-
@ Satoshis Nephew
2025-04-29 18:23:34
What makes
bitcoin unique?
Separation of money and state
The main takeaways from the previous sections are
that bitcoin is decentralized digital money - with no
central bank - that has a scarce supply of 21 million
coins that can ever exist, which can be sent from peer-
to-peer without the use of an intermediary.
Let’s break all that down and start with a simple
analogy:
Like any other product or service, if one single entity
has total control over the market, as a result of the
lack of competition, the consumer/user will have a
low quality product which will not last through time.
Imagine if there was only one company that made cars.
The vehicles would be expensive and poorly made,
and the lone car company would likely offer horrible
customer service. Why? Without any competitor to
take away the company’s business, they would have
no incentive to provide a better product to their
customers..
So, how does this relate to bitcoin? For a large part
of human history, central banks and governments
have quite literally had a monopoly on money. Bitcoin
changes this paradigm, and it is humanity’s first real-
world competitor to this monopoly.
After the Middle Ages, the invention of the printing
press led to the individual being able to search for
truth without the need to trust the church. Although at
the time, very few could envision it, this eventually led
to the separation of church and state.
This drastically changed the way society functioned
and caused unprecedented progress in almost
every thinkable area. The achievements in art, music,
architecture, literature and science from the era we
now call the Renaissance have retained their value until
this day.
Similarly, the invention of bitcoin brings about a
separation of money and state. Although it might be
hard to imagine right now, this paradigm shift will allow
everyone to know what their share of the total global
money supply is, without anyone being able to change
the denominator of that share.
The printing press freed the individual from religious
oppression. The internet revolutionized access to
information and communication. Bitcoin will free
people from financial slavery and will enable everyone
to accumulate, store and transfer value, without the
need to ask permission from or trust a government or
financial institution.
The 1974 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences laureate
Friedrich von Hayek understood this is a condition for
human progress. Satoshi Nakamoto invented the tool
that makes it possible.
#bitcoin #freedom #nostr #hardmoney