On FTX, Central Bank Digital Currencies, and the Future of Freedom

Friends,

To those who might not fully understand the implications of the FTX implosion and the calls for crypto regulation – specifically the Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren – let me attempt to enlighten you about what we are witnessing and what is at stake.First, a brief background. I have been reporting on Bitcoin and the crypto movement since early 2012. I have also been paid in crypto for my journalism since around that same time. I have used it to buy flights and other goods, accepted it for my books and shirts, swapped one crypto for another, exchanged it in true peer-to-peer fashion in person, etc. I don’t claim to be an expert, but I have actually lived the crypto life; and because I haven’t used a bank since 2008 it has also helped me move money around without a government or a bank.

From the very beginning of my experience in the crypto space there have been two main camps: those who believe crypto could be a tool to disrupt the central banks and governments who control money; and those who believe crypto should be regulated by governments and tend to see it as more of an investment than an actual medium of exchange. This second group has been calling for regulation since the beginning.

So now with the FTX implosion – which is way too big of a topic to fully dissect in this post, but rest assured we are not seeing the whole picture yet – we are seeing renewed push for regulation, including the aforementioned Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act. This bill is extremely dangerous in terms of private crypto use. Essentially, the FTX situation is being used as a way to attack private crypto use and to promote the need for Central Bank Digital Currencies. CBDCs are government controlled, not private, not anonymous, and include the risk of being able to be turned off or limited by governments.

This is where it’s important for those who don’t use or understand crypto to distinguish between non-private CBDCs and private cryptos like Monero (I know there are those who will argue Bitcoin can be private, and that may be true, but what I learned when reporting from the Silk Road trial was that they absolutely can track and find it. It’s only become easier since then.)

The central banks and the governments HATE private use of crypto, taking place in decentralized exchanges, or peer-to-peer because they cannot track all of it. Similar to cash, when done right – and not via centralized exchanges or mainstream platforms like CashApp and PayPal – you can privately exchange and move crypto around. This will not work in the world they are trying to create.

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This is why we are seeing this “never let a good crisis go to waste” moment presented to us with the FTX debacle and subsequent calls for regulation. The governments want to force crypto businesses to require Know Your Customer standards like ID, name, phone number, selfie, etc. If this happens it could spell the end of private crypto use and the beginning of only government-controlled digital currency. This will eventually lead to the outlawing of cash altogether.

But there is a caveat. I said it COULD be the end of private crypto use because, like most things relating to government, it entirely depends on our compliance. If this bill or some future bill becomes law and attempts to outlaw the private exchange of cryptocurrency, it 100% depends on compliance to work.

Will you stop buying, selling, or using crypto simply because the government passes a silly law? I think you know my answer. And I am hoping that there will be other individuals and businesses who have the courage to ignore the government. This is the essence of Agorism and Counter-Economics and it is the solution to avoiding their Technocratic State.

At some point you will have to refuse to comply with this slavery system if you want to remain free. Maybe crypto isn’t the line in the sand for you.

But will you comply when they attempt to outlaw cash in favor of CBDCs?

Will you go along with the Digital Identity and Digital Wallet schemes?

Will you keep flying next year in the US when facial recognition becomes a requirement?

Will you stay silent when they attempt to force the shots on your kids again?

Will you remain indoors when they say it’s time to lockdown for the climate?

If you are unwilling to say no to these and many more situations like this, then all hope is truly lost. Thankfully, I think, when the time comes people will be forced to stand up because they know silence and obedience will mean the end of privacy and individual liberty, not only for the living, but for the generations to come who are depending on us.

This is exactly what my book How To Opt-Out of the Technocratic State is about. It is a warning and it is a call to action. You cannot simply sit still and expect to be free in the coming years and beyond 2030. If you want to know more about thoughts on this situation you can download the book for free or purchase it here.

If what I am saying is totally new to you, I encourage you to start exploring this website – The Conscious Resistance Network – and become familiar with some of my research from the last 10 years.

Source: The Conscious Resistance

Derrick is the founder of TCRN.

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