@calem
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A Socialists Argument for Bitcoin Cash - Coding Ideology
BCH is for both the Left & the Right Every now and then, I see a particular argument been put forward. It usually comes from Anarcho-Capitalists, Agorists and Minarchists. Looking at you @Julius. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho-capitalism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agorism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night-watchman_state https://read.cash/@Julius/taxes-are-the-next-attack-on-bitcoin-cash-bd696964#comment-05aceaf9
The argument is the idea that "Leftism" is fundamentally incompatible with the core principals that make up BTC, BCH, etc. This really couldn't be further from the truth. Seeing these misleading statements really bothers me as I'm an "AnTrans Mutualist". Let me explain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-wing_politics https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanist_politics#Anarcho-Transhumanism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutualism_(economic_theory) Left Libertarianism is a Thing
Contrary to the belief of most Libertarians in crypto, Libertarian ideals are not just held by the political right. There is Left as well as Right Libertarianism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-libertarianism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-libertarianism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarianism "...social libertarianism, is a political philosophy and type of libertarianism that stresses both individual freedom and social equality. As a term, "left-libertarianism" refers to several related yet distinct approaches to political and social theory." - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_philosophy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_freedom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_theory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-libertarianism The Mailing List & Ideology The original place where Bitcoin, along with other digital currencies were first discussed, was the Cypherpunks mailing list. It was when Bitcoin was announced on "The Cryptography and Cryptography Policy Mailing List" that the various ideologies at the core of the project began to take form. https://lists.cpunks.org/mailman/listinfo https://www.metzdowd.com/pipermail/cryptography/2008-October/014810.html https://www.metzdowd.com/mailman/listinfo/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0WXFhk3dnU Borrowing heavily from the Cypherpunks and their manifesto, early Bitcoin supporters ranged from your staunch right leaning Libertarians such an Anarcho-Capitalists and Minarchists through to left leaning anti-state Libertarian Socialists and Democratic / Libertarian Transhumanists. There was one thing however that bound them all, the protection of privacy and Self-ownership, or what is also known as individual sovereignty. If I could lazily quote wiki. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cypherpunk https://www.activism.net/cypherpunk/manifesto.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho-capitalism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Steven_Wright https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-libertarianism#Libertarian_socialism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanist_politics#Democratic_transhumanism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanist_politics#Libertarian_transhumanism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism "...individual sovereignty, is the concept of property in one's own person, expressed as the moral or natural right of a person to have bodily integrity and be the exclusive controller of one's own body and life. Self-ownership is a central idea in several political philosophies that emphasize individualism, such as libertarianism, liberalism, and anarchism." - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_and_legal_rights https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodily_integrity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_philosophy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individualism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarianism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-ownership Transhumanism & Hal Finney
https://www.alcor.org/blog/hal-finney-becomes-alcors-128th-patient/ Hal Finney was the first person to have received a Bitcoin transaction and is cryptocurrencies most notable Transhumanist. Having been cryopreserved by the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, Hal lived by his code and ideology. I don't really need to go into this much more than that... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hal_Finney_(computer_scientist) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryonics https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcor_Life_Extension_Foundation Bitcoin Seized the Means of Production Satoshi seized the means of production for money, ***from the Government***, and gave it to ***the people***. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Means_of_production#Marxism_and_Marxist_Theory_of_Class If that doesn't sound left and libertarian at the same time, I don't know what does. Jiang Zhuoer's Initial Proposal
The initial proposal posted on Medium.com is what really got me fired up recently. https://medium.com/@jiangzhuoer/infrastructure-funding-plan-for-bitcoin-cash-131fdcd2412e I was opposed to the plan because as it stood, it pushed for principals I felt favored Minarchism ideology too heavily. This was fundamentally incompatible with all the other ideologies that brings us together. The same reason why I pushed back against Craig and his patents well before he turned on BCH. We Need To Co-Exist I just wanted to touch base though on some basic things and where I stand in terms of not just the principals of Bitcoin Cash, but cryptocurrency as a whole. Not only am I an anti-maximalist of any network. I also believe in a world where we have choice in which ideology we live by. It doesn't matter if you fly under the flag of small government, voluntarism, social equality, anarchism or Libertarian Socialism. It doesn't matter if you are for or against capitalism or public welfare. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voluntarism_(philosophy) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_equality https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfGwr0A0ZvY https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welfare We are all fighting violence and Authoritarianism whilst endorsing free-markets and self-ownership. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authoritarianism#Authoritarianism_and_democracy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_market The important part here is that said ideologies and networks remain free, compatible and interoperable, because without The State to enforce cooperation and coordination via the use of violence, all we have at the end of the day aside crypto, is each other. ❤️
7 comments
Crypto-currencies are a boon to people on the right and left who are against "big government." Sometimes I wonder what Thomas Jefferson would have thought of crypto. My belief is that he would have LOVED it- due to its decentralization.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I do agree with you that we should work together regardless of differences in ideology, but I'm not convinced by the argument that Bitcoin is "left libertarian". I don't think Satoshi seized the means of production of money from the government (violent). Instead they started competing with the government on the production of money (voluntary). The government is still producing money, as is Bitcoin. And we are working on being the better of the two.
I wasn't saying Bitcoin itself was any particular ideology as much as I was saying that left libertarians are just as much allowed to love and support and be in crypto as anyone from the right. In regards to the voluntarily competing in a non-violent manner, actually you are right. The whole seizing the means of production thing does sound like it requires the use of violence to achieve and Satoshi did it without said violence... To be honest though, if Satoshi didn't get it right, the gov would violently take back its monopoly by any means possible. It may have been done peacefully via competition, but they were smart enough to make a system that can't be stopped or controlled with laws and regulation. Well anyway, good thing the revolution might just be peaceful this time.
The current monetary environment is deeply socialist. Central banks - given a monopoly by the state - decide how and to what price (interest rates, inflation) their product (money) is introduced to the economy. We basically have a planned economy when it comes to money, which is part of almost every economic transaction.
Central banks are not something that socialists support xD
I think you have the wrong idea about socialism... Maybe this would be true if that central bank was owned by all the people of the nation and equally received dividends... Maybe then your statement would be true.
Mutualists are usually friends. As an ancap I would love to be wrong about this and to see co-ops working more efficiently than companies. I have serious doubts to believe that this will not be usually the case but I'd love to be wrong. From what I've gathered from conversations the only conflict, in practice, between ancaps and mutualists has to do with absentee ownership. As long as we figure out a way around that, I think we'd be just fine with each other.