106 - Beware the Ides of March
🇹🇭 Already four weeks since my operation and I am getting out and about again. This week I had a couple of Bitcoin meetups as well as a couple of social ones; there is no shortage of things to do and people to meet here in Bangkok - and the weather is great!
At the Bitcoin meetups I have been demonstrating Cashu and using Chaumian eCash. The bitcoiners are rightly amazed at how easy this is to set up and use and how it integrates seamlessly with lightning. More on this in the Projects Update where I give instructions on how you can get the demo for yourself.
V and I have also been getting out and about around town. It is nice to pick one of the suggested tourist routes from our guide books and to just do that at our own pace, skipping things that we are not interested in. In addition, V has a few favourite cafes to go to where we can both read our books and catch up on podcasts.
Places visited this week have included Benjasiri, Benjakitti, Lumphini, Chinatown and the Chao Phraya river as well as a few typical Bangkok areas like Soi Wanit where you will find all sorts of specialist shops for metal, car parts, ropes and packing material. There are also streets where the vendors will repair anything electric - they have little stands with their multimeter and screwdrivers.
Last week, V and I went to see Dune 2 and I shared some of my thoughts on the movie in last week's newsletter. During the week I came across Dave's review that I think it is worth sharing:
So what did you think about the movie - let me know - happy to discuss.
What about the Ides?
Between now and end of April it seems highly likely that you will see some sort of significant event in the financial world. Among other things we are approaching the first anniversary of the BTFP that was put in place to patch over the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (and others).
In the year since, nothing has been fixed, the can has been kicked and it cannot be kicked much further. There are many other warning lights flashing red as we have been discussing and with people waking up to the undeniable crimes, more polycrisis is needed to keep up the level of fear and compliance.
Whatever the event is it will have widespread implications. It will be used to justify ever more ridiculous expenditure by governments and debasement of your currency and savings as well as more tyrannical controls over what you can and cannot do with your money. That said, it will only be yet another distraction - there are bigger things in the pipeline.
March is the first month of the year in the Olympian and Pythian Calendars. These calendars govern the breaking of the seals, for which Apollyon of Pharmakeia was the first and we are now due the second. You might want to think back to 11 March 2011 when Fukushima was hit by Tsunami. More recently 11th March 2020 was used to declare the Plandemic.
Other significant dates are 24-25 March when we have Lunar Eclipse (recall Terra Luna and FTX crashes), not to mention 8 April when there is total Solar eclipse.
So what do you think is the plan for this year? Let me know your thoughts.
Interviews of the week
This week I have a series of three interviews that warrant being up front in the newsletter because they not only explain what is happening but also give insight as to why and what's coming next.
Deep State and Killware Economy
The first is from Anarchapulco where Whitney Webb is interviewed by Charlie Robinson. I have discussed Whitney's work before - she is an outstanding investigative journalist and you would do well to follow her work on unlimitedhangout.com and to support her and the other journalists with which she collaborates.
Pay attention as Whitney explains how the Empire will confuse all opposition and those who are awake to their threats by making them think that they are winning; listen carefully to what she says (with plenty of evidence) about Javier Milei (hence my scepticism) and Donald Trump. Whilst this discussion is US-centric, exactly the same applies in UK where Conservatives and Labour are 2 cheeks of the same arse.
Treason too
Next up is another of Charlie's superb and informative monologues - he does have a knack of saying it like it is. Again, whilst this is US-centric, look around you and you will see the same tactics and techniques being used in so-called Western Democracies everywhere.
Click to watch and inform yourself - the full-length version is here
Lex and Tucker
Rounding out the interview collection you have to listen to Lex's interview with Tucker Carlson. You deserve it to yourself to listen to this discussion and form your own views and not to take just what mainstream propaganda feeds you - links to specific topics in the discussion are below.
Click to listen and form your own opinion
3:53 - Putin, 20:07 - Navalny, 41:20 - Moscow, 1:00:48 - Freedom of speech, 1:19:48 - Ending the War in Ukraine, 1:29:15 - Nazis, 1:37:42 - Putin's health, 1:48:47 - Hitler, 1:58:12 - Nuclear war, 2:16:31 - Trump, 2:33:27 - Israel-Palestine, 2:39:37 - Xi Jinping, 2:53:34 - Advice for young people, 2:58:53 - Hope for the future
Of note and interest is that Lex also wants to interview Vladimir Putin - and he would do that in Russian; he also wants to interview other politicians - none of whom have yet accepted - that might give you pause for thought.
More in this issue
- Photo memories - around Bangkok this week
- Project Updates - DIY, eCash goes mainstream and more
- Plenty of useful links - don't say nobody told you!
- Closing out - The Way of Zen and The Power of Now
Around Bangkok this week
🛠️ Project Updates
The following are updates from some projects that I am following, supporting and collaborating with. What are you doing?
What about that Cashu demo?
I have been demonstrating Cashu to bitcoiners over the last few weeks and they are always amazed at how well it works and the revolutionary potential. Give it a go yourself:
- In your browser, go to cashu.me - acknowledge the warning that his is beta software and then click in the middle to add the default mint: https://8333.space:3338
- You are now ready to receive eCash!
- Send me a message by your preferred communication channel (email, Signal, Session, SimpleX etc - my contact details are here. You can also just reply to this email newsletter.
- I will send you 21 sats of eCash by return - when you get them, click on Receive eCash and just copy and paste the eCash from my message to you.
- That's it! You are now the proud owner of 21 bitcoin Sats. You can keep these or you can send them to someone else - either as eCash or over Lightning.
- You can easily make a backup of your wallet from the History tab. This allows you to recover in case you lose your computer/phone or to transfer it to another device.
Stop and think about the implications of what this enables. If you still cannot work it out, read on to the next article and listen to Guy's explainer along with linked supporting material.
Fedimint, Cashu and eCash - the evolution of banking
Listen as Guy does a great explainer on the technology that a bunch of super-coders have been working on for the last year or so. You might recall that I wrote about this back in November. I recommend listening to Guy's explainer in full - links to key parts are below:
0:48 Banks Without Bankers, 5:55 Fedimint, 8:29 Money And eCash, 11:11 eCash Risks, 15:00 Proof of Liabilities, 18:03 Emerging Technologies
19:42 What It Means For BTC
For this who prefer reading, check his newsletter explainer here - and I do recommend that you subscribe to this for future updates in your inbox.
Guy Turner
What all of these projects enable is "Free Banking" at various levels of size. In case you had not worked this out yet, Free Banking is the opposite of the corrupt central banking and debt-based system that is imposed on us today. Soon you will see Fedimints and Cashu implementations interoperating with eachother using Lightning, enforcing transparency and proof of reserves and liabilities.
Lastly - I suggest that you do check back to my article last November where I also included other useful links that give you the big picture on what I and others are working to achieve.
Click to refresh your mind on our November discussion
This is what I have been demonstrating to bitcoiners that I meet in recent weeks. Do ask me for a demo when we meet up - if you want a taste of the future.
Yet another innovation
I recommend listening to this fascinating interview on yet another innovation that is coming. Philipp and team have been exploring how to offer synthetic stable-value contracts.
This is an important development that enables you to manage your treasury, avoiding the volatility of bitcoin without needing to be dependent on 3rd party collateralised (and likely centralised) tokens. This is one of the essential elements that Eric described in his report.
One of the things that I find especially interesting is that they have been testing implementation on Liquid network (using L-BTC). You will recall that I strongly support the use of Liquid as a place to test, refine and prove new BTC-based products.
🔗 Links for your edification
The following are links from my NetNewswire feeds - learn, enjoy and share.
In case you missed it
Listen as Jeff explains to you how the normal state of a free market is deflationary and that it does not appear so is because someone is stealing the wealth from everyone. Once seen, this cannot be unseen.
Listen as he explains how the insight and realisation comes to you - his own story. "No one can be told what the matrix is - you have to see it for yourself!"
Neil's analysis
Neil does a wide and deep analysis of current news articles on a rather important topic. He points out the doublespeak in these news articles and helps you see the truth of what is really going on.
Andrew's day off
Andrew is another interesting character. He is having a day off but took time to record a few suggestions and thoughts. Good to hear his views on Jurisdictional Arbitrage and practical wealth-preservation tips for the current geopolitical climate. DYOR
Noteworthy is how useful and desirable a European passport can be. I have to say that is one of the interesting benefits of having been born in Northern Ireland and having lived through the troubles. Also good to keep in mind is residence rights in other countries - for example in SE Asia - recall that Neil has been out here looking recently.
Game theory - this is what it looks like
Luke is another interesting character. He is a millennial and you need to pay attention to what these people think and do. Like Neil, Luke pulls from a wide section of news sources - you cannot trust national propaganda sources. He points out quite a few interesting connections with geopolitical topics.
Bitcoin Game Theory comprises several key concepts that apply not only at individual level but also at Corporate and now even National levels.
- Nash Equilibrium: A situation in which each participant adopts a strategy that is best for themselves given the actions of others.
- Prisoner's Dilemma: A classic game theory scenario in which two parties have conflicting interests but must cooperate to achieve mutual benefits.
- Tragedy of the Commons: A situation where individual users exploit shared resources without considering the consequences for everyone else.
- Reputation Systems: Mechanisms used to establish trust among anonymous and untrusting participants in decentralised networks.
🤔 Closing Thoughts
Alan Watts was a British-American philosopher, writer, and speaker known for his insights into Eastern philosophy, particularly Zen Buddhism, Taoism, and Hinduism.
He was born in England, but moved to the United States at a young age. After studying philosophy at the University of Southern California he became interested in Eastern religions and began teaching comparative religion at various institutions throughout the country. His lectures and writings aimed to bridge the gap between Eastern and Western philosophies, emphasising the importance of living in harmony with oneself and the natural world.
He passed away in 1973, leaving behind a rich legacy of ideas and teachings that continue to inspire and challenge thinkers across generations.
I was pointed towards his work, "The Way of Zen" by a subscriber a few weeks ago (thanks!) and this week I got round to listening to a couple of summaries of the book. I recommend the you take a listen:
You can find more reviews - just click below.
Click for reviews - another interesting summary here
One of the key tenets of Zen is that there is no moment but the present. You may well recall that we discussed this before with Eckhard Stolle's "The Power of Now".
Go back and refresh your memory of what we discussed in May last year - the Power of Now
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No one can be told what The Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself.
- Morpheus to Neo in The Matrix
Any questions or anything else? Feel free to comment below!
You can also email me at: LetterFrom@rogerprice.me
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