Is the Crash of the crypto market the end of the Web?

Who will dominate the Web?

We are undoubtedly experiencing shocks to the financial markets today that threaten the stability of the fragile normalcy since 2020.

Information reaches us as never before in human history through social networks built on the internet. Yes, the telecommunications infrastructure and all the services that operate on it support the lifestyle of today's civilization. 

It seems incredible to me the degree of dependence on this type of technology: energy and digital information intertwined to support the most varied activities.

Imagine an electromagnetic storm or powerful waves from deep space hitting the earth and melting electronic equipment. It would be chaos. 

How long would it take to recover?

We would return to an era unknown to current generations. 

Well! you'll say, "Yes, you're right, but that's a long shot."

Perhaps, but it is a possibility nonetheless.

An event of such magnitude would not only wipe out the Web; It would also drag down other systems.

So it is evident why there is a fierce struggle to dominate this technology: Whoever dominates the Web dominates the world.

Let's leave aside the cosmic sword of Damocles and focus on the earthly. That's why I started the article with financial shocks.

Today we see a lot of blood after the fight between two of the most relevant centralized exchanges in the crypto market: A fall in the prices of most cryptocurrencies below 2017 levels. 

As well as we follow up on news of massive layoffs at tech companies such as Meta or Twitter. 

Clearly, something fat is going on.

Without fear of contradiction, this revolves around power itself.

Remember that information is raw power. 

Someone may say, don't you see, we are facing the end of the Web as we know it. Whoever dominates it now will be the next owner for years to come. 

To my mind, that idea is outdated. If you consider that the argument expresses something that has already happened twice.

Think about it!

The Web's purpose was to build cyberspace where people could communicate freely and without restriction.

In the beginning, there was an explosion of projects and companies rowing on these premises until the so-called dot.com bubble burst.

Here for the first time, we saw Big speculative capital take control of the nascent technologies. Perhaps you remember how Apple fired its founder, Steve Jobs. 

Gradually, freedom faded behind the interests of investors and their machinations: people became the product under control.   

After another financial crisis, the bursting of the real estate bubble in 2008, Bitcoin appeared on the scene as the banner of a cyberpunk group represented under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. 

Again, the purpose revolved around freedom. Specifically, financial independence through a new monetary model.

Not surprisingly, Wikileaks saw Bitcoin as a way to financially sustain its operations. 

So, I am not surprised by the rise of censorship, surveillance, and control of freedom of expression between 2013 and 2015. As well as the actions to stop the advance of bitcoin and the appearance of clones and alternative Blockchains.

The most unusual thing was that these actions were sold as something normal to satisfy investors and advertisers to intervene in user privacy and the ability to ban users.

Worst of all is to see how people accepted, in the meantime, that they should be monitored: Control of society.

If you haven't noticed, we are already in the spiral of a financial crisis whose architects herald an economic reset. Well, omen wouldn't be the correct term. The indicated word would be a prescription to restart.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The question that titles the article suggests that we are again facing the end of the Web as we know it.

As you can see, there is nothing new under the sun.

The worrying thing is that we are facing a new attack against the diminished freedom that we still have.

Pure cryptocurrencies are supposed to aspire to independence from tertiary actors through peer-to-peer relationships.

But as you will have deduced at this point. We are still far from reaching the goal. And I fear that behind these financial crises, everything happens in favor of those who dominate the system.

Centralized exchanges were under the rules of the usual investors. So do not bet that these will defend the ideals that really matter.

I sometimes think of the naivety of some in the crypto verse, assuming the shackled garb of old cyberspace. To be honest, I include myself.

However, I doubt the chances of success for the promoters of the Web3-focused crypto-verse. Sure, it's hard to get the predictions right without being well-informed. So far, we are fried.

The third change in the Web is happening under our noses: Institutional players and investors are bidding and intensifying control while waiting for politicians to enter the game via CBDCs.

I don't know what the evolution of Web3 will be, but it doesn't look good.

An original article by @Jnavedan

The thumbnail by Shah Zairul Azmi on Pixabay 

Cover image by emrahkarakas on Pixabay 

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