A better future needs a strong BCH (Bitcoin Cash). Does everyone really want it though?

Note from the writer: The article is exaggerated intentionally. The article writer respects and admires all people mentioned, but wrote the article from a "take no prisoners" approach.

TL;DR
I get it, there's some disagreement. But it's not actually that bad and it could definitely be a lot worse. YOU, that's right, you. Put your ego aside and focus on what really matters. What you're here for. We'll look back at this whole thing and laugh, reminiscing about another chapter of the Bitcoin saga as we clink glasses and drink our beers (which will be paid for in the undivided Bitcoin Cash, of course). Cheers.

It needs to be said... WHAT. IS. GOING. ON?!?!

I, along with probably many other people who believe in "crypto" generally and Bitcoin Cash specifically, are in a weird spot. Why? It's quite simple and comes down to this: We're smart enough to understand the general fundamentals and share the genuine enthusiasm of the more technical people, but not smart enough to fully comprehend the nuance and feel stake in what the "in group" knows about. The "in group" is of course the group of people who have been getting more attention lately. Node developers, miners, startup initiators, cryptography enthusiasts, fringe developers, etc. Even wealthy HODLers are trying to exert influence on poor BCH.

To be fair, maybe not everyone in the "in group" is so technically knowledgeable and there are probably a lot of "outsiders" who are pretty competent, but for whatever reason have decided to not be as involved with the politics.

And that's exactly how a lot of us see it. As politics. Here is a crude summation of everything that's been going on (not actual quotes, obviously):

Amaury: "I am the benevolent dictator after all. No one wants to admit it, but I'm at least half the reason BCH is where it is right now. Accept my views on everything. Understand I'm the ship's captain, steering wheel, and the current of the ocean moving it. Provide the financial compensation accordingly. Something seems off? You don't agree? I don't care. That's the price when the mantra is 'innovate or die.'"

George Donnelly: "Exactly! Innovate or die. If you're not building, you're not helping. Never mind that my financial (and ideological*) incentives and work were aligned with a completely different ecosystem mere months ago. But i'm good at what I do. And now i'm doing this. So keep up or miss out. #BuildDASH #BuildBCH"
*[This still isn't so clear]

Tobias Ruck: "Uh...I just have some really cool ideas for BCH. I agree with Amaury and Vin. They're my rolemodels. So like them, I have things to say and i'll say them. Since I'm a pretty nice guy I'll just imply you're wrong with a smile and a compassionate discussion ending remark or open ended question. LET ME JUST GET MY STUFF MARKET READY AND ALL OF THIS FIGHTING WILL BE IRRELEVANT. And wait until you hear about Mitra..."

VIN: "[waxes poetic] ...and that's why I'm predicting it now, like i did in 2018, there will be a split. I don't want one, but logically, philosophically, siapanically, it's gonna happen. And I'll keep making covert and overt references that flat out embellish and prepare for the split, but continue to pretend like i'd prefer it didn't happen."

BCHN and its immediate supporters: "We have some technical disagreements, but mainly authoritarian disagreements, with everything Bitcoin ABC, under Amaury's rule, is doing. We're not sure what our direction actually is or how we're really going to sustain ourselves and avoid fizzling out, but right now THIS MATTERS TO US. There are also enough people agreeing with us to give us enough power to stand in opposition to Bitcoin ABC. We're pretty happy about that, but honestly have no idea where we're heading with all this..."

Bitcoin Unlimited: "...WTH?"

Bitcoin Verde: "...WTH?"

Bunch of others that will make this too long if I name: "...WTH?"

Justin Bons: "I really like BCH, but i'm a portfolio manager, so i'll cheer from the side and hope for the best (making tweaks to my allocations as necessary)."

Roger Ver: "Yeah, so i'm just gonna lay low for a bit while I try and get my head around what's going on. At first I was supportive of the IFP, then I wasn't, then I realized maybe there are other issues I should work out because honestly...WTH?"

Marc De Mesel: "You say you don't support Amaury? [Donates hundreds of $$$*] We can't let him destroy BCH!"
*[Feel free to do this here too]

The more people try and "rationalize their position", the more absurd things seem to get. Are there politics involved? Sure. There always are. But that should be the last thing we're worrying about, not the first.

Bitcoin Cash has a strong, though fairly silent community. Even if this article seems pessimistic, it's actually the opposite. It's meant to highlight how many of the problems are so artificial, so surface level. And the truth is that all cryptocurrencies actually worth something are starting to have problems like this in one form or another, a result of development that has reached a new stage of maturity. Luckily (or rather, intelligently), Bitcoin Cash has much less technical/adoption challenges then other "cryptos". That doesn't mean we should slow down, but it does mean being smart about identifying the theoretical destination we're headed to is not wasted time. If one step back means two steps forward, so be it.

Failure on both sides to internalize this with good intent could be disastrous. And i'm not worried, but the next 6-12 months are pretty important.

So "in group", what really matters to you? Put it all on the table. There are considerations for money, power, self pride, commitment, empathy, sacrifice and a lot more. Even with all that, i'd like to believe that Bitcoin Cash as a community, and as an idea, is important enough to let the people on all sides pull through. Maybe i'm just naive.

I don't have so much money on the line, but I also don't mind selling at a loss (though I don't want to and I don't plan on selling much regardless). I do mind seeing BCH being split yet again to rough, broken pieces of the whole that made it so compelling in the first place. Some splits really are unavoidable. This one isn't unavoidable. And I think deep down both "sides" know that it won't be good. Amicable? Maybe. But that doesn't make it healthy. Everyone will lose. I don't know how much, but i'm willing to bet enough to considerably ruin Bitcoin Cash's chances of being THE p2p cash of the world (without even mentioning all the other good stuff it has going for it in the future).

At the end of the day, there are two main ways of repairing something that's starting to show cracks. Assuming you can never stop the cracks entirely, you can either slow down their formation, or repair them as they appear. Ideally you do both. Bitcoin Cash has put more emphasis on slowing the formation of the cracking for a while now, but it's time to repair. Together.

Sincerely,
Mono