for ways to reduce U.S. peacekeeping efforts abroad, rather than increasing such missions.
But a 68-page paper by the Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) does provide a look at the daunting task any international peacekeeping force would face if the United Nations authorized it, and Israel and the Palestinians ever reached a peace agreement.


Located at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., the School for Advanced Military Studies is both a training ground and a think tank for some of the Army’s brightest officers. Officials say the Army chief of staff, and sometimes the Joint Chiefs of Staff, ask SAMS to develop contingency plans for future military operations. During the 1991 Persian Gulf war, SAMS personnel helped plan the coalition ground attack that avoided a strike up the middle of Iraqi positions and instead executed a “left hook” that routed the enemy in 100 hours.


The cover page for the recent SAMS project said it was done for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But Maj. Chris Garver, a Fort Leavenworth spokesman, said the study was not requested by Washington.
“This was just an academic exercise,” said Maj. Garver. “They were trying to take a current situation and get some training out of it.”
 The exercise was done by 60 officers dubbed “Jedi Knights,” as all second-year SAMS students are nicknamed.


The SAMS paper attempts to predict events in the first year of a peace-enforcement operation, and sees possible dangers for U.S. troops from both sides.
 It calls Israel’s armed forces a “500-pound gorilla in Israel. Well armed and trained. Operates in both Gaza . Known to disregard international law to accomplish mission. Very unlikely to fire on American forces. Fratricide a concern especially in air space management.”


Of the Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service, the SAMS officers say: “Wildcard. Ruthless and cunning. Has capability to target U.S. forces and make it look like a Palestinian/Arab act.”


On the Palestinian side, the paper describes their youth as “loose cannons; under no control, sometimes violent.” The study lists five Arab terrorist groups that could target American troops for assassination and hostage-taking.
 The study recommends “neutrality in word and deed” as one way to protect U.S. soldiers from any attack. It also says Syria, Egypt and Jordan must be warned “we will act decisively in response to external attack.”


It is unlikely either of the three would mount an attack. Of Syria’s military, the report says: “Syrian army quantitatively larger than Israeli Defense Forces, but largely seen as qualitatively inferior. More likely, however, Syrians would provide financial and political support to the Palestinians, as well as increase covert support to terrorism acts through Lebanon.”
Of Egypt’s military, the paper says, “Egyptians also maintain a large army but have little to gain by attacking Israel.”


The plan does not specify a full order of battle. An Army source who reviewed the SAMS work said each of a possible three brigades would require about 100 Bradley fighting vehicles, 25 tanks, 12 self-propelled howitzers, Apache attack helicopters, Kiowa Warrior reconnaissance helicopters and Predator spy drones.
 The report predicts that nonlethal weapons would be used to quell unrest.
U.S. European Command, which is headed by NATO’s supreme allied commander, would oversee the peacekeeping operation. Commanders would maintain areas of operation, or AOs, around Nablus, Jerusalem, Hebron and the Gaza strip.
 The study sets out a list of goals for U.S. troops to accomplish in the first 30 days. They include: “create conditions for development of Palestinian State and security of “; ensure “equal distribution of contract value or equivalent aid” that would help legitimize the peacekeeping force and stimulate economic growth; “promote U.S. investment in Palestine”; “encourage reconciliation between entities based on acceptance of new national identities”; and “build lasting relationship based on new legal borders and not religious-territorial claims.”


Maj. Garver said the officers who completed the exercise will hold major planning jobs once they graduate. “There is an application process” for students, he said. “They screen their records, and there are several tests they go through before they are accepted by the program. The bright planners of the future come out of this program.”


James Phillips, a Middle East analyst at the Heritage Foundation, said it would be a mistake to put peacekeepers in Israel, given the “poor record of previous monitors.”
 “In general, the Bush administration policy is to discourage a large American presence,” he said. “But it has been rumored that one of the possibilities might be an expanded CIA role.”
“It would be a very different environment than Bosnia,” said Mr. Phillips, referring to America’s six-year peacekeeping role in Bosnia-Herzegovina. “The Palestinian Authority is pushing for this as part of its strategy to internationalize the conflict. Bring in the Europeans and Russia and China. But such monitors or peacekeeping forces are not going to be able to bring peace. Only a decision by the Palestinians to stop the violence and restart talks could possibly do that.”

<<https://www.ord.io/70787305>>

<<<https://www.ord.io/74522515>>>

@ 87e98bb6:8d6616f4

Use this guide if you want to keep your NixOS on the stable branch, but enable unstable application packages. It took me a while to figure out how to do this, so I wanted to share because it ended up being far easier than most of the vague explanations online made it seem.

I put a sample configuration.nix file at the very bottom to help it make more sense for new users. Remember to keep a backup of your config file, just in case!

If there are any errors please let me know. I am currently running NixOS 24.11.

Steps listed in this guide: 1. Add the unstable channel to NixOS as a secondary channel. 2. Edit the configuration.nix to enable unstable applications. 3. Add "unstable." in front of the application names in the config file (example: unstable.program). This enables the install of unstable versions during the build. 4. Rebuild.

Step 1:

• Open the console. (If you want to see which channels you currently have, type: sudo nix-channel --list)
• Add the unstable channel, type: sudo nix-channel --add https://channels.nixos.org/nixpkgs-unstable unstable
• To update the channels (bring in the possible apps), type: sudo nix-channel --update

More info here: https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Nix_channels

Step 2:

Edit your configuration.nix and add the following around your current config:

``` { config, pkgs, lib, ... }:

let unstable = import { config = { allowUnfree = true; }; }; in {

    #insert normal configuration text here

  } #remember to close the bracket!

```

At this point it would be good to save your config and try a rebuild to make sure there are no errors. If you have errors, make sure your brackets are in the right places and/or not missing. This step will make for less troubleshooting later on if something happens to be in the wrong spot!

Step 3:

Add "unstable." to the start of each application you want to use the unstable version. (Example: unstable.brave)

Step 4:

Rebuild your config, type: sudo nixos-rebuild switch

---

Example configuration.nix file:

```

Config file for NixOS

{ config, pkgs, lib, ... }:

Enable unstable apps from Nix repository.

let unstable = import { config = { allowUnfree = true; }; }; in {

#Put your normal config entries here in between the tags. Below is what your applications list needs to look like.

environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; [ appimage-run blender unstable.brave #Just add unstable. before the application name to enable the unstable version. chirp discord ];

} # Don't forget to close bracket at the end of the config file!

``` That should be all. Hope it helps.

@ 10f7c7f7:f5683da9

While I’m going to stand by what I said in my previous piece, minimise capital gains payments, don’t fund the government, get a loan against your bitcoin, but the wheels in my left curve brain have continued to turn, well that, and a few more of my 40PW insights. I mentioned about paying attention to the risks involved in terms of borrowing against your bitcoin, and hopefully ending up paying less in bitcoin at the end of the loan, even if you ultimately sold bitcoin to pay off the loan. However, the idea of losing control of the bitcoin I have spent a good deal of time and effort accumulating being out of my control has led me to reconsider. I also realised I didn’t fully flesh out some other topics that I think are relevant, not least time preference, specifically in relation to what you’re buying. The idea of realising a lump some of capital to live your dreams, buy a house or a cool car may be important, but it may be worth taking a step back and looking at what you’re purchasing. Are you only purchasing those things because you had been able to get this new money “tax free”? If that is the case, and the fiat is burning a hold in your pocket, maybe you’ve just found yourself with the same fiat brained mentality you have been working so hard to escape from while you have sacrificed and saved to stack sats.

While it may no longer be necessary to ask yourself whether a particular product or service is worth selling your bitcoin for because you’ve taken out a loan, it may still be worth asking yourself whether a particular loan fuelled purchase is worth forfeiting control of your keys for? Unlike the foolish 18 year-old, released into a world with their newly preapproved credit card, you need to take a moment and ask yourself:

Is the risk worth it?

Is the purchase worth it?

But also take a moment to consider a number of other things, are there fiat options?

Where in the cycle might you be?

Or if I’m thinking carefully about this, will whatever I’m buying hold its value (experiences may be more difficult to run the numbers on)?

The reason for asking these things, is that if you still have a foot in the fiat world, dealing with a fiat bank account, fiat institutions may still be very willing to provide you with a loan at a lower rate than a bitcoin backed loan. Particularly if you’re planning on using that money to buy a house; if you can qualify for a mortgage, get a mortgage, but if you need cash for a deposit, maybe that is where the bitcoin backed loan may come in. Then, it may be worth thinking about where are you in the bitcoin cycle? No one can answer this, but with the historic data we have, it appears logical that after some type of run up, prices may retrace (Dan Held’s supercycle withstanding).

Matteo Pellegrini with Daniel Prince provided a new perspective on this for me. Rather the riding the bull market gains all the way through to the bear market bottom, what happens if I chose to buy an asset that didn’t lose quite as much fiat value as bitcoin, for example, a Swiss Watch, or a tasteful, more mature sports car? If that was the purchase of choice, they suggested that you could enjoy the car, “the experience” for a year or two, then realise the four door estate was likely always the better option, sell it and be able to buy back as many, if not slightly more bitcoin that you originally sold (not financial, classic car or price prediction advice, I’m not accredited to advise pretty much anything). Having said that, it is a scenario I think worth thinking about when the bitcoin denominated dream car begins to make financial sense.

Then, as we begin to look forward to the near inevitable bear market (they are good for both stacking and grinding), if we’ve decided to take out a loan rather than sell, we then may ultimately need to increase our collateral to maintain loan to value requirements, as well as sell more bitcoin to cover repayments (if that’s the route we’re taking). This then moves us back into the domain of saying, well in actual fact we should just sell our bitcoin when we can get most dollar for it (or the coolest car), with a little extra to cover future taxes, it is probably better to sell near a top than a bottom. The balance between these two rather extreme positions could be to take out a fiat loan to buy the item and maybe sell sufficient bitcoin so you’re able to cover the loan for a period of time (less taxable events to keep track of and also deals with future uncertainty of bitcoin price). In this case, if the loan timeframe is longer than the amount of loan your sale can cover, by the time you need to sell anymore, the price should have recovered from a cycle bottom.

In this scenario, apart from the smaller portion of bitcoin you have had to sell, the majority of your stack can remain in cold storage, the loan you took out will be unsecured (particularly against your bitcoin), but even if it isn’t, the value of what you purchase maintains its value, you can in theory exit the loan at any point by selling the luxury item. Then within this scenario, if you had sold near a top, realised the car gave you a bad back or made you realise you staying humble is more important, sold it, paid off the loan, there may even be a chance you could buy back more bitcoin with the money you had left over from selling your bitcoin to fund the loan.

I have no idea of this could actually work, but to be honest, I’m looking forward to trying it out in the next 6-12 months, although I may keep my daily driver outside of my bitcoin strategy (kids still need a taxi service). Having said that, I think there are some important points to consider in addition to not paying capital gains tax (legally), as well as the opportunities of bitcoin loans. They are still very young products and to quote every trad-fi news outlet, “bitcoin is still a volatile asset”, these thought experiments are still worth working through. To push back on the Uber fiat journalist, Katie Martin, “Bitcoin has no obvious use case”, it does, it can be a store of value to hold or sell, it can be liquid and flexible collateral, but also an asset that moves independently of other assets to balance against fiat liabilities. The idea of being able to release some capital, enjoy the benefits of the capital for a period, before returning that capital to store value feels like a compelling one.

The important thing to remember is that there are a variety of options, whether selling for cash, taking out a bitcoin backed loan, taking out a fiat loan or some combination of each. Saying that, what I would think remains an important question to ask irrespective of the option you go for:

Is what I’m planning on buying, worth selling bitcoin for?

If it cannot pass this first question, maybe it isn’t worth purchasing to start with.

@ 348e7eb2:3b0b9790

Nostr-Konto erstellen - funktioniert

Nostr-Konto erstellen

Was der Button macht

Der folgende Code fügt einen Button hinzu, der per Klick einen Nostr-Anmeldedialog öffnet. Alle Schritte sind im Code selbst ausführlich kommentiert.

Erläuterungen:

• Dynamisches Nachladen: Das Script modal.js wird nur bei Klick nachgeladen, um Fehlermeldungen beim Initial-Load zu vermeiden.

• Parameter im Überblick:

• baseUrl: Quelle für API und Assets.

• an: App-Name für den Modal-Header.
• aa: Farbakzent ( als Hex).
• al: Sprache des Interfaces.
• am: Licht- oder Dunkelmodus.
• s: Empfohlene Nostr-Accounts
• afb/asb: Bunker-Modi für erhöhten Datenschutz.
• aan/aac: Steuerung der Rückgabe privater Schlüssel.
• arr/awr: Primal Relay als Lese- und Schreib-Relay.
• Callbacks:
• onComplete: Schließt das Modal, zeigt eine Bestätigung und bietet die Weiterleitung zu Primal an.
• onCancel: Schließt das Modal und protokolliert den Abbruch.

Damit ist der gesamte Code sichtbar, kommentiert und erklärt.

@ 348e7eb2:3b0b9790

Nostr-Konto erstellen

Nostr-Konto erstellen

Was der Button macht

Der folgende Code fügt einen Button hinzu, der per Klick einen Nostr-Anmeldedialog öffnet. Alle Schritte sind im Code selbst ausführlich kommentiert.

```html

Nostr-Konto erstellen

```

Erläuterungen:

• Dynamisches Nachladen: Das Script modal.js wird nur bei Klick nachgeladen, um Fehlermeldungen beim Initial-Load zu vermeiden.

• Parameter im Überblick:

• baseUrl: Quelle für API und Assets.

• an: App-Name für den Modal-Header.
• aa: Farbakzent (Foerbico-Farbe als Hex).
• al: Sprache des Interfaces.
• am: Licht- oder Dunkelmodus.
• afb/asb: Bunker-Modi für erhöhten Datenschutz.
• aan/aac: Steuerung der Rückgabe privater Schlüssel.
• arr/awr: Primal Relay als Lese- und Schreib-Relay.

• Callbacks:

• onComplete: Schließt das Modal, zeigt eine Bestätigung und bietet die Weiterleitung zu Primal an.

• onCancel: Schließt das Modal und protokolliert den Abbruch.

Damit ist der gesamte Code sichtbar, kommentiert und erklärt.

Accounts

as: [ 'npub1f7jar3qnu269uyx5p0e4v24hqxjnxysxudvujza2ur5ehltvdeqsly2fx9', 'npub1ak7mtjnyha96rjqjdaav7tkjjulcmx7vgmcd6map82vsags8dhtsmecgtd', 'npub1cmvrxn8k50ljamtqlcd3eqznqlnz50zpyp2q45dh0p5gcvyg84ksxezqps', 'npub14c3ffunyuzpl69y526dcknn785t35zvq6y63pvxvmfvghfj6dewqc0v55d', ],

      ## funzt#️⃣
      https://nstart.me/de?an=MeineApp&at=popup&am=light&aa=203a8f&asb=yes&s=npub1f7jar3qnu269uyx5p0e4v24hqxjnxysxudvujza2ur5ehltvdeqsly2fx9,npub1ak7mtjnyha96rjqjdaav7tkjjulcmx7vgmcd6map82vsags8dhtsmecgtd

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

What is KYC/AML?

• The acronym stands for Know Your Customer / Anti Money Laundering.
• In practice it stands for the surveillance measures companies are often compelled to take against their customers by financial regulators.
• Methods differ but often include: Passport Scans, Driver License Uploads, Social Security Numbers, Home Address, Phone Number, Face Scans.
• Bitcoin companies will also store all withdrawal and deposit addresses which can then be used to track bitcoin transactions on the bitcoin block chain.
• This data is then stored and shared. Regulations often require companies to hold this information for a set number of years but in practice users should assume this data will be held indefinitely. Data is often stored insecurely, which results in frequent hacks and leaks.  
• KYC/AML data collection puts all honest users at risk of theft, extortion, and persecution while being ineffective at stopping crime. Criminals often use counterfeit, bought, or stolen credentials to get around the requirements. Criminals can buy "verified" accounts for as little as $200. Furthermore, billions of people are excluded from financial services as a result of KYC/AML requirements.

During the early days of bitcoin most services did not require this sensitive user data, but as adoption increased so did the surveillance measures. At this point, most large bitcoin companies are collecting and storing massive lists of bitcoiners, our sensitive personal information, and our transaction history.

Lists of Bitcoiners

KYC/AML policies are a direct attack on bitcoiners. Lists of bitcoiners and our transaction history will inevitably be used against us.

Once you are on a list with your bitcoin transaction history that record will always exist. Generally speaking, tracking bitcoin is based on probability analysis of ownership change. Surveillance firms use various heuristics to determine if you are sending bitcoin to yourself or if ownership is actually changing hands.  You can obtain better privacy going forward by using collaborative transactions such as coinjoin to break this probability analysis.

Fortunately, you can buy bitcoin without providing intimate personal information. Tools such as peach, hodlhodl, robosats, azteco and bisq help; mining is also a solid option: anyone can plug a miner into power and internet and earn bitcoin by mining privately.

You can also earn bitcoin by providing goods and/or services that can be purchased with bitcoin. Long term, circular economies will mitigate this threat: most people will not buy bitcoin - they will earn bitcoin - most people will not sell bitcoin - they will spend bitcoin.

There is no such thing as KYC or No KYC bitcoin, there are bitcoiners on lists and those that are not on lists.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

---

"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

---

Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

The four main banks of bitcoin and “crypto” are Signature, Prime Trust, Silvergate, and Silicon Valley Bank. Prime Trust does not custody funds themselves but rather maintains deposit accounts at BMO Harris Bank, Cross River, Lexicon Bank, MVB Bank, and Signature Bank. Silvergate and Silicon Valley Bank have already stopped withdrawals. More banks will go down before the chaos stops. None of them have sufficient reserves to meet withdrawals.

Bitcoin gives us all the ability to opt out of a system that has massive layers of counterparty risk built in, years of cheap money and broken incentives have layered risk on top of risk throughout the entire global economy. If you thought the FTX bank run was painful to watch, I have bad news for you: every major bank in the world is fractional reserve. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk, as global market chaos unwinds this will become much more obvious.

The rules of bitcoin are extremely hard to change by design. Anyone can access the network directly without a trusted third party by using their own node. Owning more bitcoin does not give you more control over the network with all participants on equal footing.

Bitcoin is:
- money that is not controlled by a company or government
- money that can be spent or saved without permission
- money that is provably scarce and should increase in purchasing power with adoption

Bitcoin is money without trust. Whether you are a nation state, corporation, or an individual, you can use bitcoin to spend or save without permission. Social media will accelerate the already deteriorating trust in our institutions and as this trust continues to crumble the value of trust minimized money will become obvious. As adoption increases so should the purchasing power of bitcoin.

A quick note on "stablecoins," such as USDC - it is important to remember that they rely on trusted custodians. They have the same risk as funds held directly in bank accounts with additional counterparty risk on top. The trusted custodians can be pressured by gov, exit scam, or caught up in fraud. Funds can and will be frozen at will. This is a distinctly different trust model than bitcoin, which is a native bearer token that does not rely on any centralized entity or custodian.

Most bitcoin exchanges have exposure to these failing banks. Expect more chaos and confusion as this all unwinds. Withdraw any bitcoin to your own wallet ASAP.

Simple Self Custody Guide: https://werunbtc.com/muun
More Secure Cold Storage Guide: https://werunbtc.com/coldcard

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

The former seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.

The latter's future remains to be seen. Dependence on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

— ODELL (@ODELL) October 27, 2022

The Basics

• Lightning is a protocol that enables cheap and fast native bitcoin transactions.
• At the core of the protocol is the ability for bitcoin users to create a payment channel with another user.
• These payment channels enable users to make many bitcoin transactions between each other with only two on-chain bitcoin transactions: the channel open transaction and the channel close transaction.
• Essentially lightning is a protocol for interoperable batched bitcoin transactions.
• It is expected that on chain bitcoin transaction fees will increase with adoption and the ability to easily batch transactions will save users significant money.
• As these lightning transactions are processed, liquidity flows from one side of a channel to the other side, on chain transactions are signed by both parties but not broadcasted to update this balance.
• Lightning is designed to be trust minimized, either party in a payment channel can close the channel at any time and their bitcoin will be settled on chain without trusting the other party.

There is no 'Lightning Network'

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise.
• There are many lightning channels between many different users and funds can flow across interconnected channels as long as there is a route through peers.
• If a lightning transaction requires multiple hops it will flow through multiple interconnected channels, adjusting the balance of all channels along the route, and paying lightning transaction fees that are set by each node on the route.

Example: You have a channel with Bob. Bob has a channel with Charlie. You can pay Charlie through your channel with Bob and Bob's channel with User C.

• As a result, it is not guaranteed that every lightning user can pay every other lightning user, they must have a route of interconnected channels between sender and receiver.

Lightning in Practice

• Lightning has already found product market fit and usage as an interconnected payment protocol between large professional custodians.
• They are able to easily manage channels and liquidity between each other without trust using this interoperable protocol.
• Lightning payments between large custodians are fast and easy. End users do not have to run their own node or manage their channels and liquidity. These payments rarely fail due to professional management of custodial nodes.
• The tradeoff is one inherent to custodians and other trusted third parties. Custodial wallets can steal funds and compromise user privacy.

Sovereign Lightning

• Trusted third parties are security holes.
• Users must run their own node and manage their own channels in order to use lightning without trusting a third party. This remains the single largest friction point for sovereign lightning usage: the mental burden of actively running a lightning node and associated liquidity management.
• Bitcoin development prioritizes node accessibility so cost to self host your own node is low but if a node is run at home or office, Tor or a VPN is recommended to mask your IP address: otherwise it is visible to the entire network and represents a privacy risk.
• This privacy risk is heightened due to the potential for certain governments to go after sovereign lightning users and compel them to shutdown their nodes. If their IP Address is exposed they are easier to target.
• Fortunately the tools to run and manage nodes continue to get easier but it is important to understand that this will always be a friction point when compared to custodial services.

The Potential Fracture of Lightning

• Any lightning user can choose which users are allowed to open channels with them.
• One potential is that professional custodians only peer with other professional custodians.
• We already see nodes like those run by CashApp only have channels open with other regulated counterparties. This could be due to performance goals, liability reduction, or regulatory pressure.

• Fortunately some of their peers are connected to non-regulated parties so payments to and from sovereign lightning users are still successfully processed by CashApp but this may not always be the case going forward.

Summary

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise. There is no singular 'Lightning Network' but rather many payment channels between distinct peers, some connected with each other and some not.
• Lightning as an interoperable payment protocol between professional custodians seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.
• Lightning as a robust sovereign payment protocol has yet to be battle tested. Heavy reliance on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, the friction of active liquidity management, significant on chain fee burden for small amounts, interactivity constraints on mobile, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

---

If you have never used lightning before, use this guide to get started on your phone.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

There must be a limit to how much data is transferred across the bitcoin network in order to keep the ability to run and use your own node accessible. A node is required to interact with the global bitcoin network - if you do not use your own node then you must trust someone else's node. If nodes become inaccessible to run then the network will centralize around the remaining entities that operate them - threatening the censorship resistance at the core of bitcoin's value prop. The bitcoin protocol uses three main mechanisms to keep node operation costs low - a fixed limit on the amount of data in each block, an automatic difficulty adjustment that regulates how many blocks are produced based on current mining hash rate, and a robust dynamic transaction fee market.

Bitcoin transaction fees limit network abuse by making usage expensive. There is a cost to every transaction, set by a dynamic free market based on demand for scarce block space. It is an incredibly robust way to prevent spam without relying on centralized entities that can be corrupted or pressured.

After the 2017 bitcoin fee spike we had six years of relative quiet to build tools that would be robust in a sustained high fee market. Fortunately our tools are significantly better now but many still need improvement. Most of the pain points we see today will be mitigated.

The reality is we were never going to be fully prepared - pressure is needed to show the pain points and provide strong incentives to mitigate them.

It will be incredibly interesting to watch how projects adapt under pressure. Optimistic we see great innovation here.

---

_If you are willing to wait for your transaction to confirm you can pay significantly lower fees. Learn best practices for reducing your fee burden here.

My guide for running and using your own bitcoin node can be found here._

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

How Zeus is Redefining Bitcoin with Cashu Ecash Integration

The U.S.-based Bitcoin and Lightning mobile wallet Zeus recently announced an alpha-release integration of Cashu. The move marks the first integration of ecash into a popular Bitcoin wallet, breaking new ground for potential user adoption to Bitcoin.
Cashu is a hot new implementation of Chaumian ecash, a form of digital cash invented by David Chaum in the ’90s that has incredible privacy and scalability properties, with the trade-off of being fundamentally centralized, requiring a significant amount of trust in the issuer.

In a counterintuitive move for Zeus, known as the go-to tool for advanced Lightning users seeking to connect to their home nodes, the integration of Cashu acknowledges a “last mile” challenge Lightning wallets face when delivering Bitcoin to the masses.

“We basically started off as the cypherpunk wallet, right? You got to set up your own Lightning node and connect to it with Zeus. The last two years, we put the node in the phone with one click, you can run it all in a standalone app without a remote node,” Evan Kaloudis, founder and CEO of Zeus, told Bitcoin Magazine.

“Cashu addresses uneconomical self-custody for small bitcoin amounts. On-chain, the dust limit is 546 satoshis, and Layer Two systems like Lightning have costs for channel setup or unilateral exits that aren’t widely discussed,” Evan explained, highlighting a major point of friction in noncustodial Lightning wallets: the need for liquidity and channel management. While these esoteric aspects of the Lightning Network have been mostly abstracted away since its invention in 2016, these fundamental trade-offs continue to manifest even in the most sophisticated and user-friendly wallets.

In the case of both Phoenix and Zeus, two of the most popular noncustodial options in the market, users must pay up to 10,000 sats upfront to gain spending capacity. These fees are necessary to cover the on-chain fees spent to open a channel for the user against the wallet’s liquidity service provider, unlocking a noncustodial experience.

The required up-front fee is difficult to explain and represents a painful onboarding experience for new users who are used to fiat apps giving them money to join instead. The result is the proliferation of custodial Lightning wallets like Wallet of Satoshi (WOS), which gained massive adoption early on by leveraging the global, near-instant settlement power of Bitcoin combined with the excellent user experience centralized wallets can create.

Major developments have been made over seven years after the Lightning Network’s inception, however, and Zeus is pushing the boundaries.

“With Ecash, we make it so easy that anyone can set up a wallet and start participating in our ecosystem, which I really think is going to become more and more prevalent,” Evan explained.

Today, at roughly $100,000 per bitcoin, 1,000 satoshis are equivalent to $1. Transactions of these sizes are known as microtransactions — a popular example are Nostr social media tips known as Zaps. But finding the right tool for this use case is not simple. Self custodied wallets like Phoenix charge transaction fees in the hundreds of satoshis, even with open channels, and on-chain fees often cost the same and are slower to settle. As a result, there’s an entire category of spending that is only served by cheaper alternatives such as custodial lightning wallets like WOS or Blink, but result in significant privacy tradeoffs, often requiring phone numbers from users and in some cases more advanced KYC and IP tracking. Cashu hopes to serve this market with lower privacy costs, the same ease of use, speed and competitive fees.

Digging deeper into the Cashu integration, Evan explained that “for users this means being able to pick and switch between custodians in a single app. For developers this means being able to defer custodial responsibilities to third parties and not have to wire up a new integration when your current custodian halts operations.”

Zaps are satoshi-denominated rewards delivered as “likes” or micro-tips for content in the Nostr social media ecosystem. A Zap can be as small as one satoshi, the smallest amount of bitcoin that can be technically transferred, equivalent today to about a tenth of a penny. “But I think if we look at Nostr and you’re seeing how many people are Zapping and how big a part of that ecosystem it is. It’s like, people are willing to do it,” Evan explained.

“Cashu, while custodial, lets users accumulate small amounts — say, via Nostr Zaps — without needing 6,000 satoshis to open a Lightning channel. Zeus prompts users to upgrade to self-custody as their balance grows,” he concluded, explaining that the wallet will effectively annoy users into self custody, one of several design choices made to mitigate the risks introduced by Cashu.

Ecash

The trade-offs introduced by Cashu challenge the common understanding of custody as an either-or in Bitcoin. Historically you were either a centralized — custodial — exchange, or you were a noncustodial Bitcoin wallet. In the former, you entrust the coins to a third party; in the latter you take personal responsibility for those coins and their corresponding private keys. Cashu changes this paradigm by introducing bitcoin-denominated ecash notes or “nuts,” which are bearer instruments that should be backed by a full bitcoin reserve and Lightning interoperability for instant withdraw.

Similar to fiat cash, you must take control and responsibility over these notes, but there’s also counterparty risk. In the case of Cashu, there are certain things the issuing mint can theoretically do to exploit their users — akin to how a bank can run on a fractional reserve. 

The big difference between Cashu or custodial Bitcoin exchanges and fiat currency is that Cashu is open source, is designed around user privacy, and scales very well. It makes the cost of running a mint lower than either alternative, a feature that makes mint competition easier, in theory countering the centralizing network effects of specific mints.

Finally, the user experience of storing Cashu tokens has been attached to known forms of Bitcoin self custody such as the download of 12-words seeds via various mechanisms, though implementations still vary from wallet to wallet and the whole ecosystem is in its early stages. 

To further mitigate the custodial risk of Chaumian-style ecash in Bitcoin, the Cashu community has developed various methods for automatically managing custody risk.

“Users can split risk by using multiple mints, switching between them in the user interface. Soon, ZEUS will guide users to select five or six reputable mints, automatically balancing funds to minimize exposure,” Evan explained, referring to a particular approach called automated bank runs. The idea is that as some Cashu mints may hold more of your funds, Zeus de-ranks them and rotates value out to minimize risk. 

“I think the idea is going to be that we guide users to pick five or six reputable mints… And from there, users will be able to have the wallet automatically switch between those mints and determine which mint should be receiving the balance depending on the balance of all the mints presently. So you’ll be like, OK. MiniBits has way too much money. Let’s switch the default to one of the mints that doesn’t have a lot. So that way you can sort of mitigate or rather distribute the rug risk there,” Evan explained, adding, “Our Discover Mint feature pulls reviews from bitcoinmints.com, showing vouch counts and user feedback, like mint reliability or longevity,” describing the reputation layer stacked on top of the various other risk management mechanisms.

There is no known way to use Chaumian-style ecash in an entirely noncustodial way. So as long as the custody risk can be minimized, the scaling and privacy upside becomes remarkable. 

Microtransactions

One of the opportunities that ecash unlocks is microtransactions, the most popular example of which are Nostr Zaps often in single dollar ranges of value transferred, though it applies to small Lightning transactions as well. This use case triggers an important technical question that predates Bitcoin, do microtransactions actually make economic sense?

There’s a long-standing argu

@ eed7ca5d:191de8eb

Growing up, we were told that in order to build wealth, we need to save little by little. By living below your means, you are providing more for your future. 

It is a simple formula that will help you build up the capital necessary to buy a car, a house or start a business… You prioritize long-term benefits and delayed gratification over immediate rewards. 

This is called having a low-time preference. In contrast, high-time preference individuals prioritize today over tomorrow, seeking immediate gratification. 

Austrian economists explain that civilization growth is driven by low-time preference societies. Groups of individuals who prioritize long-term planning are able to innovate and develop new tools for a better future. Over time, this behavior leads to technological inventions like the light bulb and artistic masterpieces like the Notre Dame cathedral.

***What happens when you realize that the money you save is losing value over time? ***

There is less incentive to save for the future, because in the future your savings will be worth less. You might as well spend it now and enjoy life today. 

When the money you save loses its value, you are facing one of two choices: 

• Spend it today and reap the rewards of your hard work; 

• Invest it (stocks, real estate, etc.) with the hope to reap higher rewards later, bearing the risk of losing it all if the investment does not pay off. 

There is a distinct difference between saving and investing as the latter approach is riskier than the former. By investing, you are betting on the upside while bearing the downside risk. Saving, in contrast, comes without downside risk. That difference becomes blurry when the money you save is losing value. In fact, saving becomes inherently a losing approach. Logically, you will be forced to place a speculative bet with the hope to outperform the guaranteed loss of value. You are required to find a way to hedge your bet…

Humans over time have always sought out a medium to save their economic energy for a better future. That used to be beads and seashells, and evolved to precious metals like gold and silver. 

Money is a tool that we use to save our economic energy over time, and exchange value with each other. 

I spend time fishing, you spend time farming, the neighbor spends time building homes, and society rewards us with money for the time and energy we spent being productive

Today, the tool that we use to save our economic energy is clearly losing value over time. The nominal value remains the same, but the purchasing power is decreasing. In other words, the value of our time today will be worth less in the future. 

That explains why everyone around us is looking for the next best investment opportunity. We are all needing to become investment experts, speculators, on top of our respective professions. Speculation became necessary, and some of us are forced into a high-time preference lifestyle. 

Earn now and spend it all now before you lose it.

This should not be the case… 

Time is Money

Our time is the only scarce resource we all have. We use it to be productive and generate economic value, then store that value in the form of money in order to reap the rewards in the future. 

Money is the abstract representation of our time. Hence, time is money.  

In January 2009, at the height of the global financial crisis, a software protocol called Bitcoin was released pseudonymously by Satoshi Nakamoto. This individual (or group) released a whitepaper a few months prior named “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” outlining how the system enables secure, peer-to-peer transactions without relying on a central authority. (https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf)

Although there are more technical concepts involved, the bitcoin protocol can be thought of as a language for communicating value. The same way we respect the rules of the English language to communicate ideas with one another, bitcoin users adhere to the network’s consensus rules to communicate value with each other in a peer-to-peer fashion. 

There are no physical or digital coins in the bitcoin network. Rather, it is a collection of transactions transferring value from sender to recipient. Transactions are validated and propagated by nodes across the network, before being recorded into the blockchain. The Bitcoin blockchain is a global public ledger of all transactions that cannot be altered. 

More importantly, Bitcoin is money that does not lose value overtime. 

• Its supply is capped at 21 million coins. 

• Its scarcity increases over time due to the predictable issuance rate, which halves roughly every 4 years.

• Its decentralized nature puts the power in the hands of its users.

• There is no governing body that can devalue or alter it. 

It is a tool that we can use to save our economic energy over time, and be able to use it later. 

It is the scarcest verifiable commodity: we cannot make more of it no matter how high its demand grows. That cannot be said for any other commodity in the world today. 

A savings tool in disguise

See, most people tend to view bitcoin as another speculative investment. They presume they have missed out on another investment opportunity, and it’s now too late to get in. 

Meanwhile, it is quite the opposite. Bitcoin’s value will keep growing over time due to its deflationary nature.

With bitcoin, we can save for a better future, for a rainy day, and spend more time with our loved ones or focusing on our craft to build better tools or artistic masterpieces. It takes away the burden of having to speculate on which stock will perform best, or which real estate market will grow the fastest, all while working one or multiple jobs

Bitcoin is not another investment opportunity you missed out on. It is the best savings tool humans have invented (or discovered), while everything else is the speculative bet. Bitcoin is the hedge against the guaranteed devaluation of money, without any counterparty risk. 

What we were taught as children is true. With the right tool, the idea that saving will help you build wealth overtime stands true. Bitcoin might seem like an investment today given the volatility during its adoption phase. In reality, it is the perfect way to store your time and economic energy and grow your wealth. Whether you make $1/hour or $1M/hour, you can start saving in the best money humans have invented. 

My goal is to help people around me understand this technology and break the stigma around it. 

Bitcoin is not the next best investment. 

It is the best tool we have found to store our economic energy across time and exchange value with each other.

Bitcoin is Money.

@ 47259076:570c98c4

"Know thyself and you will know the universe and the gods"

This is the greatest truth.

Knowing yourself is a process that is perhaps eternal.

Knowing yourself means making conscious what is unconscious, in all fields.

Making conscious your material reality, your emotions, your thoughts, your mind, your patterns, your spirit, your flaws, your qualities, etc.

The journey is within.

And in this process, burning everything that is not you.

Burning everything so only the essential remains.

The essential being your higher self.

You are not your body, you are not your emotions, you are not your mind, etc...

You are pure consciousness.

Everyday we can learn from him, but if we are asleep, we will not realize the gold opportunities passing right in front of our eyes.

Everyday he teaches us.

If everyday he teaches us, why stress so much for having an astral projection?

If an astral projection happens with you, it will be a good experience indeed, if you know how to value opportunities.

Otherwise, you may see some """evil"" spirits trying to scare you.

Therefore, don't depend on astral projection for your spiritual growth.

In fact, don't depend on anything.

Don't depend on books, don't depend on people, don't depend on "psychologists", don't depend on "rituals", don't depend on institutions, and of course, don't depend on the "government".

@ 99e7936f:d5d2197c

Staugefahr

Manchmal ist der Lehrer interessanter als der Unterrichtsinhalt. Man lernt dann beiläufig, obwohl  das Thema öde ist. Mir ging das vor vielen Jahren so, als ich in meiner Ausbildung zur Krankenschwester Inhalte zum Thema Hygiene lernen durfte. Unser Lehrer für Hygiene duschte morgens in der Schule, bevor er uns unterrichtete, damit er, sauber vor uns sitzend, glaubwürdig über die permanente Gefahr der Mikroorganismen im Klinikalltag reden konnte. Er lebte das, was er predigte. Er bot pathogenen Keimen keinen Nährboden. Er pflegte sich und seine Kleidung penibel. Er trug Hosen, Pullover und Schuhe aus den 70ern, die kaum Gebrauchsspuren aufwiesen. Er blieb Überzeugungen, die er einmal für richtig befunden hatte, treu, war aber stets bereit, etwas Neues anzunehmen, wenn dies Sinn machte. Bevor er jedoch Neues annahm, prüfte er mehrfach gründlich, las Fachliteratur und vermied Gespräche mit Experten.

Er versuchte damals, Entscheidungsträger in der Klinik darüber aufzuklären, wie man mit einfachen Mitteln Infektionen im Hause hätte minimieren können. Meist wurden seine Vorschläge nur zögerlich umgesetzt, obwohl seine Argumente fachlich richtig waren.

Mir kommt es heute mit dem Thema „Trauma“ und „traumatisierte Gesellschaft“ ähnlich vor. Niemand möchte sich mit dem Thema beschäftigen, obwohl doch alle wissen müssten, dass viele unangenehme Verhaltensweisen von Menschen im Alltag oder in der Politik etwas mit diesem Thema zu tun haben. Aber das Thema scheint irgendwie unbequem, mühsam und, vor allem, nicht greifbar.

Ein Trauma kann man genau so wenig sehen wie einen pathogenen Keim, deswegen scheint die Auseinandersetzung mit diesem Thema wie eine unappetitliche und lästige Pflichtaufgabe, die man nur mit spitzen Fingern anfasst, wenn überhaupt.

Wie kann man dieses dringend zu besprechende Thema „Trauma“ sichtbar machen?

Vielleicht geht das mit dem Bild vom Stau auf der Autobahn. Den kennt jeder. Und den Stau kann man nicht übersehen. Große leuchtende Schilder weisen auf ihn hin, damit man nicht unvorbereitet in ihn hinein fährt. Überall wird vor dem Stau gewarnt. Und trotzdem passiert er, denn wir sind der Stau, wir selbst machen den Stau.

Stau passiert, weil es Hindernisse auf unserem Weg gibt.

Der Stau ist VOR dem Hindernis. Die Traumafolgen sind gewissermaßen der Stau in unserem Leben, obwohl das Trauma HINTER uns liegt. Wie geht das? Ein Trauma liegt zeitlich gesehen zwar in der Vergangenheit, aber energetisch gesehen liegt es immer vor uns. Es begleitet uns, verfolgt uns, holt uns ein. Energie kennt kein VOR oder HINTER. Energie ist allgegenwärtig. Sobald das Trauma integriert ist, hört dieser Spuk auf. Aber ein nicht bearbeitetes Trauma stellt definitiv ein Hindernis auf unserem (Lebens)Weg dar. Es liegt dann VOR uns.

Dieser Vergleich humpelt ein wenig, zeigt aber dennoch die einfachen Mechanismen von Trauma auf, wie ich finde.

Auf der Autobahn gibt es also ein Hindernis. Entweder gibt es eine bekannte Baustelle, die wir bereits beim Planen der Route zur Kenntnis genommen haben (Trauma ist bereits gut bekannt). Oder es gibt einen Unfall auf der Strecke vor uns, den niemand absehen konnte (Das frühe Trauma wird in einer Alltagssituation plötzlich aktiviert). Jedenfalls stehen wir dann geplant oder ungeplant im Stau, vielmehr sind wir der Stau. Es geht nur langsam oder gar nicht mehr weiter, obwohl der (Lebens)Motor läuft. Bei Trauma ist das auch so. Trauma bewirkt ganz viel Entwicklungsverzögerung in einzelnen Lebensbereichen. Menschen erlernen mehrere Berufe, brauchen länger, um beruflich anzukommen, heiraten später, mehrfach oder nie. Menschen mit Trauma haben manchmal auch beruflich wie privat große Erfolge, fallen dann aber tief, um dadurch letztlich neu geboren zu werden. Trauma sieht man nicht immer auf den ersten Blick. Es kann auch hinter jeder normalen Fassade stecken. Je nach Schwere des Traumas, kann Trauma auch alle Lebensbereiche gleichermaßen treffen. Das  entspricht dann dem Pendler, der regelmäßig Sommer wie Winter im Stau steht und auch schon selbst mal eine Panne, im Stau stehend, hatte.

Man erreicht einfach nicht die Ziele, die man sich selbst gesteckt hat. Man kann dann versuchen, die nächste Abfahrt zu nehmen, einen Umweg zu fahren, während des Staus etwas anderes zu erledigen, sich selbst zu erzählen, dass ein Stau gar kein Hindernis sei, sondern eine prima Gelegenheit, um eine Pause zu machen. Und man kann andere Menschen anrufen und erklären, dass man später komme oder sonstiges tun. Aber man steht im Stau, man ist der Stau. Es geht nicht so weiter, wie gewünscht, und man muss das hinnehmen. Verschiedene unangenehme Gefühle melden sich zwangsläufig. Man stellt sich die Sinnfrage, man schaut, wie andere mit dem Stau umgehen, und man möchte gefühlt nie wieder in einem Stau stehen, weil es nervt. Es bringt einen nicht um, aber es nervt. Und es ist ja nicht das erste Mal. Man möchte so gern ein Leben haben ohne Stau. Das wär´s. Es nervt einfach. Und dann nach langer Zeit, mit Blick auf die Tankanzeige, geht es endlich weiter. Die Autos fahren langsam an und der Verkehr rollt wieder. Man wirft einen kurzen Blick auf das Verkehrshindernis und fährt dann zügig weiter. Denn man will nur noch weg von diesem Streckenabschnitt/ Lebensabschnitt. Der Stresspegel im Körper geht runter, man atmet durch und entspannt sich. Aber es war unschön. Nächstes Mal will man die Route besser planen oder gleich mit dem Zug fahren. Man ist erleichtert und hat endlich die Kontrolle über sein Leben zurück. Jetzt ist alles möglich.

Es gibt viele Parallelen zwischen einem Stau und einem Trauma bzw. den Traumafolgen.

Traumabewältigung ist jedoch viel schmerzhafter, als an einem Verkehrshindernis nach längerer Wartezeit einfach vorbei zu fahren. Und man verpasst auch mehr im Leben als nur eine Stunde Zeit, die man auf leblosem Asphalt verbringt. Der Preis, den man für Trauma bezahlt, ist kaum zu beziffern. Und ein Trauma wirft nicht nur die Sinnfrage auf, sondern auch die Frage nach der eigenen Identität. Im Stau auf der Autobahn weiß ich genau, wer ich bin. Aber nach einem frühen Trauma gehen einige Seelenanteile auf eine lange Reise. Und wenn ein Trauma später im Leben passiert, dann sagen Menschen: „Ich habe mich selbst nicht mehr wieder erkannt.“ Trauma wirbelt alles in Dir durcheinander. Und genau darin liegt die Chance. Du musst jedes Teil, jeden Aspekt Deiner Persönlichkeit einzeln in die Hand nehmen, an den richtigen Ort zurück legen, und dadurch lernst Du Dich selbst kennen (und lieben) wie nie zuvor. Der Gewinn von Traumaarbeit übersteigt den zuvor gezahlten Preis. Das nennt man dann posttraumatisches Wachstum. Man ist erleichtert und hat viel mehr als nur die Kontrolle über sein Leben zurück. Eigentlich ist das schon die ganze Geschichte.

Das riesige Problem an der Traumabewältigung ist halt, dass es ein so  schmerzhafter und langwieriger Prozess ist. Aber auch hier gibt es gute Nachrichten. Viel von dem Kummer, den wir „im Stau“ erleben, hat etwas mit unseren positiv wie negativ übertriebenen Erwartungen an uns und andere und dem verloren gegangenen Kulturwissen in Bezug auf das Thema „Trauma“ zu tun. Trauma hat die Eigenart, in Vergessenheit zu geraten. Daher gibt es viele falsche Verkehrsmeldungen diesbezüglich. Deswegen möchte ich mein Erfahrungswissen zum Thema „Trauma“ teilen, weil ich denke, dass das Ängste abbauen kann, sich diesem Thema auf ganz natürliche Weise anzunähern, vergleichbar mit der WDR-Produktion „der siebte Sinn“ und getreu dem Motto „Gefahr erkannt, Gefahr gebannt“.

Man kann jedes Problem aufbauschen oder sachlich betrachten. Und es macht einen riesigen Unterschied, ob man mit einem Problem allein gelassen wird, oder ob man wohlwollende und kundige Hilfe an der Seite hat. Und genau dies sind meine zentralen Kritikpunkte zum Thema. Das Thema „Trauma“ wird  als unlösbar hingestellt und dadurch unnötig aufgebauscht. Deswegen muss man dieses Thema quasi schon vermeiden, wenn man sich nicht den Tag verderben möchte. Und in der Folge werden von Experten Hilfen angepriesen, die aber leider oft nicht zuverlässig helfen können, weil das Thema ja unlösbar ist. Der verhängnisvolle Kreis schließt sich, und man kommt ins Schleudern.

Kulturwissen wird verfälscht und verdreht, ein übles Schleudertrauma entsteht.

Nein, mal im Ernst, ich möchte das Thema sachlich betrachten und zumindest Impulse für eine günstige Betrachtungsweise geben. Diese Impulse kommen aus meinen persönlichen Erfahrungen und aus Beobachtungen, die ich gemacht habe. Mir ist bewusst, dass jeder Mensch Verletzungen und spätere Probleme, die daraus resultieren, unterschiedlich erlebt. Aber vielleicht geht es gerade um diesen in unserer Kultur fehlenden analogen, lebendigen und authentischen Austausch von Nicht-Experten über die verschiedenen Verletzungen, die daraus resultierende Probleme und die ­- sehr wohl - vorhandenen Lösungen.

Trauma ist das, was man draus macht.

Ich persönlich kenne niemanden, der kein Trauma erlebt hat.

Leben bedeutet immer auch, dass man Verletzungen erlebt.

Trauma passiert jedem.

Trauma passiert auch robusten Menschen.

Bestimmte Traumata haben immer sehr ähnliche Traumafolgen. Man ist nicht alleine damit.

Menschen reagieren ähnlich auf bestimmte Ereignisse im Leben, das hängt mit unserem Menschsein, der Biologie und der Evolution zusammen.

Menschen reden nicht gern über ihr Trauma.

Menschen schämen sich für ihr Trauma.

Menschen geben sich selbst die Schuld für ihr Trauma.

Menschen versuchen alles, um ihr Trauma zu vergessen oder ungeschehen zu machen.

Menschen erleben einen tiefen Schmerz durch Trauma.

Menschen werden aggressiv, weil sie selber verletzt wurden.

Menschen werden durch Aggression selbst zum Täter. Diese Gefahr besteht zumindest.

Menschen lehnen sich selbst ab für diese aggressiven Impulse.

Alle Gefühle haben eine Funktion. Auch negative Gefühle haben eine Funktion.

Negative Gefühle beschützen unser Leben.

Deswegen sind auch negative Gefühle im bestimmten Maße gut.

Der Schmerz, der durch Trauma entsteht, hat jedoch eine besondere Funktion.

Streng genommen, ist er kein Gefühl, aber egal.

Er ist jedenfalls der letzte und wichtigste Hüter des Lebens. Man sollte ihn nicht übergehen oder versuchen, ihn weg zu machen. Er ist die rote Ampel, die den Stau regelt.

Eine rote Ampel in einem Stau zu ignorieren, ist verhängnisvoll.

Halte lieber an dieser roten Ampel im Stau, auch wenn es schmerzt.

Dieser Schmerz ist die schwierigste, aber auch wichtigste Herausforderung bei der Traumabewältigung, denn er verzögert Dein ohnehin gestautes Leben noch zusätzlich.

Wer es schafft, die Geduld aufzubringen und sich diesem Schmerz hinzugeben, der erlebt Wunder.

Dieses schlimmste Gefühl bringt Dir quasi Dein Leben und die grüne Welle zurück.

Wenn der Schmerz zu Dir kommt, dann heiße ihn willkommen.

Wir sind gesellschaftlich betrachtet mit unseren unguten Verhaltensweisen mittlerweile im Stau angekommen, und die Ampel, die den Stau regelt, steht auf Rot.

Je ehrlicher wir den Schmerz jetzt zulassen, spüren und nicht wegmachen, desto eher sind wir bereit, unbequeme Veränderungen, die vielleicht mit Verzicht, Orientierungslosigkeit und zaghaften Versuchen zu tun haben, zu beginnen. Im Schmerz wächst ein Bewusstsein dafür, was richtig ist. Und es wächst die Kraft, das Gute zu tun. Der Schmerz macht entschlossen. Der Schmerz zeigt, wo das Lebendige liegt und dass es schützenswert ist. Der Schmerz reduziert unseren Blick auf das Wesentliche, auf das Leben und die Liebe, was aufs Gleiche heraus kommt. Der Schmerz markiert einfach nur die Grenze des Lebens. Und deswegen ist er gut, besonders in diesen Tagen.

Heiße den Schmerz willkommen, er gibt uns alle Information FÜR das Leben.

@ 5d4b6c8d:8a1c1ee3

You'd think I'd be most excited to talk about that awesome Pacers game, but, no. What I'm most excited about this week is that @grayruby wants to continue Beefing with Cowherd.

Still, I am excited to talk about Tyrese Haliburton becoming a legendary Knicks antagonist. Unfortunately, the Western Conference Finals are not as exciting. Also, why was the MVP announcement so dumb?

The T20k cricket contest is tightening up, as we head towards the finish. Can @Coinsreporter hold on to his vanishing lead?

@Carresan has launched Football Madness. Let's see if we understand whatever the hell this is any better than we did last week.

On this week's Blok'd Shots, we'll ridicule Canada for their disgraceful loss in the World Championships and talk about the very dominant American Florida Panthers, who are favorites to win the Stanley Cup.

Are the Colorado the worst team in MLB history?

The Tush Push has survived another season. Will the NFL eventually ban it or will teams adjust?

Plus, whatever else Stackers want to talk about.

https://stacker.news/items/987399

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

American Bitcoin, a bitcoin mining company backed by President Donald Trump’s sons, is going public in a new merger deal with Gryphon Digital Mining. Investors and political observers are taking notice as it presents a mixture of Bitcoin, Wall Street and the Trump brand.

This reverse merger allows for American Bitcoin Corporation to become a publicly traded company. This will happen through a stock-for-stock merger with Gryphon Digital Mining, a small-cap bitcoin miner already listed on the Nasdaq.

Once the deal is done, the new company will be called American Bitcoin and will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ABTC. The merger is expected to close in the 3rd quarter of 2025.

Eric Trump, who will be the Co-Founder and the Chief Strategy Officer, said:

“Our vision for American Bitcoin is to create the most investable Bitcoin accumulation platform in the market.”

The Trump family’s involvement has gotten a lot of attention. Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. launched American Bitcoin in March this year with digital asset infrastructure company Hut 8, which owns 80% of American Bitcoin.

American Bitcoin leadership team — Hut 8 presentation

After the merger, American Bitcoin shareholders — including the Trump brothers and Hut 8 — will own about 98% of the new company. Gryphon shareholders will own 2% even though Gryphon is the public company facilitating the merger.

Instead of an IPO (Initial Public Offering), American Bitcoin is going public through what’s called a reverse merger. This means it will take over Gryphon’s public listing.

This is often faster and simpler than a traditional IPO. It allows American Bitcoin to access public capital markets while maintaining operational and strategic control.

Hut 8 CEO Asher Genoot said the merger is a big step forward for the company. “By taking American Bitcoin public, we expect to unlock direct access to dedicated growth capital independent of Hut 8’s balance sheet,” Genoot said.

The announcement sent Gryphon’s stock soaring. Shares rose over 280% and Hut 8’s stock went up over 11%. Clearly investors are interested in bitcoin-focused public companies when the asset itself is close to its previous all-time high.

But not everyone is buying. Some investors and analysts are questioning what Gryphon is actually bringing to the table. Gryphon won’t have a seat on the board or any representation in the new management team. Their role seems to be just to provide the public listing.

Many questions remain unanswered because there are no details on mining operations and what Gryphon’s role is beyond the merger.

American Bitcoin’s goal goes far beyond just mining bitcoin. It wants to become a national bitcoin reserve builder and a major player in that space by storing large amounts of bitcoin as a strategic asset.

The company plans to take “capital-light” advantage of Hut 8’s existing infrastructure, so there won’t be any need to build massive new data centers. Hut 8 already manages over 1,000 megawatts of energy capacity, and apparently, they will handle all the mining operations.

This is happening at a tough time for the mining industry in the U.S. and globally.

Profit margins are shrinking, and companies are really feeling the pinch of high operational costs. Hut 8 just reported a 58% drop in revenue and a $134 million net loss for the first quarter of 2025.

@ 63d59db8:be170f6f

In a world overwhelmed by contradictions—climate change, inequality, political instability, and social disconnection—absurdity becomes an unavoidable lens through which to view the human condition. Inspired by Albert Camus' philosophy, this project explores the tension between life’s inherent meaninglessness and our persistent search for purpose.\ \ The individuals in these images embody a quiet defiance, navigating chaos with a sense of irony and authenticity. Through the act of revolt—against despair, against resignation—they find agency and resilience. These photographs invite reflection, not on solutions, but on our capacity to live meaningfully within absurdity.

Visit Katerina's website here.

Submit your work to the NOICE Visual Expression Awards for a chance to win a few thousand extra sats:

https://noicemagazine.com/SUBMISSIONS

@ a296b972:e5a7a2e8

Was Rudolf Steiner vor gut 110 Jahren an Informationen zusammengetragen und kommentiert hat, liest sich in großen Abschnitten so, als ob es in der heutigen Zeit geschrieben worden wäre. Man trifft auf eine ganze Reihe von „guten, alten Bekannten“, die auch heute noch maßgeblich an den Strippen ziehen. Deutlich wird, dass ein Krieg nicht aus heiterem Himmel ausbricht, sondern das im Vorfeld schon Kräfte wirken, die auf einen Krieg hinarbeiten. Wie jetzt wieder im Ukraine-Krieg wird diese Vorgeschichte gerne versucht unter den Teppich zu kehren und hochkompetente, sauber recherchierende, akribisch Quellen angebende Journalisten, wie z. B. Frau Gabriele Krone-Schmalz oder Herr Patrik Baab, der sich auf eigene Kosten einen Eindruck von vor Ort verschafft hat, werden versucht mundtot zu machen und mittlerweile gar nicht mehr zu Gesprächen im öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunk eingeladen, weil sie die fortlaufende Gehirnwäsche des Ministeriums für Wahrheit und Narrative mit ihren Aussagen gefährden. Andere kommen auf die Sanktionsliste.

Auch heute ist von den „Guten“ und den „Bösen“ die Rede, was darauf schließen lässt, dass man durchaus eingesteht, dass hier geistige Kräfte am Werk sind. Rudolf Steiner kommt auf diese immer wieder zu sprechen. Aus der von ihm gegebenen anthroposophischen Geisteswissenschaft heraus, beleuchtet er die Vorgänge innerhalb der gesamten Menschheitsentwicklung. Mancher stört sich hier an Begriffen, die man heute so nicht mehr verwenden würde. Dabei ist immer zu berücksichtigen, zu welcher Zeit die Vorträge gehalten wurden. Die Anthroposophie von Rudolf Steiner gilt heute bei vielen auch als „umstritten“, aber was ist das heute nicht? Fast könnte man es schon als Auszeichnung sehen, wenn etwas „umstritten“ ist, denn das ist mittlerweile ein Beweis dafür, dass es Ansichten, Meinungen und Einschätzungen gibt, die in einer gesunden Demokratie innerhalb einer Kontroverse zu einem Dialog und Austausch beitragen können, der jedoch leider derzeit weder gewünscht ist, noch gepflegt wird, was an der „Spaltung“ deutlich zu sehen ist. Und auch unter den Anthroposophen hat die „Spaltung“ Einzug gehalten.

Um das aktuelle, viele Bereiche umschließende, gigantische Lügenkonstrukt aufrecht zu erhalten, ist mittlerweile jedes Mittel recht, von der Deutungshoheit der Wahrheit durch systemkonforme Begutachter, bis hin zu infantil-kleingeistigen Kindergartenspielchen, um gegenläufige Meinungen oder Oppositionelle in ihrem Wirken zu behindern.

Der gesunde Hausverstand wird ausgetrocknet, und der Garten des Wahnsinns wird durch immer neue Ideen kranker Geister weiter gegossen, gehegt und gepflegt.

Die Zeitgeschichtlichen Betrachtungen von Rudolf Steiner bestehen aus 3 Bänden aus der GA (Gesamtausgabe):

GA 173 a – Wege zu einer objektiven Urteilsbildung

GA 173 b – Das Karma der Unwahrhaftigkeit

GA 173 c – Die Wirklichkeit okkulter Impulse

Sie bestehen aus niedergeschriebenen Vorträgen und einem sehr umfangreichen Anhang mit näheren Erläuterungen und einer Schilderung der Entstehung dieser drei Bände.

Es bedarf einiger Eingewöhnung in die zur damaligen Zeit verwendete Sprache Rudolf Steiners, der ein Meister im Bilden von Schachtelsätzen war. Der Inhalt jedoch, und auf den kommt es ja an, berührt immer wieder den in allen Menschen vorhandenen Wahrheitssinn.

Hier nur eine kleine Kostprobe, die vielleicht das Interesse wecken kann, sich mit diesem derzeit besonders aktuellen Werk näher zu beschäftigen.

GA 173a, 6. Vortrag, Seite 205 und Seite 206, Dornach, 17. Dezember 1916:

„Viel intimer, viel verborgener liegen die Dinge bei der englischen Politik, die ja ganz beeinflußt ist von dem, was in solcher Weise hinter ihr steckt. Da handelt es sich darum, daß man die Wege findet, um die entsprechenden Menschen an die richtigen Plätze zu befördern. Okkultistische Menschen, im Hintergrunde stehend, sind oftmals – na, verzeihen Sie – Einser, bloße Einser, und bedeuten für sich nichts Besonderes; sie brauchen noch etwas anderes – sie brauchen Nullen. Nullen sind ja nicht Einser, aber (fügt man eine Null zu einer Eins), dann wird gleich eine Zehn daraus. Und wenn man noch mehr Nullen hinzufügt – jede Null ist nur eine Null, aber wenn die Eins irgendwo steckt, dann ist gar mancherlei da, zum Beispiel die Tausend, und wenn man die Eins zudeckt, dann sind (scheinbar) nur die Nullen da; die Nullen brauchen aber nur in der entsprechenden Weise mit den Einsern kombiniert zu sein, und sie brauchen nicht einmal viel zu wissen von der Art, wie sie mit den Einsern kombiniert sind.“

Schildert diese 108 Jahre alte Beschreibung nicht genau das, was sich heute vor unseren Augen abspielt?

Dieser Artikel wurde mit dem Pareto-Client geschrieben

* *

(Bild von pixabay)

@ 2b468756:7930dd9c

Agorisme is libertarisme in de praktijk: op legale wijze maximale economische en persoonlijke vrijheid. Samen ontdekken en delen we wat er allemaal mogelijk is. We doen dit door: - organiseren jaarlijks agorismefestival - organiseren meerdere themadagen / excursies per jaar - bundelen praktische kennis op Agorisme Wiki - online uitwisselen via (thema)appgroepen

Op deze site worden activiteiten aangekondigd en kun je je opgeven.

Binnenkort: - cursussen metselen, stucen en vloeren - reis naar libertarisch dorp Walden Woods en Liberstad in Noorwegen - introductie Krav Maga zelfverdediging

We zijn gelieerd aan de libertarische partij.

Graag tot ziens!

@ 8bf578f4:b6303c41

tag discoverability test

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@ 8bf578f4:b6303c41

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@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

May 13, 2025 – We are proud to announce that My First Bitcoin has received a $1 million grant from #startsmall. With this financial support from Jack Dorsey’s philanthropic initiative, we will continue to serve grassroots Bitcoin education initiatives worldwide.

This grant accelerates our work in the creation and distribution of free and open-source Bitcoin education materials and infrastructure.

It will not only help us improve existing resources, such as the Bitcoin Diploma, Bitcoin Intro Course, and teacher training workshops, but also to scale our digital platforms like our Online School and Community Hub. 

As a non-profit, founded in 2021, we have grown from a local project into a global movement. Besides creating curricula and frameworks, our team has directly taught tens of thousands of in-person students, as we workshop and refine our materials based on real world feedback.

In 2023, we launched the Independent Bitcoin Educators Node Network, providing a space for others to join us on our mission. The network spans 65+ projects from 35+ countries, including circular economies, meetup organizers and other grassroots projects.

All commit to the same six pillars: that their education is independent, impartial, community-led, Bitcoin-only, quality, and focused on empowerment over profit.

While we support that network, it is now self-governing. We always seek to give power-to, rather than have power-over.

John Dennehy, founder and Executive Director of My First Bitcoin, explains:

“The revolution of Bitcoin education is that it teaches students HOW to think, not WHAT to think. Funding from sources with their own incentives is the greatest vulnerability that threatens that. Education will be captured by whoever funds it.

“We will never take any government money and frequently turn down funding from corporations and companies. The subtle influence of funding has ruined fiat education and we need to create alternative models for the revolution of Bitcoin education to realize its full potential.”

Funding for Bitcoin education must be transparent.

This grant is a huge win for all of us. For Bitcoin itself, but even more for Independent Bitcoin Education as a whole. It enables us to serve the global community better than ever before. It shows everyone what can be achieved if you stay close to your values.

“My First Bitcoin is a proof-of-concept for all independent Bitcoin educators that if you stay on the mission, even when it’s challenging, then you will come out the other side even stronger,” added Dennehy.

Arnold Hubach, Director of Communications of My First Bitcoin, continued:

“Open source money deserves open source education. Over the past few years, we’ve seen growing demand for our resources around the world, and we remain committed to serving everyone in the Bitcoin space who needs support.

“This funding enables us to plan further into the future and continue being the first-stop provider of free educational tools.”

We’re grateful to #startsmall for believing in our mission and for understanding that Bitcoin education should always be free from external influence. We’re also grateful to the community for helping us arrive at this point where we are ready to receive such a grant.

You lead us to where we are today. You have been our primary funding source. You will continue to lead us forward.

We will always serve the community.

We’re also grateful for our amazing team and their proof of work. The grant will accelerate the work that they are already doing, such as curricula development, teacher training programs, the expansion of the global network, building online platforms, and providing in-person classes.

We will continue to lead by example, we will continue to push the limits, and we will continue to reimagine what’s possible.

We do not seek to please power in this world, we seek to create a proof-of-concept for a better one where the individual is empowered and able to think critically.

If you are an educator in need of tools or infrastructure; please contact us.

If you can help us continue to build out these tools and maintain this growing global movement; please contact us.

If you are aligned with our mission and are a supporter of independent Bitcoin education, please donate.

We work for the public. In public.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Not ECDSA. Not Schnorr. Meet DahLIAS.

Aggregate signatures aren’t new. They’ve been around since the early 2000s. But building one that actually works in Bitcoin’s security model, with Bitcoin’s elliptic curve, has never been proven. Developers speculated it might be possible. They shared hand-wavy sketches and said, “maybe it’d work like MuSig2, but across transaction inputs.” The idea lingered for years as developer folklore, close, never provably confirmed.

That changed recently, when Jonas Nick and Tim Ruffing of Blockstream Research, together with Yannick Seurin of Ledger, published a paper that turned this cryptographic ghost story into a concrete, provable result. DahLIAS is the first formal, secure construction of a full constant-size aggregate signature (CISA) scheme that works on Bitcoin’s native curve! 

But that’s a lot of words, so let’s break that down:

• Full aggregation: Multiple signatures across different inputs are combined into one — and the result is a 64 byte signature whose size stays constant, no matter how many signers or inputs. 
• Cross-input: Each signer can authorize different inputs, and all combine into one signature.

It adds no significant new assumptions beyond those already relied on by Bitcoin. DahLIAS builds a new cryptographic primitive using the same math Bitcoin already relies on, unlocking an entirely new kind of signature.

Let’s Talk About Curves and Signatures

Digital signatures are how Bitcoin proves that a user has authorized a transaction. When you go to spend bitcoin, your wallet uses a private key to sign a message, and the network verifies that signature using the matching public key.

Bitcoin uses the secp256k1 curve. It is fast, efficient, and has been battle-tested over time. It supports signature schemes like ECDSA (Bitcoin’s original signature algorithm) and Schnorr (added through Taproot in 2021), which are currently the only signature schemes permitted by Bitcoin consensus.

Traditionally, full signature aggregation relied on mathematical operations not supported by Bitcoin’s curve, secp256k1, which made it seem out of reach. These features have typically relied on other types of elliptic curves. For example, BLS (Boneh–Lynn–Shacham) signatures use a special kind of curve called a pairing-friendly curve, which enables advanced operations like combining many signatures, even on different messages, into one.

The problem is that BLS signatures do not work on secp256k1. While Schnorr was a natural upgrade from ECDSA, since both rely on the same kind of elliptic curve, adding BLS would be a much bigger leap and a departure from Bitcoin’s existing security model. Though technically possible, it would introduce new cryptographic assumptions and add significant complexity to the protocol. Supporting a curve that is pairing-friendly, like BLS12-381, would be a major change for Bitcoin.

This is part of why full signature aggregation has never been done on secp256k1.

Until now.

What Aggregate Signatures Actually Do

Most Bitcoin users are familiar with multisignatures. In a multisig wallet, multiple people jointly authorize the spending of a single UTXO or some specific “coin”. Everyone signs the same input data. This setup is useful for things like shared custody wallets.

Aggregate signatures work differently. Instead of multiple people signing the same input or coin, each signer authorizes a different UTXO in a transaction. These separate signatures are then compressed into one compact proof. With DahLIAS, that means a single 64-byte signature on Bitcoin’s secp256k1 curve that verifies all inputs at once.

That means if you have five inputs from five different people, the transaction needs five different signatures. With an aggregate signature, all of those can be bundled into one. Even if each signer is spending a different input and signing a different part of the transaction, the result is one signature that proves the entire transaction was properly authorized.

It’s like zipping a whole list of approvals into one file. The signature is compact, but still verifiably proves that each signer authorized their specific UTXO.

Instead of verifying 10 separate signatures, you verify one.

This helps realign incentives for privacy. By reducing the signature overhead to a single 64-byte proof, DahLIAS lowers the cost of combining inputs in CoinJoins, making it financially smarter to choose privacy than to go without it.

Why Half-Aggregation Got Close

Shortly after Schnorr signatures were introduced on Bitcoin, developers explored half-aggregation, as a way to compress multiple signatures but they were not fixed size. Each input contributes to the size of the signature, so the transaction still grows with every participant. DahLIAS fixes this by enabling full-aggregation across inputs and signers. No matter how many people are involved or what they’re signing, all their signatures compress into one constant-size, 64-byte proof.

What DahLIAS Actually Unlocks

The main benefit here is that DahLIAS are reducing the size of complex transactions.

DahLIAS uses a two-round interactive signing process. It’s similar to MuSig2 in that regard, but it isn’t a multisignature protocol because it doesn’t require all participants to co-sign the same message. Instead, it aggregates different signatures on different messages across the transaction.

DahLIAS is also faster to verify than checking each signature individually, up to twice as fast in some cases. Lower verification costs make it easier for more people to run full nodes, which helps preserve Bitcoin’s decentralization over time.

Importantly, DahLIAS comes with strong cryptographic guarantees. The scheme includes formal security proofs. Earlier ‘folklore’ approaches to full signature aggregation lacked this, and some were even later shown to be insecure. Fortunately they weren’t adopted prematurely.

It’s worth repeating: DahLIAS is not a multisig protocol. It isn’t comparable to MuSig2 or FROST from a functional standpoint, even if it shares similar cryptographic building blocks. It serves a different purpose. It offers a new way to encode many independent approvals into one clean, verifiable package.

Future Directions

You might think: if DahLIAS is so powerful, why isn’t it a BIP? Why not propose it for Bitcoin consensus?

DahLIAS signatures don’t look like Schnorr or ECDSA signatures. The verification algorithm is different. Instead of taking a single public key, message, and signature, a DahLIAS verifier takes lists of public keys and messages, and a single 64-byte proof.

This makes DahLIAS incompatible with Bitcoin’s current consensus rules. Supporting it at the base layer would require a consensus change. This paper doesn’t propose that change, but it does something equally important.

This paper shows that a full signature aggregation scheme for Bitcoin’s native curve is possible.

That alone is a major step forward.

To make DahLIAS part of Bitcoin, someone would need to write a Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP), maybe even using secp256k1lab. That means specifying the scheme in detail, considering its implications for consensus and implementation, and building community support. This paper lays the cryptographic foundation for that conversation.

The real value of the DahLIAS paper is what it proves. Full signature aggregation on secp256k1 is not just a thought experiment. It’s concrete. It’s efficient. It’s secure. For years, the idea lived in developer folklore. Now, it’s written down, analyzed, and proven. All that’s left is to bring it to Bitcoin—if we want it.

This is a guest post by Kiara Bickers. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.

This post Not ECDSA. Not Schnorr. Meet DahLIAS. first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Kiara Bickers.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

KindlyMD, Nakamoto, and Anchorage Digital Form Strategic Bitcoin Treasury Alliance

Nakamoto Holdings Inc., KindlyMD, Inc., and Anchorage Digital today announced a strategic partnership that will see Anchorage become a trading partner for KindlyMD’s Bitcoin treasury. The partnership will officially take effect upon the close of KindlyMD’s merger with Nakamoto, expected in Q3 2025.

NEW! Anchorage Digital @Nakamoto @KindlyMD

Today we’re thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with Nakamoto Holdings and $KDLY to accelerate the future of corporate Bitcoin adoption. pic.twitter.com/nQueTyutQH

— Anchorage Digital (@Anchorage) May 21, 2025

Anchorage Digital, a U.S. federally chartered digital asset bank, will provide institutional-grade custody, 24/7 trading, and deep liquidity to support the Bitcoin strategy of the combined entity.

“In the not-so-distant-future, the omission of Bitcoin on a balance sheet will be more glaring than its inclusion,” said Nathan McCauley, CEO and Co-Founder of Anchorage Digital. “Until then, companies like Nakamoto-KindlyMD are pioneering a new path forward—one in which Bitcoin is at the heart of corporate strategy.” 

The future of corporate treasury strategy is Bitcoin-native. We're here to make it happen. Pumped to be partnering with @Nakamoto and @KindlyMD.@DavidFBailey’s vision continues to open new doors.

LFG https://t.co/BtUDdwwLQF

— Nathan McCauley (@nathanmccauley) May 21, 2025

The merger between KindlyMD and Nakamoto is backed by approximately $710 million in financing, including $510 million in PIPE funding—the largest ever PIPE for a public crypto-related deal. The goal is to establish a Bitcoin-native corporate treasury strategy that redefines how capital markets engage with digital assets.

“Our goal is to bring Bitcoin to the center of global capital markets within a compliant, transparent structure,” said David Bailey, Founder and CEO of Nakamoto Holdings Inc. “We are excited to partner with Anchorage Digital to implement our vision with the highest levels of security and battle-tested infrastructure and enable us to deliver sustained value to shareholders.”

This announcement follows a key milestone on May 18, when KindlyMD shareholders approved the proposed merger with Nakamoto. The transaction is now expected to close in Q3 2025, pending SEC review and information statement distribution.

“This milestone brings us one step closer to unlocking Bitcoin’s potential for KindlyMD shareholders,” Bailey said yesterday. “We are grateful that KindlyMD shares our vision for a future in which Bitcoin is a core part of the corporate balance sheet.”

With its Bitcoin-first strategy and strategic alliances, the Nakamoto-KindlyMD partnership is set to accelerate institutional Bitcoin adoption—and with Anchorage Digital’s infrastructure behind it, the foundation is now firmly in place.

“By collaborating with Anchorage Digital, we are implementing our Bitcoin treasury strategy with the utmost standards in safety and security for our shareholders,” stated Tim Pickett, CEO of KindlyMD. “Their institutional-grade platform allows us to confidently hold Bitcoin as a treasury asset as we look to unlock access to Bitcoin and drive value for the long term.”

Disclosure: Nakamoto is in partnership with Bitcoin Magazine’s parent company BTC Inc to build the first global network of Bitcoin treasury companies, where BTC Inc provides certain marketing services to Nakamoto. More information on this can be found here. 

This post KindlyMD, Nakamoto, and Anchorage Digital Form Strategic Bitcoin Treasury Alliance first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Liquid Network Surpasses $3.27 Billion in Total Value Locked

Today, the Liquid Federation has announced that the Liquid Network has surpassed $3.27 billion in total value locked (TVL), according to a press release shared with Bitcoin Magazine. 

“Surpassing the $3 billion threshold marks a pivotal moment for both Liquid and Bitcoin, signaling the evolution of Bitcoinʼs ecosystem into a full-fledged platform for global financial markets,” said the CEO and Co-Founder of Blockstream Dr. Adam Back. “As Bitcoin gains mainstream acceptance, and demand for regulated asset tokenization accelerates, Liquid is better positioned than ever to bridge Bitcoin with traditional finance and drive the next wave of capital markets innovation.”

The announcement follows growing interest in tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs), with major moves such as BlackRock’s decision to tokenize a $150 billion Treasury fund. According to a 2025 report by Security Token Market, the tokenized asset market is projected to grow to $30 trillion by 2030.

Liquid supports over $1.8 billion in tokenized private credit and offers products like U.S. Treasury notes and digital currencies through Blockstream’s AMP platform. The network also features fast, low-cost, and confidential transactions, with support for atomic swaps and robust smart contracts.

Governed by over 80 global institutions, Liquid was launched in 2018 as Bitcoin’s first sidechain. It is now preparing for a major upgrade with the mainnet release of Simplicity, aimed at expanding its smart contract capabilities.

To keep up with increasing demand, the Liquid Federation is boosting developer resources and technical onboardings, along with integrations with exchanges, custodians and service providers. Recent bootcamps and important meetings with policy makers in Asia, Europe and Latin America reflect the network’s growing global presence.

This post Bitcoin Liquid Network Surpasses $3.27 Billion in Total Value Locked first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Spark Partners with Breez to Launch Bitcoin-Native SDK for Lightning Payments

Today, Breez and Spark have announced a new implementation of the Breez SDK, built on Spark’s Bitcoin-native Layer 2 infrastructure. According to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine, the update is intended to make it easier for developers to integrate self-custodial Bitcoin Lightning payments into everyday apps and services.

Few companies are as good as @Breez_Tech at putting Bitcoin in people’s hands. We’re incredibly humbled to have them building on Spark.

Learn more → https://t.co/KRPpWJa3os pic.twitter.com/QiCfHbWu9d

— Spark (@buildonspark) May 22, 2025

“This is what the future of Bitcoin looks like — fast, open, and embedded in the apps people use every day. By teaming up with Breez, we’re expanding the ecosystem and giving developers powerful, Bitcoin-native tools to build next-generation payment experiences. Together, we’re building the standard for global, peer-to-peer transactions,” said the creator of Spark Kevin Hurley.

The SDK supports LNURL, Lightning addresses, real-time mobile notifications, and includes bindings for all major programming languages and frameworks. It is designed to allow developers to build directly on Bitcoin without relying on bridges or external consensus. This collaboration gives developers tools to add Bitcoin payment features to apps used for monetization social apps, cross-border remittances, and in-game currencies.

“We need developers to bring Bitcoin into apps people use every day,” said the CEO of Breez Roy Sheinfeld. “That’s why we built the Breez SDK. We’re excited to build on Spark’s revolutionary architecture — giving developers a powerful new Bitcoin-native option and continuing to strengthen Lightning as the common language of Bitcoin.”

Breez will also operate as a Spark Service Provider (SSP), alongside Lightspark, to help support payment facilitation and the growth of Spark’s ecosystem. The new implementation is expected to be released later this year.

“We’re excited to see what developers build with Spark; it’s very exciting to see this come to the world,” said the co-founder and CEO of Lightspark David Marcus.

The Breez SDK is expanding

We’re joining forces with @buildonspark to release a new nodeless implementation of the Breez SDK — giving developers the tools they need to bring Bitcoin payments to everyday apps.

→ https://t.co/iWjZhWRwsx

Bitcoin-Native
Powered by Spark’s…

— Breez (@Breez_Tech) May 22, 2025

Yesterday, Magic Eden also partnered with Spark to improve Bitcoin trading by addressing issues like slow transaction times, high fees, and poor user experience. The integration will introduce a native settlement system aimed at making transactions faster and more cost-effective, without using bridges or synthetic assets.

“We’re proud to be betting on BTC DeFi,” said the CEO of Magic Eden Jack Lu. “We’re going to lead the forefront of all Bitcoin DeFi to make BTC fast, fun, and for everyone with Magic Eden as the #1 BTC native app on-chain.”

This post Spark Partners with Breez to Launch Bitcoin-Native SDK for Lightning Payments first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ aa73d7f7:7f5a99ce

Com o avanço da tecnologia e a crescente demanda por entretenimento digital, plataformas de jogos online têm se tornado cada vez mais populares no Brasil. Uma das mais promissoras do momento é a 8143, um ambiente completo que une inovação, segurança e uma ampla variedade de jogos para todos os perfis de jogadores. Neste artigo, você vai conhecer melhor a proposta da plataforma, seus jogos de destaque e como ela proporciona uma experiência diferenciada aos usuários.

Uma Plataforma Moderna e Intuitiva A 8143foi desenvolvida com foco em oferecer praticidade, acessibilidade e diversão em um só lugar. Desde o primeiro acesso, o usuário encontra uma interface amigável e totalmente adaptada para dispositivos móveis e computadores. A navegação é fluida, com menus bem organizados que facilitam encontrar os principais jogos, promoções e serviços de suporte.

Além do design moderno, a plataforma investe fortemente em segurança digital, utilizando sistemas de criptografia avançados para proteger dados pessoais e transações financeiras dos jogadores. Isso proporciona um ambiente confiável, onde o usuário pode se concentrar apenas em sua diversão.

Diversidade de Jogos para Todos os Gostos Um dos grandes destaques da 8143 é sua biblioteca de jogos extremamente variada. A plataforma oferece opções para todos os estilos, desde os clássicos jogos de mesa, como pôquer e roleta, até máquinas de slots com gráficos modernos e temas envolventes.

Os jogos são desenvolvidos por fornecedores de renome internacional, garantindo alta qualidade visual, trilhas sonoras imersivas e uma jogabilidade fluida. Para quem gosta de jogos com mais interação, há também opções ao vivo, onde o jogador participa de partidas em tempo real com outros usuários e apresentadores reais.

Outro ponto positivo é a constante atualização do catálogo. A 8143 está sempre trazendo novidades, lançamentos e versões exclusivas, mantendo a plataforma dinâmica e sempre atrativa.

Experiência do Jogador: Imersiva e Recompensadora A 8143 entende que uma boa plataforma vai além dos jogos oferecidos — ela precisa criar uma experiência completa para o jogador. Por isso, investe em um sistema de recompensas atrativo, com bônus de boas-vindas, promoções diárias e programas de fidelidade que valorizam quem joga com frequência.

O atendimento ao cliente também é um diferencial. A equipe de suporte da plataforma está disponível 24 horas por dia, sete dias por semana, por meio de chat ao vivo, e-mail e redes sociais, sempre pronta para resolver dúvidas e oferecer auxílio.

Outro fator importante é a velocidade nos depósitos e saques. A 8143 trabalha com métodos de pagamento populares entre os brasileiros, como PIX, carteiras digitais e transferências bancárias, garantindo transações rápidas e seguras.

Conclusão A plataforma 8143 se destaca no mercado nacional por unir inovação, variedade de jogos e uma experiência de usuário de alto nível. É uma opção completa para quem busca diversão online com segurança, conforto e muitas possibilidades de ganho. Seja você um iniciante ou um jogador experiente, a 8143 oferece um ambiente perfeito para explorar o universo dos jogos digitais e se divertir com qualidade.

@ 1c5ff3ca:efe9c0f6

Auto-Deployment on a VPS with GitHub Actions

Introduction

This tutorial describes how you can deploy an application on a VPS using GitHub Actions. This way, changes in your GitHub repository are automatically deployed to your VPS.

Prerequisites

• GitHub Account
• GitHub Repository
• Server + SSH access to the server

Step 1 - SSH Login to Server

Open a terminal and log in via SSH. Then navigate to the .ssh directory

ssh user@hostname cd ~/.ssh

Step 2 - Create an SSH Key

Now create a new SSH key that we will use for auto-deployment. In the following dialog, simply press "Enter" repeatedly until the key is created.

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "service-name-deploy-github"

Step 3 - Add the Key to the authorized_keys File

cat id_ed25519.pub >> authorized_keys

(If you named the key file differently, change this accordingly)

Step 4 - GitHub Secrets

In order for the GitHub Action to perform the deployment later, some secrets must be stored in the repository. Open the repository on GitHub. Navigate to "Settings" -> "Secrets And Variables" -> "Actions". Add the following variables:

• HOST: Hostname or IP address of the server
• USERNAME: Username you use to log in via SSH
• SSHKEY: The private key (copy the content from cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519)
• PORT: 22

Step 5 - Create the GitHub Action

Now create the GitHub Action for auto-deployment. The following GitHub Action will be used: https://github.com/appleboy/scp-action In your local repository, create the file .github/workflows/deploy.yml:

```yaml name: Deploy on: [push] jobs: build: runs-on: ubuntu-latest steps: - uses: actions/checkout@v1 - name: Copy repository content via scp uses: appleboy/scp-action@master with: host: ${{ secrets.HOST }} username: ${{ secrets.USERNAME }} port: ${{ secrets.PORT }} key: ${{ secrets.SSHKEY }} source: "." target: "/your-target-directory"

- name: Executing a remote command
  uses: appleboy/ssh-action@master
  with:
    host: ${{ secrets.HOST }}
    username: ${{ secrets.USERNAME }}
    port: ${{ secrets.PORT }}
    key: ${{ secrets.SSHKEY }}
    script: |
      ls

```

This action copies the repository files to your server using scp. Afterwards, the ls command is executed. Here you can add appropriate commands that rebuild your service or similar. To rebuild and start a docker service you could use something like this or similar: docker compose -f target-dir/docker-compose.yml up --build -d Now commit this file and in the "Actions" tab of your repository, the newly created action should now be visible and executed. With every future change, the git repository will now be automatically copied to your server.

Sources

I read this when trying out, but it did not work and I adapted the deploy.yml file: https://dev.to/knowbee/how-to-setup-continuous-deployment-of-a-website-on-a-vps-using-github-actions-54im

@ aa73d7f7:7f5a99ce

A plataforma 5161 está conquistando o público brasileiro por sua proposta moderna, segura e repleta de entretenimento digital. Com uma interface intuitiva, variedade de jogos e suporte ao jogador de alta qualidade, o 5161 se posiciona como uma excelente escolha para quem busca diversão com praticidade e confiabilidade.

Uma Plataforma Moderna e Segura Desde sua chegada ao mercado, o 5161 tem chamado atenção por seu design responsivo e navegação simplificada. O site é totalmente otimizado para funcionar em qualquer dispositivo, seja computador, tablet ou smartphone, permitindo que o usuário acesse seus jogos preferidos a qualquer hora e em qualquer lugar. Outro diferencial é o compromisso com a segurança: a plataforma utiliza tecnologia de criptografia de ponta para proteger os dados dos jogadores, garantindo uma experiência confiável do início ao fim.

Além disso, o 5161oferece suporte multilíngue e atendimento ao cliente eficiente, disponível 24 horas por dia, 7 dias por semana. Isso demonstra o comprometimento da plataforma com a satisfação de seus usuários, sempre prontos para esclarecer dúvidas ou resolver qualquer situação.

Variedade de Jogos para Todos os Gostos Um dos grandes atrativos do 5161 é sua ampla biblioteca de jogos. A plataforma conta com títulos que vão desde os mais tradicionais até as novidades mais inovadoras do mercado. Os jogadores podem se divertir com jogos de roleta, cartas, slots, pescaria e muito mais — tudo em um único lugar.

Os jogos são fornecidos por desenvolvedores renomados, o que garante gráficos de alta qualidade, trilhas sonoras envolventes e mecânicas justas e empolgantes. Cada título foi cuidadosamente escolhido para proporcionar uma experiência única, capaz de agradar tanto os novatos quanto os veteranos do mundo dos jogos online.

Além da variedade, a plataforma também disponibiliza modos de demonstração gratuitos, ideais para quem deseja testar os jogos antes de fazer qualquer depósito. Isso permite que o jogador conheça melhor o funcionamento e escolha seus favoritos com mais confiança.

Experiência do Jogador em Primeiro Lugar No 5161, cada detalhe foi pensado para proporcionar a melhor experiência possível. Desde o momento do cadastro até a retirada de prêmios, tudo acontece de forma simples e rápida. O processo de registro é descomplicado, e o sistema de pagamentos oferece diversas opções, incluindo transferências bancárias, carteiras digitais e PIX — ideal para o público brasileiro, que busca agilidade nas transações.

Outro ponto de destaque é o sistema de recompensas. A plataforma conta com bônus de boas-vindas atrativos, promoções frequentes e um programa de fidelidade que valoriza os jogadores mais ativos. Isso significa mais chances de jogar e se divertir, com a possibilidade de aumentar os ganhos e explorar novos jogos com vantagens exclusivas.

Conclusão O 5161 se destaca como uma das plataformas de entretenimento digital mais completas e confiáveis disponíveis para o público brasileiro. Com uma interface moderna, biblioteca de jogos diversificada e foco total na experiência do usuário, a plataforma conquista cada vez mais fãs em todo o país. Se você está em busca de diversão segura, recompensadora e acessível, o 5161 é, sem dúvidas, uma excelente escolha para explorar novas emoções online.

@ 95cbd62b:a5270126

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@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A Chinese printer company inadvertently distributed malware that steals Bitcoin through its official drivers, resulting in the theft of over $950,000.

According to local media outlet Landian News, a Chinese printer manufacturer was found to have unknowingly distributed malware designed to steal Bitcoin through its official device drivers.

Procolored, a Shenzhen-based printer company, distributed malware capable of stealing Bitcoin alongside the official drivers for its devices. The company reportedly used USB devices to spread infected drivers and uploaded the compromised software to globally accessible cloud storage services.

Crypto security and compliance firm SlowMist explained how the malware works in a post on X:

The official driver provided by this printer carries a backdoor program. It will hijack the wallet address in the user's clipboard and replace it with the attacker's address: 1BQZKqdp2CV3QV5nUEsqSg1ygegLmqRygj

According to @MistTrack_io, the attacker has stolen 9.3086… https://t.co/DHCkEpHhuH pic.twitter.com/W1AnUpswLU

— MistTrack (@MistTrack_io) May 19, 2025

The consequences of the breach have been significant, with a total of 9.3 BTC stolen — equivalent to over $950,000.

The issue was first flagged by YouTuber Cameron Coward, whose antivirus software detected malware in the drivers during a test of a Procolored UV printer. The software identified both a worm and a trojan virus named Foxif.

When contacted, Procolored denied the accusations, dismissing the antivirus warning as a false positive. Coward then turned to Reddit, where he shared the issue with cybersecurity professionals, drawing the attention of security firm G Data.

G Data’s investigation revealed that most of Procolored’s drivers were hosted on the MEGA file-sharing platform, with uploads dating back to October 2023. Their analysis confirmed the presence of two separate malware strains: the Win32.Backdoor.XRedRAT.A backdoor and a crypto-stealer designed to replace clipboard wallet addresses with those controlled by the attacker.

G Data reached out to Procolored, which stated that it had removed the infected drivers from its storage as of May 8 and had re-scanned all files. The company attributed the malware to a supply chain compromise, saying the malicious files were introduced via infected USB devices before being uploaded online.

Landian News recommended that users who downloaded Procolored drivers in the past six months “immediately run a full system scan using antivirus software.” However, given that antivirus tools are not always reliable, the Chinese media outlet suggested that a full system reset is the safest option when in doubt.

The post Bitcoin malware discovered: Chinese printer manufacturer involved appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Humanity's Natural State Is Chaos
Without order there is chaos. Humans competing with each other for scarce resources naturally leads to conflict until one group achieves significant power and instates a "monopoly on violence."

Power Brings Stability
Power has always been the key means to achieve stability in societies. Centralized power can be incredibly effective in addressing issues such as crime, poverty, and social unrest efficiently. Unfortunately this power is often abused and corrupted.

Centralized Power Breeds Tyranny
Centralized power often leads to tyrannical rule. When a select few individuals hold control over a society, they tend to become corrupted. Centralized power structures often lack accountability and transparency, and rely too heavily on trust.

Distributed Power Cultivates Freedom
New technology that empowers individuals provide us the ability to rebuild societies from the bottom up. Strong individuals that can defend and provide for themselves will help build strong local communities on a similar foundation. The result is power being distributed throughout society rather than held by a select few.

In the short term, relying on trust and centralized power is an easy answer to mitigating chaos, but freedom tech tools provide us the ability to build on top of much stronger distributed foundations that provide stability while also cultivating individual freedom.

The solution starts with us. Empower yourself. Empower others. A grassroots freedom tech movement scaling one person at a time.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ f6488c62:c929299d

ในวันที่ 23 พฤษภาคม 2568 The Wall Street Journal รายงานข่าวที่น่าสนใจว่า ธนาคารยักษ์ใหญ่ของสหรัฐฯ เช่น JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup และ Wells Fargo กำลังพิจารณาความเป็นไปได้ในการพัฒนา Stablecoin ร่วมกัน เพื่อก้าวเข้าสู่โลกของคริปโตเคอเรนซีอย่างเต็มตัว การเคลื่อนไหวครั้งนี้ไม่เพียงสะท้อนถึงการยอมรับสินทรัพย์ดิจิทัลในระบบการเงินกระแสหลัก แต่ยังเป็นก้าวสำคัญในการรักษาความเป็นผู้นำของเงินดอลลาร์สหรัฐในยุคการเงินดิจิทัล.

Stablecoin: อนาคตของการชำระเงินดิจิทัล Stablecoin เป็นสกุลเงินดิจิทัลที่ออกแบบมาเพื่อลดความผันผวนโดยผูกมูลค่ากับสินทรัพย์ที่มีเสถียรภาพ เช่น เงินดอลลาร์สหรัฐ ทำให้เหมาะสำหรับการใช้ในระบบการชำระเงิน การโอนเงินข้ามพรมแดน และการเงินแบบกระจายศูนย์ (DeFi). การที่ธนาคารใหญ่ของสหรัฐฯ หันมาสนใจ Stablecoin ร่วมกัน แสดงถึงความพยายามในการปรับตัวให้เข้ากับความต้องการของผู้บริโภคยุคใหม่ที่ต้องการความรวดเร็วและประหยัดต้นทุนในการทำธุรกรรมทางการเงิน.

ทำไมธนาคารถึงสนใจ Stablecoin? ในปี 2568 ตลาดคริปโตเคอเรนซีกำลังร้อนแรง โดยมูลค่าตลาดรวมของคริปโตทั่วโลกอยู่ที่ 3.64 ล้านล้านดอลลาร์ ซึ่งในจำนวนนี้ Bitcoin มีมูลค่าตลาดสูงสุดที่ 2.2 ล้านล้านดอลลาร์ และราคา Bitcoin ล่าสุดพุ่งแตะ 111,160.66 ดอลลาร์ (ข้อมูล ณ วันที่ 23 พฤษภาคม 2568 เวลา 16:44 น. ตามเขตเวลา +07) นอกจากนี้ ยังมีเม็ดเงินไหลเข้าสู่กองทุนสินทรัพย์ดิจิทัลในสหรัฐฯ กว่า 7.5 พันล้านดอลลาร์ การที่ธนาคารยักษ์ใหญ่ที่มีมูลค่ารวมกันถึง 8 ล้านล้านดอลลาร์เข้ามาในสนามนี้ แสดงถึงศักยภาพในการเปลี่ยนแปลงภูมิทัศน์ของอุตสาหกรรมการเงิน. นโยบายที่เอื้ออำนวยต่อคริปโตในยุคของประธานาธิบดีโดนัลด์ ทรัมป์ และการลดดอกเบี้ยนโยบายของ Fed ยังเป็นปัจจัยสนับสนุนที่สำคัญ.

โอกาสและความท้าทาย การพัฒนา Stablecoin ร่วมกันของธนาคารเหล่านี้เปิดโอกาสให้สหรัฐฯ รักษาความเป็นผู้นำในระบบการเงินดิจิทัล และเพิ่มประสิทธิภาพในระบบการชำระเงินทั่วโลก อย่างไรก็ตาม ความท้าทายที่รออยู่คือการแข่งขันกับ Stablecoin ที่ครองตลาด เช่น USDT และ USDC รวมถึงความไม่แน่นอนด้านกฎระเบียบและความผันผวนของเศรษฐกิจโลกจากนโยบายการค้าของสหรัฐฯ. ธนาคารจะต้องลงทุนในโครงสร้างพื้นฐานที่ปลอดภัยและสอดคล้องกับกฎหมาย เพื่อสร้างความไว้วางใจจากผู้ใช้.

มองไปข้างหน้า การที่ธนาคารชั้นนำของสหรัฐฯ หันมาสนใจ Stablecoin เป็นสัญญาณที่ชัดเจนว่าโลกการเงินกำลังเปลี่ยนผ่านสู่ยุคดิจิทัลอย่างเต็มรูปแบบ การเคลื่อนไหวครั้งนี้อาจเป็นจุดเปลี่ยนที่ทำให้คริปโตเคอเรนซีกลายเป็นส่วนสำคัญของระบบการเงินกระแสหลัก อย่างไรก็ตาม ความสำเร็จจะขึ้นอยู่กับความสามารถในการสร้างนวัตกรรมที่ตอบโจทย์ผู้บริโภคและการจัดการกับความท้าทายด้านกฎระเบียบและการแข่งขันในตลาด. ในอนาคตอันใกล้ Stablecoin จากธนาคารยักษ์ใหญ่อาจกลายเป็นตัวเปลี่ยนเกมในวงการการเงินโลก และเป็นเครื่องมือสำคัญในการเชื่อมโยงระบบการเงินแบบดั้งเดิมเข้ากับโลกดิจิทัล นักลงทุนและผู้บริโภคควรจับตาดูความคืบหน้าของโครงการนี้อย่างใกล้ชิด เพราะมันอาจเป็นก้าวแรกสู่การปฏิวัติครั้งใหญ่ในวงการการเงิน.

@ 3eba5ef4:751f23ae

The article below brings together some of the Q&A from our recent AMA on Reddit. Thanks so much for sending in your questions—we love chatting with you and being part of this awesome community!

Meepo Hardfork Features

What does Meepo bring to CKB, in simple terms?

Imagine upgrading from wooden blocks to LEGO bricks. That’s what the spawn syscall in Meepo does for CKB smart contracts, enabling script interoperability.

Spawn and a series of related syscalls are introduced as a major upgrade to CKB-VM, enabling interoperability, modularity, and better developer experience, by letting scripts call other scripts, like modular apps in an operating system.

Key features of the upgraded VM?

The upgraded CKB-VM Meepo version unlocks true decoupling and reuse of CKB scripts, enhancing modularity and reusability in smart contract development.

For instance, before Meepo, if developers wanted to build a new time lock in CKB, they had to bundle all necessary functionalities—like signature algorithms—directly into a single lock or type script. This often led to bloated scripts where most of the code was unrelated to the developer's original design goal (time lock). With the spawn syscall, scripts can now delegate tasks—such as signature checks—to other on-chain scripts. As new algorithms emerge, the time lock can adopt them without being redeployed—just by calling updated signature scripts, as long as a shared protocol is followed.

This separation allows developers to: - Focus solely on their core logic. - Reuse independently deployed signature verification scripts. - Upgrade cryptographic components without modifying the original script. - Embrace a more OS-like model where smart contracts can call each other to perform specialized tasks.

By enabling true decoupling and reuse, the spawn syscall makes CKB scripts significantly more composable, maintainable, and adaptable.

Besides Spawn, other improvements in Meepo include:

• Block Extension Fields: Enables reading extension fields in blocks, opening new possibilities like community voting on hardforks (as this ckb-zero-lock prototype). More use cases are expected.
• CKB-VM Optimization: Reduces cycle consumption for common compiler-generated code, making scripts faster and more efficient.

A practical example: IPC on Spawn

Here's an example building an entire Inter-Process Communication (IPC) layer on top of spawn syscalls: - GitHub Repo - Blog post: Transforming IPC in CKB On-Chain Script: Spawn and the Custom Library for Simplified Communication

What does “every wallet will become a CKB wallet because of ckb-auth” mean?

Current CKB-VM already comes with the power to build omnilock / ckb-auth, spawn just makes them easier to reuse in new scripts through decoupling and improved modularity.

Upgrade Compatibility Concerns

Will Meepo require a new address format?

No. Meepo does not introduce breaking changes like address format switching. The only required upgrade is support for a new hash type (data2). We aim to keep upgrades smooth and backwards-compatible wherever possible.

RISC-V & CKB’s Long-Term Design Philosophy

Ethereum is exploring RISC-V—CKB has been doing this for years. What’s your take?

The discussion about RISC-V in Ethereum, is partly about the ease of building zk solutions on Ethereum. And it's easy to mix two different use cases of RISC-V in zk:

1. Use RISC-V as the language to write programs running in a zk engine. In this case, we use zero knowledge algorithms to build a RISC-VM and prove programs running inside these RISC-V VMs.
2. Use RISC-V as the underlying engine to run cryptographic algorithms, we then compile the verifier / prover code of zero knowledge algorithm into RISC-V, then we run those verifiers / provers inside RISC-V. Essentially, we run the verifying / proving algorithms of zero knowledge algorithms in RISC-V, the programs running inside ZK VMs can be written in other languages suiting the zk algorithms.

When most people talk about RISC-V in zk, they mean the first point above. As a result, we see a lot of arguments debating if RISC-V fits in zk circuits. I couldn't get a direct confirmation from Vitalik, but based on what I read, when Vitalik proposes the idea of RISC-V in Ethereum, he's at least partly thinking about the second point here. The original idea is to introduce RISC-V in Ethereum, so we can just compile zk verifiers / provers into RISC-V code, so there is no need to introduce any more precompiles so as to support different zk algorithms in Ethereum. This is indeed a rare taken path, but I believe it is a right path, it is also the path CKB chose 7 years ago for the initial design of CKB-VM.

CKB believes that a precompile-free approach is the only viable path if we’re serious about building a blockchain that can last for decades—or even centuries. Cryptographic algorithms evolve quickly; new ones emerge every few years, making it unsustainable for blockchains to keep adding them as precompiles. In contrast, hardware evolves more slowly and lives longer.

By choosing RISC-V, we’ve committed to a model that can better adapt to future cryptographic developments. CKB may be on an uncommon path, but I believe it's the right one—and it's encouraging to see Ethereum now moving in a similar direction. Hopefully, more will follow.

CKB already stands out as the only blockchain VM built on RISC-V and entirely free from cryptographic precompiles. Meepo, with its spawn syscall, builds on this foundation—pushing for even greater modularity and reuse. We're also closely watching progress in the RISC-V ecosystem, with the goal of integrating hardware advances into CKB-VM, making it even more future-proof and a state-of-the-art execution environment for blockchain applications.

Will CKB run directly on RISC-V chips? What are the implications?

The "CKB on RISC-V"comes in several stages:

• For now, CKB-VM can already be compiled into RISC-V architecture and run on a RISC-V CPU (e.g. StarFive board), though optimized native implementations are still in development.
• That said, one key issue in the previous stage was that CKB-VM lacks a high-performance, assembly based VM on RISC-V architecture. Ironically, despite CKB-VM being based on RISC-V, we ended up running a Rust-based VM interpreter on RISC-V CPUs—which is far from ideal.

The root of the problem is that RISC-V CPUs come in many configurations, each supporting a different set of extensions. Porting CKB-VM to run natively on real RISC-V chips isn’t trivial—some extensions used by CKB-VM might not be available on the target hardware. With enough time and effort, a performant native implementation could be built, but it’s a non-trivial challenge that still needs significant work.

How do you see the RISC-V narrative expanding?

We are delighted to see the growing recognition of RISC-V in the blockchain space. For CKB, we firmly believe RISC-V is the best choice. Consensus is costly, so only essential data should be on-chain, with the chain serving as a universal verification layer—this is CKBʼs philosophy, and we have consistently designed and developed in this direction.

CKB Roadmap & Ecosystem Growth

Any plan to boost the usage of the CKB network in the next 6 - 24 months?

Growth starts with better developer experience. Spawn in Meepo significantly lowers the barrier to building complex apps. With better tools and documentation, more devs can experiment on CKB, leading to better apps and more users.

What would you focus on if the secondary issuance budget was huge?

If funding were abundant, we'd expand the Spark Program, support more grassroots projects, and even evolve toward a fully decentralized DAO structure—aligning with our long-term vision of a permissionless, community-owned network.

What’s next for Nervos after Meepo?

We're exploring new RISC-V extensions like CFI, which could boost script security and defend against ROP attacks. Still early-stage, but promising. Check out this: Against ROP Attacks: A Blockchain Architect’s Take on VM-Level Security.

Resources

Take a deeper look at the VM upgrades introduced in the Meepo hardfork:

• RFC 49: CKB-VM Version 2
• RFC 50: VM Syscalls 3

Explore the CFI (Control Flow Integrity) extension on RISC-V:

• Against ROP Attacks: A Blockchain Architect’s Take on VM-Level Security

Check out the Inter-Process Communication (IPC) layer built on top of spawn syscalls:

• Transforming IPC in CKB On-Chain Script: Spawn and the Custom Library for Simplified Communication
• GitHub Repo

@ 82b30d30:40c6c003

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@ a3c6f928:d45494fb

As artificial intelligence becomes more embedded in our lives, it reshapes the way we understand and exercise freedom. AI holds immense potential to enhance liberty—by automating tasks, expanding access to information, and enabling personalized experiences. Yet it also introduces complex challenges that demand careful consideration.

The Promises of AI for Freedom

1. Empowerment through Information: AI democratizes knowledge by curating and delivering information more effectively than ever before. This helps individuals make informed decisions and engage more deeply with society.

2. Efficiency and Liberation: By handling repetitive tasks, AI frees humans to focus on creativity, strategic thinking, and emotional intelligence—areas where freedom of thought thrives.

3. Accessibility and Inclusion: AI-powered tools can break down barriers for people with disabilities, improve language translation, and provide personalized education—broadening freedom for all.

Risks and Responsibilities

1. Surveillance and Privacy: When AI is used for mass surveillance, it threatens personal freedom and autonomy. The right to privacy must be protected.

2. Bias and Discrimination: AI systems can reflect and amplify societal biases, leading to unfair outcomes. Ensuring fairness and transparency is crucial.

3. Autonomy and Control: As AI makes more decisions on our behalf, we risk ceding control. Freedom means preserving human agency in AI-driven systems.

Building an Ethical AI Future

1. Transparent Design: Developers must prioritize clarity and accountability in how AI systems make decisions.

2. Inclusive Development: Involving diverse voices ensures AI serves all communities, not just a privileged few.

3. Regulation and Oversight: Thoughtful policy can protect rights while fostering innovation.

The Road Ahead

AI is neither inherently liberating nor oppressive—it depends on how we use it. The challenge before us is to shape AI in ways that support freedom rather than constrain it. This requires vision, vigilance, and values.

---

“Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.” — Christian Lous Lange

Let’s ensure AI remains a tool for expanding freedom, not restricting it.

@ 975e4ad5:8d4847ce

Bitcoin Is Not Just an Asset

When Satoshi Nakamoto introduced Bitcoin in 2009, the vision was clear: a decentralized currency for everyday transactions, from buying coffee to paying bills. It was designed to bypass banks and governments, empowering individuals with financial freedom. But when Bitcoin is treated as “digital gold” and locked away in wallets, it fails to fulfill this vision. Instead of replacing fiat currencies, it becomes just another investment, leaving people reliant on dollars, euros, or other traditional currencies for their daily needs.

The Problem with HODLing and Loans

Some Bitcoin enthusiasts advocate holding their coins indefinitely and taking loans against them rather than spending. This approach may seem financially savvy—Bitcoin’s value often rises over time, and loans provide liquidity without selling. But this prioritizes personal gain over the broader goal of financial revolution. Someone who holds Bitcoin while spending fiat isn’t supporting Bitcoin’s mission; they’re merely using it to stay wealthy within the existing system. This undermines the dream of a decentralized financial future.

Lightning Network: Fast and Cheap Transactions

One common argument against using Bitcoin for daily purchases is the high fees and slow transaction times on the main blockchain. Enter the Lightning Network, a second-layer solution that enables near-instant transactions with minimal fees. Imagine paying for groceries or ordering a pizza with Bitcoin, quickly and cheaply. This technology makes Bitcoin practical for everyday use, paving the way for widespread adoption.

Why Using Bitcoin Matters

If Bitcoin is only hoarded and not spent, it will remain a niche asset that shields against inflation but doesn’t challenge the fiat system. For Bitcoin to become a true alternative currency, it must be used everywhere—in stores, online platforms, and peer-to-peer exchanges. The more people and businesses accept Bitcoin, the closer we get to a world where decentralized currency is the norm. This isn’t just an investment; it’s a movement for financial freedom.\ \ Bitcoin wasn’t created to sit idly in wallets or serve as collateral for loans. It’s a tool for change that demands active use. If we want a world where individuals control their finances, we must start using Bitcoin—not just to avoid poverty, but to build a new financial reality.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

According to CEO Jamie Dimon, the banking giant will open the door to spot Bitcoin ETFs.

As reported by CNBC, JPMorgan has announced that it will allow its clients to buy Bitcoin, without offering custody services. The bank will give clients access to exchange-traded funds (spot ETFs) on Bitcoin, according to sources familiar with the matter.

During a recent investor event, CEO Jamie Dimon confirmed that the bank will open up to Bitcoin for its clients, while refraining from taking on the responsibility of asset custody. “I am not a fan” of Bitcoin, Dimon clarified during the event.

This decision marks a shift from the position Dimon held in 2017, when he labeled Bitcoin a “fraud,” compared it to the tulip mania bubble, and predicted its imminent collapse. At the time, Dimon had even threatened to fire any JPMorgan employee caught trading Bitcoin, calling such activity “stupid” and against company policy.

Despite this operational turnaround, Dimon continues to personally maintain a skeptical stance toward the cryptocurrency. In a 2024 interview with CNBC, he stated he no longer wanted to discuss Bitcoin publicly, emphasizing that, in his view, it lacks “intrinsic value” and is used for criminal activities such as sex trafficking, money laundering, and ransomware.

These comments from Dimon contrast with the recent optimism shown by JPMorgan analysts regarding Bitcoin’s market prospects. According to reports from the bank, Bitcoin could continue gaining ground at the expense of gold in the second half of the year, driven by rising corporate demand and growing support from various U.S. states.

The post JPMorgan to allow clients to buy Bitcoin ETFs: no custody services appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 662f9bff:8960f6b2

I have been really busy this week with work - albeit back in Madeira - so I had little time to read or do much other than work. In the coming weeks I should have more time - I am taking a few weeks off work and have quite a list of things to do.

First thing is to relax a bit and enjoy the pleasant weather here in Funchal for a few days. With 1st May tomorrow it does seem that there will be quite a bit to do..

Some food for thought for you. Who takes and makes your decisions? Do you make them yourself based on information that you have and know to be true or do you allow other people to take and make decisions for you? For example - do you allow governments or unaccountable beaureaucrats and others to decide for you and even to compell you?

In theory Governments should respect Consent of the Governed and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government". For you to decide if and to what extent governments today are acting in line with these principles. If not, what can you do about it? I dive into this below and do refer back to letter 9 - section: So What can you do about it.

First, a few things to read, watch and listen to

• I Finance the Current Thing by Allen Farrington - when money is political, everything is political...

• Prediction for 2030 (the Great Reset). Sorelle explains things pretty clearly if you care to watch and listen...

• The Global Pandemic Treaty: What You Need to Know . James Corbett is pretty clear too... is this being done with your support? Did you miss something?

• Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid - fascinating thinking on how quite a few recent things came about...

And a few classics - you ought to know these already and the important messages in them should be much more obvious now...

• 1984 by George Orwell - look for the perpetual war & conflict, ubiquitous surveillance and censorship not to mention Room 101

• Animal farm - also by George Orwell - note how the pigs end up living in the farmhouse exceeding all the worst behaviour of the farmer and how the constitution on the wall changes. Things did not end well for loyal Boxer.

• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley- A World State, inhabited by genetically modified citizens and an intelligence-based social hierarchy - the novel anticipates large scale psychological manipulation and classical conditioning that are combined to make a dystopian society which is challenged by only a single individual who does not take the Soma.

For more - refer to the References and Reading List

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

One of the most transformative books that I ever read was 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey. Over many years and from researching hstorical literature he found seven traits that successful people typically display. By default everyone does the opposite of each of these! Check how you do - be honest...

• Habits 1-3 are habits of Self - they determine how you behave and feel

• Habits 4-6 are habits of interpersonal behaviour - they determine how you deal with and interact with others

• Habit 7 is about regeneration and self care - foundation for happy and healthy life and success

One: Be proactive

Choose your responses to all situations and provocations - your reaction to a situation determines how you feel about it.

By default people will be reactive and this controls their emotions

Two: Begin with the end in mind

When you start to work on something, have a clear view of the goal to be achieved; it should be something substantial that you need and will value.

By default people will begin with what is in front of them or work on details that they can do or progress without having a clear view on the end result to be achieved

Three: Put First things First

Be clear on, and begin with, the Big Rocks- the most important things. If you do not put the Big Rocks into your planning daily activities, your days will be full of sand and gravel! All things can be categorised as Urgent or Not-Urgent and Important or Not-Important.

By Default people will focus on Urgent regardless of importance - all of the results come from focusing on Important Non-Urgent things. All of the 7 Habits are in this category!

Four: Seek Win-Win in all dealings with people and in all negotiations

This is the only sustainable outcome; if you cannot achieve Win-Win then no-deal is the sustainable alternative.

By default people will seek Win-Loose - this leads to failed relationships

Five: Seek first to understand - only then to be understood.

Once you visibly understand the needs and expectations of your counterpart they will be open to listening to your point of view and suggestions/requests - not before!

By default people will expound their point of view or desired result causing their counterpart to want to do the same - this ends in "the dialogue of the deaf"

Six: Synergise - Seek the 3rd alternative in all problems and challenges

Work together to find a proposal that is better than what each of you had in mind

By default people will focus on their own desired results and items, regardless of what the other party could bring to help/facilitate or make available

Seven: Sharpen the saw

Take time to re-invigorate and to be healthy - do nothing to excess. Do not be the forrester who persists in cutting the tree with a blunt saw bcause sharpening it is inconvenient or would "take too much time"!

By default people tend to persist on activities and avoid taking time to reflect, prepare and recover

Mindaps - a technique by Tony Buzan

Many years ago I summarised this in a Mind Map (another technique that was transformative for me - a topic for another Letter from around the world!) see below. Let me know if this interests you - happy to do an explainer video on this!

That's it!

No one can be told what The Matrix is.\ You have to see it for yourself.**

Do share this newsletter with any of your friends and family who might be interested.

You can also email me at: LetterFrom@rogerprice.me

💡Enjoy the newsletters in your own language : Dutch, French, German, Serbian, Chinese Traditional & Simplified, Thai and Burmese.

@ 502ab02a:a2860397

แหม่ ต้องรีบแวะมาเขียนไว้ก่อน ของกำลังร้อนๆ #ตัวหนังสือมีเสียง เพลง ลานกรองมันส์ นั้นเรื่องที่มาที่ไปน่าจะไปตามอ่านในเพจ ลานกรองมันส์ ได้ครับ recap คร่าวๆคือมันคือ พื้นที่สร้างสรรค์ที่เปิดให้มาทำกิจกรรมต่างๆนานากันได้ครับ

วันนี้เลยจะมาเล่าเรื่องวิธีการใช้คำ ซึ่งมันส์ดีตามชื่อลาน ฮาๆๆๆ ผมตั้งโจทย์ไว้เลยว่า ต้องมีคำว่า ลานกรองมันส์ แน่ๆแล้ว เพราะเป็นชื่อสถานที่ จากนั้นก็เอาคำว่า ลานกองมัน มาแตกขยายความเพราะมันคือต้นกำเนิดเดิมของพื้นที่นั้น คือเป็นลานที่เอาหัวมันมากองกันเอาไว้ รอนำไปผลิตต่อเป็นสินค้าการเกษตรต่างๆ

ตอนนี้เขาเลิกทำไปแล้ว จึงกลายมาเป็น ลานกรองมันส์ ที่เอาชื่อเดิมมาแปลง

เมื่อได้คำหลักๆแล้วผมก็เอาพยัญชนะเลย ลอลิง กอไก่ มอม้า คือตัวหลักของเพลง

โทนดนตรีไม่ต้องเลือกเลยหนีไม่พ้นสามช่าแน่นอน โทนมันมาตั้งแต่เริ่มคิดจะเขียนเลยครับ ฮาๆๆๆ

ผมพยายามแบ่งวรรคไว้ชัดๆ เผื่อไว้เลยว่าอนาคตอาจมีการทำดนตรีแบบแบ่งกันร้อง วรรคของมันเลยเป็น หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ แบบสามโทนเลย

ท่อนหมู่นั้น คิดแบบหลายชั้นมากครับ โดยเฉพาะคำว่า มัน เอามันมากอง มันที่ว่าได้ทั้งเป็นคำกิริยา คือ เอามันมากองๆ หรือ มันที่ว่าอาจหมายถึงตัวความฝันเองเป็นคำลักษณะนามเรียกความฝัน "ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง"

หรือแม้แต่ท่อนต่างๆ ก็เล่นคำว่า มัน กอง เพื่อให้รู้สึกย้ำท่อนหมู่ ที่มีคำว่ามัน เป็นพระเอกหลายหน้า ทั้งความสนุก ทั้งลักษณะนามความฝัน ทั้งกิริยา "ทุกคน ต่างมี ความฝัน เอามา รวมกัน ให้มันเป็นกอง"

อีกท่อนที่ชอบมากตอนเขียนคือ ทำที่ ลานกรองมันส์ idea for fun everyone can do เพราะรู้สึกว่า การพูดภาษาอังกฤษสำเนียงไทยๆ มันตูดหมึกดี ฮาๆๆๆๆ

หัวใจของเพลงคือจะบอกว่า ใครมีฝันก็มาเลย มาทำฝันกัน เรามีที่ให้คุณ ไม่ต้องกลัวอะไรที่จะทำฝันของตัวเอง เล็กใหญ่ ผิดถูก ขอให้ทำมัน อย่าให้ใครหยุดฝันของคุณ นอกจากตัวคุณเอง

เพลงนี้ไม่ได้ลงแพลทฟอร์ม เพราะส่งมอบให้ทาง ลานกรองมันส์เขาครับ ใช้ตามอิสระไปเลย ดังนั้นก็อาจต้องฟังในโพสนี้ หรือ ในยูทูปนะครับ https://youtu.be/W-1OH3YldtM?si=36dFbHgKjiI_9DI8

เนื้อเพลง "ลานกรองมันส์"

ลานกรองมันส์ ขอเชิญทุกท่าน มามันกันดู นะโฉมตรู มาลองดูกัน อ๊ะ มาลันดูกอง

มีงาน คุยกัน สังสรรค์ ดื่มนม ชมจันทร์ ปันฝัน กันเพลิน ทุกคน ต่างล้วน มีดี เรานั้น มีที่ พี่นี้มีโชว์ เอ้า

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

จะเล็ก จะใหญ่ ให้ลอง เราเป็น พี่น้อง เพื่อนพ้อง ต้องตา ทุกคน ต่างมี ความฝัน เอามา รวมกัน ให้มันเป็นกอง เอ้า

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

ชีวิต เราคิดเราทำ ทุกสิ่งที่ย้ำ คือทำสุดใจ จะเขียน จะเรียน จะรำ ทำที่ ลานกรองมันส์ idea for fun everyone can do

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

เรามา ลั่นกลองให้มัน เฮไหนเฮกัน ที่ลานกรองมันส์ ให้ฝัน บันเทิง…

ตัวหนังสือมีเสียง #pirateketo #siamstr

@ e97aaffa:2ebd765d

Passou alguns dias, após as eleições legislativas, a cabeça está mais fria, é um bom momento para um rescaldo e para um pouco de futurologia. Esta análise vai ser limitada apenas aos grandes partidos.

Podemos resumir esta eleição, numa única palavra: Terramoto.

A AD ganhou, mas o grande destaque foi a queda do PS e a subida do Chega. Se a governação do país estava difícil, agora com este novo desenho da assembleia, será quase impossível, piorou bastante. Neste momento, ainda falta contabilizar os votos da emigração, mas o mais provável é o Chega ultrapassar o PS.

A queda do PS foi tremenda, ninguém esperava tal coisa, o partido está em estado de choque. O partido vai necessitar de tempo para estabilizar e para se reconstruir.

Devido a motivos constitucionais (6 meses antes e 6 meses depois da eleição do presidente da República) só poderá existir eleições no final do próximo ano, isso garante que o novo governo da AD vai estar no poder pelo menos um ano. Isso vai obrigar a aprovação do próximo orçamento de estado, como o PS necessita de tirar os holofotes sobre si, vai facilitar o governo. Provavelmente vai existir um acordo de cavalheiro, um pacto de não agressão entre o governo e o PS, o PS vai se abster na votação do orçamento de estado e a governo não fará revisão constituicional sem o consentimento do PS e também não fará reformas nas leis ou políticas que sejam contra os princípios básicos do partido socialista. Em suma, não haverá grandes reformas, será um governo de gestão com ligeiramente mais poderes.

Não será um governo de bloco central, nem um governo da AD com apoio PS, será apenas um governo da AD com uma falsa oposição do PS. Um governo de bloco central, é uma bomba nuclear, ainda seria demasiado cedo para utilizá-la.

O Partido Socialista sabe que, para ter algumas hipóteses de vencer a próxima eleição, necessita de estar bem e o governo da AD tem que demonstrar algum desgaste, uma queda na popularidade. Eu não acredito que um ano seja suficiente, talvez, seja necessário 2 anos. Isto significa que o país poderá ficar estagnado 1 ou 2 anos, se o governo não conseguir fazer grandes reformas, se os cidadãos não virem/sentirem sinais de mudança, vai dar ainda mais força ao Chega.

Eu acredito que o ponto chave, é a imigração, o governo terá que demonstrar muito trabalho e minimizar o problema, para “esvaziar” um pouco o Chega, caso não faça será um problema.

XXVI Governo

Assim, nessa próxima eleição, talvez em 2027, acredito que as percentagens ficarão mais ou menos como esta eleição, com um partido ligeiramente à frente e os outros dois mais equilibrados. Só que o vencedor seria o Chega, ficando a AD(provavelmente o PSD) e o PS a disputa pelo 2º lugar.

Seria um novo terramoto, mas aqui seria necessário utilizar a bomba nuclear, iria surgir uma nova geringonça. Apesar da vitória do Ventura, iria surgir o governo bloco central, com o PSD e PS, não haveria outra alternativa.

O governo de bloco central, teria que ser muito competente, porque se não o for, iria para novas eleições. Se o governo for um fiasco, PS corre o risco de ser esvaziado, cairá ainda mais, correrá um risco de existência, poderá tornar-se num partido insignificante na nossa política.

XXVII Governo

Agora o terramoto ainda maior, nessa futura eleição, o Chega venceria com maioria absoluta, aí sim, seria um verdadeiro terramoto, ao nível de 1755.

O Chega tem o tempo a seu fazer, tem uma forte penetração nos jovens. Cada jovem que faça 18 anos, existe uma forte possibilidade de ser eleitor do Chega, o seu oposto, acontece com o PCP e o PS, os mais velhos vão morrendo, não existe renovação geracional. Mas o ponto fulcral é a ausência de competência generalizada nos partidos e políticos que têm governado o nosso país nos últimos anos, o descontentamento da população é completo. Esses políticos vivem na sua bolha, não tem noção do mundo real, nem compreendem quais são os problemas das pessoas simples, do cidadão comum.

Ventura

Na minha opinião só existirá três situações, que poderão travar as ascensão do André Ventura a primeiro-ministro:

• Ou existe um óptimo governo, que crie um bom crescimento na qualidade de vida das pessoas e que resolva os 3 problemas que mais anseiam actualmente os portugueses: Habitação, Saúde e Imigração. A probabilidade de isso acontecer é quase nula.
• Ou se o André Ventura desistir, a batalha será muito longa e ele poderá ficar cansado. Pouco provável.
• Ou então, um Argumentum ad hominem, terá que surgir algo, factos concretos que manche a imagem do André Ventura, que destrua por completo a sua reputação.

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É a minha a linha leitura da bola de cristal, poderão dizer é uma visão pessimista, eu acho que é realista e pragmática, não vejo qualquer competência na classe política para resolver os problemas do país. Esta é a opinião de um recorrente crítico do Chega.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A group of users has filed a class action lawsuit against Coinbase, claiming that its identity verification checks violate the state’s biometric privacy law.

According to plaintiffs Scott Bernstein, Gina Greeder, and James Lonergan in the lawsuit filed on May 13 in a federal court, Coinbase’s “indiscriminate collection” of facial biometric data for Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements breaches Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).

The group argued that the exchange failed to notify users in writing about the collection, storage, or sharing of their biometric data, as well as the purpose and retention schedule for such data. “Coinbase does not publicly provide a retention schedule or guidelines for permanently destroying Plaintiffs’ biometric identifiers as specified by BIPA,” they alleged.

The complaint claims that Coinbase requires users to verify their identity by uploading a government-issued ID and a selfie, which is then sent to third-party facial recognition software to scan and extract facial geometry. This process captures biometric identifiers without the users’ informed written consent, thus violating BIPA, according to the lawsuit.

Additionally, the group alleged that Coinbase unlawfully shared biometric data with third-party verification providers such as Jumio, Onfido, Au10tix, and Solaris without users’ consent. “Coinbase ‘obtains’ biometric data in violation of [BIPA] because it explicitly directed the Third Party Verification Providers to use its software to verify and authenticate users, including Plaintiffs, and its software does so by collecting biometric data,” the complaint read.

The group also stated that over 10,000 individuals have filed arbitration demands on these issues with the American Arbitration Association, but Coinbase allegedly refused to pay the required arbitration fees, causing the claims to be dismissed.

Legal demands

The lawsuit brings three counts of biometric privacy law violations and one count of consumer fraud under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. The group seeks $5,000 for each intentional or reckless violation, $1,000 for each negligent violation, along with injunctive relief and litigation costs.

Coinbase was also recently hit by at least six lawsuits following the May 15 disclosure that some of its customer support agents were allegedly bribed to leak user data.

The post Lawsuit against Coinbase for biometric privacy violations in Illinois appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 9c9d2765:16f8c2c2

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

"The streets teach you a lot. It teaches you how to survive, how to fight, how to bend the world to your will. But there’s something else it teaches you how to rise above the petty battles and claim the empire that’s rightfully yours."

Just then, the door opened again, and Charles entered, his usual calm demeanor replaced with a rare air of urgency.

"James," he said, his voice serious. "There’s something you need to know. The press is getting more aggressive. They’ve caught wind of your plans, and they’re pushing for an exclusive interview. They want the story of how you rose from nothing to everything. It’s becoming a media frenzy."

James didn’t flinch. His eyes remained steady as he absorbed the news.

"Let them come," he said. "They can write whatever they want. Let the world see how I turned my destiny around. But they’ll never write the full story. They’ll never know the price I paid to get here."

Charles raised an eyebrow, impressed by James’s unshakable resolve. "And what about Mark and Helen?"

James’s expression darkened, the calm facade cracking just enough to reveal the fire beneath. "They’ll face the consequences of their actions. And I’ll make sure they do."

Rita stepped forward, her tone soft yet firm. "But there’s still a part of you that wants more than just their downfall. You want to rebuild this company, don’t you?"

James glanced at her, his eyes hardening.

"Rebuilding is just the beginning," he replied. "I didn’t fight for what’s mine just to watch it crumble. JP Enterprises will become something greater. Something unbreakable. A legacy that no one can touch, no one can tarnish."

The sound of footsteps echoed through the hallway, and moments later, Mrs. JP entered the room. There was a subtle weight in her posture, but also a sense of pride in her eyes.

"You’ve handled this situation with strength and wisdom, James," she said, her voice full of warmth. "Your father and I could never be prouder. You’ve surpassed every expectation we ever had."

James met her gaze and nodded. "Thank you. But this isn’t just about your approval. It’s about proving to myself in the world that I’m not the man I was before. I’m the man I’ve chosen to be."

Mrs. JP smiled, her eyes softening. "And you’ve become that man with grace. You’ve earned everything that’s come your way."

James’s gaze lingered for a moment before he spoke again. "It’s not over yet. There’s still work to be done. We have to ensure that JP Enterprises remains strong, remains untouchable. This is just the first step."

Charles exchanged a knowing look with Rita, then turned back to James. "We’re with you, every step of the way."

The room fell into a brief, heavy silence. Outside, the city continued to hum, indifferent to the dramatic shifts taking place within the walls of JP Enterprises. But James knew that the storm was far from over. He had won the battle, but the war was only just beginning.

As he looked around at the people who now stood by him, he realized that this victory was more than just personal; it was a turning point for the entire legacy of the JP name.

"James, how does it feel to be the talk of an entire city?" Charles asked, leaning against the polished oak desk in James’s expansive office.

James stood by the window, his hands clasped behind his back, watching the sun descend beyond the city skyline. The room was silent for a moment, filled only with the distant hum of the city below.

"It feels... inevitable," James replied, his tone calm but layered with meaning. "People always talk when someone they counted out rewrites the rules of the game."

Charles chuckled lightly, walking over to pour himself a glass of water. "Well, you haven’t just rewritten the rules, James. You’ve rewritten the entire playbook."

James turned, a shadow of a smile on his face. "And yet, some still believe they can undermine me. Manipulate the truth. Twist it until the entire narrative collapses."

Just then, Rita entered, holding a folder tightly in her hands. There was tension in her posture, controlled, but evident.

"You need to see this," she said, handing James the folder. "It's an internal memo that was intercepted. Apparently, Mark and Helen aren’t done. They’ve secured a secret meeting with a major competitor Wellington Holdings."

James flipped through the documents, his eyes narrowing. "Wellington? So, they’ve moved from sabotage to outright betrayal.

"They’re desperate," Rita added. "Their reputations are in ruins, and with the public backlash after the failed stunt at the anniversary, they’re looking for anything to reclaim their influence."

James’s jaw tightened. "Let them try. I’ve weathered storms far greater than the games of disgraced traitors."

Rita hesitated before continuing. "There’s more. Tracy’s gone quiet. She’s removed all traces of her involvement. But I have reason to believe she’s still communicating with Helen... through an encrypted channel."

James closed the folder and walked slowly to his desk. His movements were deliberate, filled with the confidence of someone who had faced betrayal before and emerged stronger.

"Then it’s time we end this," he said. "Not with anger. Not with revenge. But with undeniable, irreversible justice."

He looked up at Charles and Rita. "I want full surveillance on Wellington. Legal is to prepare a formal complaint if they attempt to interfere with any JP enterprise contract. And I want every associate of Mark and Helen cross-checked. If there’s even a whisper of conspiracy, I want it recorded."

Charles nodded. "Consider it done. We’ll strike with precision."

As they left the room to carry out their tasks, James sat behind his desk, momentarily still. His mind drifted to the days when he had nothing, no name, no wealth, no influence. How far he had come. And yet, how familiar the shadows still felt.

Later that evening, as the city lights glowed brighter, a new headline took over the news:

“JP Enterprises President Set to Announce Major Expansion, Exclusive Projects to Redefine the City’s Economic Landscape.”

It wasn’t about the slander anymore. It wasn’t about revenge. It was about legacy.

The silence in Mark’s penthouse was nearly deafening. Once a space of elite grandeur and sophisticated indulgence, it now felt hollow like the echo of a reputation lost. Mark sat slouched on his couch, the flickering television casting shadows across his unshaven face. He clenched a glass of scotch, half-empty, its contents trembling ever so slightly with each beat of his agitated heart.

The news was relentless. Story after story painted him in a less-than-flattering light. What had once been a carefully crafted image of charm and corporate poise had been shredded by public disgrace. And now, the city wasn’t just ignoring him, they were laughing at him.

“This can’t be it,” he muttered under his breath, his voice raspy. “It can’t end like this.”

Just then, Helen burst into the room. Her heels clicked loudly on the marble floor, a sharp contrast to the dull haze Mark had wrapped himself in. She threw a tabloid magazine onto the coffee table. The headline screamed at them:

“Ray Empire Architect of Scandal: Helen Ray and Ex-Exec Mark Linked to Fraud, Defamation and Bribery.”

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Tokyo-listed investment firm Metaplanet has officially surpassed El Salvador in bitcoin holdings after its biggest-ever single purchase of the scarce digital asset.

On May 12, 2025, the company announced it had bought 1,241 Bitcoin (BTC) for approximately $123.8 million, or ¥18.4 billion. The average price per coin was about $102,111, marking the firm’s largest purchase to date.

This latest buy brings Metaplanet’s total bitcoin reserves to 6,796 BTC, worth over $700 million.

Metaplanet on X

That puts Metaplanet ahead of El Salvador, the Central American nation that made headlines in 2021 for adopting bitcoin as legal tender. According to its National Bitcoin Office, El Salvador currently holds 6,174 BTC, worth roughly $642 million.

El Salvador bitcoin holdings — bitcoin.gob.sv

“Metaplanet now holds more bitcoin than El Salvador. From humble beginnings to rivaling nation-states, we’re just getting started,” said CEO Simon Gerovich on X after the company’s announcement.

The Japanese investment company started its bitcoin treasury strategy in April 2024 and has become the largest corporate holder of bitcoin in Asia and 11th globally. It aims to hold 10,000 BTC by the end of 2025.

Metaplanet is now the 11th largest corporate holder of bitcoin — BitcoinTreasuries

To fund these purchases, the firm has turned to bond issuances, including zero-percent bonds. In early May, Metaplanet issued $25 million worth of 0% bonds under its EVO FUND program to finance bitcoin buys without diluting shares or taking on traditional debt.

And Metaplanet’s strategy seems to be working. Its BTC Yield — a proprietary metric that measures bitcoin accumulation per share — is 38% for Q2 2025 so far. In previous quarters, the firm reported 95.6% in Q1 and a whopping 309.8% in Q4 2024.

The stock price has also gone up 1,800% since May 2024 and 51% in 2025 alone, currently trading above 550 JPY.

Metaplanet is often called “Japan’s MicroStrategy”, a reference to the U.S.-based company Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) led by Bitcoin advocate Michael Saylor. Strategy is the world’s largest corporate bitcoin holder with over 568,840 BTC in its coffers, worth more than $58 billion.

Like Strategy, Metaplanet is using creative financing tools such as convertible bonds and non-dilutive bond issuance to build a big bitcoin treasury. These financial instruments give the company the ability to fund further bitcoin purchases without diluting shareholders’ value.

Metaplanet is buying bitcoin very rapidly. This has become a trend in the corporate world, where private companies are challenging nation-states in the digital asset space.

Unlike governments which face regulatory and political hurdles, corporations like Metaplanet can move quickly and decisively. Since 2020 over 80 publicly traded companies have collectively bought more than 632,000 BTC worth over $65 billion.

This is a fundamental shift in how companies manage their treasuries — moving away from cash or bonds and towards the digital scarcity that bitcoin presents.

This creates a new form of financial power where corporations can hold a significant portion of a finite asset, unlike fiat currencies which governments can print to infinity.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

The newly proposed RESTRICT ACT - is being advertised as a TikTok Ban, but is much broader than that, carries a $1M Fine and up to 20 years in prison️! It is unconstitutional and would create massive legal restrictions on the open source movement and free speech throughout the internet.

The Bill was proposed by: Senator Warner, Senator Thune, Senator Baldwin, Senator Fischer, Senator Manchin, Senator Moran, Senator Bennet, Senator Sullivan, Senator Gillibrand, Senator Collins, Senator Heinrich, and Senator Romney. It has broad support across Senators of both parties.

Corrupt politicians will not protect us. They are part of the problem. We must build, support, and learn how to use censorship resistant tools in order to defend our natural rights.

The RESTRICT Act, introduced by Senators Warner and Thune, aims to block or disrupt transactions and financial holdings involving foreign adversaries that pose risks to national security. Although the primary targets of this legislation are companies like Tik-Tok, the language of the bill could potentially be used to block or disrupt cryptocurrency transactions and, in extreme cases, block Americans’ access to open source tools or protocols like Bitcoin.

The Act creates a redundant regime paralleling OFAC without clear justification, it significantly limits the ability for injured parties to challenge actions raising due process concerns, and unlike OFAC it lacks any carve-out for protected speech. COINCENTER ON THE RESTRICT ACT

Full Text of Bill

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 58537364:705b4b85

“สุขเวทนา” ที่แท้ก็คือ “มายา”
เป็นเหมือนลูกคลื่นลูกหนึ่ง
ที่เกิดขึ้นเพราะน้ำถูกลมพัด
เดี๋ยวมันก็แตกกระจายไป

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หากต้องการจะมีชีวิตอย่างเกษมแล้ว
ก็ต้องอาศัยความรู้เรื่อง อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา ให้สมบูรณ์
มันจะต่อต้านกันได้กับอารมณ์ คือ รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส สัมผัส ที่มากระทบ
ไม่ให้ไปหลงรัก หรือหลงเกลียด

เรื่องวุ่นวายมีอยู่ ๒ อย่างเท่านั้น

1. ไปหลงรัก อย่างหนึ่ง
2. ไปหลงเกลียด อย่างหนึ่ง

ซึ่งเป็นเหตุให้หัวเราะและต้องร้องไห้
ถ้าใครมองเห็นว่า หัวเราะก็กระหืดกระหอบ มันเหนื่อยเหมือนกัน
ร้องไห้ก็กระหืดกระหอบ เหมือนกัน
สู้อยู่เฉย ๆ ดีกว่า อย่าต้องหัวเราะ อย่าต้องร้องไห้
นี่แหละ! มันเป็นความเกษม

เราอย่าได้ตกไปเป็นทาสของอารมณ์
จนไปหัวเราะหรือร้องไห้ตามที่อารมณ์มายั่ว
เราเป็นอิสระแก่ตัว หยุดอยู่ หรือเกษมอยู่อย่างนี้ดีกว่า

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ใช้ อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา เป็นเครื่องมือกำกับชีวิต

• รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส สัมผัส เป็น มายา เป็น illusion
• "ตัวกู-ของกู" ก็เป็น illusion
• เพราะ "ตัวกู-ของกู" มันเกิดมาจากอารมณ์
• "ตัวกู-ของกู" เป็นมายา อารมณ์ทั้งหลายก็เป็นมายา

เห็นได้ด้วยหลัก อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา
...ความทุกข์ก็ไม่เกิด

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เราจะตัดลัดมองไปดูสิ่งที่เป็น “สุขเวทนา”

สุขเวทนา คือ ความสุขสนุกสนาน เอร็ดอร่อย
ที่เป็นสุขนั้นเรียกว่า “สุขเวทนา”

แต่สุขเวทนา เป็นมายา
เพราะมันเป็นเหมือนลูกคลื่นที่เกิดขึ้นเป็นคราว ๆ
ไม่ใช่ตัวจริงอะไร

ที่พูดดังนี้ก็เพราะว่า
ในบรรดาสิ่งทั้งปวงในโลกทั้งหมดทุกโลก
ไม่ว่าโลกไหน มันมีค่าอยู่ก็ตรงที่ให้เกิดสุขเวทนา

ลองคิดดูให้ดีว่า...
- ท่านศึกษาเล่าเรียนทำไม?
- ท่านประกอบอาชีพ หน้าที่การงานทำไม?
- ท่านสะสมทรัพย์สมบัติ เกียรติยศ ชื่อเสียง พวกพ้องบริวารทำไม?

มันก็เพื่อสุขเวทนาอย่างเดียว
เพราะฉะนั้น แปลว่า อะไร ๆ มันก็มารวมจุดอยู่ที่สุขเวทนาหมด

ฉะนั้น ถ้าเรามีความรู้ในเรื่องนี้
จัดการกับเรื่องนี้ให้ถูกต้องเพียงเรื่องเดียวเท่านั้น
ทุกเรื่องมันถูกหมด

เพราะฉะนั้น จึงต้องดูสุขเวทนาให้ถูกต้องตามที่เป็นจริงว่า
มันก็เป็น “มายา” ชนิดหนึ่ง

เราจะต้องจัดการให้สมกันกับที่มันเป็นมายา
ไม่ใช่ว่า จะต้องไปตั้งข้อรังเกียจ เกลียดชังมัน
อย่างนั้นมันยิ่ง บ้าบอที่สุด

ถ้าเข้าไปหลงรัก หลงเป็นทาสมัน
ก็เป็นเรื่อง บ้าบอที่สุด

แต่ว่าไปจัดการกับมันอย่างไรให้ถูกต้อง
นั้นแหละเป็นธรรมะ
เป็น ลูกศิษย์ของพระพุทธเจ้า
ที่จะเอาชนะความทุกข์ได้ และไม่ต้องเป็น โรคทางวิญญาณ

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สุขเวทนา ที่แท้ก็คือ มายา

มันก็ต้องทำโดยวิธีที่พิจารณาให้เห็นว่า
“สุขเวทนา” นี้ ที่แท้ก็คือ “มายา”

เป็นเหมือน ลูกคลื่นลูกหนึ่ง
ที่เกิดขึ้นเพราะ น้ำถูกลมพัด

หมายความว่า
เมื่อ รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส ฯ เข้ามา
แล้ว ความโง่ คือ อวิชชา โมหะ ออกรับ
กระทบกันแล้วเป็นคลื่น

กล่าวคือ สุขเวทนาเกิดขึ้นมา
แต่ เดี๋ยวมันก็แตกกระจายไป

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ถ้ามองเห็นอย่างนี้แล้ว
เราก็ไม่เป็นทาสของสุขเวทนา
เราสามารถ ควบคุม จะจัด จะทำกับมันได้
ในวิธีที่ ไม่เป็นทุกข์

• ตัวเองก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• ครอบครัวก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• เพื่อนบ้านก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• คนทั้งโลกก็ไม่พลอยเป็นทุกข์
  เพราะมีเราเป็นมูลเหตุ

ถ้าทุกคนเป็นอย่างนี้
โลกนี้ก็มีสันติภาพถาวร
เป็นความสุขที่แท้จริงและถาวร

นี่คือ อานิสงส์ของการหายโรคโดยวิธีต่าง ๆ กัน
ไม่เป็นโรค “ตัวกู” ไม่เป็นโรค “ของกู”

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พุทธทาสภิกขุ
ที่มา : คำบรรยายชุด “แก่นพุทธศาสน์”
ปีพุทธศักราช ๒๕๐๔
ครั้งที่ ๑
หัวข้อเรื่อง “ใจความทั้งหมดของพระพุทธศาสนา”
ณ ศิริราชพยาบาล มหาวิทยาลัยมหิดล
เมื่อวันที่ ๑๗ ธันวาคม ๒๕๐๔

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

@matt_odell don't you even dare not ask about nostr!

— Kukks (Andrew Camilleri) (@MrKukks) May 18, 2021

Nostr first hit my radar spring 2021: created by fellow bitcoiner and friend, fiatjaf, and released to the world as free open source software. I was fortunate to be able to host a conversation with him on Citadel Dispatch in those early days, capturing that moment in history forever. Since then, the protocol has seen explosive viral organic growth as individuals around the world have contributed their time and energy to build out the protocol and the surrounding ecosystem due to the clear need for better communication tools.

nostr is to twitter as bitcoin is to paypal

As an intro to nostr, let us start with a metaphor:

twitter is paypal - a centralized platform plagued by censorship but has the benefit of established network effects

nostr is bitcoin - an open protocol that is censorship resistant and robust but requires an organic adoption phase

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.
 - Anyone can run a relay.
 - Anyone can interact with the protocol.
 - Relays can choose which messages they want to relay.
 - Users are identified by a simple public private key pair that they can generate themselves.

Nostr is often compared to twitter since there are nostr clients that emulate twitter functionality and user interface but that is merely one application of the protocol. Nostr is so much more than a mere twitter competitor. Nostr clients and relays can transmit a wide variety of data and clients can choose how to display that information to users. The result is a revolution in communication with implications that are difficult for any of us to truly comprehend.

Similar to bitcoin, nostr is an open and permissionless protocol. No person, company, or government controls it. Anyone can iterate and build on top of nostr without permission. Together, bitcoin and nostr are incredibly complementary freedom tech tools: censorship resistant, permissionless, robust, and interoperable - money and speech protected by code and incentives, not laws.

As censorship throughout the world continues to escalate, freedom tech provides hope for individuals around the world who refuse to accept the status quo. This movement will succeed on the shoulders of those who choose to stand up and contribute. We will build our own path. A brighter path.

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My Nostr Public Key: npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Marty's Bent

Here's a great presentation from our good friend Michael Goldstein, President of the Satoshi Nakamoto Institute titled Hodl for Good. He gave it earlier this year at the BitBlockBoom Conference, and I think it's something everyone reading this should take 25 minutes to watch. Especially if you find yourself wondering whether or not it's a good idea to spend bitcoin at any given point in time. Michael gives an incredible Austrian Economics 101 lesson on the importance of lowering one's time preference and fully understanding the importance of hodling bitcoin. For the uninitiated, it may seem that the hodl meme is nothing more than a call to hoard bitcoins in hopes of getting rich eventually. However, as Michael points out, there's layers to the hodl meme and the good that hodling can bring individuals and the economy overall.

The first thing one needs to do to better understand the hodl meme is to completely flip the framing that is typically thrust on bitcoiners who encourage others to hodl. Instead of ceding that hodling is a greedy or selfish action, remind people that hodling, or better known as saving, is the foundation of capital formation, from which all productive and efficient economic activity stems. Number go up technology is great and it really matters. It matters because it enables anybody leveraging that technology to accumulate capital that can then be allocated toward productive endeavors that bring value to the individual who creates them and the individual who buys them.

When one internalizes this, it enables them to turn to personal praxis and focus on minimizing present consumption while thinking of ways to maximize long-term value creation. Live below your means, stack sats, and use the time that you're buying to think about things that you want in the future. By lowering your time preference and saving in a harder money you will have the luxury of demanding higher quality goods in the future. Another way of saying this is that you will be able to reshape production by voting with your sats. Initially when you hold them off the market by saving them - signaling that the market doesn't have goods worthy of your sats - and ultimately by redeploying them into the market when you find higher quality goods that meet the standards desire.

The first part of this equation is extremely important because it sends a signal to producers that they need to increase the quality of their work. As more and more individuals decide to use bitcoin as their savings technology, the signal gets stronger. And over many cycles we should begin to see low quality cheap goods exit the market in favor of higher quality goods that provide more value and lasts longer and, therefore, make it easier for an individual to depart with their hard-earned and hard-saved sats. This is only but one aspect that Michael tries to imbue throughout his presentation.

The other is the ability to buy yourself leisure time when you lower your time preference and save more than you spend. When your savings hit a critical tipping point that gives you the luxury to sit back and experience true leisure, which Michael explains is not idleness, but the contemplative space to study, create art, refine taste, and to find what "better goods" actually are. Those who can experience true leisure while reaping the benefits of saving in a hard asset that is increasing in purchasing power significantly over the long term are those who build truly great things. Things that outlast those who build them. Great art, great monuments, great institutions were all built by men who were afforded the time to experience leisure. Partly because they were leveraging hard money as their savings and the place they stored the profits reaped from their entrepreneurial endeavors.

If you squint and look into the future a couple of decades, it isn't hard to see a reality like this manifesting. As more people begin to save in Bitcoin, the forces of supply and demand will continue to come into play. There will only ever be 21 million bitcoin, there are around 8 billion people on this planet, and as more of those 8 billion individuals decide that bitcoin is the best savings vehicle, the price of bitcoin will rise.

When the price of bitcoin rises, it makes all other goods cheaper in bitcoin terms and, again, expands the entrepreneurial opportunity. The best part about this feedback loop is that even non-holders of bitcoin benefit through higher real wages and faster tech diffusion. The individuals and business owners who decide to hodl bitcoin will bring these benefits to the world whether you decide to use bitcoin or not.

This is why it is virtuous to hodl bitcoin. The potential for good things to manifest throughout the world increases when more individuals decide to hodl bitcoin. And as Michael very eloquently points out, this does not mean that people will not spend their bitcoin. It simply means that they have standards for the things that they will spend their bitcoin on. And those standards are higher than most who are fully engrossed in the high velocity trash economy have today.

In my opinion, one of those higher causes worthy of a sats donation is the Satoshi Nakamoto Institute. Consider donating so they can preserve and disseminate vital information about bitcoin and its foundations.

The Shell Game: How Health Narratives May Distract from Vaccine Risks

In our recent podcast, Dr. Jack Kruse presented a concerning theory about public health messaging. He argues that figures like Casey and Calley Means are promoting food and exercise narratives as a deliberate distraction from urgent vaccine issues. While no one disputes healthy eating matters, Dr. Kruse insists that focusing on "Froot Loops and Red Dye" diverts attention from what he sees as immediate dangers of mRNA vaccines, particularly for children.

"It's gonna take you 50 years to die from processed food. But the messenger jab can drop you like Damar Hamlin." - Dr Jack Kruse

Dr. Kruse emphasized that approximately 25,000 children per day are still receiving COVID vaccines despite concerns, with 3 million doses administered since Trump's election. This "shell game," as he describes it, allows vaccines to remain on childhood schedules while public attention fixates on less immediate health threats. As host, I believe this pattern deserves our heightened scrutiny given the potential stakes for our children's wellbeing.

Check out the full podcast here for more on Big Pharma's alleged bioweapons program, the "Time Bank Account" concept, and how Bitcoin principles apply to health sovereignty.

Headlines of the Day

Aussie Judge: Bitcoin is Money, Possibly CGT-Exempt - via X

JPMorgan to Let Clients Buy Bitcoin Without Direct Custody - via X

Get our new STACK SATS hat - via tftcmerch.io

Mubadala Acquires $408.5M Stake in BlackRock Bitcoin ETF - via X

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Take the First Step Off the Exchange

Bitkey is an easy, secure way to move your Bitcoin into self-custody. With simple setup and built-in recovery, it’s the perfect starting point for getting your coins off centralized platforms and into cold storage—no complexity, no middlemen.

Take control. Start with Bitkey.

Use the promo code *“TFTC20”* during checkout for 20% off

---

Ten31, the largest bitcoin-focused investor, has deployed 158,469 sats | $150.00M across 30+ companies through three funds. I am a Managing Partner at Ten31 and am very proud of the work we are doing. Learn more at ten31.vc/invest.

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Final thought...

I've been walking from my house around Town Lake in Austin in the mornings and taking calls on the walk. Big fan of a walking call.

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Get this newsletter sent to your inbox daily: https://www.tftc.io/bitcoin-brief/

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[![Hodl Bitcoin For Good](https://www

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Marty's Bent

via me

Don't sleep on what's happening in Japan right now. We've been covering the country and the fact that they've lost control of their yield curve since late last year. After many years of making it a top priority from a monetary policy perspective, last year the Bank of Japan decided to give up on yield curve control in an attempt to reel inflation. This has sent yields for the 30-year and 40-year Japanese government bonds to levels not seen since the early 2000s in the case of the 30-year and levels never before seen for the 40-year, which was launched in 2007. With a debt to GDP ratio that has surpassed 250% and a population that is aging out with an insufficient amount of births to replace the aging workforce, it's hard to see how Japan can get out of this conundrum without some sort of economic collapse.

This puts the United States in a tough position considering the fact that Japan is one of the largest holders of U.S. Treasury bonds with more than $1.20 trillion in exposure. If things get too out of control in Japan and the yield curve continues to drift higher and inflation continues to creep higher Japan can find itself in a situation where it's a forced seller of US Treasuries as they attempt to strengthen the yen. Another aspect to consider is the fact that investors may see the higher yields on Japanese government bonds and decide to purchase them instead of US Treasuries. This is something to keep an eye on in the weeks to come. Particularly if higher rates drive a higher cost of capital, which leads to even more inflation. As producers are forced to increase their prices to ensure that they can manage their debt repayments.

It's never a good sign when the Japanese Prime Minister is coming out to proclaim that his country's financial situation is worse than Greece's, which has been a laughing stock of Europe for the better part of three decades. Japan is a very proud nation, and the fact that its Prime Minister made a statement like this should not be underappreciated.

As we noted last week, the 10-year and 30-year U.S. Treasury bonds are drifting higher as well. Earlier today, the 30-year bond yield surpassed 5%, which has been a psychological level that many have been pointed to as a critical tipping point. When you take a step back and look around the world it seems pretty clear that bond markets are sending a very strong signal. And that signal is that something is not well in the back end of the financial system.

This is even made clear when you look at the private sector, particularly at consumer debt. In late March, we warned of the growing trend of buy now, pay later schemes drifting down market as major credit card companies released charge-off data which showed charge-off rates reaching levels not seen since the 2008 great financial crisis. At the time, we could only surmise that Klarna was experiencing similar charge-off rates on the bigger-ticket items they financed and started doing deals with companies like DoorDash to finance burrito deliveries in an attempt to move down market to finance smaller ticket items with a higher potential of getting paid back. It seems like that inclination was correct as Klarna released data earlier today showing more losses on their book as consumers find it extremely hard to pay back their debts.

via NewsWire

This news hit the markets on the same day as the average rate of the 30-year mortgage in the United States rose to 7.04%. I'm not sure if you've checked lately, but real estate prices are still relatively elevated outside of a few big cities who expanded supply significantly during the COVID era as people flooded out of blue states towards red states. It's hard to imagine that many people can afford a house based off of sticker price alone, but with a 7% 30-year mortgage rate it's becoming clear that the ability of the Common Man to buy a house is simply becoming impossible.

via Lance Lambert

The mortgage rate data is not the only thing you need to look at to understand that it's becoming impossible for the Common Man of working age to buy a house. New data has recently been released that highlights That the median home buyer in 2007 was born in 1968, and the median home buyer in 2024 was born in 1968. Truly wild when you think of it. As our friend Darth Powell cheekily highlights below, we find ourselves in a situation where boomers are simply trading houses and the younger generations are becoming indentured slaves. Forever destined to rent because of the complete inability to afford to buy a house.

via Darth Powell

via Yahoo Finance

Meanwhile, Bitcoin re-approached all-time highs late this evening and looks primed for another breakout to the upside. This makes sense if you're paying attention. The high-velocity trash economy running on an obscene amount of debt in both the public and private sectors seems to be breaking at the seams. All the alarm bells are signaling that another big print is coming. And if you hope to preserve your purchasing power or, ideally, increase it as the big print approaches, the only thing that makes sense is to funnel your money into the hardest asset in the world, which is Bitcoin.

via Bitbo

Buckle up, freaks. It's gonna be a bumpy ride. Stay humble, Stack Sats.

Trump's Middle East Peace Strategy: Redefining U.S. Foreign Policy

In his recent Middle East tour, President Trump signaled what our guest Dr. Anas Alhajji calls "a major change in US policy." Trump explicitly rejected the nation-building strategies of his predecessors, contrasting the devastation in Afghanistan and Iraq with the prosperity of countries like Saudi Arabia and UAE. This marks a profound shift from both Republican and Democratic foreign policy orthodoxy. As Alhajji noted, Trump's willingness to meet with Syrian President Assad follows a historical pattern where former adversaries eventually become diplomatic partners.

"This is really one of the most important shifts in US foreign policy to say, look, sorry, we destroyed those countries because we tried to rebuild them and it was a big mistake." - Dr. Anas Alhajji

The administration's new approach emphasizes negotiation over intervention. Rather than military solutions, Trump is engaging with groups previously considered off-limits, including the Houthis, Hamas, and Iran. This pragmatic stance prioritizes economic cooperation and regional stability over ideological confrontation. The focus on trade deals and investment rather than regime change represents a fundamental reimagining of America's role in the Middle East.

Check out the full podcast here for more on the Iran nuclear situation, energy market predictions, and why AI development could create power grid challenges.

Headlines of the Day

Bitcoin Soars to $106K While Bonds Lose 40% Since 2020 - via X

US Senate Advances Stablecoin Bill As America Embraces Bitcoin - via X

Get our new STACK SATS hat - via tftcmerch.io

Texas House Debates Bill For State-Run Bitcoin Reserve - via X

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Take the First Step Off the Exchange

Bitkey is an easy, secure way to move your Bitcoin into self-custody. With simple setup and built-in recovery, it’s the perfect starting point for getting your coins off centralized platforms and into cold storage—no complexity, no middlemen.

Take control. Start with Bitkey.

Use the promo code *“TFTC20”* during checkout for 20% off

---

_Ten31, the largest bitcoin-focused investor, has deployed 158

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 502ab02a:a2860397

น้ำนมมนุษย์ที่ไม่ง้อมนุษย์ หรือนี่กำลังจะกลายเป็นเรื่องจริงเร็วกว่าที่เราคิดนะครับ

ในยุคที่อุตสาหกรรมอาหารหันหลังให้กับปศุสัตว์ ไม่ว่าจะด้วยเหตุผลด้านสิ่งแวดล้อม จริยธรรม หรือความยั่งยืน “น้ำนมจากห้องแล็บ” กำลังกลายเป็นแนวหน้าของการปฏิวัติอาหาร โดยเฉพาะเมื่อบริษัทหนึ่งจากสิงคโปร์นามว่า TurtleTree ประกาศอย่างชัดเจนว่า พวกเขากำลังจะสร้างโปรตีนสำคัญในน้ำนมมนุษย์ โดยไม่ต้องมีมนุษย์แม่เลยแม้แต่น้อย

TurtleTree ก่อตั้งในปี 2019 โดยมีเป้าหมายอันทะเยอทะยานคือการผลิตโปรตีนในนมแม่ให้ได้ผ่านเทคโนโลยีที่เรียกว่า precision fermentation โดยใช้จุลินทรีย์ที่ถูกดัดแปลงพันธุกรรมให้ผลิตโปรตีนเฉพาะ เช่น lactoferrin และ human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) ซึ่งเป็นองค์ประกอบล้ำค่าที่พบในน้ำนมมนุษย์แต่แทบไม่มีในนมวัว หรือผลิตภัณฑ์นมทั่วไป

โปรตีนตัวแรกที่ TurtleTree ประสบความสำเร็จในการผลิตคือ LF+ หรือ lactoferrin ที่เลียนแบบโปรตีนในนมแม่ ซึ่งมีหน้าที่ช่วยระบบภูมิคุ้มกันของทารก ต่อต้านแบคทีเรีย และช่วยให้ร่างกายดูดซึมธาตุเหล็กได้ดีขึ้น โปรตีนนี้เป็นหนึ่งในหัวใจของนมแม่ ที่บริษัทต้องการนำมาใช้ในอุตสาหกรรมนมผงเด็กและอาหารเสริมสำหรับผู้ใหญ่ ล่าสุดในปี 2024 LF+ ได้รับการรับรองสถานะ GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) จากองค์การอาหารและยาสหรัฐฯ (FDA) อย่างเป็นทางการ เป็นหมุดหมายสำคัญที่บอกว่า นี่ไม่ใช่แค่ไอเดียในแล็บอีกต่อไป แต่กำลังกลายเป็นผลิตภัณฑ์เชิงพาณิชย์จริง

เบื้องหลังของโปรเจกต์นี้คือการลงทุนกว่า 30 ล้านดอลลาร์สหรัฐจากกลุ่มทุนทั่วโลก รวมถึงบริษัท Solar Biotech ที่จับมือกับ TurtleTree ในการขยายกำลังการผลิตเชิงอุตสาหกรรมในสหรัฐอเมริกา โดยตั้งเป้าว่าจะสามารถผลิตโปรตีนเหล่านี้ได้ในระดับราคาที่แข่งขันได้ภายในไม่กี่ปีข้างหน้า

สิ่งที่น่าสนใจคือ TurtleTree ไม่ได้หยุดแค่ lactoferrin พวกเขายังวางแผนพัฒนา HMO ซึ่งเป็นน้ำตาลเชิงซ้อนชนิดพิเศษที่มีอยู่เฉพาะในน้ำนมแม่ เป็นอาหารเลี้ยงแบคทีเรียดีในลำไส้ทารก ช่วยพัฒนาระบบภูมิคุ้มกันและสมอง ปัจจุบัน HMOs เริ่มเป็นที่นิยมในวงการ infant formula แต่การผลิตยังจำกัดและมีต้นทุนสูง การที่ TurtleTree จะนำเทคโนโลยี precision fermentation มาใช้ผลิต HMO จึงถือเป็นความพยายามในการลดช่องว่างระหว่าง "นมแม่จริง" กับ "นมผงสังเคราะห์"

ทั้งหมดนี้เกิดขึ้นภายใต้แนวคิดใหม่ของอุตสาหกรรมอาหารที่เรียกว่า "functional nutrition" หรือโภชนาการที่ออกแบบเพื่อทำงานเฉพาะทาง ไม่ใช่แค่ให้พลังงานหรือโปรตีน แต่เล็งเป้าหมายเฉพาะ เช่น เสริมภูมิคุ้มกัน ซ่อมแซมสมอง หรือฟื้นฟูร่างกาย โดยมีรากฐานจากธรรมชาติ แต่ใช้เทคโนโลยีสมัยใหม่ในการผลิต

แม้จะฟังดูเป็นความก้าวหน้าทางวิทยาศาสตร์ที่น่าตื่นเต้น แต่น้ำเสียงที่ดังก้องในอีกมุมหนึ่งก็คือคำถามเชิงจริยธรรม TurtleTree กำลังสร้างโปรตีนที่มีอยู่เฉพาะในมนุษย์ โดยอาศัยข้อมูลพันธุกรรมของมนุษย์เอง แล้วนำเข้าสู่ระบบอุตสาหกรรมเพื่อการค้า คำถามคือ เมื่อใดที่การจำลองธรรมชาติจะกลายเป็นการผูกขาดธรรมชาติ? ใครควรเป็นเจ้าของข้อมูลพันธุกรรมของมนุษย์? และถ้าวันหนึ่งบริษัทใดบริษัทหนึ่งสามารถควบคุมการผลิต “นมแม่จำลอง” ได้แต่เพียงผู้เดียว นั่นจะส่งผลต่อเสรีภาพของสังคมในมุมไหนบ้าง?

นักชีวจริยธรรมหลายคน เช่น ดร.ซิลเวีย แคมโปเรซี จาก King's College London ตั้งข้อสังเกตไว้ว่า เทคโนโลยีแบบนี้อาจแก้ปัญหาการเข้าถึงนมแม่ในพื้นที่ห่างไกลหรือในกลุ่มแม่ที่ให้นมไม่ได้ แต่ขณะเดียวกันก็อาจกลายเป็นการสร้าง "ระบบอาหารทางเลือก" ที่ควบคุมโดยบริษัทไม่กี่ราย ที่มีอำนาจเกินกว่าผู้บริโภคจะตรวจสอบได้

เมื่อเทคโนโลยีสามารถจำลองสิ่งที่เคยสงวนไว้เฉพาะธรรมชาติ และมนุษย์ได้ใกล้เคียงจนแทบแยกไม่ออก บางทีคำถามที่ควรถามอาจไม่ใช่แค่ว่า “มันปลอดภัยหรือไม่?” แต่อาจต้องถามว่า “เราไว้ใจใครให้สร้างสิ่งนี้แทนธรรมชาติ?” เพราะน้ำนมแม่เคยเป็นสิ่งที่มาจากรักและชีวิต แต่วันนี้มันอาจกลายเป็นเพียงสิ่งที่มาจากห้องแล็บและโมเลกุล... และนั่นคือสิ่งที่เราต้องคิดให้เป็น ก่อนจะกินให้ดี เต่านี้มีบุญคุณอันใหญ่หลวงงงงงงง

เสริมจุดน่าสนใจให้ครับ KBW Ventures ถือเป็นผู้ลงทุนรายใหญ่ที่สุดใน TurtleTree Labs โดยมีบทบาทสำคัญในหลายรอบการระดมทุนของบริษัท KBW Ventures เป็นบริษัทลงทุนจากสหรัฐอาหรับเอมิเรตส์ ก่อตั้งโดย สมเด็จพระราชโอรสเจ้าชายคาเล็ด บิน อัลวาลีด บิน ตาลาล อัล ซาอุด (HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud) ในรอบการระดมทุน Pre-A มูลค่า 6.2 ล้านดอลลาร์สหรัฐฯ ซึ่งปิดในเดือนธันวาคม 2020 KBW Ventures ได้ร่วมลงทุนพร้อมกับ Green Monday Ventures, Eat Beyond Global และ Verso Capital . นอกจากนี้ เจ้าชาย Khaled ยังได้เข้าร่วมเป็นที่ปรึกษาให้กับ TurtleTree Labs เพื่อสนับสนุนการขยายตลาดและกลยุทธ์การเติบโตของบริษัท

ซึ่งในตัว KBW Ventures นั้น เป็นบริษัทลงทุนที่มุ่งเน้นการสนับสนุนเทคโนโลยีที่ยั่งยืนและนวัตกรรมในหลากหลายอุตสาหกรรม เช่น เทคโนโลยีชีวภาพ (biotech), เทคโนโลยีพลังงานสะอาด, เทคโนโลยีการเงิน (fintech), เทคโนโลยีการขนส่ง, และเทคโนโลยีอาหาร (food tech) โดยเฉพาะ และในส่วนของเจ้าชาย Khaled มีความสนใจอย่างลึกซึ้งในด้านเทคโนโลยีอาหาร โดยเฉพาะในกลุ่มโปรตีนทางเลือก เช่น Beyond Meat ซึ่งเป็นการลงทุนที่สะท้อนถึงความมุ่งมั่นชัดเจนในการส่งเสริมอาหารที่ยั่งยืนและมีจริยธรรมครับ และแน่นอนเลยว่า โดยมีส่วนร่วมในรอบระดมทุนหลายครั้งของ Beyond Meat รวมถึงตอนที่ Beyond Meat เข้าตลาดหุ้น Nasdaq ครั้งแรกในปี 2019

เจ้าชาย Khaled เชื่อมั่นว่าอาหารทางเลือกแบบพืชจะถูกลงและแพร่หลายมากขึ้น จนอาจถูกกว่าราคาเนื้อสัตว์จากสัตว์จริงภายในปี 2025 ตามข้อมูลที่ได้มาแสดงว่า ปีนี้นี่หว่าาาาาาาาาา

#pirateketo #กูต้องรู้มั๊ย #ม้วนหางสิลูก #siamstr

@ 2b998b04:86727e47

\> “Huge swathes of people…spend their entire working lives performing tasks they secretly believe do not really need to be performed.”\ \> — David Graeber, Bullshit Jobs

\> “We are in a system that must grow — forever — or it collapses. But technology, by its very nature, is deflationary.”\ \> — Jeff Booth, The Price of Tomorrow

We live in a strange paradox: Technological progress is supposed to make life easier, yet many people feel more overworked and less fulfilled than ever. While artificial intelligence and automation promise unprecedented productivity, it’s not yet clear whether that will mean fewer bullshit jobs — or simply new kinds of them.

What Is a Bullshit Job?

In his landmark book Bullshit Jobs, the late anthropologist David Graeber exposed a haunting truth: millions of jobs exist not because they are needed, but because of economic, political, or psychological inertia. These are roles that even the workers themselves suspect are meaningless — created to serve appearances, maintain hierarchies, or justify budgets.

Think:

• Middle managers approving other middle managers' reports

• Employees running meetings to prepare for other meetings

• Corporate roles invented to interface with poorly implemented AI tools

Bullshit work isn’t the absence of technology. It’s often the outcome of resisting what technology could actually do — in order to preserve jobs, status, or growth targets.

Booth’s Warning: The System is Rigged Against Deflation

In The Price of Tomorrow, entrepreneur Jeff Booth argues that the natural state of a tech-driven economy is deflation — things getting better, cheaper, and faster.

But our global financial system is built on perpetual inflation and debt expansion. Booth writes:

\> “We are using inflationary monetary policy to fight deflationary technological forces.”

Even as AI and automation could eliminate unnecessary jobs and increase abundance, our system requires jobs — or the illusion of them — to keep the economy expanding. So bullshit jobs persist, and even evolve.

AI as a Deflationary Force

AI is rapidly accelerating the deflation Booth described:

• Tasks that used to take hours now take seconds

• Whole creative and administrative processes are being streamlined

• Labor can scale digitally — one tool used globally at near-zero marginal cost

Embraced honestly, this could mean fewer hours, lower costs, and more prosperity. But again, we are not optimized for truth — we are optimized for GDP growth.

So we invent new layers of AI-enhanced bullshit:

• Prompt engineers writing prompts for other prompt engineers

• "Human-in-the-loop" validators reviewing AI output they don’t understand

• Consultants building dashboards that nobody reads

Toward a Post-Bullshit Future

Here’s the real opportunity: If we embrace deflation as a blessing — not a threat — and redesign our systems around truth, efficiency, and abundance, we could:

• Eliminate meaningless labor

• Reduce the cost of living dramatically

• Liberate people to create, heal, build, and rest

This means more than economic reform — it’s a philosophical shift. We must stop equating “employment” with value. That’s where Bitcoin and open-source tools point: toward a world where permissionless value creation is possible without the bloat of gatekeeping institutions.

Final Thought: Tech Won’t Save Us, But Truth Might

Technology, left to its own logic, tends toward freedom, efficiency, and abundance. But our current systems suppress that logic in favor of growth at all costs — even if it means assigning millions of people to do work that doesn’t need doing.

So will AI eliminate bullshit jobs?

It can. But only if we stop pretending we need them.

And for those of us who step outside the wage-work loop, something remarkable happens. We begin using these tools to create actual value — not to impress a boss, but to solve real problems and serve real people.

Recently, I built a tool using AI and automation that helps me cross-post content from Nostr to LinkedIn, Facebook, and X. It wasn’t for a paycheck. It was about leverage — freeing time, expanding reach, and creating a public record of ideas.\ You can check it out here:\ 👉 <https://tinyurl.com/ywxuowl5>

Will it help others? I don’t know yet.\ But it helped me — and that’s the point.

Real value creation doesn’t always begin with a business plan. Sometimes it starts with curiosity, conviction, and the courage to build without permission.

Maybe the future of work isn’t about scaling jobs at all.\ Maybe it’s about reclaiming time — and using these tools to build lives of meaning.

---

If this resonates — or if you’ve found your own way to reclaim time and create value outside the wage loop — zap me and share your story. Let’s build the post-bullshit economy together. ⚡

@ 94215f42:7681f622

The promise of AI is intoxicating: slash operational costs by 50-80%, achieve software-style margins on service businesses and and watch enterprise value multiply overnight.

But this initial value creation contains a hidden trap that could leave businesses worth less than when they started. Understanding the "Value Trap" is key to navigating a transition to an AI economy.

What is the Value Trap?

Whilst the value trap is forward looking and somewhat theoretical at this point, there are strong financial incentives to drive investments (many $bns of are looking at the transformation opportunity) that mean this should be taken very seriously.

The Value Trap unfolds in distinct phases:

Phase 1: Status Quo A typical service business operates with 100 units of revenue and 90 units of cost, generating 10 units of profit, representing a standard 10% margin. A bog standard business we can all relate to, long term customers locked in, market fit a distant memory, but growth is hard at this point.

Phase 2: Cost Reduction Early AI adopters slash operational expenses from 90 to 20 units while maintaining 100 units of revenue. This is the very real promise when moving to a "Human at the Edge" model that we'll unpack in a future article. Suddenly, they're generating 80 units of profit at an 8x increase that can easily add multiple to the enterprise value! A venture style return on a business previously struggling for growth.

Phase 3: Growth Phase With massive profit margins comes pricing power. These businesses can undercut competitors while maintaining healthy margins, driving rapid revenue growth. Having removed the human constraint on scaling and the additional overheads and complexity this introduces we see seemingly unlimited expansion. The brakes are truly off at this point for early adopters to expand total market share.

Phase 4: Competition Emerges The extraordinary returns attract competitors. It's important to note there is no technical moat here, other businesses implement similar AI strategies, often from your own staff who may have been let go, new entrants launch AI-native operations, and pricing power erodes.

Phase 5: Mean Reversion After 3-7 years (our best guess given current investment interest in transformation led PE), competitive pressure drives revenue down from 100 to 25 units while costs remain at 20. The business ends up with similar margins to where it started but at much lower absolute revenue, potentially destroying enterprise value.

What you've done is just massively reduced costs in this industry by displacing jobs and those individuals can turn around and compete. You incentivise the competition which erodes your pricing power

Why This Pattern is Inevitable

The Value Trap isn't pure speculation, but based on market dynamics playing out given a set of financial incentives. We believe there are several key forces that make this cycle almost guaranteed:

The Arbitrage is Too Attractive When businesses can achieve "venture returns with no product-market fit risk," capital will flood in. Private equity and Venture Capital firms are already raising funds specifically to acquire traditional service businesses and apply AI transformation strategies .

Low Technical Barriers Unlike previous technological advantages, AI implementation doesn't require significant technical moats. Much of the technology is open source, and the real barrier is process redesign thinking rather than proprietary technology.

The "One Player" Principle In any market, it only takes one competitor to implement AI-native processes to force everyone else to adapt. You either "play the game or you get left behind".

Capital Abundance With global money supply expanding and traditional investment opportunities yielding lower returns, the combination of proven product-market fit and dramatic cost reduction potential represents an irresistible opportunity for investors.

Strategic Response for SMEs: The Netflix Model

Small and medium enterprises actually have a significant advantage in navigating the Value Trap, but they need to act strategically and start moving now.

Embrace the Incubation Approach Rather than gutting your existing business, adopt Netflix's strategy: build an AI-native version of your business alongside your current operations. This approach manages risk while positioning for the future.

The answer here is why not both. you don't necessarily have to gut your current business, but you should be thinking about what does my business look like in five years and how do I transition into that.

Leverage Your Natural Advantages Small businesses can adapt faster than large enterprises. While a 20,000-person company faces "political shockwaves" when reducing workforce, a 10-person business can double revenue without anyone noticing. You can focus on growth rather than painful cost-cutting.

Remove Growth Constraints Early AI removes the traditional constraint where "adding the next person" represents a significant capital investment. Small businesses can scale efficiently once they've redesigned their processes around AI-native workflows, avoid further capital outlay and scaling without increasing complexity in operations.

Focus on Local Networks For various reasons associated with the commoditisation of intelligence, we believe the future favours "hyper-localised" businesses serving customers who "know, like, and trust" them. As intelligence becomes commoditised, human relationships become more valuable, not less.

Strategic Response for Capital Allocators

For private equity and venture capital firms, the Value Trap presents both enormous opportunity and significant risk.

Target the Right Businesses Look for businesses with strong persistent moats that will slow mean reversion:

• Strong brand and customer relationships

• High customer acquisition costs in the industry

• Regulatory barriers to entry

• Capital-intensive startup requirements

• Long-term contracts and switching costs

Master the Timing The key is capturing value during the expansion phase and exiting before mean reversion accelerates, or finding an appropriate time arbitrage solution to retain value (see below). The optimal point if you're a capital allocator is almost when you've extracted the most cost out of the business.

Consider Hybrid Strategies Rather than just gutting existing businesses, consider acquiring for distribution and customer base while building AI-native operations alongside traditional ones. This provides multiple exit strategies and reduces execution risk.

Bitcoin: The Time Arbitrage Solution

Whenever I've talked to anybody about AI, my first point of advice is just buy bitcoin.

This isn't just evangelism, so much as a recognition of where you would want to hold value as the Value Trap plays out. In essence the value trap generates an arbitrage opportunity, hige profits are pulled forwards short-term balooning the balance sheet, but the second order consequences of this change risk destroying the value you just created!

We believe alongside rapid competition leading to price for services collapsing, the mass job displacement leads to political pressure for intervention.

This could take several forms, but UBI, mortgage bailouts, unemployment extensions, seizure of existing property.

"All roads lead to money printing," as Pete notes in Good Stuff 02 .

During Weimar Republic hyperinflation, "the cost of a newspaper in year five was the same nominal figure as all of the money that existed in year four." While extreme, this illustrates how quickly monetary systems can shift as inflation and money supply inflation begins to run.

To resolve these issues, Bitcoin allows you to conduct arbitrage across time in an asset that is inflation resistant (fixed supply), hard to seize, has no counter party risk (if someone holds your gold, stocks, cash they can take it without asking) and transportable. Capturing value today and preserving it through monetary system changes protecting against the second and third-order effects of massive economic disruption, that AI represents.

Opportunity, Not Fear: The Renaissance Ahead

The Value Trap isn't a reason to avoid AI, it's a roadmap for navigating inevitable change strategically.

The Entrepreneurial Renaissance This could be a Renaissance for entrepreneurs, if you're entrepreneurial minded, this is an amazing time to be alive because there's opportunity that exists in all fields and the barriers to entry have never been lower.

Liberation from Busy Work The displacement of administrative and routine cognitive work frees humans for higher-value creation.

Democratisation of Intelligence When you can "purchase intelligence in buckets of $0.02 API calls," the barriers to starting and scaling businesses collapse. Individual entrepreneurs can build businesses that previously required large teams, with much lower complexity and risk.

Cost Reduction Benefits Everyone The ultimate outcome of the Value Trap cycle benefits consumers through dramatically lower prices for goods and services.

"Who doesn't want cheaper stuff? Why don't we just reduce the cost of everything massively?"

Conclusion: Embrace the High Agency Era

The Value Trap represents a fundamental shift from employment-based to entrepreneurship-based wealth creation. Rather than fearing job displacement, we should prepare for "the age of the entrepreneur" a high agency era.

The businesses and individuals who thrive will be those who:

• Understand the cycle and position accordingly

• Focus on unique value creation rather than routine processing or middleman models

• Build local networks and relationships

• Preserve wealth through the monetary transition

• Embrace building and creating unique value

If you are high agency, you can make anything happen.

The Value Trap isn't just about AI transforming business, it won't do this on its own, its a description of how humans will use this technology to generate and capture value.

The future belongs to builders, creators, and entrepreneurs who can navigate transition periods and emerge stronger. The Value Trap is the map, use it wisely.

This article draws heavily on discussion between myself and business partner Andy in Episode 02 of The Good Stuff, if you prefer listening try that :)

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

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[Analytical & Intelligence Comments]\ \ “On Monday February 27th, 2012, WikiLeaks began publishing The Global Intelligence Files, over five million e-mails from the Texas headquartered "global intelligence" company Stratfor. The e-mails date between July 2004 and late December 2011. They reveal the inner workings of a company that fronts as an intelligence publisher, but provides confidential intelligence services to large corporations, such as Bhopal's Dow Chemical Co., Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and government agencies, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the US Marines and the US Defence Intelligence Agency. The emails show Stratfor's web of informers, pay-off structure, payment laundering techniques and psychological methods.”\ \ Released on 2013-02-13 00:00 GMT Email-ID 13332210 Date 2011-05-04 16:26:59\ From <jetdrive@earthlink.net> To <responses@stratfor.com> CROYDON KEMP sent a\ message using the contact form at <https://www.stratfor.com/contact\>\\ Mossad ran 9/11 Arab "hijacker" terrorist operation\ \ By Wayne Madsen\ \ British intelligence reported in February 2002 that the Israeli Mossad ran the Arab hijacker cells that were later blamed by the U.S. government's 9/11 Commission for carrying out the aerial attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. WMR has received details of the British intelligence report which was suppressed by the government of then-Prime Minister Tony Blair.\ \ A Mossad unit consisting of six Egyptian- and Yemeni-born Jews infiltrated "Al Qaeda" cells in Hamburg (the Atta-Mamoun Darkanzali cell), south Florida, and Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates in the months before 9/11. The Mossad not only infiltrated cells but began to run them and give them specific orders that would eventually culminate in their being on board four regularly-scheduled flights originating in Boston, Washington Dulles, and Newark, New Jersey on 9/11.\ \ The Mossad infiltration team comprised six Israelis, comprising two cells of three agents, who all received special training at a Mossad base in the Negev Desert in their future control and handling of the "Al Qaeda" cells. One Mossad cell traveled to Amsterdam where they submitted to the operational control of the Mossad's Europe Station, which operates from the El Al complex at Schiphol International Airport. The three-man Mossad unit then traveled to Hamburg where it made contact with Mohammed Atta, who believed they were sent by Osama Bin Laden. In fact, they were sent by Ephraim Halevy, the chief of Mossad.\ \ The second three-man Mossad team flew to New York and then to southern Florida where they began to direct the "Al Qaeda" cells operating from Hollywood, Miami, Vero Beach, Delray Beach, and West Palm Beach. Israeli "art students," already under investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration for casing the offices and homes of federal law enforcement officers, had been living among and conducting surveillance of the activities, including flight school training, of the future Arab "hijacker" cells, particularly in Hollywood and Vero Beach.\ \ In August 2001, the first Mossad team flew with Atta and other Hamburg "Al Qaeda" members to Boston. Logan International Airport's security was contracted to Huntleigh USA, a firm owned by an Israeli airport security firm closely connected to Mossad — International Consultants on Targeted Security – ICTS. ICTS's owners were politically connected to the Likud Party, particularly the Netanyahu faction and then-Jerusalem mayor and future Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. It was Olmert who personally interceded with New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to have released from prison five Urban Moving Systems employees, identified by the CIA and FBI agents as Mossad agents. The Israelis were the only suspects arrested anywhere in the United States on 9/11 who were thought to have been involved in the 9/11 attacks.\ \ The two Mossad teams sent regular coded reports on the progress of the 9/11 operation to Tel Aviv via the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC. WMR has learned from a Pentagon source that leading Americans tied to the media effort to pin 9/11 on Arab hijackers, Osama Bin Laden, and the Taliban were present in the Israeli embassy on September 10, 2001, to coordinate their media blitz for the subsequent days and weeks following the attacks. It is more than likely that FBI counter-intelligence agents who conduct surveillance of the Israeli embassy have proof on the presence of the Americans present at the embassy on September 10. Some of the Americans are well-known to U.S. cable news television audiences.\ \ In mid-August, the Mossad team running the Hamburg cell in Boston reported to Tel Aviv that the final plans for 9/11 were set. The Florida-based Mossad cell reported that the documented "presence" of the Arab cell members at Florida flight schools had been established.\ \ The two Mossad cells studiously avoided any mention of the World Trade Center or targets in Washington, DC in their coded messages to Tel Aviv. Halevy covered his tracks by reporting to the CIA of a "general threat" by an attack by Arab terrorists on a nuclear plant somewhere on the East Coast of the United States. CIA director George Tenet dismissed the Halevy warning as "too non-specific." The FBI, under soon-to-be-departed director Louis Freeh, received the "non-specific" warning about an attack on a nuclear power plant and sent out the information in its routine bulletins to field agents but no high alert was ordered.\ \ The lack of a paper trail pointing to "Al Qaeda" as the masterminds on 9/11, which could then be linked to Al Qaeda's Mossad handlers, threw off the FBI. On April 19, 2002, FBI director Robert Mueller, in a speech to San Francisco's Commonwealth Club, stated: "In our investigation, we have not uncovered a single piece of paper — either here in the United States, or in the treasure trove of information that has turned up in Afghanistan and elsewhere — that mentioned any aspect of the September 11 plot."\ \ The two Mossad "Al Qaeda" infiltration and control teams had also helped set up safe houses for the quick exfiltration of Mossad agents from the United States. Last March, WMR reported: "WMR has learned from two El Al sources who worked for the Israeli airline at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport that on 9/11, hours after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded all civilian domestic and international incoming and outgoing flights to and from the United States, a full El Al Boeing 747 took off from JFK bound for Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport. The two El Al employee sources are not Israeli nationals but legal immigrants from Ecuador who were working in the United States for the airline. The flight departed JFK at 4:11 pm and its departure was, according to the El Al sources, authorized by the direct intervention of the U.S. Department of Defense. U.S. military officials were on the scene at JFK and were personally involved with the airport and air traffic control authorities to clear the flight for take-off. According to the 9/11 Commission report, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta ordered all civilian flights to be grounded at 9:45 am on September 11." WMR has learned from British intelligence sources that the six-man Mossad team was listed on the El Al flight manifest as El Al employees.\ \ WMR previously reported that the Mossad cell operating in the Jersey City-Weehawken area of New Jersey through Urban Moving Systems was suspected by some in the FBI and CIA of being involved in moving explosives into the World Trade Center as well as staging "false flag" demonstrations at least two locations in north Jersey: Liberty State Park and an apartment complex in Jersey City as the first plane hit the World Trade Center's North Tower. One team of Urban Moving Systems Mossad agents was arrested later on September 11 and jailed for five months at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Some of their names turned up in a joint CIA-FBI database as known Mossad agents, along with the owner of Urban Moving Systems, Dominik Suter, whose name also appeared on a "Law Enforcement Sensitive" FBI 9/11 suspects list, along with the names of key "hijackers," including Mohammed Atta and Hani Hanjour, as well as the so-called "20th hijacker," Zacarias Moussaoui.\ \ Suter was allowed to escape the United States after the FBI made initial contact with him at the Urban Moving Systems warehouse in Weehawken, New Jersey, following the 9/11 attacks. Suter was later permitted to return to the United States where he was involved in the aircraft parts supply business in southern Florida, according to an informe3d source who contacted WMR. Suter later filed for bankruptcy in Florida for Urban Moving Systems and other businesses he operated: Suburban Moving & Storage Inc.; Max Movers, Inc.; Invsupport; Woodflooring Warehouse Corp.; One Stop Cleaning LLC; and City Carpet Upholstery, Inc. At the time of the bankruptcy filing in Florida, Suter listed his address as 1867 Fox Court, Wellington, FL 33414, with a phone number of 561 204-2359.\ \ From the list of creditors it can be determined that Suter had been operating in the United States since 1993, the year of the first attack on the World Trade Center. In 1993, Suter began racking up American Express credit card charges totaling $21,913.97. Suter also maintained credit card accounts with HSBC Bank and Orchard Bank c/o HSBC Card Services of Salinas, California, among other banks. Suter also did business with the Jewish Community Center of Greater Palm Beach in Florida and Ryder Trucks in Miami. Miami and southern Florida were major operating areas for cells of Israeli Mossad agents masquerading as "art students," who were living and working near some of the identified future Arab "hijackers" in the months preceding 9/11.\ \ ABC's 20/20 correspondent John Miller ensured that the Israeli connection to "Al Qaeda's" Arab hijackers was buried in an "investigation" of the movers' activities on 9/11. Anchor Barbara Walters helped Miller in putting a lid on the story about the movers and Suter aired on June 21, 2002. Miller then went on to become the FBI public affairs spokesman to ensure that Mueller and other FBI officials kept to the "Al Qaeda" script as determined by the Bush administration and the future 9/11 Commission. But former CIA chief of counter-terrorism Vince Cannistraro let slip to ABC an important clue to the operations of the Mossad movers in New Jersey when he stated that the Mossad agents "set up or exploited for the purpose of launching an intelligence operation against radical Islamists in the area, particularly in the New Jersey-New York area." The "intelligence operation" turned out to have been the actual 9/11 attacks. And it was no coincidence that it was ABC's John Miller who conducted a May 1998 rare interview of Osama Bin Laden at his camp in Afghanistan. Bin Laden played his part well for future scenes in the fictional "made-for-TV" drama known as 9/11.\ \ WMR has also learned from Italian intelligence sources that Mossad's running of "Al Qaeda" operatives did not end with running the "hijacking" teams in the United States and Hamburg. Other Arab "Al Qaeda" operatives, run by Mossad, were infiltrated into Syria but arrested by Syrian intelligence. Syria was unsuccessful in turning them to participate in intelligence operations in Lebanon. Detailed information on Bin Laden's support team was offered to the Bush administration, up to days prior to 9/11, by Gutbi al-Mahdi, the head of the Sudanese Mukhabarat intelligence service. The intelligence was rejected by the Biush White House. It was later reported that Sudanese members of "Al Qaeda's" support network were double agents for Mossad who had also established close contacts with Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and operated in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Eritrea, as well as Sudan. The Mossad connection to Al Qaeda in Sudan was likely known by the Sudanese Mukhabarat, a reason for the rejection of its intelligence on "Al Qaeda" by the thoroughly-Mossad penetrated Bush White House. Yemen had also identified "Al Qaeda" members who were also Mossad agents. A former chief of Mossad revealed to this editor in 2002 that Yemeni-born Mossad "deep insertion" commandos spotted Bin Laden in the Hadhramaut region of eastern Yemen after his escape from Tora Bora in Afghanistan, following the U.S. invasion.\ \ French intelligence determined that other Egyptian- and Yemeni-born Jewish Mossad agents were infiltrated into Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates as radical members of the Muslim Brotherhood. However, the "Muslim Brotherhood" agents actually were involved in providing covert Israeli funding for "Al Qaeda" activities. On February 21, 2006, WMR reported on the U.S. Treasury Secretary's firing by President Bush over information discovered on the shady "Al Qaeda" accounts in the United Arab Emirates: "Banking insiders in Dubai report that in March 2002, U.S. Secretary of Treasury Paul O’Neill visited Dubai and asked for documents on a $109,500 money transfer from Dubai to a joint account held by hijackers Mohammed Atta and Marwan al Shehhi at Sun Trust Bank in Florida. O'Neill also asked UAE authorities to close down accounts used by Al Qaeda . . . . The UAE complained about O’Neill’s demands to the Bush administration. O’Neill’s pressure on the UAE and Saudis contributed to Bush firing him as Treasury Secretary in December 2002 " O'Neill may have also stumbled on the "Muslim Brotherhood" Mossad operatives operating in the emirates who were directing funds to "Al Qaeda."\ \ After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Sharjah's ruler, Sultan bin Mohammed al-Qasimi, who survived a palace coup attempt in 1987, opened his potentate to Russian businessmen like Viktor Bout, as well as to financiers of radical Muslim groups, including the Taliban and "Al Qaeda."\ \ Moreover, this Israeli support for "Al Qaeda" was fully known to Saudi intelligence, which approved of it in order to avoid compromising Riyadh. The joint Israeli-Saudi support for "Al Qaeda" was well-known to the Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah-based aviation network of the now-imprisoned Russian, Viktor Bout, jailed in New York on terrorism charges. The presence of Bout in New York, a hotbed of Israeli intelligence control of U.S. federal prosecutors, judges, as well as the news media, is no accident: Bout knows enough about the Mossad activities in Sharjah in support of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, where Bout also had aviation and logistics contracts, to expose Mossad as the actual mastermind behind 9/11. Bout's aviation empire also extended to Miami and Dallas, two areas that were nexuses for the Mossad control operations for the "Al Qaeda" flight training operations of the Arab cell members in the months prior to 9/11.\ \ Bout's path also crossed with "Al Qaeda's" support network at the same bank in Sharjah, HSBC. Mossad's phony Muslim Brotherhood members from Egypt and Yemen controlled financing for "Al Qaeda" through the HSBC accounts in Sharjah. Mossad's Dominik Suter also dealt with HSBC in the United States. The FBI's chief counter-terrorism agent investigating Al Qaeda, John O'Neill, became aware of the "unique" funding mechanisms for Al Qaeda. It was no mistake that O'Neill was given the job as director of security for the World Trade Center on the eve of the attack. O'Neill perished in the collapse of the complex.Mossad uses a number of Jews born in Arab countries to masquerade as Arabs. They often carry forged or stolen passports from Arab countries or nations in Europe that have large Arab immigrant populations, particularly Germany, France, Britain, Denmark, Sweden, and the Netherlands.\ \ For Mossad, the successful 9/11 terrorist "false flag" operation was a success beyond expectations. The Bush administration, backed by the Blair government, attacked and occupied Iraq, deposing Saddam Hussein, and turned up pressure on Israel's other adversaries, including Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Hamas, and Lebanese Hezbollah. The Israelis also saw the U.S., Britain, and the UN begin to crack down on the Lebanese Shi'a diamond business in Democratic Republic of Congo and West Africa, and with it, the logistics support provided by Bout's aviation companies, which resulted in a free hand for Tel Aviv to move in on Lebanese diamond deals in central and west Africa.\ \ Then-Israeli Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu commented on the 9/11 attacks on U.S. television shortly after they occurred. Netanyahu said: "It is very good!" It now appears that Netanyahu, in his zeal, blew Mossad's cover as the masterminds of 9/11.\ \ Wayne Madsen is a Washington, DC-based investigative journalist, author and syndicated columnist. He has written for several renowned papers and blogs.\ \ Madsen is a regular contributor on Russia Today. He has been a frequent political and national security commentator on Fox News and has also appeared on ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, and MS-NBC. Madsen has taken on Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity on their television shows. He has been invited to testifty as a witness before the US House of Representatives, the UN Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and an terrorism investigation panel of the French government.\ \ As a U.S. Naval Officer, he managed one of the first computer security programs for the U.S. Navy. He subsequently worked for the National Security Agency, the Naval Data Automation Command, Department of State, RCA Corporation, and Computer Sciences Corporation.\ \ Madsen is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), Association for Intelligence Officers (AFIO), and the National Press Club. He is a regular contributor to Opinion Maker

<https://www.ord.io/72990614>

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Crypto Insights

Introducing Generalized Program Composition and Coin Delegation into Bitcoin

Joshua Doman proposed a proof-of-concept called Graftleaf, aiming to achieve generalized program composition and delegation in Taproot in a simple and secure way. Graftleaf is a new Taproot leaf version (0xc2) that uses the annex to perform delegation. It adds two key features:

• Composition: The ability to sequentially execute zero, one, or multiple witness programs, including a locking script.

• Delegation: The ability to add additional spending conditions at signing time, which can include arbitrary combinations of programs and scripts.

This design overcomes the limitations of previous proposals by supporting complex script composition and delegation, promising backward compatibility, improved privacy and fungibility with the existing P2TR addresses.

Why OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV) Will Replace OP_VAULT

A post mainly discusses the current status of Bitcoin script opcode OP_VAULT (BIP-345) and the possibility of it being replaced by OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV, BIP-443). Key factors include:

• CCV is a more general version of OP_VAULT, inheriting some features such as amount modes and deferred (cross-input) checks.

• CCV supports replacing multiple script tapleaf nodes, has a simpler interface, and a lighter script interpreter implementation.

The author also points out CCV’s shortcomings and possible future extensions:

• Currently, there is a lack of supporting documentation and tools, and the BIP is not yet fully completed.

• A VAULT-decorator opcode may be needed to implement certain advanced features, such as requiring collateral lockup when unvaulting, or adding some rate-limiting behavior. These features are currently difficult to achieve.

Despite this, CCV remains a better foundation for building vault functionality.

Enabling Recursive Covenants via Self-Replication

Bram Cohen proposed adding a few simple opcodes to Bitcoin Script to enable recursive covenants in a natural and straightforward way. He illustrated with examples that a practical and useful script can be achieved through Quine, without other more complex tricks; developers writing recursive covenants must be aware of the importance of this approach.

UTXO Set Report from Mempool Research: Nearly Half of Bitcoin UTXOs Are Less Than 1,000 Sats

During the OP_RETURN debate in April-May 2025, the impact of inserting arbitrary data into transactions on the UTXO set sparked much discussion. In this report, Mempool studied the UTXO set, highlighting the fragmentation and bloat issues, especially due to small transactions and data embedding, which increase the storage and validation burden for node operators.

Key findings include:

• Severe Bloat: Currently, about 49% of UTXOs are less than 1,000 satoshis (about $1). Most of these use Taproot address format and may be related to data embedding schemes (like Ordinals) or related transfer mechanisms. Although these UTXOs can usually be spent, before they are, they increase the storage and validation burden for all node operators.

• Significant Proportion of Inscription-Related UTXOs: About 30% of UTXOs are related to inscription.

• Large Number of Long-Unspent UTXOs: There are over 100,000 old Counterparty UTXOs using Pay to Multisig (p2ms) scripts, which have existed for over 10 years. Although they make up a small proportion of the total (about 173 million UTXOs), they are a typical example of UTXO bloat.

• Taproot Becomes the Most Common UTXO Type: Among all UTXO types, Taproot (p2tr) has the highest proportion at 34.2%, followed by traditional p2pkh (28.8%) and p2wpkh (26.5%). However, in terms of total value stored, Taproot’s share is relatively low, indicating it is mainly used for small transactions or data embedding.

The report concludes by mentioning that as the UTXO sets continue to grow, Utreexo and SwiftSync are two scaling methods for maintaining Bitcoin’s accessibility to a wide range of node operators.

Visualization of Bitcoin Mainnet Data

mainnet-observer, built and maintained by developer @0xB10C, visualizes multiple data points from the Bitcoin mainnet, including:

• Mining a single block currently requires over ~500,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (500 zeta or 5×10²³) hash attempts.

• Over 42 BTC are now permanently lost in provably unspendable OP_RETURN outputs.

• Daily updated “Mining Centralization Index” (with proxy pools)

• Bitcoin mining is currently highly centralized, with 6 pools producing and mining over 95% of block templates.

Path Queries: Addressing Payment Reliability and Routing Limitations

brh28 initiated a discussion on Lightning Network payment routing, focusing on issues like liquidity uncertainty and inefficient path discovery. He proposed a new path query mechanism—allowing nodes to dynamically share information through path queries, fostering a more decentralized routing ecosystem. This can improve the success rate of large payments and reduce reliance on a completely synced channel graph. Although there are still some privacy concerns, this method provides nodes with a controllable information disclosure mechanism and is expected to revolutionize current payment routing approaches.

Bitlayer and Sui Achieve Trust-Minimized BitVM Bridge

Bitlayer and Sui integrated the BitVM Bridge, launching Peg-BTC (YBTC)—bridging native Bitcoin to the Sui ecosystem via BitVM Bridge. BitVM Bridge is a trust-minimized bridge powered by Bitlayer and supported by the advanced BitVM smart contract framework.

Ark Protocol Litepaper

Ark recently released its litepaper: Ark: A UTXO-based Transaction Batching Protocol, outlining its technical foundation. As an innovative Bitcoin scaling protocol, Ark enables off-chain transaction execution while allowing users full control over their funds. This is achieved by introducing “virtual UTXOs” (VTXOs), allowing users to transact off-chain while retaining the ability to unilaterally exit to the Bitcoin main chain. Coordinated by an operator who batches user activities into on-chain commitments, Ark achieves high transaction throughput with minimal on-chain footprint. This provides Bitcoin with a simple and user-friendly scaling solution that offers a practical path for Layer 2 solutions that are inefficient or costly to execute on the main chain.

Top Reads on Blockchain and Beyond

List of Known Real-World Bitcoin Attack Incidents

Here is a list of real-world attacks against Bitcoin/crypto asset holders over the years.

The Internet Capital Market: Free Avenue for Developers, or Another Wave of FOMO?

This post discusses Internet Capital Markets (ICM)—decentralized platforms where funds flow directly to app builders and creators. ICM combines crowdfunding, token issuance, and equity speculation, eliminating the need for VCs, banks, or app stores. In 2025, more independent developers are issuing app tokens directly via X and tools like Believe and Launchcoin, attracting mass investment.

ICM Proponents argue this model breaks traditional funding barriers, making innovation more democratic and accessible; while critics warn that ICM is becoming a hotbed for hype and short-term speculation, with many projects lacking real products or long-term value. The author believes whether ICM can become the next milestone for Web3 hinges on whether it can break free from the cycle of “speculation becomes product traction” and deliver real user value and sustained innovation.

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加密洞见

在比特币中引入通用程序组合与币委托机制

Joshua Doman 提出了一个 Graftleaf 的概念验证，旨在用一种简单而安全的方法在 Taproot 中实现通用程序组合和代笔委托。Graftleaf 是一个新的 Taproot 叶子版本（0xc2），使用附件来执行委托。Graftleaf 增加了两个关键功能：

• 组合：按顺序执行零个、一个或多个见证程序的能力，包括一个锁定脚本。

• 委派：在签名时添加其他支出条件的能力，可以包括程序和脚本的任意组合。

它们旨在通过支持复杂的脚本组合和委托来克服以前提案的局限性，承诺提高隐私性、可替代性以及与现有 P2TR 地址的向后兼容性。

为什么说 OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV) 将会取代 OP_VAULT

帖子主要讨论了比特币脚本操作码 OP_VAULT（BIP-345）的现状，及其被OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY（CCV，BIP-443）取代的可能。重要因素有：

• CCV 是 OP_VAULT 的更通用版本，继承了部分功能，如金额模式（amount modes）、延迟跨输入检查（deferred cross-input checks）。

• CCV支持替换多个脚本叶子节点（tapleaf），接口更简洁，脚本解释器实现更轻量。

同时作者也指出 CCV 的不足与未来可能的扩展：

• 当前缺少部分配套文档和工具，BIP 尚未完全完成。

• 可能需要 VAULT-decorator 操作码来实现某些高级功能，如解锁金库时必须抵押锁定、速率限制等。

尽管如此，CCV仍然是构建金库功能的更优基础。

通过自复制方式启用递归契约

Bram Cohen 提出通过向比特币脚本添加一些简单的操作码，以一种自然而直接的方式实现递归契约（recursive covenants）。他通过例子说明，一个实用且有用的脚本通过 Quine 自复制就可以实现，无需其他更复杂的技巧；编写递归契约的开发者必须意识到该方式的重要性。

Mempool Research 发布 UTXO 集的报告：比特币中近一半 UTXO 金额小于 1000 聪

在 2025 年 4 至 5 月期间的 OP_RETURN 大辩论中，将任意数据插入交易对 UTXO 集的影响的问题引发了大量讨论。Mempool 在这份报告中，对 UTXO 集进行了研究，强调了比特币 UTXO 集合碎片化和膨胀的问题，特别是由于小额交易和数据嵌入导致的 UTXO 增长，增加了节点运营者的存储和验证负担。关键结论有：

• UTXO 集合的碎片化严重：目前约有 49% 的 UTXO 金额低于 1000 聪（约合 1 美元），这些小额 UTXO 大多采用 Taproot 地址格式，可能与数据嵌入方案（如 Ordinals 铭文）或相关的转移机制有关。尽管这些 UTXO 通常可被花费，但在被使用之前，它们会增加所有节点运营者的存储和验证负担。

• 铭文相关的 UTXO 占比显著：约 30% 的 UTXO 与铭文相关。

• 存在大量长期未动用的 UTXO：有超过 10 万个使用 Pay to Multisig (p2ms) 脚本的旧 Counterparty UTXO，且存在超过 10 年。尽管在总数（约 1.73 亿个 UTXO）中所占比例较小，但依然是 UTXO 膨胀的典型问题。

• Taproot 成为最常见的 UTXO 类型：在所有 UTXO 类型中，Taproot（p2tr）占比最高，为 34.2%，其次是传统的 p2pkh（28.8%）和 p2wpkh（26.5%）。但是从 UTXO 所存储的总价值来看，Taproot 的占比相对较低，表明其主要用于小额交易或数据嵌入。

报告最后也提到，对于继续增长的 UTXO 集，Utreexo 和 SwiftSync 是两种对保持比特币对广泛节点运营者可访问性的扩容方法。

比特币网络各项数据的可视化呈现

mainnet-observer 由开发者 @0xB10C 搭建并维护，将比特币链的多项数据呈现出来，可以看到：

• 目前挖掘一个区块所需要的平均哈希尝试：超过 ~500000000000000000000000000（500 zeta 或 5×10²³）次

• 超过 42 个 BTC 现在永远丢失在可证明无法花费的 OP_RETURN 输出中

• 每日更新的「挖矿中心化指数」（带有代理池）

• 比特币挖矿高度集中，6 个矿池生产并挖掘了超过 95%的区块模板（截止 2025 年 4 月）

闪电网络路径查询：解决支付可靠性和路由限制

brh28 发起了关于闪电网络路由支付的讨论，聚焦「流动性的不确定性」（liquidity uncertainty）和路径发现效率低的问题，提出了一种新的路径查询机制——允许节点以路径查询的形式，实现动态信息共享，推动了一个更加分布式的路由生态。这可以提高了大额支付的成功率，并减少对完整通道图的依赖。尽管在隐私方面仍存在一定担忧，但该方法为节点提供了一种可控的信息披露机制，有望革新现有的支付路由方式。

Bitlayer 和 Sui 实现了信任最小化的 BitVM 桥

Bitlayer 和 Sui 整合了 BitVM Bridge，推出 Peg-BTC（YBTC）——通过 BitVM Bridge 将原生比特币桥接到 Sui 生态中。BitVM Bridge 是一个由 Bitlayer 提供支持并由先进的 BitVM 智能合约框架支持的信任最小化桥。

Ark 协议的正式规范

Ark 近日发布 Litepaper: Ark: A UTXO-based Transaction Batching Protocol，阐述其技术基础。作为一种新颖的比特币扩容协议，Ark 实现了链下交易执行，同时让用户能完全掌控自己的资金。这一点通过引入「虚拟UTXO」（VTXO）得以实现，用户在链下交易，同时保留单方面退出至比特币主链的能力。Ark 同一个 operator 协作，将用户操作打包成链上承诺，在保持极小链上负担的前提下实现高交易吞吐量。这为比特币提供了一种简单易用的扩容方案，也为那些在主链上执行效率低下或成本过高的二层方案提供了落地空间。

精彩无限，不止于链

已知真实发生过的比特币攻击事件列表

这里列出了历年来在真实世界中发生过的、针对比特币/加密资产拥有者的攻击事件。

互联网资本市场：是开发者的自由通道，还是另一波 FOMO?

帖子讨论了互联网资本市场（ ICM, Internet Capital Markets ），即去中心化平台——资金直接流向应用程序构建者和创建者。ICM 集众筹、代币发行和股权投机于一体，无需VC、银行或应用商店。2025年，越来越多独立开发者通过 X 和 Believe、Launchcoin 等工具直接发行应用代币，吸引大众投资。ICM 的支持者认为，这种模式打破了传统融资壁垒，让创新更民主、门槛更低；但批评者警告，ICM 正沦为炒作和短期投机的温床，许多项目缺乏实际产品和长期价值。作者认为，ICM 模式能否成为 Web3 的下一个里程碑，关键在于其能否走出「投机成了产品增长动力」（speculation becomes product traction）的怪圈，实现真正的用户价值和持续创新。

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

I often hear "bitcoin doesn't interest me, I'm not a finance person."

Ironically, the beauty of sound money is you don't have to be. In the current system you're expected to manage a diversified investment portfolio or pay someone to do it. Bitcoin will make that optional.

— ODELL (@ODELL) September 16, 2018

At first glance bitcoin often appears overwhelming to newcomers. It is incredibly easy to get bogged down in the details of how it works or different ways to use it. Enthusiasts, such as myself, often enjoy going down the deep rabbit hole of the potential of bitcoin, possible pitfalls and theoretical scenarios, power user techniques, and the developer ecosystem. If your first touch point with bitcoin is that type of content then it is only natural to be overwhelmed. While it is important that we have a thriving community of bitcoiners dedicated to these complicated tasks - the true beauty of bitcoin lies in its simplicity. Bitcoin is simply better money. It is the best money we have ever had.

Life is complicated. Life is hard. Life is full of responsibility and surprises. Bitcoin allows us to focus on our lives while relying on a money that is simple. A money that is not controlled by any individual, company, or government. A money that cannot be easily seized or blocked. A money that cannot be devalued at will by a handful of corrupt bureaucrat who live hundreds of miles from us. A money that can be easily saved and should increase in purchasing power over time without having to learn how to "build a diversified stock portfolio" or hire someone to do it for us.

Bitcoin enables all of us to focus on our lives - our friends and family - doing what we love with the short time we have on this earth. Time is scarce. Life is complicated. Bitcoin is the most simple aspect of our complicated lives. If we spend our scarce time working then we should be able to easily save that accrued value for future generations without watching the news or understanding complicated financial markets. Bitcoin makes this possible for anyone.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Raising a human is complicated. It is hard, it requires immense personal responsibility, it requires critical thinking, but mothers figure it out, because it is worth it. Using and saving bitcoin is simple -  simply install an app on your phone. Every mother can do it. Every person can do it.

Life is complicated. Life is beautiful. Bitcoin is simple.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

I’ve always believed that truth doesn’t bend to the will of the crowd. Growing up, I watched people nod along to ideas they didn’t even agree with, just because everyone else seemed to. It baffled me then, and it still does now. There’s something powerful about standing firm when you know you’re right—even if it means standing alone.

It’s not easy, though. The pressure to conform can feel like a tidal wave, crashing down with judgment, whispers, and rolled eyes. I’ve been there, heart pounding, wondering if I’m the crazy one. But here’s what I’ve learned: the majority isn’t always right. History backs me up—think of Galileo, shunned for saying the Earth wasn’t the center of the universe, or the countless voices drowned out before they were proven true. Numbers don’t guarantee wisdom.

For me, it’s about integrity. If I’ve wrestled with the facts, questioned myself, and still landed on solid ground, I’m not backing down just to keep the peace. It’s not arrogance—it’s conviction. I’d rather be the lone voice in a sea of noise than a silent echo of a lie. Because in the end, truth doesn’t care about headcounts. It cares about courage.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

Hey, it’s me again, and let me tell you about the wildest thing that happened to me recently. I swear, my life could be a comedy show sometimes😂. Picture this: me and my buddies were out messing around in the woods near campus, just kicking it like we always do. The sun was out, the vibes were good, and we were probably being louder than we needed to be. Then, out of nowhere, I spotted something slithering near my friend benji leg.

A snake. A legit, no-joke snake!

I yelled, “SNAKE!” at the top of my lungs—probably sounded like a total lunatic —and before I could even blink, those dudes were GONE. I mean, faster than their shadows, Olympic-sprinter-level gone. I’m standing there, heart pounding, looking at this snake like, “Bruh, did I just get ditched?” Turns out, I did. My so-called friends bolted back to the dorms without a second thought, leaving me to face the scaly intruder solo. Luckily, the snake wasn’t in the mood for drama. It just gave me this lazy side-eye and slithered off, like it was too cool to deal with me. I hightailed it back to the dorms too, and when I got there, benji and the crew were already laughing their heads off. “Bro, you screamed like a horror movie victim!” they said. Yeah, real funny, guys.

Honestly, though? I’m just glad that snake didn’t get too cozy with my backside. A near miss like that deserves a medal—or at least a good story. We’ve been cracking up about it ever since, and now every time we’re out, I’m the designated “snake spotter. Lesson learned: friends are great until nature throws a curveball. Phew, that was close! Never be afraid to stand against everyone if you know you’re right.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

P2P trading is also referred to as peer-to-peer trading or, more recently, people-to-people trading. Individuals can trade currencies and other marketable goods with other traders in this decentralized financial trading system. P2P trading is a method of trading cryptocurrencies between people without the need of middlemen like exchanges, banks, or other financial institutions. Networks that connect buyers and sellers, streamline transactions, and frequently provide conflict resolution services are where P2P transactions take place.

What is P2P Trading P2P trading is one of the quickest, cheapest, and most adaptable trading platforms, according to numerous research. Even more people could benefit from it if they lack access to conventional financial services or find some procedures to be too complicated.

P2P Trading in Nigeria P2P trading has grown somewhat in popularity in recent years as a result of the expansion of online marketplaces that bring together buyers and sellers. These platforms frequently offer wonderful alternatives to traditional financial services and perform similarly to or even better than what is provided by regional banks. Markets today provide unique advantages like quick transactions, reduced fees, and improved flexibility.

The ongoing development of regulations prohibiting the usage of cryptocurrencies is another factor that has increased the need for P2P trade in Nigeria. The majority of crypto traders in Nigeria now trade their cryptocurrencies with one another using the P2P trading system rather than the conventional trader-to-exchange service as a result of the ban on cryptocurrencies since 2021 till recently.P2P trading is thus one of the most popular and widely used forms of trading in Nigeria.

Peer-to-peer cryptocurrency trading is available on a number of well-known trading platforms, including Binance, Bitget, Bybit etc. A system has been built by these platforms (exchange websites and mobile applications) that enables traders to connect and trade their preferred crypto assets. P2P trading platforms have the power to transform Nigeria’s financial system and open up new doors for economic growth and development by bringing buyers and sellers together directly.

How does P2P trading work? One of the most effective ways to exchange cryptocurrency is through P2P trading, so everyone should be aware of how to get around it. It uses the exchange as a middleman to arrange, oversee, and finish trades between two independent dealers. The exchange service is used by buyers who search for sellers who are willing to sell to them at the price they are willing to pay, make a payment, and receive coins in return.

@ 1817b617:715fb372

🚀 Instantly Send Spendable Flash BTC, ETH, & USDT — 100% Blockchain-Verifiable!

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Pick your coin (BTC, ETH, USDT: TRC-20, ERC-20, BEP-20). Set amount and flash duration. Enter the recipient wallet (auto-validated). Step 2️⃣: Make Payment

Pay in your selected crypto. Scan the QR code or use the provided address. Upload your transaction proof (hash and screenshot). Step 3️⃣: Launch the Flash

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Access your flashed coins immediately. Verify your transactions using blockchain explorers. 🛡️ Why Our Flashing Tech Leads the Market: 🔗 Race/Finney Attack Mechanics: Mimics authentic blockchain behavior. 🖥️ Private iNode Clusters: Deliver fast syncing and reliable confirmation. ⏰ Live Timer: Ensures fresh, legitimate transactions. 🔍 Real Blockchain TX IDs: All transactions come with verifiable IDs.

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Is flashing secure? ✅ Yes, fully encrypted with VPN/proxy compatibility. Multiple devices? ✅ Yes, up to 5 Windows PCs per license. Chargebacks possible? ❌ No, flashing is irreversible. Spendability? ✅ Flash coins stay spendable 60–360 days. Verification after expiry? ❌ No, transactions expire after the set time. Support? ✅ 24/7 Telegram and WhatsApp help available. 🔐 Independent, Transparent, Trusted:

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The safest, smartest, and most powerful crypto flashing solution is here — only at CryptoFlashingTool.com!

 Instantly Send Spendable Flash BTC, ETH, & USDT — 100% Blockchain-Verifiable!

Step into the future of cryptocurrency innovation with CryptoFlashingTool.com — your go-to solution for sending spendable Flash Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and USDT transactions. Using cutting-edge 

 Race/Finney-style blockchain simulation, our technology generates coins that are virtually indistinguishable from real, fully confirmed blockchain transactions. Transactions stay live and spendable from 60 up to 360 days!

 Explore all the details at cryptoflashingtool.com.

 Why Trust Our Crypto Flashing System? Whether you’re a blockchain enthusiast, ethical hacker, security expert, or digital entrepreneur, our solution offers a perfect mix of authenticity, speed, and flexibility.

 Top Features You’ll Love: 

 Instant Blockchain Simulation: Transactions are complete with valid wallet addresses, transaction IDs, and real confirmations.

 Privacy First: Works flawlessly with VPNs, TOR, and proxies to keep you fully anonymous.

 User-Friendly Software: Built for Windows, beginner and pro-friendly with simple step-by-step guidance.

 Flexible Flash Durations: Choose how long coins stay valid — from 60 to 360 days.

 Full Wallet Compatibility: Instantly flash coins to SegWit, Legacy, or BCH32 wallets with ease.

 Exchange-Ready: Spend your flashed coins on leading exchanges like Kraken and Huobi.

 Proven Results: 

 Over 79 billion flash transactions completed. 

 3000+ satisfied users around the globe. 

 42 active blockchain nodes ensuring fast, seamless performance.

 How It Works: Step 

: Input Transaction Info

• Pick your coin (BTC, ETH, USDT: TRC-20, ERC-20, BEP-20).
• Set amount and flash duration.
• Enter the recipient wallet (auto-validated).

Step 

: Make Payment

• Pay in your selected crypto.
• Scan the QR code or use the provided address.
• Upload your transaction proof (hash and screenshot).

Step 

: Launch the Flash

• Blockchain confirmation simulation happens instantly.
• Your transaction appears real within seconds.

Step 

: Verify & Spend

• Access your flashed coins immediately.
• Verify your transactions using blockchain explorers.

 Why Our Flashing Tech Leads the Market: 

 Race/Finney Attack Mechanics: Mimics authentic blockchain behavior. 

 Private iNode Clusters: Deliver fast syncing and reliable confirmation. 

 Live Timer: Ensures fresh, legitimate transactions. 

 Real Blockchain TX IDs: All transactions come with verifiable IDs.

 FAQs:

• Is flashing secure? 

 Yes, fully encrypted with VPN/proxy compatibility. - Multiple devices? 

 Yes, up to 5 Windows PCs per license. - Chargebacks possible? 

 No, flashing is irreversible. - Spendability? 

 Flash coins stay spendable 60–360 days. - Verification after expiry? 

 No, transactions expire after the set time. - Support? 

 24/7 Telegram and WhatsApp help available.

 Independent, Transparent, Trusted:

At CryptoFlashingTool.com, we pride ourselves on unmatched transparency, speed, and reliability. See our excellent reviews on ScamAdvisor and top crypto forums!

 Contact Us: 

 WhatsApp: +1 770 666 2531

 Telegram: @cryptoflashingtool

 Ready to Flash Like a Pro?

 Buy Flash Coins Now

 Get Your Flashing Software

The safest, smartest, and most powerful crypto flashing solution is here — only at CryptoFlashingTool.com!

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Influencers would have you believe there is an ongoing binance bank run but bitcoin wallet data says otherwise.

- binance wallets are near all time highs
- bitfinex wallets are also trending up
- gemini and coinbase are being hit with massive withdrawals though

You should not trust custodians, they can rug you without warning. It is incredibly important you learn how to hold bitcoin yourself, but also consider not blindly trusting influencers with a ref link to shill you.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 74fb3ef2:58adabc7

Suppose you have a small mom-and-pop shop selling bananas, your bananas are of the highest quality, you plant the banana trees yourself, you water them daily, take great care of everything, and still select only the top 1% of bananas to sell.

Your customers love it, there's no place where they can get better bananas, but due to the fact that you spend so much time, your bananas have to be more expensive, so despite the higher quality, you don't make as much money as you think you should; surely you can get a little more of the market if you adopt some of the strategies that work for your competitors.

So you look across the street, and what do you know? Their bananas are of significantly worse quality than yours, but they're not just selling bananas, they're selling apples too, so you think to yourself, "what if I sold apples? Maybe my apples won't be the best in the market, but nobody can beat my bananas!"

You start planting apple trees, and after a while you're able go sell slightly better than average apples, but by doing so you neglect your bananas ever so slightly.

Most of your existing customers don't notice, you still have the best bananas in town, they don't notice the slight drop in quality. And now that you're selling apples too you're making more money, and more customers come to you.

But you notice that there's a new store now that's selling oranges, and people are buying them. So surely you need oranges too, so you can make some extra money.

You plant a few orange trees, but find yourself spending so much time tending to the oranges and apples that you can't devote the same time and love to your bananas.

You are making a bit of extra cash from the new customers, business is going well, but you don't have time for anything else anymore. You no free time anymore, you are overworked and your health is getting worse.

But you can't stop now that business is going well, you are making so much more, yeah maybe you don't have the same bananas anymore, but you do have slightly above average apples and oranges that have attracted so many customers.

You suddenly fall ill, you've overworked yourself and you are stuck at a hospital for a while.

When you come back to your store, a few of your customers are back, but not all of them, so you think of more ideas, mandarins, kiwi, watermelons, you can grow it all, but you're gonna hire a bunch of people to help you so you don't fall ill again.

One thing leads to another and you are making more money than ever, but strangely you don't hear your customers praising your bananas anymore.

So you take one of your bananas, peel it, and as you taste it, a wave of disappointment hits you.

Your bananas are now just as bad as everyone else's; you gave in to the tyranny of the marginal customer.

You make a lot of money now, but your flagship product is long gone, you are now just another Fruitseller.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

For years American bitcoin miners have argued for more efficient and free energy markets. It benefits everyone if our energy infrastructure is as efficient and robust as possible. Unfortunately, broken incentives have led to increased regulation throughout the sector, incentivizing less efficient energy sources such as solar and wind at the detriment of more efficient alternatives.

The result has been less reliable energy infrastructure for all Americans and increased energy costs across the board. This naturally has a direct impact on bitcoin miners: increased energy costs make them less competitive globally.

Bitcoin mining represents a global energy market that does not require permission to participate. Anyone can plug a mining computer into power and internet to get paid the current dynamic market price for their work in bitcoin. Using cellphone or satellite internet, these mines can be located anywhere in the world, sourcing the cheapest power available.

Absent of regulation, bitcoin mining naturally incentivizes the build out of highly efficient and robust energy infrastructure. Unfortunately that world does not exist and burdensome regulations remain the biggest threat for US based mining businesses. Jurisdictional arbitrage gives miners the option of moving to a friendlier country but that naturally comes with its own costs.

Enter AI. With the rapid development and release of AI tools comes the requirement of running massive datacenters for their models. Major tech companies are scrambling to secure machines, rack space, and cheap energy to run full suites of AI enabled tools and services. The most valuable and powerful tech companies in America have stumbled into an accidental alliance with bitcoin miners: THE NEED FOR CHEAP AND RELIABLE ENERGY.

Our government is corrupt. Money talks. These companies will push for energy freedom and it will greatly benefit us all.

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Microsoft Cloud hiring to "implement global small modular reactor and microreactor" strategy to power data centers: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/microsoft-cloud-hiring-to-implement-global-small-modular-reactor-and-microreactor-strategy-to-power-data-centers/

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ bf47c19e:c3d2573b

Originalni tekst na bitcoin-balkan.com.

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Pregled sadržaja

1. Šta je finansijski samo-suverenitet?
2. Zašto smo prestali da koristimo zlatni standard?
3. Šta fali tradicionalnoj valuti i centralnim bankama?
4. Kako mogu ljudi da mi ukradu novac ako je u banci?
5. Kako ljudi koriste moje finansijske podatke protiv mene?
6. Kako ljudi kontrolišu sa kim obavljam transakcije?
7. Kako da povratimo svoj finansijski samo-suverenitet?
8. Kako Bitcoin funkcioniše?
9. Pa onda, zašto Bitcoin?
10. Po čemu je Bitcoin bolji od sistema tradicionalnih valuta?
11. Kako Bitcoin štiti od Inflacije?
12. Kako Bitcoin štiti od Zaplene?
13. Kako Bitcoin štiti Privatnost?
14. Kako Bitcoin štiti od Cenzure?
15. Šta će vlada i banke učiniti sa Bitcoin-om?
16. Da li je vrednost Bitcoin-a nestabilna?
17. Da li je Bitcoin novac?
18. Bitcoin kao Zaliha Vrednosti
19. Bitcoin kao Sredstvo Razmene
20. Bitcoin kao Obračunska Jedinica
21. Bitcoin kao Sistem Kontrole
22. Šta je sa „Sledećim Bitcoin-om“?
23. Na kraju

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Kratki uvod u bezbednost, privatnost i slobodu vašeg novca.

Pre nego što saznate kako morate znati zašto.

Šta je finansijski samo-suverenitet?

Zamislite da u ruci imate zlatni novčić, jedan od najjednostavnijih i najčistijih oblika finansijskog samo-suvereniteta.

Da biste držali taj zlatni novčić, ne morate da se složite sa bilo kojim Uslovima korišćenja ili Politikom privatnosti, da se pridržavate bilo kojih KYC ili AML propisa, da pokažete ličnu kartu, da navedete svoje ime ili jedinstveni matični broj.

Samo ga držite u ruci i njime možete platiti bilo šta, davanjem tog novčića nekom drugom da ga drži u ruci. To je čista sloboda.

Pored slobode onoga što kupujete svojim novčićem, niko ne može magično znati kome plaćate ili koju robu/usluge kupujete tim zlatni novčićem, jer vaša privatnost nije ugrožena sa zlatom.

A pošto imate svoju privatnost, niko ne može znati za vaše transakcije, pa niko ne može da odluči da ograniči ili kontroliše za šta koristite taj zlatni novčić.

Hiljadama godina zlato je bilo globalni standard novca.

Svi su održavali svoj finansijski samo-suverenitet, a privatnost i sloboda svačijeg novca su poštovani.

Zaista je bilo tako jednostavno.

Zašto smo prestali da koristimo zlatni standard?

Trenutni globalni bankarski sistem i sistem tradicionalnih valuta, bankari su vrlo polako implementirali u proteklih 100+ godina.

Udružili su se sa svetskim vladama koje su svima oduzele zlato pod pretnjom nasilja.

Na primer, nakon što je Federalna banka rezervi osnovana u SAD-u 1913. godine, američka vlada je nasilno oduzela svo zlato 1933. godine, prisiljavajući sve da koriste nove centralne banke i sistem novčanica Federalnih rezervi.

„Dostavite svoje celokupno zlato u naše sefove u zamenu za bezvredni papir, ili ćemo upotrebiti silu nad vama.“

Banke su u početku zamenile zlatni standard papirnim priznanicama zvane zlatni sertifikati, ali nakon što je prošlo dovoljno vremena, banke su u osnovi jednostavno prestale da ih otkupljuju za zlato.

Zlatni sertifikati izdavani od banaka (novčanice ili „gotovina“) u tom trenutku bili su samo bezvredni papir, ali zbog vladine pretnje nasiljem, svi su bili primorani da nastave da koriste novčanice Federalnih rezervi.

Od skora, banke koriste digitalnu bazu podataka, u kojoj doslovno mogu stvoriti novac ni iz čega, čak i da ga ne moraju štampati na papiru.

Predsednik Federalnih rezervi priča kako oni „štampaju“ novac.

Oni su učvrstili svoju moć da manipulišu i naduvaju globalnu novčanu masu, nadgledaju finansijske transakcije svih i kontrolišu protok svih tradicionalnih valuta u svom bankarskom sistemu.

Banke sada kontrolišu sve.

Jednom kada su centralni bankari uspešno preuzeli kontrolu nad novčanom masom u svetu, zajedno sa sposobnošću svih da slobodno vrše transakcije i trguju, svet je kolektivno izgubio bezbednost, slobodu i privatnost svog novca.

Šta fali tradicionalnoj valuti i centralnim bankama?

Nakon impelentacije trenutnog globalnog bankarskog sistema i sistema tradicionalnih valuta, svetu nije preostao drugi izbor nego da veruje bankarima i političarima da vode globalni finansijski sistem na pošten način.

„Koren problema tradicionalne valute je potpuno poverenje potrebno za njeno funkcionisanje. Centralnoj banci se mora verovati da neće devalvirati valutu, ali istorija tradicionalnih valuta je puna kršenja tog poverenja. Bankama se mora verovati da čuvaju naš novac i prenose ga elektronskim putem, ali ga daju u talasima kreditnih balona sa malim delićem rezerve. ““ — Satoshi Nakamoto

Istorija zloupotrebe tradicionalnih valuta može se grupisati u 3 kategorije:

• Bezbednost. Loši ljudi kradu vaš novac ili vrednost vašeg novca, ponekad na očigledne načine, ponekad na podle načine.

• Privatnost. Loši ljudi nadgledaju sve vaše privatne finansijske transakcije, i koriste vaše lične finansijske podatke protiv vas.

• Sloboda. Loši ljudi kontrolišu na koji način možete da trošite sopstveni novac, sa kim možete da obavljate transakcije, koliko možete da potrošite itd.

Kako mogu ljudi da mi ukradu novac ako je u banci?

Evo nekoliko primera:

• Krađa inflacijom: Ovo je primarni način na koji banke kradu vaš novac i jedan od najpodlijih. Kada centralne banke izdaju novi novac, bilo štampanjem na bezvrednom papiru, ili samo dodavanjem knjigovodstvenog unosa u bazu podataka koju kontrolišu, one naduvaju globalnu novčanu masu. Inflacija krade kupovnu moć svih koji drže deo te valute, jednostavno zato što je sada više te valute u opticaju. Zlato se ne može stvoriti, pa su bankari umesto toga izmislili sistem papirnog novca.

• Krađa zaplenom: Ovo je jedan od načina na koji vlade mogu ukrasti vaš novac. Da li ste ikada čuli za zaplenu imovine? Ako policajac posumnja da je vaša imovina korišćena u krivičnom delu, može je zapleniti, a vi se morate boriti da biste povratili vašu ukradenu imovinu. Ili, drugi primer: Pokušajte da uđete u zemlju sa više od 10.000 USD u džepu, a ne da je prijavite, i pogledajte šta će se dogoditi. Sve je isto: krađa od strane drugih ljudi sa oružjem.

• Krađa putem oporezivanja: Ovo je još jedan način na koji vam vlade kradu novac. Ne sporim da li je oporezivanje etično ili ne, samo konstatujem činjenicu da vaša vlada može da primora vašu banku da im da vaš novac, a ovo je bezbednostna ranjivost. Da bi novac bio siguran, mora biti nezaplenjiv, a vlade mogu da zaplene vaše bankovne račune.

Kako ljudi koriste moje finansijske podatke protiv mene?

Ako fizičku tradicionalnu valutu predate drugoj osobi, u obliku papirnog novca ili kovanica, relativno je lako zaštititi privatnost svoje transakcije, baš kao što bi bilo da koristite zlatnike.

Međutim, ako koristite kreditne kartice, debitne kartice, bankovne transfere, PayPal, Venmo, LINE Pay, WeChat Pay ili bilo koju drugu mrežu za plaćanje koja je centralno kontrolisana, aktivno pristajete da se odreknete privatnosti podataka svih svojih privatnih finansijskih transakcija i sve ih dajete poverljivoj trećoj strani.

Kada su svi podaci i metapodaci vaših finansijskih transakcija prijavljeni u centralnu bazu podataka, onaj ko ima pristup toj bazi podataka može da koristi vaše podatke protiv vas.

Evo nekoliko osnovnih primera:

• Ako ste kupili robu rizičnog životnog stila poput cigareta, banka može reći vašoj osiguravajućoj kompaniji da poveća vaše osiguranje.
• Ako ste kupili nešto što je ilegalno, poput droga za rekreaciju, vaša banka može reći vašoj vladi da vas zakonski goni.

Ali u slučaju nekih represivnih vlada, oni su to odveli do ekstrema. Oni centralno prikupljaju sve finansijske transakcije i druge podatke svih svojih građana i stvorili su totalitarni Sistem Socijalnih Bodova (eng. Social Credit Score):

Prepoznavanje lica je jedan od elemenata kineskih napora za praćenje

Zapisi George Orwell-a već su postali stvarnost u Kini zbog sistema tradicionalnih valuta centralne banke i platnih mreža koje su izgrađene na njemu.

Ako mislite da se to neće dogoditi u vašoj zemlji, razmislite ponovo.

To se dešava vrlo polako, ali na kraju će sve svetske vlade primeniti Sistem Socijalnih Bodova, dok je Kina to tek prva učinila.

Kako ljudi kontrolišu sa kim obavljam transakcije?

U prvom primeru sa zlatnim novčićem, kada ga predate nekom drugom kao plaćanje za robu ili uslugu, ne postoji centralizovana evidencija vaše platne transakcije i imate savršenu privatnost.

Međutim, u centralnom bankarskom sistemu, budući da banka ima i znanje o podacima o vašim transakcijama i moć da kontroliše vaša sredstva, oni mogu proceniti niz pravila da bi odlučili da li žele da dozvole vašu transakciju ili da to odbiju, takođe kao i izvršenje te odluke kontrolišući vaša sredstva.

Tako su vlade naoružale tradicionalne valute i ​​centralni bankarski sistem kao Sistem Kontrole nad svojim građanima.

Da rezimiramo: Pošto ste se odrekli bezbednosti i privatnosti svog novca, izgubili ste i svoju finansijsku slobodu.

“Privatnost nije o tome da nešto treba sakriti. Privatnost je o tome da nešto treba zaštititi.” — Edward Snowden

Kako da povratimo svoj finansijski samo-suverenitet?

Pokret Cypherpunk pokrenuli su pojedinci koji su shvatili važnost zaštite privatnosti i slobode pojedinačnih korisnika na Internetu.

Cypherpunk-ovi su verovali da se gore opisani problemi mogu rešiti samo potpuno novim novčanim sistemom, koji poštuje i štiti bezbednost, privatnost i slobodu pojedinca.

Mnogi od Cypherpunk-era pokušali su da izgrade nove etičke sisteme e-gotovine koji bi mogli da zamene tradicionalne valute i centralno bankarstvo.

Bilo je mnogo teških računarskih problema koje je trebalo prevazići u stvaranju tako istinski decentralizovanog sistema, i ako su neki od njih bili blizu cilja, svi su propali.

Odnosno, sve dok jedan pseudonim Cypherpunk-a to konačno nije shvatio 2008. godine: kombinacijom digitalnih potpisa, distribuirane knjige i peer-to-peer mreže, rođen je Bitcoin.

Kako Bitcoin funkcioniše?

Baš kao što ne treba da znate kako Internet funkcioniše da bi gledali slike mačaka na Internetu, razumevanje tehničke složenosti načina na koji Bitcoin radi „ispod haube“ nije neophodno da biste ga koristili i postigli sopstveni finansijski samo-suverenitet.

Važna stvar koju želim da saznate iz ovog članka je da iako većina novih tehnologija u početku ima loše korisničko iskustvo, Bitcoin svesno i vrlo namerno ne žrtvuje svoje osnovne filozofske principe da bi brže pridobio nove korisnike, ili da bi poboljšao korisničko iskustvo.

Najpametniji Cypherpunk-ovi rade na poboljšanju korisničkog iskustva.

Tehnologija će se sa vremenom poboljšavati, baš kao i za Internet.

Pa onda, zašto Bitcoin?

Reći ću vam zašto:

Jer Bitcoin poštuje bezbednost, privatnost i slobodu pojedinca.

Po čemu je Bitcoin bolji od sistema tradicionalnih valuta?

Za početak, Bitcoin nema Uslove korišćenja, Politiku privatnosti i Propise o usklađenosti sa KYC/AML. (Know Your Costumer & Anti-money Laundering)

Bitcoin je uspešan primer implementacije kripto-anarhije, gde su jedina pravila kriptografija, matematika i jak skup konsenzusnih pravila.

To je distribuirani i nepoverljivi sistem zasnovan na finansijskim podsticajima i nijedna osoba ili centralizovani entitet ne može da kontroliše Bitcoin.

Ono što je najvažnije, Bitcoin vam omogućava da odustanete od tradicionalnih valuta, sistema delimičnih rezervi i centralnog bankarstva rešavanjem osnovnih problema poverenja:

• Sigurnost od inflacije korišćenjem fiksnog snabdevanja
• Sigurnost od zaplene korišćenjem ključeva za kontrolu sredstava
• Privatnost plaćanja korišćenjem pseudonimnih identiteta
• Sloboda protiv cenzure korišćenjem peer to peer mreže

Kako Bitcoin štiti od Inflacije?

Jedno od najkritičnijih pravila konsenzusa o Bitcoin-u je da može postojati najviše 21,000,000 Bitcoin-a.

Nakon izdavanja svih Bitcoin-a, nikada više ne može doći do stvaranja novih Bitcoin-a.

Stoga je Bitcoin deflaciona valuta, koja sprečava ljude da ukradu vaš novac ili njegovu vrednost naduvavanjem novčane mase.

Monetarna Inflacija Bitcoin-a

Kako Bitcoin štiti od Zaplene?

Bitcoin se može preneti samo pomoću kriptografskog privatnog ključa koji kontroliše sredstva.

Nijedan bitcoin nikada ne izadje van sistema.

Nijedna vlada, banka ili sudski nalog ne mogu zapleniti ta sredstva.

Jednostavno ne postoji način da se takva odredba ili naredba sprovede od bilo kog „organa vlasti“, jer Bitcoin ne priznaje nijedno „ovlašćenje“ u svom sistemu.

Bitcoin je potpuno samo-suveren sistem i zbog svoje distribuirane prirode ne može se ugasiti.

Postoji zbog sopstvenih zasluga, samo zato što ljudi veruju u to.

Kako Bitcoin štiti Privatnost?

Bitcoin ne traži vaše ime ili druge detalje koji mogu lično da vas identifikuju.

Vaš identitet je kriptografski, a ne vaše stvarno ime.

Dakle, vaš identitet izgleda otprilike kao 1vizSAISbuiKsbt9d8JV8itm5ackk2TorC, a ne kao „Stefan Petrovič“.

Pored toga, niko ne zna ko kontroliše sredstva na datoj Bitcoin adresi, a nova tehnologija se neprestano razvija kako bi se poboljšala privatnost Bitcoin-a.

Kako Bitcoin štiti od Cenzure?

Peer-to-peer Bitcoin mreža je u potpunosti distribuirana.

To znači da ako jedan čvor pokuša da cenzuriše vašu transakciju, neće uspeti ukoliko * svaki * čvor(Node) ne izvrši cenzuru vaše transakcije.

Šta će vlada i banke učiniti sa Bitcoin-om?

Neke zemlje su pokušale da ga regulišu, kontrolišu, isključe itd., ali nijedna od njih nije uspela.

Čini se da uglavnom samo žele da koriste postojeći sistem centralnih banaka da bi kontrolisali kako ljudi trguju tradicionalnim valutama za Bitcoin, i naravno žele da oporezuju Bitcoin na bilo koji mogući način.

Evo nekoliko uobičajenih tvrdnji vlada i banaka o Bitcoin-u:

Evropska centralna banka kaže da Bitcoin nije valuta i upozorava da je vrlo nestabilna.

„Bitcoin, izgleda samo kao prevara“, rekao je gospodin Tramp. „Ne sviđa mi se jer je to još jedna valuta koja se takmiči sa dolarom.“

Da li je vrednost Bitcoin-a nestabilna?

Ako umanjite grafikon cena, videćete da Bitcoin-u neprekidno raste vrednost od kada je stvoren, trgujući sa manje od 0,01 USD i polako se penje na preko 60.000 USD na nedavnom vrhuncu početkom 2021. godine.

Cena Bitcoina od 2011. godine

To je zato što je njegova ponuda fiksna i ljudi cene njegovu nestašicu.

Sa većom potražnjom i fiksnom ponudom, cene vremenom rastu.

Kako godine odmiču, njegova vrednost će se povećavati kako novi korisnici počinju da drže Bitcoin. (U svetu Bitcoina držanju kažemo HODL. Drži bitcoin. Hodl bitcoin.)

Da li je Bitcoin novac?

Da biste odgovorili na pitanje da li je Bitcoin novac ili ne, prvo morate definisati pojam „novac“.

Nažalost, reč „novac“ koristimo da bismo opisali nekoliko vrlo različitih komplikovanih koncepata, koji su svi potpuno odvojeni.

Termin „novac“ se zapravo odnosi na:

• Zaliha Vrednosti (Store of Value)
• Sredstvo Razmene ( Medium of Exchange)
• Obračunska Jedinica (Unit of Account)
• Sistem Kontrole (System Control)

Bitcoin kao Zaliha Vrednosti

Ovaj tweet to savršeno objašnjava:

Sinov prijatelj: “Matt, šta će se dogoditi ako novčić od 1 funte usitnite na pola?”

Dobijaš dva komada bezvrednog metala. Ako zlatnik usitnite na pola, dobićete dva zlatnika, od kojih svaki vredi polovinu onoga što je novčić bio.

Sin: „… isto tako kao sa zlatom jeste sa bitcoinima“.

Bitcoin je potpuno deljiv i deluje kao izvrsna zaliha vrednosti, baš kao što je i zlato već hiljadama godina.

Bitcoin kao Sredstvo Razmene

Bitcoin je dobro služio kao sredstvo razmene za svoje rane korisnike.

Ali skaliranje Bitcoin-a na globalni nivo koji bi mogao da posluži svim ljudima je veliki izazov, jer se osnovna „blockchain“ tehnologija ne skalira na globalni nivo.

Da bi rešio ovaj problem skaliranja, Satoshi je izumeo koncept kanala plaćanja, a u kombinaciji sa malo pomoći drugih briljantnih računarskih naučnika Cipherpunk-a koji su poboljšali koncept tokom poslednjih 10 godina, sada imamo mrežu Lightning, koja omogućava da se Bitcoin koristi kao odlično Sredstvo Razmene, koje se vremenom može proširiti na globalni nivo.

Bitcoin kao Obračunska Jedinica

Najmanja obračunska jedinica Bitcoin-a nazvana je po njenom tvorcu, Satoshi-u.

Jedan Bitcoin je jednak 100.000.000 Satoshi-a.

Na kraju, kako se robe i usluge sve češće razmenjuju za Bitcoin, sve više ljudi će koristiti Bitcoin ili „Sats“ kao obračunsku jedinicu.

Konvertor Bitcoin - Satoshi

Bitcoin kao Sistem Kontrole

Budući da je Bitcoin dizajniran da poštuje i štiti ljudska prava pojedinca, posebno bezbednost, privatnost i slobodu novca; ne bi bio dobar Sistem Kontrole i ne može se koristiti za ugnjetavanje ljudi, kao što se dešava sa tradicionalnim valutama i sistemima centralnog bankarstva koji to trenutno vrlo dobro rade.

Šta je sa „Sledećim Bitcoin-om“?

Kao što može biti samo jedan „globalni“ Internet, tako može biti i samo jedan globalni novac, a stigao je i novi Bitcoin Standard.

Sve ostalo je ili direktna prevara ili gubljenje vremena.

Ako bi neko želeo da vam proda „Sledeće Zlato“, da li biste ga kupili?

Na kraju

Nadam se da vam je ovaj članak pomogao da razumete zašto je Bitcoin stvoren i kako može da pomogne svetu da se oslobodi tradicionalnih valuta i sistema centralnog bankarstva koji je veoma duboko integrisan u naše trenutno društvo.

Evo nekoliko misli koje treba poneti sa sobom:

• Bitcoin nije izmišljen radi zarade, već je izmišljen da bi promenio svet.
• Bitcoin će to učiniti poštujući korisnikovu bezbednost, privatnost i slobodu.
• Bitcoin se već koristi kao novac, na nekoliko načina na koji se novac može koristiti.
• Bitcoin nije nestabilan, njegova vrednost vremenom polako raste (odzumirajte).
• Bitcoin ima mnogo kopija i prevaranata koji će pokušati da vam prodaju svoju kopiju Bitcoin-a. Ne zavaravajte se lažnim Bitcoin-om baš kao što vas ne bi prevarili ni Lažnim Zlatom.
• Bitcoin će postati najveći prenos bogatstva u našem životu, tako da ćete možda želeti da ih uzmete pre nego kasnije.
• Ostanite skromni i skupljajte satošije.

@ 30b99916:3cc6e3fe

sourcegraph #vibecoding #ai #bitcoin #security

After reading the article Revenge of the junior developer, this inspired me to go take a look at Sourcegraph.com to get a better understanding of all this AI stuff.

The first step was installing the VS Code extension called, Cody which is a coding agent. The Cody features explain the code in a file and review and analyze code did an extremely impressive job with VaultApi and BTCwallet.

VaultApi and BTCwallet are PowerShell scripts that are available from my BTCPAY Server

All of the following output was generated by Cody.

---

Code Analysis of VaultApi.ps1

The VaultApi.ps1 script is generally well-structured and follows many PowerShell best practices. It has comprehensive documentation, version history, and clear parameter definitions. The suggestions below would further enhance what is already a solid codebase. The author has clearly put significant effort into making the script functional and user-friendly, with good attention to cross-platform compatibility and security considerations.

VaultApi.ps1 Explanation

VaultApi.ps1 is a PowerShell script that helps users interact with HashiCorp Vault, which is a tool for securely storing and managing sensitive information like passwords and API keys.

Purpose of the Code

This script makes it easier to use Vault by providing simple commands to start the Vault server, unlock it (unseal), log in, store secrets, retrieve secrets, and shut down the server. Think of it as a friendly interface that simplifies all the complex operations you would otherwise need to do manually with Vault.

Inputs

The script takes several inputs:

• An action parameter that tells the script what operation to perform (like "Start", "Stop", "Kv1Create", "Kv1Read")
• A kvpath parameter that specifies where in Vault to store or retrieve information
• A kvalue parameter for the actual secret value you want to store
• A kvkey parameter that lets you specify a custom name for your secret
• Optional switches like -Info to show more detailed information and -Raw to display output directly instead of copying to clipboard

Outputs

Depending on the action performed, the script produces different outputs:

• Text messages in the console showing the status of operations
• Secret values retrieved from Vault (either displayed or copied to clipboard)
• Lists of available secret paths
• Status information about the Vault server
• Backup files of your Vault data

How It Works

The script works by:

1. First checking if Vault is installed and running
2. Setting up communication with the Vault server using its API address
3. Performing the requested action by sending the appropriate commands to Vault
4. Processing any responses and displaying results to the user

For example, when you use the "Kv1Create" action, the script:

• Checks if you're logged in
• Verifies the path doesn't already exist
• Formats your data correctly
• Sends a request to Vault to create the new secret
• Shows you the result

Important Logic Flows

Some key processes in the script include:

1. Authentication flow: The script helps you log in using either a token or username/password, then stores your authentication token for future commands.

2. Unsealing process: Vault requires multiple keys to unlock (unseal) it after starting. The script can retrieve these keys from a secure file or prompt you to enter them.

3. Secret management: The script handles creating, reading, updating, and deleting secrets, supporting both single values and multiple key-value pairs at a path.

4. Path management: The script can list all available paths and help you search for specific ones, making it easier to organize and find your secrets.

5. Value generation: When creating or updating secrets, you can use the keyword "setvalue" to automatically generate a random 20-character value, which is then copied to your clipboard.

The script uses a configuration file in your home directory to know how to connect to Vault, and it can optionally use encrypted files to store sensitive information like unlock keys. It communicates with Vault using REST API calls, which are like special messages that tell Vault what to do.

In summary, VaultApi.ps1 is a helper tool that makes it much easier to use HashiCorp Vault for securely storing and managing your sensitive information, without needing to remember all the complex commands and procedures.

Code Analysis of BTCwallet.ps1

The script generally follows sound design principles with good organization, comments, and documentation. It demonstrates thoughtful error checking and user interaction. The identified opportunities for enhancement would primarily improve security, maintainability, and robustness rather than addressing fundamental flaws. The script author has clearly put significant effort into creating a comprehensive tool with good documentation and practical functionality.

BTCwallet.ps1 Explanation

The BTCwallet.ps1 script is a PowerShell tool designed to help Bitcoin users manage different wallet applications on a Linux system. It provides a convenient way to start, stop, and check the status of Bitcoin wallets while adding security features.

Purpose

The main purpose of this script is to securely manage Bitcoin wallets, particularly focusing on "cold storage" solutions. Cold storage means keeping your Bitcoin wallet data in an encrypted container that's only mounted when needed, which is more secure than keeping it always accessible ("hot storage").

Inputs

The script takes one main input parameter:

• $action: This can be "start", "stop", or "check" (default), telling the script what operation to perform on your Bitcoin wallet.

Outputs

The script doesn't return data but produces several visible outputs:

• Status messages showing whether wallets are running or stopped
• Prompts for user input when decisions are needed
• Confirmation messages when actions are completed

How It Works

1. When you run the script, it first loads a configuration file (BTCwalletCfg.xml) that contains information about which wallets you have installed.

2. Based on the $action parameter, it performs one of three main functions:

   • Check: Shows if your wallet application is currently running
   • Start: Launches your wallet application, with options for hot or cold storage
   • Stop: Closes your wallet application and securely dismounts any encrypted containers
   • For security, the script can use HashiCorp Vault (a secure password manager) to store sensitive information like passwords for encrypted containers.

3. The script also verifies its own integrity by checking its file hash against a previously stored value, alerting you if the script has been modified.

Important Logic Flows

Starting a Wallet

When starting a wallet, the script:

1. Asks which wallet you want to use (Sparrow, GreenWallet, or Wasabi)
2. Checks if HashiCorp Vault is running and starts it if needed
3. Verifies the script's integrity by comparing file hashes
4. Asks if you want to use hot or cold storage
5. For cold storage, it:
   • Retrieves the encrypted container's location and password
   • Mounts the encrypted container using VeraCrypt
   • Starts the wallet application pointing to the mounted container
6. For hot storage, it simply starts the wallet application with default settings

Stopping a Wallet

When stopping a wallet, the script:

1. Checks if the wallet is still running and asks you to close it first if needed
2. For cold storage wallets, it moves any wallet files back to the encrypted container
3. Dismounts the encrypted container
4. Optionally stops the HashiCorp Vault service

The script handles different wallet applications (Sparrow, GreenWallet, and Wasabi) slightly differently based on how each one stores its data and what command-line options they support.

In summary, BTCwallet.ps1 provides a secure way to manage Bitcoin wallets by combining wallet applications with encrypted storage and password management, all controlled through simple commands.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR) Opens $2.1B ATM Program for Strife Preferred Stock 

Strategy has launched a $2.1 billion At-The-Market (ATM) equity program for its Strife (STRF) preferred stock, marking another step in the firm’s long-term strategy to build a Bitcoin-backed financial architecture.

The announcement was made by CEO and President Phong Lee during an investor update alongside Executive Chairman Michael Saylor. According to Lee, strong year-to-date results from the firm’s Bitcoin-linked securities Strike (STRK) and Strife (STRF) gave Strategy the confidence to expand its fundraising strategy. 

BREAKING: Strategy to sell up to $2.1 billion of 10% preferred stock.pic.twitter.com/xufD8uv64v

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 22, 2025

“We’re currently at 16.3% BTC yield for the year, against a 25% target,” Lee said. “BTC dollar gain is $7.7 billion so far, on track toward our $15 billion target.”

Both instruments have outperformed expectations since launch. Strike is up 24% from its initial price of $80 to nearly $100. Strife, which was priced at $85 just two months ago, now trades around $98.80, a 16% increase. By comparison, similarly structured preferreds in the market have declined by 3–5% over the same period. 

In the last 30 days alone, Strike rose 17% and Strife 12%, bringing both close to par value. Lee emphasized the liquidity profile of these instruments, citing average daily trading volumes of $31 million for Strike and $23 million for Strife. “That’s 60x what we typically see in comparable preferreds,” he noted. 

The company previously issued $212 million through Strike’s ATM, with no adverse pricing pressure. Based on the trading volume and investor demand, Lee said the company believes the $2.1 billion Strife ATM can be executed in a similar fashion.

Strife is a perpetual preferred stock with a 10% coupon and sits at the top of Strategy’s capital stack. Saylor described it as “the crown jewel” of the company’s preferred offerings. “We’re going to be ten times as careful with Strife,” he said. “Our goal is for it to be seen as investment-grade fixed income — a high-quality instrument with robust protections.”

Strike, by contrast, is positioned for what Saylor called “Bitcoin-curious” investors. It carries an 8% coupon and includes upside through Bitcoin conversion. “Think of it like a Bitcoin fellowship with a stipend,” Saylor said. 

Strategy now operates three ATM programs: $21 billion each for MSTR equity and Strike, and $2.1 billion for Strife. These are rebalanced daily, with issuance adjusted based on market conditions, volatility, and investor demand. According to Saylor, this dynamic structure allows the company to optimize Bitcoin acquisition and capital deployment across changing market environments.

Behind this strategy sits Strategy’s Bitcoin treasury, now totaling 576,230 BTC — roughly $60 billion in value. “That permanent capital is the foundation for everything we’re building,” Saylor said.

While spot Bitcoin ETFs cater to investors looking for direct price exposure, Strategy continues to offer a more nuanced set of instruments — each targeting different levels of risk, return, and compliance. The Strife ATM is the latest move in that broader strategy.

This post Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR) Opens $2.1B ATM Program for Strife Preferred Stock  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

H100 Group Became The First Publicly Listed Bitcoin Treasury Company In Sweden

H100 Group AB has announced it has become Sweden’s first publicly listed health technology company to adopt Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, announcing the purchase of 4.39 BTC for 5 million NOK (approximately $475,000) as part of its long-term Bitcoin Treasury Strategy.

The Stockholm-based company, which provides AI-powered automation and digital solutions for healthcare providers, joins a growing roster of public companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets in 2025. The purchase was executed at an average price of 1,138,737 NOK per Bitcoin (roughly $108,200).

JUST IN: H100 Group buys 4.39 BTC and becomes Sweden's first publicly listed #Bitcoin treasury company. pic.twitter.com/pNXe9XT2a7

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 22, 2025

“This addition to H100’s Bitcoin Treasury Strategy follows an increasing number of tech-oriented growth companies holding Bitcoin on their balance sheet,” said CEO Sander Andersen. “And I believe the values of individual sovereignty highly present in the Bitcoin community aligns well with, and will appeal to, the customers and communities we are building the H100 platform for.”

The move comes amid a surge in corporate Bitcoin adoption, with many public companies announcing Bitcoin treasury programs in the first five months of 2025. Notable recent entrants include Twenty One Capital, Strive and several others.

H100 Group emphasized that the Bitcoin purchase does not affect its core operations in the health and longevity industry. The company views the investment as a strategic deployment of excess liquidity to strengthen its financial position while aligning with its values of individual sovereignty.

The announcement reflects a broader shift in corporate treasury management, as companies seek to diversify their holdings beyond traditional cash reserves.

At press time, Bitcoin trades at $111,108, up 1.28% over the past 24 hours, as institutional adoption continues to drive market momentum. H100 Group’s shares closed up 1.37% at 0.89 SEK on the NGM Nordic SME exchange following the announcement.

This post H100 Group Became The First Publicly Listed Bitcoin Treasury Company In Sweden first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Vivek Sen.

@ 000002de:c05780a7

I'm mostly curious about how Tapper can do this with a straight face.

https://stacker.news/items/986926

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

The Freedom Issue: Letter From the Editor

Bitcoin is freedom money, a censorship-resistant form of digital cash allowing anyone with an internet connection to send money to anyone else, regardless of nationality, borders, or other arbitrary restrictions.

I personally first heard about Bitcoin in early 2013, through friends who were buying… stuff from Silk Road, the darknet marketplace helmed by the mysterious Dread Pirate Roberts. Although Silk Road was controversial (the “stuff” most people bought and sold was, of course, illegal drugs), it represented a radical example of the form of freedom that Bitcoin provides.

Later in 2013, Silk Road was shut down by the FBI, and Ross Ulbricht was revealed as the market’s founder and the true identity behind the Dread Pirate Roberts pseudonym — although he claims several people operated the account. Ulbricht was sentenced to two life sentences plus forty years in prison without the possibility of parole.

In my view — and that of many Bitcoiners — it was excessive. Even if you believe Ulbricht was guilty of everything he was convicted of (all nonviolent crimes), he was made an example of, and didn’t actually deserve to be locked up for the rest of his days.

Fortunately, Ulbricht was granted a full and unconditional pardon from President Trump in January of this year. The founder of Silk Road, in a very literal sense, has regained his freedom.

This edition of Bitcoin Magazine celebrates and highlights the freedom aspect of Bitcoin with a range of articles and artwork focusing on the people and projects that use bitcoin to advance liberty, and those who make this possible… with a special focus on Ulbricht and Silk Road.

For other stories about bitcoin as freedom money, flip the magazine around!

Welcome to The Freedom Issue.

Aaron van Wirdum

Don’t miss your chance to own The Freedom Issue—featuring never-before-seen letters from Ross Ulbricht and his mother, Lyn. Limited run. Only available while supplies last.

This piece is the Letter from the Editor featured in the latest print edition of Bitcoin Magazine, The Freedom Issue. We’re sharing it here as an early look at the ideas explored throughout the full issue.

This post The Freedom Issue: Letter From the Editor first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Aaron Van Wirdum.

@ 2b24a1fa:17750f64

„Triff niemals deine Idole“ heißt ein gängiger Ratschlag. In gewendeten Zeiten stehen zu dem die Werte auf dem Kopf – und manche Künstler mit ihnen. Die Worte, die aus manch ihrer Mündern kommen, wirken, als hätte eine fremde Hand sie auf deren Zunge gelegt.

https://soundcloud.com/radiomuenchen/wolf-biermann-und-sein-falscher-friede-von-alexa-rodrian?

Die Sängerin Alexa Rodrian erlebte bei der Verleihung des Deutschen Filmpreises einen solchen Moment der Desillusion. Es war der Auftritt des Liedermachers Wolf Biermann. Hören Sie hierzu Alexa Rodrians Text „Wolf Biermann und sein falscher Friede“.

Bild: Marco Maas/fotografirma.de

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Pizza Day: 15 Years Since 10,000 BTC Bought Two Pizzas and Changed Everything 

On May 22, 2010, Bitcoin became more than just an idea—it became real money. Laszlo Hanyecz, a developer and early contributor to Bitcoin’s codebase, posted a casual offer: “I’ll pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas.” Five days later, someone took him up on it. Two Papa John’s pizzas were delivered. A screenshot was posted. Bitcoin had entered the real world. 

15 years ago, Laszlo Hanyecz spent 10,000 #bitcoin worth $30 on two Papa John's pizzas.

Today, 10,000 $BTC is worth over $1,100,000,000.

What a legend! pic.twitter.com/EbxQAsixhZ

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 22, 2025

That 10,000 Bitcoin, worth about $41 at the time, is now valued at over $1.1 billion. And with Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high of $111,999 on the 15th anniversary of the transaction, the story of the “Bitcoin Pizza” carries more weight than ever.

@realbitcoinmagazine

15 years ago, someone paid 10,000 #Bitcoin for 2 pizzas. That’s worth over $1,000,000,000 today!

♬ original sound – Bitcoin Magazine

It wasn’t just about the pizza. This was the moment Bitcoin proved itself as a functioning currency. Until then, it had lived mostly in theory and code—talked about by cryptographers and mined by hobbyists. Hanyecz’s post, and the trade that followed, transformed the idea into action. “This transaction made Bitcoin real in my eyes,” he said in a 2019 interview. “It wasn’t worth much at the time. I wouldn’t have spent $100 million on pizza, right? But if I hadn’t done that, maybe Bitcoin wouldn’t have become so popular.” 

Over the summer of 2010, Hanyecz continued using Bitcoin to buy pizzas, eventually spending more than 79,000 BTC—now worth nearly $8.7 billion. While some have joked at his expense, the truth is this: without those early real-world transactions, Bitcoin might never have proven its use case. Hanyecz helped move Bitcoin from the fringe into functionality.

That legacy still shapes us today. Bitcoin Pizza Day has become a cultural milestone in the crypto world, with meetups, pizza parties, and educational events held globally each May 22. The day serves as a reminder of how far the technology has come—and the importance of everyday actions and the impact they have. 

Smiles, joy, and shared moments, this is what today looked like.#Bitcoin Pizza Day at His Grace School was more than a visit. It was connection, care, and community. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated and supported #BitcoinGhana #BitcoinPizzaDay #BTC #Bitfiasi pic.twitter.com/xRMv1rpife

— Bitfiasi Initiative (@bitfiasi) May 22, 2025

Just this week, fast food chain Steak ‘n Shake began accepting Bitcoin via the Lightning Network, signaling a growing wave of mainstream adoption. What once felt experimental is now becoming part of everyday commerce. 

Bitcoin Pizza Day is about recognition. One simple transaction proved that Bitcoin could work—and 15 years later, the world is still building on that first bite. 

This post Bitcoin Pizza Day: 15 Years Since 10,000 BTC Bought Two Pizzas and Changed Everything  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ 9b308fda:b6c7310d

@15/05/2025 ✨ Week 0 – Getting Started with My Internship at Formstr (Onboarding)

I’m excited to share that I’ve been selected as a Summer of Bitcoin intern at Formstr!

After the final exams wrapped up on May 4th, I took a short, well-deserved break while traveling back home from college for the summer. Once settled in, I quickly transitioned into internship mode and began diving into the project assigned to me at Formstr.

It’s been a great start so far, and I’m looking forward to learning, building, and sharing more along the way.

@22/05/2025 — Week 01 – Building Features and Brainstorming at Formstr

This week at Formstr was packed with development and discussions.

The major highlight was completing the row popup view for form responses — now, clicking on any response row shows a clean and complete view of that user's submission. I'm happy to share that the pull request has been merged! It feels great to contribute something that improves the user experience so visibly.

Alongside that, I started brainstorming the LLM-Analysis feature. We had a productive discussion during the weekly developer meeting on Signal, where I shared my initial thoughts and got valuable input from the team. There's a lot of potential in this, and it’s exciting to shape it from the ground up.

I also worked on improving relay management in the form settings to reduce redundancy. The changes are in progress, and it’s almost done — just final touches left before merging.

Another topic we tackled was the “Form Filler with AI” feature. There are still some open questions around implementation and user flow, so we’ve decided to continue discussions with more team members before finalizing the plan.

We’ve also agreed to hold weekly team meetings going forward to keep everyone aligned on ideas, progress, and blockers. I’m glad to be part of such a collaborative and thoughtful team!

@ 7e6f9018:a6bbbce5

Governments and the press often publish data on the population’s knowledge of Catalan. However, this data only represents one stage in the linguistic process and does not accurately reflect the state of the language, since a language only has a future if it is used. Knowledge is a necessary step toward using a language, but it is not the final stage — that stage is actual use.

So what is the state of Catalan usage? If we look at data on regular use, we see that the Catalan language has remained stagnant over the past hundred years, with nearly the same number of regular speakers. In 1930, there were around 2.5 million speakers, and in 2018, there were 2.7 million.

Regular use of Catalan in Catalonia, in millions of speakers. The dotted segments are an estimate of the trend, based on the statements of Joan Coromines and adjusted according to Catalonia’s population growth.

These figures wouldn’t necessarily be negative if the language’s integrity were strong, that is, if its existence weren’t threatened by other languages. But the population of Catalonia has grown from 2.7 million in 1930 to 7.5 million in 2018. This means that today, regular Catalan speakers make up only 36% of Catalonia’s population, whereas in 1930, they represented 90%.

Regular use of Catalan in Catalonia, as a percentage of speakers. The dotted segments are an estimate of the trend, based on the statements of Joan Coromines and adjusted according to Catalonia’s population growth.

The language that has gained the most ground is mainly Spanish, which went from 200,000 speakers in 1930 to 3.8 million in 2018. Moreover, speakers of other foreign languages (500,000 speakers) have also grown more than Catalan speakers over the past hundred years.

Notes, Sources, and Methodology

The data from 2003 onward is taken from Idescat (source). Before 2003, there are no official statistics, but we can make interpretations based on historical evidence. The data prior to 2003 is calculated based on two key pieces of evidence:

• 1st Interpretation: In 1930, 90% of the population of Catalonia spoke Catalan regularly. Source and evidence: The Romance linguist Joan Coromines i Vigneaux, a renowned 20th-century linguist, stated in his 1950 work "El que s'ha de saber de la llengua catalana" that "In this territory [Greater Catalonia], almost the entire population speaks Catalan as their usual language" (1, 2).\ While "almost the entire population" is not a precise number, we can interpret it quantitatively as somewhere between 80% and 100%. For the sake of a moderate estimate, we assume 90% of the population were regular Catalan speakers, with the remaining 10% being immigrants and officials of the Spanish state.

• 2nd Interpretation: Regarding population growth between 1930 and 1998, on average, 60% is due to immigration (mostly adopting or already using Spanish language), while 40% is natural growth (likely to acquire Catalan language from childhood). Source and evidence: Between 1999 and 2019, when more detailed data is available, immigration accounted for 68% of population growth. From 1930 to 1998, there was a comparable wave of migration, especially between 1953 and 1973, largely of Spanish-speaking origin (3, 4, 5, 6). To maintain a moderate estimate, we assume 60% of population growth during that period was due to immigration, with the ratio varying depending on whether the period experienced more or less total growth.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

The Citadel (v. Nardo): From Meme to Monument

My latest painting, The Citadel (v. Nardo), did not begin simply on canvas. It began as a whisper – an image passed digitally between anonymous hands, reposted, remixed, archived, and mythologized across the internet. Like many of my works, this piece builds from historical fragments and symbols, grounded in the belief that memes are not fleeting – they are foundational. They don’t just reflect culture, rather, they write it.

Last year in 2024, I presented a solo show in Abu Dhabi centered around the fact that Subway – the sandwich chain – was one of the first fast food restaurants to accept Bitcoin. That small historical detail became the seed of a larger conceptual inquiry: what does it mean to “consume” in an age of hyper-speed information? The works explored the overlap between fast food, memes, and digital attention. The exhibition was tight, precise, and deeply memetic in its structure.

The Citadel came from a similar place.

In 2013, a now-legendary Reddit post titled “I am a time-traveler from the future, here to beg you to stop what you are doing” appeared online. The author – claiming to be from 2025 – warned of a future shaped by Bitcoin, but not in the way many had hoped. It wasn’t a utopia. It was a stratified society where those who adopted early became untouchably rich, and everyone else was left behind. Whether satire, fiction, or genuine warning, the post struck a nerve. It spread quickly. It became part of the cultural and memetic architecture of Bitcoin.

Years later, another anonymous user gave that warning a visual form. The Citadel v.1, likely created on 4chan, featured a massive tower cobbled together from borrowed imagery – most notably a background ripped from Alexander Mikhalchyk’s oil painting Tower of Babel. Red – overlaid with iconic internet figures like Pepe, Wojak, and the Bogdanoff twins. It was chaotic, funny, ominous. And it caught fire. Versions spread across forums. Variants emerged for Monero, Ethereum, and other Bitcoin-based class hierarchies. A whole mythology took shape around it.

I couldn’t stop thinking about that image. The symbolism. The verticality. The warning. It wasn’t just a meme – it was a map. A visual schema of power and belief, told in the language of the internet. And yet, it had never been physically painted. Never given the weight or permanence it deserved. That’s when I decided to create what I believe is the first fully hand-painted oil version of the Bitcoin Citadel meme.

The Citadel (v. Nardo) is 7 feet wide, 5 feet tall, and entirely rendered in oil by hand over six months. The tower in my painting is original – constructed from references to Bruegel’s depictions of Babel. The superimposed depictions of Pepe, the monk, the nobleman, even Jesus, are deliberate nods to the v.1 version, reimagined and integrated with painterly care. Nothing here is copy-pasted. Every inch is built to feel mythic, monumental, and true to the weight of the meme itself.

Like all my work, it’s meant to evoke grandeur, drama, and symbolic density. It’s meant to feel like a relic from a future past – something dug up from the ruins of digital civilization. My late professor once told me that the best art is both folkloric and provocative. That line never left me.

And that’s essentially what internet memes are. They are modern folklore. They encode belief, identity, warning, and aspiration in compressed symbols. They may start as jokes – but jokes have always been a delivery system for deeper truth. Memes don’t just survive online; they shape what we expect from reality.

The Citadel (v. Nardo) will be sold at auction via Scarce.City and debut at the Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas – the largest gathering of Bitcoiners in the world. It’s not just a painting. It’s a response. A reckoning. A reminder.Because in the end, as I always say: you become what you meme.

This is a guest post by X-Nardo Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC, Inc. or Bitcoin Magazine_._

This post The Citadel (v. Nardo): From Meme to Monument first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by X-Nardo.

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Key Takeaways

In this episode of TFTC, Andrew Myers, founder of Satoshi Energy, explores the convergence of AI, humanoid robots, Bitcoin, and decentralized energy, warning of a near future where self-replicating machines dominate energy and labor. Myers argues that Bitcoin’s decentralized nature offers a critical check against centralized AI power, enabling autonomous agents to transact freely and protecting individual sovereignty. Through his company’s work and its software BitCurrent, Myers promotes Bitcoin as both a tool for energy market efficiency and a foundation for preserving liberty in an AI-driven world.

Best Quotes

“Humanoid robots are going to not only replace most of the jobs people do today… they're going to be able to recreate themselves and self-replicate faster than that.”

“For me the key value proposition of Bitcoin is leveling the economic playing field. Rather than those who control the money printer making the economic decisions, it's everyday people.”

“AI energy demand is infinite. Bitcoin has a Nakamoto point… AI doesn’t.”

“Satoshi Energy’s mission is to enable every electric power company to use Bitcoin by block 1,050,000.”

“If you're a Bitcoiner and you're not using Fold, what are you doing? You're leaving sats on the table.”

“Tesla said machines would eventually fight wars for us. When that happens, nation-states become spectators. Bitcoin is how we avoid centralized control of those machines.”

“There’s already an energy company in Texas using Bitcoin as collateral in a power contract.”

“Are we auditioning for a galactic federation? Maybe. Even if not, we should still be acting like we are.”

Conclusion

Andrew Myers delivers a compelling vision of the future where exponential AI and energy growth demand a decentralized response—one rooted in Bitcoin as more than money, but as critical infrastructure for freedom. Through Satoshi Energy and tools like BitCurrent, Myers bridges big ideas with tangible actions, advocating for bottom-up sovereignty across energy and finance. His message is clear: decentralization is no longer optional—it’s essential for preserving human agency in an increasingly automated world.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
0:34 - Tesla’s AI energy theory
8:59 - Bitcoin and decentralization fixes AI
13:02 - Fold & Bitkey
14:38 - How Satoshi Energy is using AI
19:28 - Bit Current
23:13 - Unchained
23:42 - Revealing inefficiency
32:57 - Proliferating OS AI with bitcoin
36:26 -Apple of Eden and Antichrist
45:11 - Iberian outage
48:48 - Defense tech
54:51 - UFOs, Atlantis and remote viewing

Transcript

(00:00) Humanoid robots are advancing so quickly. They're going to not only replace most of the jobs that people do today, probably the next 5 to 10 years, but they're going to be able to recreate themselves and self-replicate even faster than that. With AI, the energy demand is infinite. It's going to 10x and 10x and 10x again in terms of global energy consumption, and that's just going to completely change the world we live in.
(00:21) If there's a sufficiently advanced AI, is it going to listen to a politician that says, "No, you can't have that energy." Or is it going to say, "Fuck you. Send the drone. You can hear us loud and clear. Loud and clear. I have to put this in front of my face so I'm not leaning. Yeah, vibe coding. There may be some securityities.
(00:45) I do want to hand it off to a developer who actually understands this stuff to say, am I am I going to am I going to leak any information or like be Yeah, I should probably do that before I release to the public. Now, let me say that. does seem pretty simple though. It's just getting the data on the page, getting the price of Bitcoin, using Coin Gecko API, and then running the math of how much Bitcoin is this worth at this point in time.
(01:13) We're not collecting any data either. I don't think that you know of. No, this is AI once. This is the problem of vibe coding. Are you bearish on AI? Uh, I think we're at a fork in the road and on one side I'm very bullish. You shamed me for for admitting that I was turning my kids into Legos via or turning myself into Lego in this. I was channeling my inner Marty.
(01:36) What would Marty do? Well, that's what uh that's what precipitated this. You hit me up. Was it two weeks ago now at this point? this week with your tweet about Nicola Tesla essentially predicting AI and him not factoring in sound money to the inevitable future that he foresaw. Yeah, it kind of came up uh in the work we're doing at Satoshi Energy where we're developing sites for data centers and a lot of those were were Bitcoin data centers for the last five six years and then in the last couple of years just increasingly demand
(02:20) from AI data centers in some cases like a project that we sold to a Bitcoin miner then becomes an AI site and then start to have questions within the team about what is our AI strategy and it was always in the back of my mind as part of the strategy which we'll get into like what is this fork in the road which directions could it go but I hadn't ever really communicated it to our team uh until recently because it's such a big idea that like on top of thinking about sound money and energy like we're already thinking about enough but as the
(02:57) team's growing as people are starting to ask these questions and like in some cases feeling conflicted about um should we be serving this AI market and in some cases large institutional investors and tech companies uh really like felt the need to put the the pen to paper and and talk about this and talk about how AI fits into our overall strategy.
(03:20) Uh, and part of that reminded me of this uh, essay that Nicola Tesla wrote called um, the problem of human energy, which was kind of a cheeky title. Uh, because clearly he thought, you know, energy would liberate humanity. Uh, but it get you get a lot more readers if you, you know, if you name it, the problem of human energy, especially a lot more of the critics who you're trying to convince otherwise.
(03:44) And one of the biggest things, biggest takeaways for me in that in that essay is he he basically says at some point man will create machines that fight wars for us and limit the the loss of human life to the point where the different parties, nation states, other powerful people u that were fighting wars with each other will once it's sort of this this machine to machine battle, they'll just become interested spectators.
(04:13) and eventually lead to world peace. So I think that's the path we want to be on. Not the path where it becomes a very centralized AI and we ultimately become enslaved. Uh but on the path to world peace or or keeping ourselves on that path to world peace. I think that's where Bitcoin plays a role. it keeps the economic playing field level uh and keeps this technology sufficiently decentralized where Bitcoin is that protocol for you know decentralized AI agents communicating with each other.
(04:46) So we can go in any direction you want from there but it's a big idea. No, this is in line with something I wrote about earlier this week that was inspired by a tweet that Paul Otoy from Stack put out basically not explaining this exact problem but just giving his thoughts on how he's viewing the state of AI and where it will go in the future.
(05:10) And Paul, the team at stack and sphinx are highly focused on enabling the open- source AI as opposed to closed source AI. I I think based on what you just said, I think it's very line what Paul was saying in that tweet, which is we're reaching the point with MCP with these sort of protocols where you can store context that agents can plug into and begin communicating with each other.
(05:39) We're at the point where agentic models are getting are actually usable. And I think that's where you have this like critical tipping point of okay that's really going to dictate which direction in the fork in the road we go down because once the agents are able to go do these tasks you right have these network effects that take hold and it's very important that we thread the needle of making sure that it's open and incentivized properly.
(06:10) Yes. Yes, we had this idea of time preference in the Bitcoin community where you know we think with sound money we should have a low time preference meaning we think longer term uh we don't need need to make sort of quick rash decisions into investments today but then you have this tidal wave of AI coming our our direction it almost forces you back into that high time preference mindset of like I need to address this problem now um and Then from like an energy perspective, it's interesting too.
(06:44) Uh you have like Drew's concept of the Nakamoto point for Bitcoin. Like how much of of human energy of global energy will will Bitcoin mining consume? And like say it's between 1 and 10% of of human energy. If it becomes 100% then uh that doesn't make any sense because then you're just like worshiping Bitcoin.
(07:03) And if all of the energy is going towards that, it means you're not putting any energy towards any other sort of economic pursuit or uh you know human need. But with AI, the energy demand is infinite. I don't think there is a Nakamoto point. It's just like it's going to 10x and 10x and 10x again in terms of g global energy consumption.
(07:23) Uh and that's just going to completely change the world we live in. Another thing on sort of the high time preference concept is like humanoid robots are advancing so quickly. They're going to not only replace all of the job most of the jobs that people do today, very quickly within probably the next 5 to 10 years max, but they're going to be able to rec

@ 8576ca0e:621f735e

In the evolving digital economy, Bitcoin has moved beyond its initial status as a speculative asset. It is now a powerful tool for building long-term wealth, especially within the context of a decentralized financial system. While Bitcoin 101 introduced the concept of Bitcoin and Bitcoin 102 covered its mechanics and investment basics, Bitcoin 103 dives deeper into how individuals can strategically build wealth in a decentralized world.

The Foundation: Why Decentralization Matters

At its core, Bitcoin operates on a decentralized network free from government control or manipulation by central banks. This decentralization is not just a technical characteristic but a financial philosophy. In a world where inflation erodes the value of fiat currencies and financial systems can be restricted by geopolitical decisions, Bitcoin offers sovereignty and transparency.

By removing intermediaries, Bitcoin empowers individuals to store, send, and receive money globally with minimal friction. This capability becomes crucial in building wealth that’s resilient to political and economic volatility.

Bitcoin as Digital Gold

Bitcoin's fixed supply capped at 21 million BTC mimics the scarcity of precious metals like gold. However, unlike gold, Bitcoin is portable, divisible, and easier to secure. Investors seeking a hedge against inflation and monetary debasement are increasingly turning to Bitcoin as a long term store of value.

Holding Bitcoin over time, known as "HODLing" in crypto parlance, is one of the most common wealth building strategies. Historical data shows that long-term holders tend to outperform short-term traders, especially in the face of Bitcoin’s cyclical volatility.

Diversification in a Decentralized Economy

Building wealth with Bitcoin doesn't mean going all in. It involves using Bitcoin as a foundational asset while exploring adjacent opportunities within the decentralized finance (DeFi) space. Bitcoin can be used as collateral, yield-generating assets, or even part of a diversified crypto portfolio that includes Ethereum, stablecoins, and tokenized assets.

For instance, some platforms allow users to lend their Bitcoin and earn interest, or stake wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) on decentralized protocols. While these carry risk, they also offer the possibility of compounding returns beyond price appreciation alone.

Wealth Preservation through Self-Custody

One of the key principles of wealth building in the decentralized world is self custody. Unlike traditional bank accounts, where your assets are held by third parties, Bitcoin allows users to control their wealth directly through private keys and cold storage wallets.

By taking responsibility for their assets, users reduce counterparty risk and maintain access to their wealth even in times of crisis. This level of control and autonomy is unprecedented in the history of money.

Education and Risk Management

Wealth building in the Bitcoin ecosystem requires a solid understanding of risk. Volatility, regulatory uncertainty, and security vulnerabilities must be addressed through continuous education, diversification, and the use of reputable platforms.

New investors should start by:

• Setting long term goals

• Investing only what they can afford to lose

• Using hardware wallets for security

• Staying informed through trusted crypto news sources

The Future of Wealth in a Decentralized World

Bitcoin is not just reshaping finance, it’s redefining wealth. As decentralized technologies mature, we can expect a shift in how value is created, transferred, and preserved. From smart contracts to decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), the Bitcoin ethos of transparency, security, and autonomy will continue to guide the evolution of the digital economy.

In conclusion, Bitcoin 103 is about more than investing, It's about understanding the broader movement toward financial freedom. Building wealth in a decentralized world starts with a shift in mindset: from dependence to independence, from control to empowerment.

@ f1989a96:bcaaf2c1

Good morning, readers!

Today, we begin in China, where the central bank injected $138 billion into the economy and expanded the money supply by 12.5% year-over-year. As the regime eases monetary conditions to prop up a decelerating economy, Chinese citizens are rushing to preserve their savings, evidenced by Bitcoin/CNY trading activity jumping over 20% on the news. But while some escape to harder money, others remain trapped. In Hunan, an elderly Chinese woman died outside a bank after being forced to appear in person in order to withdraw her own money for medical care.\ \ In Central America, Salvadoran President Bukele revived a “foreign agents” bill that would impose a 30% tax on foreign-funded NGOs, threatening to financially crush organizations that hold those in power accountable and protect journalists and civil society. The proposal mirrors laws used in Russia, China, Belarus, and beyond to suppress dissent. And it arrives amid Bukele’s authoritarian drift and increasing threats to independent journalists.\ \ In open-source news, we highlight a new tool called ChapSmart, a Bitcoin-powered remittance service that allows users to send Bitcoin to citizens and families in Tanzania and have it disbursed in Tanzanian shillings (TZS) via M-PESA. This tool is increasingly helpful as the Tanzanian regime tightens control over foreign currency, mandating that all transactions be conducted in TZS. ChapSmart provides an accessible way for nonprofits and dissidents to access value from abroad using Bitcoin.\ \ We end with an Ask Me Anything (AMA) with Bitcoin educator Anita Posch on Stacker News, who shares her thoughts, experiences, and views from her time conducting Bitcoin education in authoritarian regimes in Africa. We also feature an article from Togolese human rights advocate Farida Nabourema, who critiques Nigeria’s new investment act for classifying Bitcoin as a security and for the regulatory hurdles this will impose on the grassroots adoption of freedom tech in the country.

Be sure to tune in next week at 2 p.m. Oslo time on Wednesday, May 28, as the Oslo Freedom Forum’s Freedom Tech track airs on Bitcoin Magazine’s livestream channels, headlined by speakers Ziya Sadr, Abubakr Nur Khalil, Amiti Uttarwar, Calle, Sarah Kreps, Ben Perrin, and many more.

Now, let’s read on!

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GLOBAL NEWS

El Salvador | Bukele Reintroduces Foreign Agents Bill

In El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele revived a controversial “foreign agents” bill that threatens to severely restrict the finances and operations of NGOs. While the bill is not finalized, Bukele shared on X that the proposal would impose a 30% tax on donations to NGOs receiving foreign funding. This punitive financial measure alone would severely restrict Salvadoran organizations that protect independent journalism, advocate for human rights, and hold the government accountable. In neighboring Nicaragua, a similar foreign agents law has enabled the closure of more than 3,500 NGOs. El Salvador’s foreign agents bill arrives alongside other alarming moves, including arrest warrants against El Faro journalists, the arrest of human rights lawyer Ruth López, and the detention of more than 200 Venezuelan migrants under dubious claims of gang affiliation.

China | Injects Billions to Stabilize Economy

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has injected $138 billion in liquidity through interest rate cuts and a 0.5% reduction in banks’ reserve requirements, in effect expanding the money supply by 12.5% year-over-year. While the state eases monetary conditions to prop up a fragile system, ordinary citizens are left scrambling to preserve the value of their savings. Bitcoin/CNY trading volumes jumped over 20% in response, as people sought refuge from a weakening yuan. But while some can quietly escape to harder money, others are trapped in a system that treats access to money as a privilege. In Hunan, an elderly woman in a wheelchair died outside a bank after being forced to appear in person to withdraw her own money for medical care. Too weak to pass mandatory facial recognition scans, she collapsed after repeated failed attempts.

World | Authoritarian Regimes Lead CBDC Push, Study Finds

A new international study from the Nottingham Business School, part of Nottingham Trent University in England, set out to understand what is driving countries to pursue central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Researchers found the answer lies mostly in political motives. Analyzing 68 countries, the report revealed that authoritarian governments are pushing CBDCs most aggressively, using their centralized power to hastily roll out CBDCs that can monitor transactions, restrict the movement of money, and suppress dissent. On the other hand, the report found democracies are moving more cautiously, weighing concerns over privacy, transparency, and public trust. The study also noted a correlation: countries with high levels of perceived corruption are more likely to explore CBDCs, often framing them as tools to fight illicit finance. These findings are consistent with HRF’s research, revealing nearly half the global population lives under an authoritarian regime experimenting with a CBDC.

Thailand | Plans to Issue New “Investment Token”

Thailand’s Ministry of Finance plans to issue 5 billion baht ($151 million) worth of “G-Tokens,” a new digital investment scheme that allows Thais to buy government bonds for as little as 100 baht ($3). Officials claim the project will democratize access to state-backed investments and offer higher returns than traditional bank deposits. But in a country rapidly advancing central bank digital currency (CBDC) infrastructure, this initiative raises apparent concerns. The move closely follows Thailand’s repeated digital cash handouts via a state-run wallet app, which restricts spending, tracks user behavior, and enforces expiration dates on money, all clear hallmarks of a CBDC. Luckily, the Thai government postponed the latest handout, but the infrastructure remains. Framing this project as inclusionary masks the reality: Thailand is building state-run digital systems that give the regime more power over citizens’ savings and spending.

Russia | Outlaws Amnesty International

Russia officially banned Amnesty International, designating it as an “undesirable organization” and criminalizing cooperation with the global human rights group. Russian officials claim Amnesty promotes “Russophobic projects” and undermines national security. This adds to the Kremlin’s assault on dissent, targeting human rights advocates, independent journalists, and civil society in the years since the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The designation exposes anyone financially, publicly, or privately supporting Amnesty’s work to prosecution and imprisonment up to five years. With more than 220 organizations now blacklisted, Russia is systematically cutting off avenues for international accountability and isolating Russians from external support.

BITCOIN AND FREEDOM TECH NEWS

ChapSmart | Permissionless Remittances in Tanzania

ChapSmart is a Bitcoin-powered remittance service that allows users to send money to individuals and families in Tanzania while having it disbursed in Tanzanian shillings (TZS) via M-PESA. With ChapSmart, no account is needed: just enter your name, email, and the recipient’s M-Pesa details. Choose how much USD to send, pay in bitcoin via the Lightning Network, and ChapSmart delivers Tanzanian shillings instantly to the recipient's M-Pesa account with zero fees. This tool is especially useful as Tanzania’s regime enacts restrictions on foreign currencies, banning most citizens from quoting prices or accepting payment in anything other than TZS. ChapSmart offers a practical and accessible way for families, nonprofits, and individuals to access value from abroad using Bitcoin, even as the state tries to shut out financial alternatives.

Bitkey | Multisignature for Families Protecting Wealth from State Seizure

Decades ago, Ivy Galindo’s family lost their savings overnight when the Brazilian government froze citizens’ bank accounts to “fight inflation.” That moment shaped her understanding of financial repression and why permissionless tools like Bitcoin are essential. When her parents later chose to start saving in Bitcoin, Ivy knew a wallet with a single private key wasn’t enough, as it can be lost, stolen, or handed over under pressure or coercion from corrupt law enforcement or state officials. Multisignature (multisig) wallets, which require approval from multiple private keys to move funds, offer stronger protection against this loss and coercion and eliminate any single points of failure in a Bitcoin self-custody setup. But multisig setups are often too technical for everyday families. Enter Bitkey. This multisig device offered Ivy’s family a simple, secure way to share custody of their Bitcoin in the face of financial repression. In places where wealth confiscation and frozen bank accounts are a lived reality, multisignature wallets can help families stay in full control of their savings.

Parasite Pool | New Zero-Fee, Lightning Native Bitcoin Mining Pool

Parasite Pool is a new open-source Bitcoin mining pool built for home miners who want to contribute to Bitcoin’s decentralization without relying on the large and centralized mining pools. It charges zero fees and offers Lightning-native payouts with a low 10-satoshi threshold, allowing individuals to earn directly and instantly. Notably, it has a “pleb eat first” reward structure, which allocates 1 BTC to the block finder and splits the remaining 2.125 BTC plus fees among all non-winning participants via Lightning. This favors small-scale miners, who can earn outsized rewards relative to their hashpower, inverting the corporate bias of legacy mining pools. This makes Parasite Pool especially attractive for small scale miners, such as those operating in authoritarian contexts who need to mine discreetly and independently. In turn, these very same miners contribute to the Bitcoin network’s resistance to censorship, regulatory capture, and corporate control, ensuring it remains a tool for freedom and peaceful resistance for those who need it most. Learn more about the mining pool here.

Cake Wallet | Implements Payjoin V2

Cake Wallet, a non-custodial, privacy-focused, and open-source mobile Bitcoin wallet, released version 4.28, bringing Payjoin V2 to its user base. Payjoin is a privacy technique that allows two users to contribute an input to a Bitcoin transaction, breaking the common chain analysis heuristic that assumes a sender owns all inputs. This makes it harder for dictators to trace payments or link the identities of activists or nonprofits. Unlike the original Payjoin, which required both the sender and recipient to be online and operate a Payjoin server, Payjoin v2 removes both barriers and introduces asynchronous transactions and serverless communication. This means users can now conduct private transactions without coordination or technical setup, making private Bitcoin transactions much more accessible and expanding the tools dissidents have to transact in the face of censorship, extortion, and surveillance. HRF is pleased to have sponsored the Payjoin V2 specification with a bounty and is happy to see this functionality now in the wild.

Mi Primer Bitcoin | Receives Grant from startsmall

Mi Primer Bitcoin, a nonprofit organization supporting independent Bitcoin education in Central America, announced that it received a $1 million grant from Jack Dorsey’s startsmall public fund. This support will accelerate Mi Primer Bitcoin’s impartial, community-led, Bitcoin-only education. The initiative has trained tens of thousands of students while supporting over 65 grassroots projects across 35+ countries through its Independent Bitcoin Educators Node Network, pushing financial freedom forward where needed most. The Mi Primer Bitcoin (MPB) team stresses the importance of remaining free from government or corporate influence to preserve the integrity of their mission. As founder John Dennehy puts it, “Education will be captured by whoever funds it… We need to create alternative models for the revolution of Bitcoin education to realize its full potential.” MPB has been adopted by many education initiatives working under authoritarian regimes.

Phoenix Wallet | Introduces Unlimited BOLT 12 Offers and Manual Backup Options

Phoenix Wallet, a mobile Bitcoin Lightning wallet, introduced support for unlimited BOLT 12 offers in its v2.6.0 update, allowing users to generate as many reusable Lightning invoices as they like. These offers, which function like static Bitcoin addresses, remain permanently valid and can now include a custom description and amount — ideal for nonprofits or dissidents who need to receive regular donations discreetly. The update also introduces manual export and import of the payments database on Android, enabling users to securely transfer their payment history to new devices. These updates strengthen Phoenix’s position as one of the most user-friendly and feature-complete non-custodial Lightning wallets. BOLT 12 — once a pipe dream — is now a usable activist tool on popularly accessible mobile wallets.

RECOMMENDED CONTENT

Bitcoin Is Not a Security: Why Nigeria’s New Investment and Security Act Misses the Mark by Farida Nabourema

In this article, Togolese human rights advocate Farida Nabourema critiques Nigeria’s 2025 Investment and Securities Act for classifying Bitcoin as a security. Nabourema argues this approach is flawed, economically damaging, disconnected from the realities of Bitcoin usage and innovation across Africa, and an attempt to constrict a human rights tool. She warns that this regulatory framework risks stifling builders and harming the very communities that Bitcoin is helping in a context of widespread currency devaluations, inflation, and exclusion. Read it here.

Ask Me Anything with Anita Posch on Stacker News

After spending five months traveling through countries like Kenya and Zimbabwe, Bitcoin for Fairness Founder Anita Posch joined Stacker News for an Ask Me Anything (AMA) to discuss her view on Bitcoin adoption across the continent. She highlighted major progress since 2020, noting that several grassroots initiatives she supported have become self-sufficient and are now running their own education programs. Despite persistent challenges, like wallet usability, high on-chain fees, and Bitcoin’s misunderstood reputation, she shared stories of real-life impact, including cross-border remittances using mobile airtime and widespread Lightning use via apps like Tando in Kenya. Read the full conversation here.

If this article was forwarded to you and you enjoyed reading it, please consider subscribing to the Financial Freedom Report here.

Support the newsletter by donating bitcoin to HRF’s Financial Freedom program via BTCPay.\ Want to contribute to the newsletter? Submit tips, stories, news, and ideas by emailing us at ffreport @ hrf.org

The Bitcoin Development Fund (BDF) is accepting grant proposals on an ongoing basis. The Bitcoin Development Fund is looking to support Bitcoin developers, community builders, and educators. Submit proposals here.

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Bitcoin Magazine

Texas Legislature Passes Bitcoin Reserve Bill

Texas has passed Senate Bill 21, a measure establishing the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. This makes Texas the third U.S. state to adopt Bitcoin as part of its state investment strategy, following Arizona and New Hampshire. The bill, officially titled the “Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Investment Act”, has cleared both legislative chambers and now heads to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk for final approval.

JUST IN: Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill SB21 officially PASSES and goes to Governors desk for final signature pic.twitter.com/8UMwxTHgg6

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 21, 2025

SB21 authorizes the creation of the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, a special fund outside the state treasury, which allows Texas to invest directly in Bitcoin and other approved cryptocurrencies, according to the legislation. The measure gives the State Treasurer full authority over the reserve’s administration, including acquiring, managing, staking, and potentially liquidating digital assets.

“The establishment of a strategic bitcoin reserve serves the public purpose of providing enhanced financial security to residents of this state,” declares the legislation.

The State Treasurer will manage the fund under strict conditions:

• Only cryptocurrencies with a 12-month average market cap of at least $500 billion can be purchased.
• Assets must be stored using “cold storage” technology to prevent unauthorized access. 
• Third-party partners, including qualified custodians and liquidity providers, may be contracted for operations.
• The use of staking, and derivatives is allowed if it benefits the reserve.

Funds can come from legislative appropriations, donations from Texas residents, and returns on investments. While the reserve operates independently, the State Treasurer can temporarily liquidate it for state cash management under limited conditions.

Governor Abbott has not yet indicated whether he will sign the bill, but his past support of Bitcoin suggests a favorable outcome is likely.

“Texas is getting involved early on in this process because we see the future of what bitcoin and blockchain means to the entire world,” said Governor Abbott in an interview. “Texas wants to be the centerpiece of that. So we are promoting it, we are advancing it.”

When New Hampshire passed their bill on May 6, 2025, CEO and Co-Founder of Satoshi Action Dennis Porter remarked that it was just the beginning and now we’re seeing that vision unfold.

“Satoshi Action drafted the model, New Hampshire engraved it into law, and now every treasurer nationwide can follow that roadmap,” stated Dennis Porter on X. “HB 302 proves you can protect taxpayer money, diversify reserves, and future-proof state treasuries—all while embracing the most secure monetary network on Earth. New Hampshire didn’t just pass a bill; it sparked a movement.”

This post Texas Legislature Passes Bitcoin Reserve Bill first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ 7e6f9018:a6bbbce5

Per les xarxes socials es parla amb efusivitat de que Bitcoin arribarà a valer milions de dòlars. El mateix Hal Finney allà pel 2009, va estimar el potencial, en un cas extrem, de 10 milions $:

\> As an amusing thought experiment, imagine that Bitcoin is successful and becomes the dominant payment system in use throughout the world. Then the total value of the currency should be equal to the total value of all the wealth in the world. Current estimates of total worldwide household wealth that I have found range from $100 trillion to $300 trillion. Withn 20 million coins, that gives each coin a value of about $10 million. <https://satoshi.nakamotoinstitute.org/emails/bitcoin-list/threads/4/>

No estic d'acord amb els càlculs del bo d'en Hal, ja que no consider que la valoració d'una moneda funcioni així. En qualsevol cas, el 2009 la capitalització de la riquesa mundial era de 300 bilions $, avui és de 660 bilions $, és a dir ha anat pujant un 5,3% de manera anual, $$(660/300)^{1/15} = 1.053$$

La primera apreciació amb aquest augment anual del 5% és que si algú llegeix aquest article i té diners que no necessita aturats al banc (estalvis), ara és bon moment per començar a moure'ls, encara sigui amb moviments defensius (títols de deute governamental o la propietat del primer habitatge). La desagregació per actius dels 660 bilions és:

1. Immobiliari residencial = 260 bilions $

2. Títols de deute = 125 bilions $

3. Accions = 110 bilions

4. Diners fiat = 78 bilions $

5. Terres agrícoles = 35 bilions $

6. Immobiliari comercial = 32 bilions $

7. Or = 18 bilions $

8. Bitcoin = 2 bilions $

La riquesa mundial és major que 660 bilions, però aquests 8 actius crec que són els principals, ja que s'aprecien a dia d'avui. El PIB global anual és de 84 bilions $, que no són bromes, però aquest actius creats (cotxes, ordinadors, roba, aliments...), perden valor una vegada produïts, aproximant-se a 0 passades unes dècades.

Partint d'aquest nombres com a vàlids, la meva posició base respecte de Bitcoin, ja des de fa un parell d'anys, és que te capacitat per posar-se al nivell de capitalització de l'or, perquè conceptualment s'emulen bé, i perquè tot i que Bitcoin no té un valor tangible industrial com pot tenir l'or, sí que te un valor intangible tecnològic, que és pales en tot l'ecosistema que s'ha creat al seu voltant:

• Creació de tecnologies de pagament instantani: la Lightning Network, Cashu i la Liquid Network.

• Producció d'aplicacions amb l'íntegrament de pagaments instantanis. Especialment destacar el protocol de Nostr (Primal, Amethyst, Damus, Yakihonne, 0xChat...)

• Industria energètica: permet estabilitzar xarxes elèctriques i emprar energia malbaratada (flaring gas), amb la generació de demanda de hardware i software dedicat.

• Educació financera i defensa de drets humans. És una eina de defensa contra governs i estats repressius. La Human Rights Foundation fa una feina bastant destacada d'educació.

Ara posem el potencial en nombres:

• Si iguala l'empresa amb major capitalització, que és Apple, arribaria a uns 160 mil dòlars per bitcoin.

• Si iguala el nivell de l'or, arribaria a uns 800 mil dòlars per bitcoin.

• Si iguala el nivell del diner fiat líquid, arribaria a un 3.7 milions de dòlars per bitcoin.

Crec que igualar la capitalització d'Apple és probable en els pròxims 5 - 10 anys. També igualar el nivell de l'or en els pròxims 20 anys em sembla una fita possible. Ara bé, qualsevol fita per sota d'aquesta capitalització ha d'implicar tota una serie de successos al món que no sóc capaç d'imaginar. Que no vol dir que no pugui passar.

@ da8b7de1:c0164aee

Technológiai és fejlesztési hírek

• Észtország SMR-tervei:

Észtország hivatalosan elindította a nemzeti tervezési folyamatot és a környezeti hatásvizsgálatot egy 600 MW-os kis moduláris reaktor (SMR) atomerőmű létesítésére, GE Hitachi BWRX-300 technológiával. A projektet a Fermi Energia vezeti, a lakosság körében mérsékelt támogatottság mellett. Az építési engedélykérelem benyújtását 2029-re tervezik, a cél az ország energiabiztonságának és klímacéljainak erősítése.

• Olkiluoto-1 csökkentett teljesítménnyel üzemel:

Finnországban az Olkiluoto-2 egységben a generátor rotorjának cseréje miatt a termelés májusban újraindul, de a teljesítményt 735 MW-ra korlátozzák (a teljes kapacitás 890 MW). A csökkentett teljesítmény 2026-ig marad érvényben. Az Olkiluoto-1 egység normálisan működik, az Olkiluoto-3 pedig éves karbantartáson van.

Ipari és pénzügyi fejlemények

• Kanada–Argentína nehézvíz-együttműködés:

A kanadai Candu Energy (AtkinsRéalis) és az argentin Nemzeti Atomenergia Bizottság (CNEA) memorandumot írt alá a nehézvíz-termelés fellendítéséről. Ez magában foglalja az argentin PIAP nehézvízgyár újraindítását és potenciálisan új üzemek építését Kanadában. A fejlesztés támogatja a meglévő és tervezett CANDU reaktorok működését világszerte, és illeszkedik a COP28 utáni globális nukleáris bővüléshez.

• USA: nukleáris adókedvezményekért folyó lobbizás:

Az amerikai nukleáris ipar intenzív lobbitevékenységet folytat, hogy megőrizze a Biden-adminisztráció által bevezetett, az Inflációcsökkentő Törvény (IRA) szerinti nukleáris adókedvezményeket. Az új, republikánus többségű költségvetési törvényjavaslat jelentősen lerövidítené a tiszta energia (szél, nap, akkumulátor) támogatásokat, de a nukleáris ipar számára bizonyos kedvezmények megmaradnának, bár a 45U nukleáris adókedvezmény is három évvel korábban, 2031-ben lejárhat.

• Háztartási és ipari érdekek:

Az amerikai ház költségvetési törvényjavaslata megszüntetné a legtöbb tiszta energiához kapcsolódó adókedvezményt, kivéve néhány nukleáris projektet, és szigorítaná a kínai kapcsolatokkal rendelkező projektek támogatását. Ez várhatóan visszaveti a megújuló energiaipar beruházásait, miközben a nukleáris szektor relatív pozíciója javulhat.

Politikai és társadalmi fejlemények

• Tajvan: népszavazás a nukleáris energia sorsáról:

Tajvan parlamentje megszavazta, hogy népszavazást tartsanak a Maanshan atomerőmű újraindításáról, miután az ország utolsó működő reaktorát is leállították. A referendum nem azonnali újraindításról szól, hanem arról, hogy a lakosság döntsön a meghosszabbításról, ha a hatóságok biztonságosnak találják az üzemet.

• Pennsylvania kormányzója a nukleáris energia mellett:

Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania kormányzója, a „Lightning Plan” keretében hangsúlyozta, hogy az állam energiabiztonsága és gazdasági fejlődése érdekében kulcsszerepet szán a nukleáris energiának, valamint más megbízható energiaforrásoknak. A terv célja a munkahelyteremtés, a fogyasztói költségek csökkentése és az engedélyezési folyamatok gyorsítása.

• TMI névváltás:

Az amerikai Nukleáris Szabályozó Hatóság (NRC) jóváhagyta a Three Mile Island (TMI) atomerőmű nevének megváltoztatását Christopher M. Crane-re, az Exelon volt vezérigazgatójának emlékére. A létesítmény a jövőben a Microsoft AI műveleteit is ellátja majd árammal, és 2028-tól 835 MW szén-dioxid-mentes áramot termelhet.

Nemzetközi szakmai események

• NEA konferencia Londonban:

Az OECD NEA 2025. június 18–19-én Londonban rendezi meg az „Excellence in Nuclear Construction” nemzetközi konferenciát. A rendezvény célja, hogy a nukleáris ipar szereplői megosszák tapasztalataikat a nukleáris beruházások gyorsabb, kiszámíthatóbb és költséghatékonyabb megvalósítása érdekében, különös tekintettel a mérnöki, beszerzési és kivitelezési (EPC) kihívásokra.

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Hivatkozások

• https://www.nucnet.org
• https://www.world-nuclear-news.org
• https://www.neimagazine.com
• https://www.oecd-nea.org
• https://www.iaea.org
• https://www.reuters.com/business/energy
• https://www.utilitydive.com
• https://www.atkinsrealis.com
• https://www.candu.com

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

Headlines

• OpenSats announces the eleventh wave of Nostr grants. The five projects in this wave are the mobile live-streaming app Swae, the Nostr-over-ham-radio project HAMSTR, Vertex—a Web-of-Trust (WOT) service for Nostr developers, Nostr Double Ratchet for end-to-end encrypted messaging, and the Nostr Game Engine for building games and applications integrated with the Nostr ecosystem.
• Project Eleven offers 1 BTC to break Bitcoin's cryptography with a quantum computer. The quantum computing research organization has introduced the Q-Day Prize, a global challenge that offers 1 BTC to the first team capable of breaking an elliptic curve cryptographic (ECC) key using Shor’s algorithm on a quantum computer. The prize will be awarded to the first team to successfully accomplish this breakthrough by April 5, 2026.
• Bull Bitcoin expands to Mexico, enabling anyone in the country to receive pesos from anywhere in the world straight from a Bitcoin wallet. Additionally, users can now buy Bitcoin with a Mexican bank account.

"Bull Bitcoin strongly believes in Bitcoin’s economic potential in Mexico, not only for international remittances and tourism, but also for Mexican individuals and companies to reclaim their financial sovereignty and protect their wealth from inflation and the fragility of traditional financial markets," said Francis Pouliot, Founder and CEO of Bull Bitcoin.

• Panama City votes to accept bitcoin for municipal services. The Panama City Council has voted to accept Bitcoin and other digital currencies for municipal services, becoming the first public institution in the country to do so. They will partner with an authorized bank responsible for converting the digital currency proceeds into dollars, reports Bitcoin Magazine.
• US Bitcoin miner manufacturer Auradine has raised $153 million in a Series C funding round as it expands into AI infrastructure. The round was led by StepStone Group and included participation from Maverick Silicon, Premji Invest, Samsung Catalyst Fund, Qualcomm Ventures, Mayfield, MARA Holdings, GSBackers, and other existing investors. The firm raised to over $300 million since its inception in 2022.
• Designathon 2025: The Bitcoin Design Community is organizing a Bitcoin design hackathon, scheduled to take place from May 4 to 18, 2025. Sign up and learn more about the event, prizes, and ideas.

Use the tools

• Core Lightning v25.02.1 and v24.11.2 address several issues, including returned outputs on mutual closes if peer didn't support option_shutdown_anysegwit, properly handling duplicate HTLCs on closing, calculating fees with the correct HTLC timeout, occasional crash on bitcoind_getrawblockbyheight callback, fixes tracepoint crashes in autoclean/chanbackup, and more.
• LND v0.19.0-beta.rc2 is available for testing. New features include support for archiving channel backup, RBF cooperative closes, the Quiescence protocol, the chainio subsystem, lnwire messages for the Gossip 1.75 protocol, testnet4, and much more.
• Hydrus v0.2.0, a Lightning liquidity management agent, is now available. This version adjusts routing policies, new CLI commands, built-in task scheduling, and a new open heuristic, channels.block_height.
• Alby Hub v1.16.0 introduces Alby Pro, a paid subscription plan for self-hosted Alby Hub runners that offers real-time backups, unlimited sub-wallets, customizable Lightning addresses, priority support, and more. The sidebar and settings page have received a UI update for a smoother experience, along with various other improvements and bug fixes.
• Alby Go v1.12.0 introduces a wallet switcher for swapping wallets during payments, withdrawals, and connections. It also improves number formatting for locales using decimal commas.
• Blitz Wallet v0.4.3-beta allows users to customize their maximum receive and balance amounts for ecash transactions. Besides, users can now pay for items in supported stores using ecash, and manual swap options have been expanded. The update also includes payment experience enhancements, performance optimizations, and bug fixes.
• Phoenix wallet v2.5.3 is a bug fix release that corrects UI problems on iOS and improves the handling of some Bolt12 failures.
• BitBanana v0.9.4 is a maintenance release that adds a link to new documentation, delivers bug fixes, and updated translations.
  • BitBanana v0.9.3 was a notable release that introduced Nostr Wallet Connect (NWC) support, significantly enhanced the channel rebalancing interface, and added channel and UTXO sorting, among other features.
• Boltz Web App v1.7.3 has improved the UX for copying addresses and invoices, added fixes for hardware wallet integration, and backup files now include the rescue key, enabling backup imports to pick up pending swaps.
• Stratum v2 Reference Implementation (SRI) v1.3.0 comes with a new integration test framework and tests, enhanced APIs for role development, and core low-level crates now support no_std.
• ESP-Miner v2.6.6b1 is now available for testing.
• CTV Playground Android is a native Android implementation and demonstration of Bitcoin's proposed OP_CHECKTEMPLATEVERIFY (CTV) soft fork, including a CTV Vault implementation.
• Nstart, an onboarding wizard for new Nostr users, is now multilingual. Available languages include English, Español, Italiano, Français, Deutsch, and 日本語. You can contribute with a new language here.

Source: daniele

• GM Swap is a proof-of-concept implementation of the Atomic Signature Swaps NIP. It enables users to "swap GM notes, ensuring that both parties' signatures are exchanged simultaneously or not at all."
• Arti v1.4.2, a next-generation Tor client in Rust, is now available. Arti's RPC interface is now officially stable, and ready for testing.
• Tor Browser v14.5 has been released, introducing Connection Assist to Android, which helps mobile users facing strict censorship to easily unblock Tor with a single button press. Additionally, Belarusian, Bulgarian, and Portuguese languages are now available across all platforms, along with other improvements.

[](https://njump.me/nevent1qqsqp3seup9kqz8xawavqd2jff6v627s63l4xwut9hjcphdnr5r3h5gpzemhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumn0wd68ytnzv9hxgqgdwaehxw309ahx7uewd3hkcqfpwaehxw309akh2mr5d9cxcetcv4ezu6r4wdax7mn9vaujuam0wfkxgq3qpzzrdngrnlufqazx3lfj07k0vfuya6ehfy8q5yv2h8c5e8fxgmxqd

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Price Breaks Record All Time High With Surge Above $109,000

Bitcoin soared to a new all-time high today, crossing $109,000 and peaking at $109,800 before settling at $109,378 on Coinbase. The historic price milestone comes as institutional inflows and favorable policy developments fuel growing confidence in the world’s leading digital asset. 

BREAKING: #BITCOIN HAS HIT A NEW ALL TIME HIGH pic.twitter.com/3TeTlF6bIS

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 21, 2025

Bitcoin’s ascent reflects a surge in momentum across traditional finance and political circles. Nearly $1 billion in inflows poured into Bitcoin ETFs over just two trading days this week, according to data from Farside Investors—underscoring the deepening demand from institutional investors. 

“Bitcoin is pushing toward new highs with strong tailwinds behind it—from steady ETF inflows to a broader shift in political tone,” said Joe DiPasquale, CEO of BitBull Capital. “This doesn’t feel like a short-term squeeze—it’s a more sustained bid that reflects a structural shift in how investors are viewing Bitcoin. It’s moving from a speculative trade to a strategic allocation.” 

Bitcoin’s consistent performance and growing adoption among institutional players have increasingly positioned it as more than just a speculative asset. As traditional financial institutions—including JPMorgan—open channels for client access to Bitcoin, and as industry leaders like Coinbase are added to major indexes, Bitcoin’s role as a cornerstone of the modern financial system continues to solidify.

Investor enthusiasm has also been supported by legislative progress in Washington. The U.S. Senate this week advanced bipartisan legislation to create a federal framework for stablecoins—a major win for the digital asset industry and a sign of increasing government engagement with crypto infrastructure. 

JUST IN: Legislation to create a regulatory framework for stablecoins The GENIUS Act passes motion to proceed to the consideration of the bill

The bill now goes to the amendment process. pic.twitter.com/KjDAAofZSj

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 21, 2025

“Stablecoin legislation is about to pass the Senate, and Bitcoin just hit a new all time high,” President Donald Trump’s AI & Crypto Czar David Sacks posted today on X

Additionally, President Donald Trump has embraced the sector with vocal support and direct policy action. Earlier this year, his administration established an official “strategic bitcoin reserve” for the U.S. government and eased several regulatory pressures on major crypto firms, reinforcing Bitcoin’s standing as a legitimate financial instrument. 

With market dynamics aligning and global interest accelerating, Bitcoin’s breakout above $109,800 marks not just a record high but may be a sign of what’s next to come. 

“If you’re not buying bitcoin at the all-time high, you’re leaving money on the table,” posted Strategy Executive Chairman Michae Saylor. 

This post Bitcoin Price Breaks Record All Time High With Surge Above $109,000 first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Metaplanet Hits New All Time High As Bitcoin Hits Record Price

Metaplanet Inc., Japan’s leading Bitcoin treasury company, surged to a new all time high in market capitalization this week, propelled by Bitcoin’s own historic ATH. The firm’s aggressive Bitcoin acquisition strategy, innovative financing, and rising investor confidence have driven its valuation to ¥470.3 billion, up 554.5% year-to-date, closely tracking Bitcoin’s surge past its new ATH of $109,500 today.

In just over a year, Metaplanet has expanded its holdings from 98 BTC to 7,800 BTC (as of May 19, 2025), acquired at an average price of $103,873 per coin. That stash is now worth over $800 million, as Bitcoin’s record-breaking run this year.

The latest rise followed the company’s announcement of completing the full exercise of its 13th to 17th series of stock acquisition rights under its innovative “21 Million Plan.” This equity financing campaign raised ¥93.3 billion in just 60 trading days, fueling additional Bitcoin purchases, without diluting shareholder value. In a rare move, these MS Warrants were issued at a 6.8% premium over the share price at the time. 

Since announcing its listing on the OTCQX Market, Metaplanet’s growth has been relentless. “We are thrilled to begin trading on the OTCQX Market, enabling greater access for U.S. investors to participate in Metaplanet’s journey,” said the President of Metaplanet Simon Gerovich. “As Asia’s only dedicated Bitcoin Treasury Company, this step reflects our commitment to advancing Bitcoin adoption globally while enhancing shareholder value.”

Metaplanet’s growth is more than just a case of good timing; it reflects a strong, deliberate alignment with Bitcoin’s price action. Since shifting to a Bitcoin-focused strategy in 2024, the company has posted impressive quarterly BTC yields of 41.7%, 309.8%, 95.6%, and 47.8%. These returns have helped drive its net asset value up by 103.1 times and its market capitalization by 138.1 times, following Bitcoin’s rapid climb.

In Q1 FY2025, Metaplanet reported its strongest financial results yet. Revenue increased 8% quarter-over-quarter to ¥877 million, while operating profit rose 11% to ¥593 million. Net income surged to ¥5.0 billion, complemented by unrealized gains of ¥13.5 billion from its Bitcoin holdings, further strengthening the company’s balance sheet.

Although Bitcoin prices dipped briefly at the end of March, causing a ¥7.4 billion valuation loss, Metaplanet swiftly recovered as BTC surged to new record levels. This strong connection with Bitcoin’s performance has led many investors to use Metaplanet as an investment vehicle to get Bitcoin exposure on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Apparently Metaplanet is the most shorted stock in Japan. Do they really think betting against Bitcoin is a winning strategy? pic.twitter.com/SAKsOMO4MX

— Simon Gerovich (@gerovich) May 21, 2025

This post Metaplanet Hits New All Time High As Bitcoin Hits Record Price first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

How Zeus is Redefining Bitcoin with Cashu Ecash Integration

The U.S.-based Bitcoin and Lightning mobile wallet Zeus recently announced an alpha-release integration of Cashu. The move marks the first integration of ecash into a popular Bitcoin wallet, breaking new ground for potential user adoption to Bitcoin.
Cashu is a hot new implementation of Chaumian ecash, a form of digital cash invented by David Chaum in the ’90s that has incredible privacy and scalability properties, with the trade-off of being fundamentally centralized, requiring a significant amount of trust in the issuer.

In a counterintuitive move for Zeus, known as the go-to tool for advanced Lightning users seeking to connect to their home nodes, the integration of Cashu acknowledges a “last mile” challenge Lightning wallets face when delivering Bitcoin to the masses.

“We basically started off as the cypherpunk wallet, right? You got to set up your own Lightning node and connect to it with Zeus. The last two years, we put the node in the phone with one click, you can run it all in a standalone app without a remote node,” Evan Kaloudis, founder and CEO of Zeus, told Bitcoin Magazine.

“Cashu addresses uneconomical self-custody for small bitcoin amounts. On-chain, the dust limit is 546 satoshis, and Layer Two systems like Lightning have costs for channel setup or unilateral exits that aren’t widely discussed,” Evan explained, highlighting a major point of friction in noncustodial Lightning wallets: the need for liquidity and channel management. While these esoteric aspects of the Lightning Network have been mostly abstracted away since its invention in 2016, these fundamental trade-offs continue to manifest even in the most sophisticated and user-friendly wallets.

In the case of both Phoenix and Zeus, two of the most popular noncustodial options in the market, users must pay up to 10,000 sats upfront to gain spending capacity. These fees are necessary to cover the on-chain fees spent to open a channel for the user against the wallet’s liquidity service provider, unlocking a noncustodial experience.

The required up-front fee is difficult to explain and represents a painful onboarding experience for new users who are used to fiat apps giving them money to join instead. The result is the proliferation of custodial Lightning wallets like Wallet of Satoshi (WOS), which gained massive adoption early on by leveraging the global, near-instant settlement power of Bitcoin combined with the excellent user experience centralized wallets can create.

Major developments have been made over seven years after the Lightning Network’s inception, however, and Zeus is pushing the boundaries.

“With Ecash, we make it so easy that anyone can set up a wallet and start participating in our ecosystem, which I really think is going to become more and more prevalent,” Evan explained.

Today, at roughly $100,000 per bitcoin, 1,000 satoshis are equivalent to $1. Transactions of these sizes are known as microtransactions — a popular example are Nostr social media tips known as Zaps. But finding the right tool for this use case is not simple. Self custodied wallets like Phoenix charge transaction fees in the hundreds of satoshis, even with open channels, and on-chain fees often cost the same and are slower to settle. As a result, there’s an entire category of spending that is only served by cheaper alternatives such as custodial lightning wallets like WOS or Blink, but result in significant privacy tradeoffs, often requiring phone numbers from users and in some cases more advanced KYC and IP tracking. Cashu hopes to serve this market with lower privacy costs, the same ease of use, speed and competitive fees.

Digging deeper into the Cashu integration, Evan explained that “for users this means being able to pick and switch between custodians in a single app. For developers this means being able to defer custodial responsibilities to third parties and not have to wire up a new integration when your current custodian halts operations.”

Zaps are satoshi-denominated rewards delivered as “likes” or micro-tips for content in the Nostr social media ecosystem. A Zap can be as small as one satoshi, the smallest amount of bitcoin that can be technically transferred, equivalent today to about a tenth of a penny. “But I think if we look at Nostr and you’re seeing how many people are Zapping and how big a part of that ecosystem it is. It’s like, people are willing to do it,” Evan explained.

“Cashu, while custodial, lets users accumulate small amounts — say, via Nostr Zaps — without needing 6,000 satoshis to open a Lightning channel. Zeus prompts users to upgrade to self-custody as their balance grows,” he concluded, explaining that the wallet will effectively annoy users into self custody, one of several design choices made to mitigate the risks introduced by Cashu.

Ecash

The trade-offs introduced by Cashu challenge the common understanding of custody as an either-or in Bitcoin. Historically you were either a centralized — custodial — exchange, or you were a noncustodial Bitcoin wallet. In the former, you entrust the coins to a third party; in the latter you take personal responsibility for those coins and their corresponding private keys. Cashu changes this paradigm by introducing bitcoin-denominated ecash notes or “nuts,” which are bearer instruments that should be backed by a full bitcoin reserve and Lightning interoperability for instant withdraw.

Similar to fiat cash, you must take control and responsibility over these notes, but there’s also counterparty risk. In the case of Cashu, there are certain things the issuing mint can theoretically do to exploit their users — akin to how a bank can run on a fractional reserve. 

The big difference between Cashu or custodial Bitcoin exchanges and fiat currency is that Cashu is open source, is designed around user privacy, and scales very well. It makes the cost of running a mint lower than either alternative, a feature that makes mint competition easier, in theory countering the centralizing network effects of specific mints.

Finally, the user experience of storing Cashu tokens has been attached to known forms of Bitcoin self custody such as the download of 12-words seeds via various mechanisms, though implementations still vary from wallet to wallet and the whole ecosystem is in its early stages. 

To further mitigate the custodial risk of Chaumian-style ecash in Bitcoin, the Cashu community has developed various methods for automatically managing custody risk.

“Users can split risk by using multiple mints, switching between them in the user interface. Soon, ZEUS will guide users to select five or six reputable mints, automatically balancing funds to minimize exposure,” Evan explained, referring to a particular approach called automated bank runs. The idea is that as some Cashu mints may hold more of your funds, Zeus de-ranks them and rotates value out to minimize risk. 

“I think the idea is going to be that we guide users to pick five or six reputable mints… And from there, users will be able to have the wallet automatically switch between those mints and determine which mint should be receiving the balance depending on the balance of all the mints presently. So you’ll be like, OK. MiniBits has way too much money. Let’s switch the default to one of the mints that doesn’t have a lot. So that way you can sort of mitigate or rather distribute the rug risk there,” Evan explained, adding, “Our Discover Mint feature pulls reviews from bitcoinmints.com, showing vouch counts and user feedback, like mint reliability or longevity,” describing the reputation layer stacked on top of the various other risk management mechanisms.

There is no known way to use Chaumian-style ecash in an entirely noncustodial way. So as long as the custody risk can be minimized, the scaling and privacy upside becomes remarkable. 

Microtransactions

One of the opportunities that ecash unlocks is microtransactions, the most popular example of which are Nostr Zaps often in single dollar ranges of value transferred, though it applies to small Lightning transactions as well. This use case triggers an important technical question that predates Bitcoin, do microtransactions actually make economic sense?

There’s a long-standing argu

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

In a landmark leap for bitcoin self-custody, Wasabi Wallet announced the release of v2.6.0 “Prometheus,” the first version of its privacy-centric desktop software to operate entirely independent of centralized servers.

This update marks a pivotal step toward ensuring long-term resilience and user autonomy in an increasingly regulated digital landscape.

New release 2.6.0 – Prometheus is here!

Support for Standard BIP 158 Block Filters
Full Node Integration Rework
Create & Recover SLIP 39 Shares
Nostr Update Manager

And more… https://t.co/J0K5DFMQZL

— Wasabi Wallet (@wasabiwallet) May 5, 2025

Key Innovations

1. Sovereign Blockchain Synchronization via BIP 158
Wasabi now leverages Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) 158 block filters, enabling users to sync directly with their own bitcoin node. This eliminates dependency on third-party indexers or servers, drastically improving sync speeds while ensuring users retain full control over their blockchain data.

2. Simplified Full Node Integration
The overhauled node integration allows seamless compatibility with any bitcoin node implementation. Users need only enable their node’s RPC server and connect it to Wasabi. All critical functions—block retrieval, fee estimation, and transaction broadcasting—now operate through the user’s own infrastructure.

3. SLIP 39 Backup Shares (Sponsored by Trezor)
A new standard for wallet recovery, SLIP 39, enables users to generate multiple encrypted backup shares. This “sharded” approach, sponsored by Trezor, ensures flexible and secure recovery options, reducing risks of single-point failure.

4. Censorship-Resistant Updates via Nostr Protocol
Replacing GitHub reliance, Wasabi now distributes updates through the decentralized Nostr network. Updates remain verifiable via the project’s code-signing certificate, ensuring continuity even if centralized platforms are compromised.

5. Enhanced Privacy and Resilience

• No Third-Party Dependencies: Optional removal of external exchange/fee rate providers.
• Stricter JSON Serialization: Rebuilt data handling to prevent vulnerabilities.
• Azure Trusted Signing: New code-signing certificate for Windows builds.
• UI Overhaul: Critical fixes for macOS Sequoia and Avalonia framework upgrades.

Availability and Additional Resources

Wasabi Wallet v2.6.0 is available for immediate download at wasabiwallet.io. The update is free, open-source, and compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Full Changelog: GitHub Release Notes
GitHub Repo: github.com/zkSNACKs/WalletWasabi

About Wasabi Wallet

Wasabi Wallet is a non-custodial, open-source bitcoin wallet prioritizing financial privacy through technologies like CoinJoin. Designed for desktop, it empowers users to reclaim sovereignty over their transactions with robust encryption, minimal metadata leakage, and peer-to-peer operation.

@ 7e6f9018:a6bbbce5

Over the last decade, birth rates in Spain have dropped by 30%, from 486,000 births in 2010 to 339,000 in 2020, a decline only comparable to that seen in Japan and the Four Asian Tigers.

The main cause seems to stem from two major factors: (1) the widespread use of contraceptive methods, which allow for pregnancy control without reducing sexual activity, and (2) women's entry into the labor market, leading to a significant shift away from traditional maternal roles.

In this regard, there is a phenomenon of demographic inertia that I believe could become significant. When a society ages and the population pyramid inverts, the burden this places on the non-dependent population could further contribute to a deeper decline in birth rates.

The more resources (time and money) non-dependent individuals have to dedicate to the elderly (dependents), the less they can allocate to producing new births (also dependents):

• An only child who has to care for both parents will bear a burden of 2 (2 ÷ 1).
• Three siblings who share the responsibility of caring for their parents will bear a burden of 0.6 (2 ÷ 3).

This burden on only children could, in many cases, be significant enough to prevent them from having children of their own.

In Spain, the generation of only children reached reproductive age in 2019(*), this means that right now the majority of people in reproductive age in Spain are only child (or getting very close to it).

If this assumption is correct, and aging feeds on itself, then, given that Spain has one of the worst demographic imbalances in the world, this phenomenon is likely to manifest through worsening birth rates. Spain’s current birth rate of 1.1 may not yet have reached its lowest point.

(*)Birth rate table and the year in which each generation reaches 32 years of age, Spain.

| Year of birth | Birth rate | Year in which the generation turns 32 | | ------------------ | -------------- | ----------------------------------------- | | 1971 | 2.88 | 2003 | | 1972 | 2.85 | 2004 | | 1973 | 2.82 | 2005 | | 1974 | 2.81 | 2006 | | 1975 | 2.77 | 2007 | | 1976 | 2.77 | 2008 | | 1977 | 2.65 | 2009 | | 1978 | 2.54 | 2010 | | 1979 | 2.37 | 2011 | | 1980 | 2.21 | 2012 | | 1981 | 2.04 | 2013 | | 1982 | 1.94 | 2014 | | 1983 | 1.80 | 2015 | | 1984 | 1.72 | 2016 | | 1985 | 1.64 | 2017 | | 1986 | 1.55 | 2018 | | 1987 | 1.49 | 2019 | | 1988 | 1.45 | 2020 | | 1989 | 1.40 | 2021 | | 1990 | 1.36 | 2022 | | 1991 | 1.33 | 2023 | | 1992 | 1.31 | 2024 | | 1993 | 1.26 | 2025 | | 1994 | 1.19 | 2026 | | 1995 | 1.16 | 2027 | | 1996 | 1.14 | 2028 | | 1997 | 1.15 | 2029 | | 1998 | 1.13 | 2030 | | 1999 | 1.16 | 2031 | | 2000 | 1.21 | 2032 | | 2001 | 1.24 | 2033 | | 2002 | 1.25 | 2034 | | 2003 | 1.30 | 2035 | | 2004 | 1.32 | 2036 | | 2005 | 1.33 | 2037 | | 2006 | 1.36 | 2038 | | 2007 | 1.38 | 2039 | | 2008 | 1.44 | 2040 | | 2009 | 1.38 | 2041 | | 2010 | 1.37 | 2042 | | 2011 | 1.34 | 2043 | | 2012 | 1.32 | 2044 | | 2013 | 1.27 | 2045 | | 2014 | 1.32 | 2046 | | 2015 | 1.33 | 2047 | | 2016 | 1.34 | 2048 | | 2017 | 1.31 | 2049 | | 2018 | 1.26 | 2050 | | 2019 | 1.24 | 2051 | | 2020 | 1.19 | 2052 |

@ 4fa5d1c4:fd6c6e41

🧠 Entwickelt von OECD & EU-Kommission – jetzt zur Rückmeldung freigegeben:\ 👉 https://ailiteracyframework.org/

Das Framework beschreibt vier zentrale Domänen der KI-Kompetenz – jede mit einem klaren Profil aus Wissen, Fertigkeiten und Haltungen. Diese lassen sich hervorragend mit den vier Kompetenzbereichen verbinden:

🔹 Engaging with AI ↔ 🟢 Verstehen

Lernende erkennen KI in ihrem Alltag, verstehen ihre technischen Grundlagen (📘 Knowledge) und entwickeln die Fähigkeit, Ausgaben kritisch zu analysieren (🛠️ Skills), begleitet von einer neugierigen und verantwortungsbewussten Einstellung (🧭 Attitudes).

🔹 Creating with AI ↔ 🔵 Anwenden

Durch den kreativen Einsatz generativer KI entstehen neue Lernprodukte. Benötigt werden technisches Verständnis (📘 z. B. zu Trainingsdaten), Anwendungskompetenz (🛠️ z. B. Promptgestaltung), sowie eine innovationsorientierte Haltung (🧭 Ownership, Urheberrecht, Attribution).

🔹 Managing AI ↔ 🟠 Reflektieren

Hier geht es um bewusste Entscheidungen: Wann ist KI sinnvoll? Wie wirken sich ihre Vorschläge auf mein Denken aus? Das verlangt (📘) Orientierungswissen, (🛠️) strategisches Problemlösen und (🧭) eine ethisch begründbare Reflexion.

🔹 Designing AI ↔ 🟣 Gestalten

Lernende analysieren und entwerfen KI-Systeme: Welche Daten nutze ich? Wer profitiert? Mit welchen Folgen? Die Verbindung aus (📘) systemischem Wissen, (🛠️) Gestaltungskompetenz und (🧭) ethischer Haltung eröffnet Bildungsräume im digitalen Wandel.

📬 Rückmeldungen zum Entwurf sind willkommen – eure Expertise aus der Praxis zählt!

👉 [https://teachai.org/ailiteracy/review](https://teachai.org/ailiteracy/review)

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Sangha Renewables Launches 20 MW Bitcoin Mining Facility Powered by Solar Energy

Sangha Renewables has officially broken ground on a 19.9-megawatt (MW) bitcoin mining facility in West Texas, marking a notable step in its mission to merge sustainable power with digital asset infrastructure, according to a recent press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine. Sangha also announced it has raised $14 million toward its $17 million target, helping bring its vision for renewable-powered bitcoin mining to life. 

Developed in partnership with an independent power producer (IPP), the behind-the-meter facility will be located on an established solar energy site. Sangha’s project is designed to transform underutilized renewable assets into high-yield bitcoin-generating operations while delivering “optimized power monetization and attractive bitcoin-backed returns for investors.” 

“Sangha is not just building bitcoin mining sites—we’re building a new model for how capital flows in and out of bitcoin,” said Spencer Marr, co-founder and CEO of Sangha Renewables. “By applying a project finance structure honed-in the renewable energy and real estate sectors, we enable investors to participate directly in productive assets—without intermediaries, speculative equities, or inefficiencies of datacenter hosting. Investors put cash or bitcoin into the construction of the project and then enjoy streaming distributions of bitcoin for years to come at well below the market price of bitcoin.” 

Under the offtake agreement, Sangha will purchase 19.9 MW of power directly from the IPP. The solar site is impacted by grid congestion and negative energy pricing, making it an ideal fit for Sangha’s load-balancing model. “It’s a win-win-win,” Marr added. “The IPP earns more per megawatt-hour, our investors gain exposure to low-cost bitcoin production, and we deliver grid-stabilizing load where it’s needed most.”

The project is set to begin operations in Q3 2025 and will offer one of the lowest power costs in North America, according to the company. Sangha’s model is underpinned by smart site selection, transparent capital structures, and regulatory acumen—positioning it as a leader in institutional-grade bitcoin mining. 

This facility represents Sangha’s proof-of-concept and the next chapter in the founders’ pivot from Sangha Systems to Sangha Renewables, emphasizing a commitment to sustainable, scalable, and investor-aligned bitcoin infrastructure.

This post Sangha Renewables Launches 20 MW Bitcoin Mining Facility Powered by Solar Energy first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

$10.4B Bitcoin Firm Unchained Announces First Regulated Bitcoin-Native Trust Company

Today, the State of Wyoming has officially chartered Gannett Trust Company, the first bitcoin-native trust company in the United States, according to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine. Backed by Unchained, a leader in bitcoin financial services, Gannett Trust is purpose-built to serve individuals, family offices, and businesses integrating bitcoin into estate and inheritance plans, investment portfolios, trusts, and treasury strategies.

The launch of Gannett Trust directly addresses a growing need for secure, compliant, bitcoin-native solutions for long-term wealth management. Estimates say around 3.7 million bitcoin may be lost forever, largely due to poor planning and the absence of trusted custodial tools. Gannett Trust seeks to prevent future loss by offering a suite of fiduciary services tailored to the unique needs of bitcoin holders. Gannett Trust will offer both qualified custody and non-custodial configurations, enabling clients to manage, protect, and transfer their bitcoin with confidence. Gannett Trust advances Unchained’s long-term vision of building a durable foundation for multigenerational Bitcoin wealth.

“Bitcoin is becoming a pillar of long-term wealth,” said CEO of Unchained Joe Kelly. “With Gannett Trust, we’re combining the regulatory clarity of a trust company with the proven security of Unchained’s collaborative custody – a major step forward for bitcoin as a generational asset that holders have been waiting for.”

Prioritizing sovereignty, control, compliance, Gannett Trust aims to equip families and businesses with clear, tax-optimized strategies tailored to every aspect of bitcoin-based planning and wealth management.

“Most trust companies don’t understand bitcoin, and most crypto custodians don’t offer true fiduciary services,” said CEO of Gannett Trust Joshua Preston. “Gannett Trust bridges the gap – giving existing bitcoin holders and those interested in allocating bitcoin a path to protect and grow their legacy.”

With the launch of Gannett Trust, Unchained adds another layer to its bitcoin-native infrastructure, contributing to the development of institutional tools designed to support the long-term custody and management of bitcoin wealth.

For more information about Gannett Trust, visit here.

This post $10.4B Bitcoin Firm Unchained Announces First Regulated Bitcoin-Native Trust Company first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ 975e4ad5:8d4847ce

The Risks of Offline Storage

Keeping your seed phrase offline – on paper, in a safe, or on a USB drive – seems secure, but it comes with significant risks:

• Fire or Flood: A disaster could destroy your home, along with the paper or device storing your seed phrase.

• Theft: Someone could find your seed phrase in your safe or a hidden spot at home.

• Natural Disasters or War: If you’re forced to leave your home, you might lose access to your seed phrase, effectively locking you out of your assets.

• Human Error: You could accidentally lose, damage, or misplace the paper or device holding your seed phrase.

These vulnerabilities make offline storage less reliable, especially if you don’t have backups or can’t access them in an emergency.

---

The Benefits of Online Storage

When done right, online storage addresses these issues. The primary advantage is accessibility: you can retrieve your seed phrase from anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection and the necessary credentials. This is invaluable if you’re away from home or in a crisis.

The key to making online storage safe? Encryption.

---

How to Store Your Seed Phrase Online Securely

1. Choose a Secure Platform\ Upload your encrypted seed phrase to a reputable cloud storage service like Google Drive, Dropbox, or Proton Drive, which offers built-in encryption. Ensure you use a strong password and enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for your account.

2. Encrypt Your Seed Phrase\ Before uploading, encrypt your seed phrase using a tool with strong encryption, such as AES-256. Here are some easy options:

3. VeraCrypt: A free tool that lets you create an encrypted file or container. Save your seed phrase in a text file, add it to an encrypted container, and set a password only you know.

4. GPG (GnuPG): This tool allows you to encrypt text files using public and private keys. Generate a key pair and store the private key securely (e.g., on an offline USB drive).

5. 7-Zip: A popular compression tool that supports AES-256 encryption. Create an encrypted archive with your seed phrase and set a strong password.

6. Keep the Decryption Key in Your Head\ The password or decryption key should be something only you know. Avoid writing it down to prevent unauthorized access.

7. Disguise the File\ Even if someone sees your encrypted file, they shouldn’t suspect what it contains. Name the file something generic, like “family_recipes.txt,” instead of “seed_phrase.txt.”

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Why Encryption Matters

Encryption ensures that even if someone gains access to your file, they can’t read your seed phrase without the decryption key. AES-256, for example, is an industry-standard encryption method considered virtually unbreakable with a strong password. This means that even if a hacker accesses your cloud storage, they can’t use your seed phrase.

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Practical Tips for Maximum Security

• Split Your Seed Phrase: For added protection, divide your seed phrase into multiple parts and store them in separate encrypted files on different platforms.

• Test Your Access: Periodically check that you can log into your cloud storage and decrypt your file to avoid surprises.

• Use a Strong Password: Choose a password longer than 12 characters, combining letters, numbers, and special characters.

• Create Backups: Store multiple encrypted copies on different platforms for extra redundancy.

---

Conclusion

Storing your seed phrase online isn’t reckless if you do it right. With proper encryption and a secure platform, you can combine the convenience of global access with a high level of protection. Offline methods have their risks, but secure online storage ensures your assets are safe and accessible, no matter where you are.

@ 90152b7f:04e57401

Wikileaks - C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 002018 SIPDIS SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE; NEA/IPA FOR GOLDBERGER/SHAMPAINE/BELGRADE; NSC FOR ABRAMS/WATERS; TREASURY FOR SZUBIN/GRANT/HARRIS/NUGENT/HIRSON E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/17/17 TAGS: ECON, EFIN, KFTN, KWBG, IS

2007 September 26

SUBJECT: ISRAELI BANK CUTOFF PORTENDS GAZA BANK CLOSURES AND MORE PRIVATE SECTOR DIFFICULTIES Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles,

Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 1. 1. (SBU) Summary. Bank Hapoalim's decision to sever ties with banks in Gaza, and an expected move by Israel Discount Bank to do the same, could result in cash shortages, bank closures, and a suspension of commercial imports into Gaza, most of which are food, according to Palestinian banking sector representatives. Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA) Governor George Abed is discussing possible solutions with his Israeli counterpart and other Israeli officials. Banks operating in the West Bank are attempting to ascertain the impact on their activities. End summary.

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Threat Made Real

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2. (SBU) Bank Hapoalim announced September 25 that it is severing its ties with banks operating in the Gaza Strip, according to local press reports. The bank reportedly decided to take this action after the GOI designated Gaza a "hostile entity." Since the formation of the Hamas-led government in March 2006, Bank Hapoalim and the Israel Discount Bank (IDB) have warned that they intended to terminate their correspondent bank relationship with banks operating in the West Bank and Gaza. Both banks provide check clearing services and coordinate cash transfers, operations considered vital to the Palestinian banking sector.

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Damage Control

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3. (C) PMA Governor Abed told Econoff September 26 that Bank Hapoalim's decision was "not a surprise" and the PMA "is dealing with it." He explained that he had spoken to Bank of Israel Governor Fischer September 25 and is also in contact with GOI Ministry of Finance officials. Abed said that he believes the GOI is seeking to find a solution because it wants to maintain economic and financial relations with Palestinians. If IDB follows Bank Hapoalim's lead, as expected, Abed fears that the banking sector in Gaza could shutdown. Already in steep decline, banking activity there comprises only 18-20 percent of total deposits and about 15 percent of total loan portfolios of banks operating in the West Bank and Gaza, according to Abed.

4. (C) Arab Bank General Manager Mazen Abu Hamdan and Cairo-Amman Bank Regional Manager Joseph Nesnas told Econoff separately September 26 that IDB does much more business with Gaza banks than Bank Hapoalim, so if IDB severs its ties, the impact will be even more severe. Both said they will close their Gaza branch offices if IDB takes this action. Arab Bank's correspondent account is with the IDB. Both Abu Hamdan and Nesnas said they are uncertain as to exactly how and when Bank Hapoalim will implement its decision, and what the consequences will be for banks in the West Bank. Abu Hamdan suggested that Bank Hapoalim may continue to clear Gaza-origin checks in the short-term with Israeli beneficiaries, but will very soon refuse to accept any checks drawn from Gaza branches.

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Cash Shortage to Further Restrict Trade

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5. (C) Abed noted that Gaza merchants frequently pay cash for imports, often upon receipt of the goods at the designated crossing. If banks close, Abed continued, cash payments will be even more common. If cash transfers to Gaza are suspended, however, cash will be hoarded and increasingly unavailable to conduct trade. (Note: According to the UN, 86 percent of commercial imports into Gaza are food.) Abed and Abu Hamdan noted separately that a cash cutoff will also adversely affect the payment of PA salary payments to Gaza-based employees. Banks in Gaza need about NIS 150 million each month to make PA salary payments.

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Hamas Not Guarding Cash Transfers

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6. Abed refuted a press report alleging that Hamas is now guarding cash shipments once they enter Gaza. He said he is aware that of one instance when a bank notified Hamas of a JERUSALEM 00002018 002 OF 002 shipment, and Hamas Executive Forces may have shadowed the cash movement in reply, but in all other cases the banks handle their own security arrangements and do not communicate with Hamas. WALLES

@ c7e8fdda:b8f73146

🌍 Too Young. Too Idealistic. Too Alive. A message came in recently that stopped me cold.

It was from someone young—16 years old—but you’d never guess it from the depth of what they wrote. They spoke of having dreams so big they scare people. They’d had a spiritual awakening at 14, but instead of being nurtured, it was dismissed. Surrounded by people dulled by bitterness and fear, they were told to be realistic. To grow up. To face “reality.”

This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

And that reality, to them, looked like a life that doesn’t feel like living at all.

They wrote that their biggest fear wasn’t failure—it was settling. Dimming their fire. Growing into someone they never chose to be.

And that—more than anything—scared them.

They told me that my book, I Don’t Want to Grow Up, brought them to tears because it validated what they already knew to be true. That they’re not alone. That it’s okay to want something different. That it’s okay to feel everything.

It’s messages like this that remind me why I write.

As many of you know, I include my personal email address at the back of all my books. And I read—and respond to—every single message that comes in. Whether it’s a few sentences or a life story, I see them all. And again and again, I’m reminded: there are so many of us out here quietly carrying the same truth.

Maybe you’ve felt the same. Maybe you still do.

Maybe you’ve been told your dreams are too big, too unrealistic. Maybe people around you—people who love you—try to shrink them down to something more “manageable.” Maybe they call it protection. Maybe they call it love.

But it feels like fear.

The path you wish to walk might be lonelier at first. It might not make sense to the people around you. But if it lights you up—follow it.

Because when you do, you give silent permission to others to do the same. You become living proof that another kind of life is possible. And that’s how we build a better world.

So to the person who wrote to me—and to every soul who feels the same way:

Keep going. Keep dreaming. Keep burning. You are not too young. You are not too idealistic. You are just deeply, radically alive.

And that is not a problem. That is a gift.

—

 If this speaks to you, my book I Don’t Want to Grow Up was written for this very reason—to remind you that your wildness is sacred, your truth is valid, and you’re not alone. Paperback/Kindle/Audiobook available here: scottstillmanblog.com

This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. https://connect-test.layer3.press/articles/041a2dc8-5c42-4895-86ec-bc166ac0d315

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) are not rushing to stack sats, and Oliver Porter, Founder & CEO of Jippi, understands the challenge better than most. His strategy revolves around adapting Bitcoin education to fit seamlessly into the digital lives of young adults.

“We need to meet them where they are,” Oliver explains. “90% of Gen Z plays games. 70% expect to earn rewards.”

So, what will effectively introduce them to Bitcoin? In Oliver’s mind, the answer is simple: games that don’t feel preachy but still plant the orange pill.

Learn more at Jippi.app

That’s exactly what Jippi is. Based in Austin, Texas, the team has created a mobile augmented reality (AR) game that rewards players in bitcoin and sneakily teaches them why sound money matters.

“It’s Pokémon GO… but for sats,” Oliver puts it succinctly.

Jippi is like Pokemon Go, but for sats

Oliver’s Bitcoin journey, like many in the space, began long before he was ready. A former colleague had tried planting the seed years earlier, handing him a copy of The Bitcoin Standard. But the moment passed.

It wasn’t until the chaos of 2020 when lockdowns hit, printing presses roared, and civil liberties shrank that the message finally landed for him.

“The government got so good at doing reverse Robin Hood,” Oliver explains. “They steal from the working population and reward the rich.”

By 2020, though, the absurdity of the covid hysteria had caused his eyes to be opened and the orange light seemed the best path back to freedom.

He left the UK for Austin “one of the best places for Bitcoiners,” he says, and dove headfirst into the industry, working at Swan for a year before founding Jippi on PlebLab’s accelerator program.

Jippi’s flagship game lets players roam their cities hunting digital creatures, Bitcoin Beasts, tied to real-world locations. Catching them requires answering Bitcoin trivia, and the reward is sats.

No jargon. No hour-long lectures. Just gameplay with sound money principles woven right in.

The model is working. At a recent hackathon in Austin, Jippi beat out 14 other teams to win first place and $15,000 in prize money.

Oliver of Jippi won Top Builder Season 2 — PlebLab on X

“We’re backdooring Bitcoin education,” Oliver admits. “And while we’re at it, encouraging people to get outside and touch grass.”

Not everyone’s been thrilled. When Jippi team members visited one of the more liberal-leaning places in Texas, UT Austin, to test interest in Bitcoin, they found some seriously committed no-coiners on the campus.

“One young woman told me, ‘I would rather die than talk about Bitcoin,'” Oliver recalls, highlighting the cultural resistance that’s built up among younger demographics.

This resistance is backed by hard data. According to Oliver, some of the Bitcoin podcasters they met with in the space to do market research reported that less than 1% of their listeners are from Gen Z and that number is dropping.

“Unless we find a way to capture their interest in a meaningful way, there’s going to be a big problem around trying to sway Gen Z away from the siren call of s***coins and crypto casinos and towards Bitcoin,” Oliver warns.

Jippi’s next big move is Las Vegas, where they’ll launch the Beast Catch experience at the Venetian during a major Bitcoin event. To mark the occasion, they’re opening up six limited sponsorship spots for Bitcoin companies, each one tied to a custom in-game beast.

Jippi looks to launch a special event at Bitcoin 2025

“It’s real estate inside the game,” Oliver explains. “Brands become allies, not intrusions. You get a logo, company name, and call to action, so we can push people to your site or app.”

Bitcoin Well—an automatic self-custody Bitcoin platform—has claimed Beast #1. Only five exclusive spots remain for Bitcoin companies to “beastify their brand” through Jippi’s immersive AR game.

“I love the Jippi mission. I think gamified learning is how we will onboard the next generation and it’s exciting to see what the Jippi team is doing! I love working with bitcoiners towards our common mission – bullish!” said Adam O’Brien, Bitcoin Well CEO.

Jippi’s sponsorship model is simple: align incentives, respect users, and support builders. Instead of throwing ad money at tech giants, Bitcoin companies can connect with new users naturally while they’re having fun and earning sats in the process.

For Bitcoin companies looking to reach a younger demographic, this represents a unique opportunity to showcase their brand to up to 30,000 potential customers at the Vegas event.

Jippi Bitcoin Beast partnership

While Jippi’s current focus is simple, get the game into more cities, Oliver sees a future where AR glasses and AI help personalize Bitcoin education even further.

“The magic is going to really happen when Apple releases the glasses form factor,” he says, describing how augmented reality could enhance real-world connections rather than isolate users.

In the longer term, Jippi aims to evolve from a free-to-play model toward a pay-to-play version with higher stakes. Users would form “tribes” with friends to compete for substantial bitcoin prizes, creating social connections along with financial education.

Unlike VC-backed startups, Jippi is raising funds pleb style via Timestamp, an open investment platform for Bitcoin companies.

“You don’t have to be an accredited investor,” Oliver explains. “You’re directly supporting the parallel Bitcoin economy by investing in Bitcoin companies for equity.”

Anyone can invest as little as $100. Perks include early access, exclusive game content, and even creating your own beast design with your name/pseudonym and unique game lore. Each investment comes with direct ownership of an early-stage Bitcoin company like Jippi.

For Oliver, this is more than just a business. It’s about future-proofing Bitcoin adoption and ensuring Satoshi’s vision lives on, especially as many people are lured by altcoins, NFTs, and social media dopamine.

“We’re on the right side of history,” he says firmly. “I want my grandkids to know that early on in the Bitcoin revolution, games like Jippi helped make it stick.”

In a world increasingly absorbed by screens and short attention spans, Jippi’s combination of outdoor play, sats rewards, and Bitcoin education might be exactly the bridge Gen Z needs.

Interested in sponsoring a Beast or investing in Jippi? Reach out to Jippi directly by heading to their partnerships page on their website or visit their Timestamp page to invest in Jippi today.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Nigel Farage To Speak At Bitcoin 2025 Conference

We are pleased to announce that Nigel Farage will join the speaker lineup at the Bitcoin Conference 2025 in Las Vegas. A defining figure in modern European politics, Farage led the Brexit movement that took the United Kingdom out of the EU, reshaping global conversations around national sovereignty. He is the founder and current leader of Reform UK, a rising political force now polling competitively, positioning him as a serious contender for to be the next UK Prime Minister.

A former Member of the European Parliament for over 20 years, Farage built his reputation challenging supranational institutions and unelected power—values that resonate deeply with the Bitcoin community. He also hosts GB News, where he critiques monetary policy, CBDCs, and digital surveillance. An outspoken advocate for financial sovereignty and free speech, Farage previously appeared at Bitcoin Amsterdam 2023 in a conversation with Peter McCormack. In 2025, he returns for a fireside with Bitcoin Magazine’s Frank Corva, whose sharp political interviews are helping shape Bitcoin’s place in global affairs.

About Bitcoin 2025

The excitement is building as the world’s largest Bitcoin conference approaches, Bitcoin 2025. Set to take place in Las Vegas from May 27-29, this premier event is anticipated to draw Bitcoin enthusiasts, industry leaders, and innovators from all over the globe.

Be part of the revolution! Come experience the cultural movement that’s the Bitcoin Conference – a landmark event with wealth of opportunities for networking and learning. In 2025, Bitcoin takes over Las Vegas, uniting builders, leaders, and believers in the world’s most resilient monetary network.

New in 2025: Code & Country launches on Industry Day, bringing together policymakers, technologists, and industry leaders for a full day of focused collaboration.

The aim: strengthen Bitcoin’s role in national strategy, regulatory clarity, and technological sovereignty. This marks a new era where Bitcoin’s protocol and geopolitical potential intersect more directly than ever before.

Highlights Include

• Keynote Speakers: Renowned experts and visionaries will share their insights and predictions for the future of digital currency.
• Workshops and Panels: Attendees can participate in hands-on workshops and panel discussions covering a wide array of topics, from technical details to practical applications in various industries.
• Exhibition Hall: The exhibition will showcase art, cutting-edge products and services from top companies in the bitcoin ecosystem.
• Networking Opportunities: With thousands of attendees expected, Bitcoin 2025 offers unparalleled opportunities for networking with peers, potential partners, and thought leaders.

Keynote Speakers

The conference is set to feature an impressive lineup of speakers, including leading Bitcoin developers, experts, as well as influential figures from the financial sector. Topics range from the latest advancements to regulatory updates and investment strategies.

1. JD Vance, Vice President Vance will become the first sitting vice president in the history of the United States to publicly voice his support for Bitcoin as he addresses the audience in Las Vegas.
2. Ross Ulbricht, Freedom Advocate – Founder of the Silk Road marketplace, recently released by President Donald Trump from serving a double life sentence. His story has become emblematic of the clash between personal liberty, Bitcoin, and the state.
3. Eric Trump & Donald Trump Jr, Both figures bring a bold voice to the conversation around Capitalism, Bitcoin, freedom, and economic sovereignty.
4. Cameron & Tyler Winklevoss, Co-Founders of Gemini – Early Bitcoin adopters and founders of the regulated exchange Gemini.
5. David Sacks, White House AI & Crypto Czar – Former PayPal COO and venture capitalist, now serving as the White House’s senior advisor on AI and cryptocurrency policy, leading national efforts on stablecoin legislation and digital asset strategy.
6. Bryan Johnson, Founder of Project Blueprint – Tech entrepreneur and longevity researcher known for reversing his biological age and challenging fiat-era assumptions about health, time, and human potential.

Past Conferences in the USA

– 2021 Miami: Where President Nayib Bukele revealed plans for El Salvador to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, making history live on stage. Attendance: 11,000
– 2022 Miami: Where Michael Saylor delivered a landmark address on corporate Bitcoin strategy and announced additional MicroStrategy purchases. Attendance: 26,000
– 2023 Miami: Where Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. became the first U.S. presidential candidate to speak at a Bitcoin conference, addressing financial freedom and civil liberties. Attendance: 15,000
– 2024 Nashville: Highlights include President Donald J. Trump’s appearance, where he voiced support for Bitcoin mining and national monetary sovereignty. Attendance: 22,000

Join Us in Las Vegas

• Date: May 27-29, 2025
• Venue: The Venetian, Las Vegas, NV, USA  
• Tickets: https://b.tc/conference/2025
• Get a free General Admission ticket when you deposit $200 on eToro – while supplies last!

This post Nigel Farage To Speak At Bitcoin 2025 Conference first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Conor Mulcahy.

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Bitcoin Magazine

KindlyMD Shareholders Approve Merger with Bitcoin Treasury Company Nakamoto

KindlyMD, Inc. has secured shareholder approval for its proposed merger with Nakamoto Holdings Inc., marking a major step toward becoming one of the biggest Bitcoin treasury companies on the market.

The majority of KindlyMD’s shareholders delivered written consent in favor of the merger on May 18, 2025. The transaction is now on track to close in the third quarter of 2025, following the SEC’s review and distribution of an information statement to shareholders. Under current terms, the deal will close 20 days after the statement is mailed.

Full release: https://t.co/jsn4XNW1dK
"We are pleased to achieve this important milestone in the merger process," said Tim Pickett, CEO of KindlyMD. "As a combined company, we are excited to leverage Bitcoin's dominance and real-world utility to strengthen our company and drive… pic.twitter.com/YPD3ajZFNf

— KindlyMD (@KindlyMD) May 20, 2025

“This milestone brings us one step closer to unlocking Bitcoin’s potential for KindlyMD shareholders,” said David Bailey, Founder and CEO of Nakamoto. “We are grateful that KindlyMD shares our vision for a future in which Bitcoin is a core part of the corporate balance sheet, and investors across global capital markets have exposure to the world’s greatest asset and store of value.”

Nakamoto is building a global portfolio of companies aligned around Bitcoin’s core principles. Through treasury strategy and targeted acquisitions, the company aims to redefine capital markets infrastructure with Bitcoin at the center.

KindlyMD, meanwhile, brings to the table a unique model of integrated, data-driven healthcare focused on reducing opioid dependence and improving outcomes through personalized treatment and alternative medicine education. Its clinical services are reimbursed through Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial insurance. 

Tim Pickett, CEO of KindlyMD, emphasized the strategic benefits of the deal: “We are pleased to achieve this important milestone in the merger process. As a combined company, we are excited to leverage Bitcoin’s dominance and real-world utility to strengthen our company and drive sustained long-term value for our investors.”

Disclosure: Nakamoto is in partnership with Bitcoin Magazine’s parent company BTC Inc to build the first global network of Bitcoin treasury companies, where BTC Inc provides certain marketing services to Nakamoto. More information on this can be found here.

This post KindlyMD Shareholders Approve Merger with Bitcoin Treasury Company Nakamoto first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Attendees At First New York City Crypto Summit Implore Mayor Adams To End The BitLicense

Today, New York City hosted its first ever crypto summit.

The event took place at Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s residence, and was attended by prominent figures from the crypto industry, many of whom are based in New York.

At the event, Mayor Adams made the case that he felt the attendees’ pain, stating that they’ve wrongfully been persecuted, and he claimed that it’s now safe for those in the Bitcoin and crypto industry to both speak up and set up shop in New York.

“Look how they’ve treated you,” said Mayor Adams.

“You were treated as though you were the enemy instead of the believers,” he added.

“You’ve been hiding in the shadows, afraid to come out — come out now.”

As Mayor Adams continued, he recommitted to making New York the “crypto capital of the world,” something he first claimed he’d do in 2021, though not much has materialized on this front since then.

New York has continued to be a jurisdiction that’s nearly impossible for Bitcoin and crypto start ups to do business in thanks to the BitLicense, a license required to operate a digital asset company within the state.

Obtaining a BitLicense often costs upwards of $100,000 and takes months, if not years, of cutting through red tape and hopping over bureaucratic hurdles to attain.

Most start ups don’t have the time or funds to obtain one.

So, when Mayor Adams and New York City’s Chief Technology Officer, Matthew Fraser, tasked the attendees at today’s event, with coming up with solutions that would help to make New York City a more crypto-friendly jurisdiction, many brought up the need to abolish the BitLicense — or to at least make New York City immune to its reach.

New York City As A Bitcoin And Crypto Sanctuary City

“To build a thriving [crypto] economy, we have to get rid of the BitLicense,” said one attendee. “We at least need to build a regulatory sandbox in New York City.”

Another attendee argued that “New York City should become a sanctuary city from the BitLicense.”

Attendees made comments like these after sessions of roundtable discussions during which the attendees discussed different issues related to Bitcoin and crypto before having a representative from their table share proposals with the room at large. (Because the attendees agreed to honor the Chatham House Rule, I cannot offer the names of those who spoke on behalf of their groups at the event. However, I can offer the names of the keynote speakers.)

Another attendee who said that New York should become a “crypto sanctuary city” pointed out that there is precedent for this, as the city allowed the cannabis industry to operate within its borders while the rest of the state did not.

Nick Spanos, who founded the first in-person exchange and the earliest in-person Bitcoin meeting space in New York City, the Bitcoin Center, in 2013, also made the case for New York as a crypto sanctuary city.

“We’re giving sanctuary to immigrants — we can give sanctuary to crypto companies,” he said in an impassioned tone.

Nick Spanos claims that NYC should be a crypto sanctuary city. | Photo credit: Frank Corva

Spanos went on to critique the BitLicense, calling into question its legitimacy.

“What kind of license is it when, after 12 years, there are only 30 of them?!” cried Spanos. “That’s an insider license!”

Now Is The Time To Pass Crypto Legislation In New York State

Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz highlighted that now is the time for New York to pass legislation that will benefit the crypto industry.

“After five difficult years, DC has said let’s embrace this technology,” said Novogratz, alluding to the notion that New York should follow the federal government’s lead.

“New York State has not made crypto easy — it’s taken a long time for people to get licenses,” he added.

Novogratz also shared that the crypto industry is “ready for take off,” though he also put the onus on the industry to prove itself by creating products that provide real value to users.

He concluded by saying that, thus far, he’s only really seen value in Bitcoin and stablecoins.

On the topic of stablecoins, Brock Pierce, co-founder of Tether, called on Albany (New York’s capitol) to pass Assembly Bill 6266 and Senate Bill 3262, both of which would establish requirements for the creation and operation of limited purpose trust companies if enacted into law. Such a law would seemingly play a role in enabling Tether to operate in New York.

Other Suggestions For Crypto Applications From The Attendees

A number of attendees also suggested creating crypto products that would help offer financial services to New York City’s approximately 305,000 residents who do not have a bank account (though, none suggested including bitcoin in these services).

Many also stressed the importance of “crypto and blockchain education” within New York’s public school system.

Even Mayor Adams touched on this in his talk.

“Every young person in the DOE [Department of Education] should know about blockchain and crypto,” he said.

And one attendee suggested using blockchain to safeguard the city’s public records.

(I piggybacked on this idea by suggesting that the city consider employing Simple Proof, a company that utilizes the OpenTimestamps protocol on Bitcoin to safeguard public documents, including election results, to help safeguard its important documents.)

Call To Action

Mayor Adams said that when he, the “mayor of the greatest city on the globe,” starts talking about Bitcoin and crypto the rest of the world will pay attention.

For this reason, he said he wanted the best and brightest to help guide him as he broaches the topic.

At the conclusion of the event, attendees were asked to share their notes so that Adams’ team could review them and potentially call on certain attendees to help the mayor forge a more favorable regulatory path forward.

It seems his staff was primed to help, as Fraser asked the attendees to “help the city deregulate the industry.”

Only time will now tell if Mayor Adams and his team will follow through on working with the Bitcoin and crypto industry to make it easier for companies to operate in New York City, or if he’ll lose interest in such an initiative, like he did four years ago.

This post Attendees At First New York City Crypto Summit Implore Mayor Adams To End The BitLicense first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Frank Corva.

@ 68d6e729:e5f442ac

The Adapter Pattern in TypeScript

What is the Adapter Pattern?

The Adapter Pattern is a structural design pattern that allows objects with incompatible interfaces to work together. It acts as a bridge between two interfaces, enabling integration without modifying existing code.

In simple terms: it adapts one interface to another.

Real-World Analogy

Imagine you have a U.S. laptop charger and you travel to Europe. The charger plug won't fit into the European socket. You need a plug adapter to convert the U.S. plug into a European-compatible one. The charger stays the same, but the adapter allows it to work in a new context.

When to Use the Adapter Pattern

• You want to use an existing class but its interface doesn't match your needs.
• You want to create a reusable class that cooperates with classes of incompatible interfaces.
• You need to integrate third-party APIs or legacy systems with your application.

Implementing the Adapter Pattern in TypeScript

Let’s go through a practical example.

Scenario

Suppose you’re developing a payment system. You already have a PaymentProcessor interface that your application uses. Now, you want to integrate a third-party payment gateway with a different method signature.

Step 1: Define the Target Interface

javascript ts CopyEdit// The interface your application expects interface PaymentProcessor { pay(amount: number): void; }

Step 2: Create an Adaptee (incompatible class)

javascript ts CopyEdit// A third-party library with a different method class ThirdPartyPaymentGateway { makePayment(amountInCents: number): void { console.log(`Payment of $${amountInCents / 100} processed via third-party gateway.`); } }

Step 3: Implement the Adapter

```javascript ts CopyEdit// Adapter makes the third-party class compatible with PaymentProcessor class PaymentAdapter implements PaymentProcessor { private gateway: ThirdPartyPaymentGateway;

constructor(gateway: ThirdPartyPaymentGateway) { this.gateway = gateway; }

pay(amount: number): void { const amountInCents = amount * 100; this.gateway.makePayment(amountInCents); } } ```

Step 4: Use the Adapter in Client Code

```javascript ts CopyEditconst thirdPartyGateway = new ThirdPartyPaymentGateway(); const adapter: PaymentProcessor = new PaymentAdapter(thirdPartyGateway);

// Application uses a standard interface adapter.pay(25); // Output: Payment of $25 processed via third-party gateway. ```

Advantages of the Adapter Pattern

• Decouples code from third-party implementations.
• Promotes code reuse by adapting existing components.
• Improves maintainability when dealing with legacy systems or libraries.

Class Adapter vs Object Adapter

In languages like TypeScript, which do not support multiple inheritance, the object adapter approach (shown above) is preferred. However, in classical OOP languages like C++, you may also see class adapters, which rely on inheritance.

Conclusion

The Adapter Pattern is a powerful tool in your design pattern arsenal, especially when dealing with incompatible interfaces. In TypeScript, it helps integrate third-party APIs and legacy systems seamlessly, keeping your code clean and extensible.

By learning and applying the Adapter Pattern, you can make your applications more robust and flexible—ready to adapt to ever-changing requirements. https://fox.layer3.press/articles/cdd71195-62a4-420b-9e24-e23d78b27452