๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฒ๐?
๐๐ฏ ๐ฆ๐น๐ค๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ต ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ฉ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ฑ๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ง โ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐โ, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ญ๐ฅโ๐ด ๐ง๐ช๐ณ๐ด๐ต #Ai-๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ๐ฅ #Bitcoin ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ.
Most people are familiar with fiat currencies, and will wonder how Bitcoin differs from it. In this chapter, @Svetski and @johnkvallis give their explanations, which are indispensable for anyone new to Bitcoin.
Below is John Vallisโ answer, as written in โ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐โ:
๐๐ผ๐ต๐ป ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ถ๐โ ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ:
Money is the fundamental organizing and coordinating mechanism of a market, and as such, its qualities, which determine the functions which it either permits or prohibits, are highly consequential in both subtle and obvious ways. If there is an inherent unfairness in the money, as is the case with fiat, then that unfairness will propagate, through the money, into every corner and facet of the market which uses it โ which is to say, into the people who use it.
In this particular case, fiat is unfair because a certain (small) group of people are permitted to obtain it for free (to โprintโ it), while others must sacrifice their time and energy to do so. The result is, expectedly, the subjugation of the latter to the former. Such a market comes to increasingly reflect not the โwillโ of each individualโs choices, but those of a very small few, as they may siphon off purchasing power and deploy it in whatever manner they see fit. The inevitable result is an unnatural concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a select few โ those who control or have privileged access to the โmoney printerโ (or digital equivalent).
You may also characterize fiat as a โlieโ. While perhaps not intuitive or obvious, part of the reason why money is able to perform the stabilizing or harmonizing function which it does, is because it โcarriesโ information about the preferences of all market actors, and the associated time, energy, and sacrifices which were made to either act or not act on them (among other information). If there is an entity arbitrarily manipulating the money supply, all that information becomes corrupted and distorted, and the fidelity with which it coheres to the preferences of market actors, and the market circumstances broadly, is diminished. Decisions are thus made on false or imperfect information, and as such, due to their diminished coherence with โrealityโ, are more likely to be made in error, or to be more wasteful or destructive than necessary. The longer this goes on, the more such a money will erect a โfalse realityโ, increasingly detached from what individual preferences and action, in relation to the natural and social worlds, would otherwise have dictated.
Bitcoin, on the other hand, does not permit such arbitrary manipulations, nor any degree of unfairness from one user to the next. Everyone is subject to the same rules. The result is a scenario in which unfairness, and all the damaging consequences of it, is impossible, and where truth, rather than falsehood, is rightly the basis upon which people interact (economically).
Simply put, fiat is immoral, and the qualities that make it so, erect an all-encompassing system of incentives which inevitably influences those who (are forced to) use it. Conversely, bitcoin operates on truth and fairness, and thereby erects (or will erect) an all-encompassing system of virtuous incentives, which likewise will influence behavior in accordance with them.
Simply put, a fiat standard is immoral and destructive, and a bitcoin standard will be virtuous and creative.
John Vallis is the host of the Bitcoin Rapid-Fire and Portal Orange podcasts. He is a passionate Bitcoin advocate, and an enthusiastic explorer of the profound implications it represents.
Preorder your copy of โ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐โ, and ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฝ ๐๐ผ ๐ด๐ฌ%, by contributing to our @Geyser initiative:
๐๐ผ๐ต๐ป ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ถ๐โ ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ:
Money is the fundamental organizing and coordinating mechanism of a market, and as such, its qualities, which determine the functions which it either permits or prohibits, are highly consequential in both subtle and obvious ways. If there is an inherent unfairness in the money, as is the case with fiat, then that unfairness will propagate, through the money, into every corner and facet of the market which uses it โ which is to say, into the people who use it.
In this particular case, fiat is unfair because a certain (small) group of people are permitted to obtain it for free (to โprintโ it), while others must sacrifice their time and energy to do so. The result is, expectedly, the subjugation of the latter to the former. Such a market comes to increasingly reflect not the โwillโ of each individualโs choices, but those of a very small few, as they may siphon off purchasing power and deploy it in whatever manner they see fit. The inevitable result is an unnatural concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a select few โ those who control or have privileged access to the โmoney printerโ (or digital equivalent).
You may also characterize fiat as a โlieโ. While perhaps not intuitive or obvious, part of the reason why money is able to perform the stabilizing or harmonizing function which it does, is because it โcarriesโ information about the preferences of all market actors, and the associated time, energy, and sacrifices which were made to either act or not act on them (among other information). If there is an entity arbitrarily manipulating the money supply, all that information becomes corrupted and distorted, and the fidelity with which it coheres to the preferences of market actors, and the market circumstances broadly, is diminished. Decisions are thus made on false or imperfect information, and as such, due to their diminished coherence with โrealityโ, are more likely to be made in error, or to be more wasteful or destructive than necessary. The longer this goes on, the more such a money will erect a โfalse realityโ, increasingly detached from what individual preferences and action, in relation to the natural and social worlds, would otherwise have dictated.
Bitcoin, on the other hand, does not permit such arbitrary manipulations, nor any degree of unfairness from one user to the next. Everyone is subject to the same rules. The result is a scenario in which unfairness, and all the damaging consequences of it, is impossible, and where truth, rather than falsehood, is rightly the basis upon which people interact (economically).
Simply put, fiat is immoral, and the qualities that make it so, erect an all-encompassing system of incentives which inevitably influences those who (are forced to) use it. Conversely, bitcoin operates on truth and fairness, and thereby erects (or will erect) an all-encompassing system of virtuous incentives, which likewise will influence behavior in accordance with them.
Simply put, a fiat standard is immoral and destructive, and a bitcoin standard will be virtuous and creative.
John Vallis is the host of the Bitcoin Rapid-Fire and Portal Orange podcasts. He is a passionate Bitcoin advocate, and an enthusiastic explorer of the profound implications it represents.
Preorder your copy of โ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐โ, and ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฝ ๐๐ผ ๐ด๐ฌ%, by contributing to our @Geyser initiative:
Geyser | Bitcoin Crowdfunding Platform
A Bitcoin crowdfunding platform where creators raise funds for causes, sell products, manage campaigns, and engage with their community.
Jackโs backdrop on the video call featured a Blockclock โ a clever device from 
Vickery's oversight became fodder for Bitcoin maximalists, who turned his blunder into a rallying cry. Living on โMoscow Time" became a tongue-in-cheek reference to shifting one's economic paradigm to measuring ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐๐, and away from measuring the rising price of bitcoin in dollars.
The "Moscow Time" meme encapsulates Bitcoin's ethos โ valuing innovation, mocking stubborn ignorance, and cherishing a global movement that redefines how we see wealth. Moscow Timeโs โNumber Go Downโ rate of sats per dollar ๐ช๐ด ๐ข ๐ต๐ฆ๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ต๐ฐ ๐๐ช๐ต๐ค๐ฐ๐ช๐ฏโ๐ด ๐ด๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ต๐บ, and adds a little humor to this widely misunderstood revolution.
Celebrate the 3rd anniversary of this meme by giving this a ๐๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ค, ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ this for later, and ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ it with others.
And you can keep track of the current โMoscow Timeโ here:
Itโs crucial that you both ๐ต๐ผ๐ฑ๐น your bitcoin and ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ it to help drive adoption and increase its utility as a medium of exchange. While hodling your bitcoin as a store of value is important due to its disinflationary nature and potential for long-term price appreciation, spending it is equally essential, in order to realize its full potential as a decentralized digital currency.
Spending your bitcoin and selling it differ in the sense that selling typically involves converting it back into fiat currency, which adds downward pressure (albeit minor) to Bitcoinโs price. On the other hand, ๐ด๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ bitcoin involves using it directly as a means of payment for goods and services, thereby bypassing legacy fiat intermediaries, and promoting financial sovereignty.
By actively spending bitcoin, you can contribute to the growing ecosystem of merchants and businesses that accept it, thus ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ช๐ต๐ด ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ต๐ธ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐ง๐ง๐ฆ๐ค๐ต๐ด. This not only strengthens bitcoin's use case as a medium of exchange, but also helps to solidify its position as a viable alternative to fiat.
Furthermore, spending bitcoin helps to circulate the currency within the economy, facilitating economic activity, and promoting a more robust and self-sustaining bitcoin ecosystem. As more individuals use bitcoin for everyday transactions, its utility and acceptance will continue to grow, ๐๐น๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐น๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ-๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐๐๐๐๐ฒ๐บ.
In conclusion, itโs essential to strike a balance between hodling bitcoin for its long-term value proposition, and actively spending it to support its use as a currency. By doing both, ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฟ๐ผ๐น๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐น๐ฑ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐ป.
Remember to give this a ๐๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ค and a ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐, and add this to your ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ธ๐๐.