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Professor, if you say inflation tomorrow is going to be higher than it is today,

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why are you cutting interest rates and pumping money in? They're cutting interest

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rates because they said they were going to cut interest rates. That's not their job.

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Okay, look, this is a moment for new economic leadership. The past four years

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have been dominated by the Fed.

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It's time for someone else to step in, and we know who that is,

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and say the new priority is growth, lower taxes, lower prices,

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and an economy you can work in. All true. And America will say amen.

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Music.

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We'll be back.

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Welcome in to This Week in Bitcoin, episode 40.

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My name is Chris, and I'm in your feet a little bit late this week because I've been fed watching.

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And actually, I've been watching the bits most people skip.

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It's the Q&A after the prepared statement that has the best details.

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So we'll get into a little bit of that. We'll also talk a bit more about the

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Bitcoin Strategic Reserve and the bigger picture that a lot of analysts seem to be missing.

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People discovering the idea seem to be missing a piece of that.

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We'll talk a little bit about that and how it all fits together.

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We've also got general updates and news.

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So let's start with the macro stuff.

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Because that's got to be on everybody's mind as I record on December 19th, 2024.

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The market is just absolutely tanking along with Bitcoin down quite a bit right now.

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As I record, about a 10% decline and the stock market also not doing very well.

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Why? Well, you know, the Fed got together and had a meeting and a small group

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of people, you know, can impact the entire market.

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But I think to really understand what's happening, we should probably step back

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and say, well, why did things rally after the election?

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What was the post-election rally based on? Was it a fantastic jobs report?

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No. Those things keep getting revised downward and they're looking softer and

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softer. Is it fantastic retail sales? Strong consumer?

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No, actually. When you adjust for inflation, retail sales down.

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Well, okay, maybe it's the stock market. That's been booming.

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Well, kinda. I mean, the Magnificent Seven are booming.

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Only 32% of the S&P 500 stocks have outperformed the index year to date.

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Over the last 70 years, there's only one other period where this kind of streak occurred.

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98 to 99 before the dot-com bubble popped when we saw that kind of consolidation.

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It's brutal. The Russell 2000 Index has not hit an all-time high for nearly 800 days straight.

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That's the longest streak in 13 years. So maybe, maybe the rally after the election

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was because the housing market is booming, right? The housing market is huge.

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Everybody's buying homes. No, mortgage rates are up.

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Home sales are down. The average homebuyer age right now in the United States is 56 years old.

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So at scale, statistically, only boomers are buying houses right now.

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What happened was the market was coiled up because we had a 50 basis point rate

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cut in September and then another 25 basis rate.

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And money was already semi easy as it was. I mean, just look at how well the market's been doing.

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And so as expected, when Trump won, that coil popped and things really ran.

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But just as I predicted with that post-election pop, I also said,

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what's going to sustain that run? And this week, that exuberance popped and

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the market freaked out when the easy money ride was just forecasted to get a little less easy.

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Things will just be a little bit harder.

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And on that news, $1.1 trillion was liquidated from the cryptocurrency market.

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I believe it's $1.5 trillion has been liquidated from the U.S.

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Stock market, which is like 70% of Bitcoin's market share just in one day got

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liquidated from the U.S. stock market on this news.

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Everything just went down, down, down.

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So let's get into what really happened here.

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It starts with seemingly good news. The Fed announces they're cutting rates again.

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Today's Money Watch, we are talking about an issue that is really important

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when it comes to your wallet interest rates. Yesterday, the Federal Reserve

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said it's cutting rates by a quarter of a percentage point.

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This is the third reduction this year, lowering rates a full percentage point

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since back in September.

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CBS News business analyst Jules Schlesinger is here to tell us what this means

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for everyday Americans. Jill, I lose track of this every time.

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It's so technical. There's so much jargon. Oh, it's so hard. Yeah.

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It must be nice to be so financially privileged that you don't even have to

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think about it because that's the reality.

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That's why he doesn't know what's going on here.

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What's happening is we are at a macro fork in the road.

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The Fed has cut by 25 basis points

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and sounds like they're going from four rate cuts to only two in 2025.

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And this fork, one direction leads us to a prosperous, booming 2025 with things really cooking.

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And the other leads to recession within the next year.

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Things are on the precipice to go either direction. A couple of metrics that

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always really jump out at me is the trucking employment metric because its decline

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pattern before a recession has been really spot on. And that's the range it is in right now.

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Inflation continues also to

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drive up the cost of goods. So like we really need a healthy supply chain.

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Without a healthy supply chain, inflation pressures are even worse.

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And then what compounds this problem is that our wages haven't caught up to

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where inflation brought stuff already.

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And if inflation is going to continue to cook for a bit.

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Then the wages will never catch up. So housing affordability is horrible.

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Money market fund assets and M2 money supply also suggest economic stress or potential recession.

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So we have a lot of weak fundamentals here. The reality is, you know,

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the market just needs a narrative though. They want to be bullish.

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They want to be bullish, but they're just a little freaked out.

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So let's talk about how 1.5 trillion got wiped out.

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Yeah, look, the Fed completely misread where inflation is going to go and they're

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admitting it tacitly in these projections. They are right now saying inflation

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will be 2.5 percent at the end of next year, and it won't get down to 2.1 percent

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until the end of the following year.

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Twenty twenty seven. They're talking about getting down to two point two or

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twenty twenty six down to two point one percent.

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So what they're telling us is where they thought we'd be at the end of this

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year. Is it going to happen till next year?

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And then that's not going to happen until the year after that.

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So inflation is with us for longer.

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The September cut was a mistake. They should have never done it.

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Frankly, I think Jerome Powell should resign. This is an admission of failure on his part.

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The market, what we saw today is the market has lost confidence in the Fed.

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It does not believe that the Fed has inflation under control.

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And yet Powell insists they do have it under control. In fact,

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he almost insanely says things are going according to plan.

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Look, Jerome, they're not going according to plan. We can see where you thought

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we'd be. We're not there.

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And now you tell us we're never getting Hmm, you might say they're a little salty, wouldn't you?

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You see, these genius investors are panicking. They're panicking.

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All these rich, super smart, look at me, I'm brilliant, investors,

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they've really been depending on easy money to win.

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And even just suggesting that the money might not get looser,

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is a blow to these addicts. And so now you have the market pricing in the risk

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of inflation for longer, less cuts, and the risk of government debt,

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which is now at $36.2 trillion.

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This is a big problem. That alone is sort of this black swan could be a major

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factor, could take liquidity out of the market at any moment kind of problem.

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The CBO, which is the Congressional Budget Office, projects that the interest

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payments for fiscal 2024 will be $892 billion.

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And then they expect it to rise throughout the next decade, climbing to $1 trillion

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in 2025, just payment on the interest.

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And then they adorably think it'll only get to $1.7 trillion by 2034.

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Of course, their model just assumes a nice, reasonable addition to debt and

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not these crazy trillion and every six months additions that we seem to be going through.

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So their models are our best case scenario.

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But as it stands, but here's in real terms why the situation is bad,

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because today already at the current interest payment,

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we're already spending more on the interest than the federal government does

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for Medicaid or any federal spending on children all combined or any of the

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income security programs, which includes things like low income Americans,

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supplemental mental nutrition programs,

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child aid, and even tax credits.

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It only gets worse as we continue to add debt. So the national debt continues to climb.

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That payment is going to continue to be high as the debt expires and we have

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to refinance it at higher rates, which is happening this year and next year.

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And then you have inflation.

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Inflation is kind of killing the party. As Powell put it this week,

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progress has, quote, stalled. And once again, it seems like their inflation

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predictions have just completely fallen apart.

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And it's a real risk now. And here's J-PAL's assessment on navigating the risk around inflation.

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I could follow up on that. You mentioned the risk and uncertainty indexes toward

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the back of the document.

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The upside risk to inflation jumped quite substantially.

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The only thing really that's happened, you mentioned that the disinflationary

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story remains intact, yet the risk weighting has jumped to the upside.

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The only real thing that's happened is November 5th in the meantime.

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Is it fair to say that that's what's driving the higher sense of upside risk on inflation?

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Once again, we've had a year-end projection for inflation, and it's kind of

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fallen apart as we've approached the end of the year.

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There you go, his own words. Their inflation projections have fallen apart.

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That is certainly a large factor in people's thinking.

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I can tell you that might be the single biggest factor, is inflation has once

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again underperformed relative to expectations. It's still, you know,

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going to be between two and a half and three.

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It's way below where it was. But, you know, we really want to see progress on

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inflation to, you know, as I mentioned, as we think about further cuts,

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we're going to be looking for progress on inflation.

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We have been moving sideways on 12-month inflation as the 12-month window moves.

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That's in part because inflation was very, very low measured in the fourth quarter of 2023.

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Nonetheless, as we go forward, we're going to want to be seeing further progress

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on bringing inflation down. and keeping a solid labor market.

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Okay, so they've blown forecasting inflation.

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It's been going sideways, and they've had less progress than they expect.

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I've been raising this question on the show for weeks. Then why are they lowering the rate at all?

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And it seems like they simply lowered the rate because the market expected them to.

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And they don't really have a great answer. Jean, this is my liquid The New York

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Times. Thank you for taking our questions.

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I wonder if you could talk a little bit about why officials think it's appropriate

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to cut rates at all in 2025 if inflation is expected to remain firm throughout the year.

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That seems like a pretty good question. So you forecasted now going from four

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cuts in 2025 to only two cuts.

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Why do any of them at all if we're having inflation problems today?

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I wonder if you could talk a little bit about why officials think it's appropriate.

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To cut rates at all in 2025, if inflation is expected to remain firm throughout

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the year. You ask about 2025.

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I think that the slower pace of cuts for next year really reflects...

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Both the higher inflation readings we've had this year and the expectation that

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inflation will be higher.

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You saw in the SEP that risks and uncertainty around inflation we see as higher.

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Nonetheless, we see ourselves as still on track to continue to cut.

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I think the actual cuts that we make next year will not be because of anything

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we wrote down today. We're going to react to data.

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That's just the general sense of what the committee thinks is likely to be appropriate.

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Sorry, just one quick follow-up. Why, I guess, would you make those cuts?

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Like what would be the trigger to cut?

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So to cut further after this point, I would say it this way.

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We've reduced our policy rate now by 100 basis points. We're significantly closer to neutral.

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At 4.3 percent and change, we believe policy is still meaningfully restrictive.

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But as for additional cuts, we're going to be looking for further progress on

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inflation as well as continued strength in the labor market.

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And as long as the economy and the labor market are solid, we can be cautious

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about, as we consider, further cuts.

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And all of that is reflected, to your question, in the December SEP,

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which shows a median forecast of, I'm down two cuts next year compared to four in September.

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So the problem here is, answer is, well, as long as the labor market remains

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robust, I think we're okay to continue to cut.

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As long as the economy remains strong, I think we're okay to continue to cut.

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The labor market isn't strong. The economy isn't strong.

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It's strong by their numbers. But you know what strong signal we also have that

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tells us it's not in good shape?

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The way everybody just voted for Donald Trump.

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When people voted for Donald Trump in the exit polls, the biggest reason was the economy.

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The economy. The economy isn't doing well. They're getting killed by the economy.

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So the American people in a landslide just voted for a bad economy.

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They said the economy is bad. We want somebody to come in and do something to try to change it.

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But J-PAL is up there telling you the economy is great, employment is great.

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See, and I suspect, and I wonder if you're going to pick up on this in the next

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clip, I think a distrust is really finally starting to set in about the Fed's

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ability to even have any kind of grasp on inflation.

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Because for a third time, reporters tried to pin down Jerome Powell on inflation

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risk versus rate cuts. Nick Tamarosa, The Wall Street Journal.

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Chair Powell, to make sure I understand, participants today revised up their

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core PCE inflation projection for 25 so that the central tendency runs from

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two and a half to 2.7 percent.

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And as Howard noted earlier, most of the committee sees the risks to those projections to the upside.

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So if inflation only declines next year from 2.8 to 2.5 to 2.7,

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what would compel the committee to be cutting in that situation?

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That paper shuffling you here in the background is JPOW going through his talking points.

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Let me find these numbers.

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So we have inflation coming down, core inflation coming down to two and a half next year.

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That'd be significant progress. You see a slower path. I think that does take

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on board that we want to see real progress. But we'd be seeing meaningful progress

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to get inflation down to that level.

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That wouldn't be all the way to 2%, but that would be better than this year.

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This year will be 2.8 or 2.9. That would be meaningful.

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I think the market is trying to internalize the fact that they have lost faith

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that the Fed has this under control. Do you get that vibe?

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Here's a clip of Jay Powell from May of 2024.

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So here we are now in December of 2024. So kind of the beginning,

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the end of spring, the beginning of summer, the federal chairman,

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Jerome Powell, said, I don't see any inflation problems.

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I don't see any stagflation problems.

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In addition, I would say, you know, most forecasters, including our forecasting,

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was that last year's level of growth was very high, 3.4 percent in,

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I guess, the fourth quarter,

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you know, and probably not going to be sustained and would come down.

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But that would be our forecast.

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That wouldn't be stagflation. That would still be to a very healthy level of growth.

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And, of course, with inflation, you know, we will return inflation to 2 percent,

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And and that won't be. So I don't see the stagger of the inflation.

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That's weird because the show did. The show sure seemed to. A lot of Bitcoiners sure seemed to.

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J-Pow got it wrong. Here he is three years ago, just as the covid lockdowns

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were ending June 16th, 2021.

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So really, the problem now is is that demand is very, very strong.

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Incomes are high. People have money in the bank accounts.

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Demand for goods is extremely high, and it hasn't come down.

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We're seeing the service sector reopening, and so you're seeing prices are moving

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back up off their lows there.

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But in terms of overcorrecting, I mean, I think there is a possibility on the

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other side of this that inflation could actually be quite low going forward.

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But that's not really where our focus is right now. Our focus right now is we

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need to – our expectation is that

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these high inflation readings that we're seeing now will start to abate.

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And that's what we think. And it will be like the lumber experience and like

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we expect the used car experience to be.

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With things like airplane tickets and hotels, which are the other two factors

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in the most recent CPI report that went up a lot, We expect that those prices

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will get back up to where they were, but there's no reason to think that they're

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going to keep going up a lot.

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Because if they are, people will build new hotels. There's no reason for supply

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and demand to be out of whack in the hotel business over any period of time.

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So it's remarkable how wrong all of this is so far.

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You know, so this was June 16th of 2021.

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And mid-May on Coda Radio, I was calling everything that happened with inflation,

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with the rates, with tech layoffs. It was obvious.

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I don't mention that to brag. That's not why I'm mentioning it.

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I mention it because it's startling that the Federal Reserve,

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with all of their data, all of their models, all of their experience,

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all of their degrees, all of their doctorates, they keep blowing this.

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This is years ago, before inflation went out of control. We think that'll happen.

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I think in terms of the timing and the effects on inflation in the near term,

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there's a lot of uncertainty.

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The overall story is one that we think is right, and we think the incoming data support it.

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And, you know, so do many, many forecasters. Oh, yeah. And if you look at the

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forecasts on the FOMC, you will see that as well.

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Our best minds, no inflation coming. I don't know what you're worried about.

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So if people had any sense, they would be questioning how reliable the Fed has

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been on calling inflation from the very beginning. They've blown it from the very beginning.

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That's going to give them some bearish pause. And I get the sense that we're

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probably not going to see any rate cut in January, which is going to give people bearish pause.

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If I could follow up, if somebody looked at these projections and also the insertion

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of the extent and timing language in the statement, which has been used at times

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in the past when the committee thinks maybe it's going to be on hold for a while, and they said,

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gee, this looks like it could be the last rate cut for some time,

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would they be mistaken to infer that?

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So that's not the decision that we made at all. Yeah, I think if you ask me,

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the reality around employment and inflation is just wrecking the Fed's narrative

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that they've had for the last couple of years.

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And now everybody's got to digest that for a minute.

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Music.

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It's not all bad this week. The narrative around establishing a Bitcoin strategic

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reserve has stepped forward in a few different directions, and I want to update you on that.

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Some of it really kicked into high gear when Strike CEO Jack Mahler stopped

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by Tim Pool's politics podcast and discussed the possibility of Bitcoin.

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An executive order to create and establish a Bitcoin reserve.

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So first of all, Senator Lummis of Wyoming, shout out Senator Lummis,

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unbelievable Bitcoin advocate.

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That's her bill, by the way. The Bitcoin Act is that you're going to take the

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excess reserves from the Fed banks, which is in gold, and you're going to build

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a Bitcoin position with that. And it's a million Bitcoin is the target.

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I also know Trump is looking at a day one executive order.

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Sorry, sorry. Day one executive order for a Bitcoin reserve for the United States? Yeah.

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So I know that there's people looking at the Dollar Stabilization Act is it

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gives the president wide discrepancy to protect the dollar and there's potential

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to use a day one executive order to purchase Bitcoin.

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It wouldn't be at the size and scale of a million coins, but it would be a significant

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position and it'd be a message that the United States, listen,

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here's what I think isn't talked about enough about the strategic reserve.

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I think it's one of the biggest economic announcements if it happens in American history,

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but it's the first positive one why is no one talking about that the

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US made a really big economic announcement in 1933 what was

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it we're taking all your property right we're confiscating your

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stuff they made a big one in 1971 what was it

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we're divorcing ourselves from the gold standard divorcing ourselves from the

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immutable laws of mother nature we're printing money they made a big one in

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2008 what was it we're bailing out all the bad actors we're not letting consequences

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follow through we're not letting the business cycle finish if Trump makes one

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It's a positive one for the first time ever.

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It's not defensive. It's not reactionary It's pro-technology pro-growth Governments

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own two percent of the supply of this thing who owns the rest the public It's

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something that acts in the best interest of the people So to me if he does an

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executive order on day one,

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no matter the size The magnitude of a positive economic announcement out of

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this country for the first time in a hundred years Acts in the best interest

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of the public where the public owns it The public was first before Wall Street, right?

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To me, that's the message. It's inspiring. The Bitcoin Policy Institute has

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drafted a proposal for an executive order that establishes a strategic Bitcoin

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reserve in the United States.

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The draft mandates consolidating government-held Bitcoin within seven days of

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signing, and it prohibits selling seized Bitcoin and instead diverts it to the

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country's Bitcoin reserve.

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It also establishes a Bitcoin acquisition program within 60 days to purchase

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at least $21 billion in Bitcoin.

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Some people are unhappy because it defines Bitcoin as a store of value and digital

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gold. And, of course, a lot of people think it has a lot more potential, and I agree.

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I don't really think their definition matters to Bitcoin in that executive order.

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I think the bigger, broader question is, is an executive order a good way to go about this?

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I've worried from the beginning, since the strategic reserve proposal was first

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announced, it's too soon.

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We're too soon on this. I don't think people fully have had enough time to get

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the financial literacy and education they need to understand why a Bitcoin reserve makes sense.

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And so a lot of people are just going to instinctually fight this kind of thing.

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And if it's an executive order, it seems to me like,

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well, it would be easier for a future executive to undo it, where if it's something

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that's passed by Congress and signed into law by the president,

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that's much more integrated into the system. Also, it would be literally integrated into the system.

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But I do think an executive order would probably spur other nations to take it even more seriously.

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We're starting to see half a dozen

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nations at least mumble about this and consider it and talk about it.

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And if we actually pulled the trigger, even as an EO, I would think that would

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probably accelerate other nations to adopt.

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But I don't think it would be as solid long term as passing Lemmes' bill.

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You know, I think it's also just it's just not quite the same scale of a big

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deal that the actual Bitcoin Reserve Act would be.

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It's just not as bullish of a moment either.

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If we do get a Bitcoin strategic reserve where the government is buying Bitcoin

356
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and there's a bill from Senator Lemmes that had the government buy a million Bitcoin.

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This is Bitwise's CEO.

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$200,000 Bitcoin is going to be looking quaint. You're going to be looking at

359
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$300,000, $400,000, $500,000 Bitcoin.

360
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It's just too big a story because governments all around the world would have to do it.

361
00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:57,560
When this initial idea was floated, I was somewhat skeptical of it.

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But over the months, it hasn't gone away.

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In fact, we continue to see leaders in the Trump administration suggest that they're open to it.

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I still think maybe it's less than a 50% chance, but it's not zero.

365
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And again, if it happens or if we start to see it happening in other countries,

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you're going to see a rip up in Bitcoin that will make 2024 look pretty docile in comparison.

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I do think the odds are starting to fade on strategic reserve bill.

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And I think maybe that's why the executive order is getting a little bit more attention.

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Billionaire Dan Moorhead, though, says there's a bigger, broader reason why

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the U.S. might want a Bitcoin reserve.

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And it comes down to a precarious problem that only the world's reserve currency really faces.

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I think that is actually a really important thing. When you're the reserve currency

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of the world, you don't have somebody else's currency to save in.

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So the United States doesn't have another currency. It stores $600 billion in

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gold, which is a staggering amount.

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It's equivalent to 11 million years of American worker wages.

377
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So that's kind of crazy.

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00:26:03,900 --> 00:26:08,200
Go to digital gold. Bitcoin is much better. And so I do think it's totally rational.

379
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The U.S. already owns 1% of the world's bitcoins.

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Keep that, increase that. So I do think it is actually a really good policy.

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00:26:15,678 --> 00:26:17,938
There's a couple countries that already do own Bitcoin.

382
00:26:18,698 --> 00:26:20,458
It'd be great for the U.S. to get out in the lead.

383
00:26:24,538 --> 00:26:28,398
So let's take a look at the bigger picture here. Yeah, the stock market's freaked

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out right now because it's harder for them to make money now.

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And money costs them a bit more and will cost them more for longer.

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And inflation is going to be a persistent problem, which is now admitted by the Federal Reserve.

387
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That might actually bring us closer to big money investors starting to understand

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something that Bitcoiners have known for a long time.

389
00:26:46,958 --> 00:26:50,098
Bitcoin is the best hedge against inflation.

390
00:26:50,838 --> 00:26:54,398
100% of the time, when measured over a few years, smart money will figure out

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00:26:54,398 --> 00:26:57,478
that Bitcoin is a long-term inflation play.

392
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And the Fed just said, we're looking at maybe two years.

393
00:27:00,858 --> 00:27:04,858
Well, who loses money on Bitcoin in two years? In three years or four years, no one loses money.

394
00:27:05,398 --> 00:27:10,698
So this is the perfect opportunity. And Bitcoin, as well as the Bitcoin ETFs,

395
00:27:10,838 --> 00:27:13,998
I think they're perfectly positioned for people looking for a store of value

396
00:27:13,998 --> 00:27:15,398
to protect themselves from debasement.

397
00:27:15,838 --> 00:27:18,118
Now, we've known this narrative forever.

398
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But I think this macro environment is going to incentivize people to figure it out at a faster clip.

399
00:27:25,258 --> 00:27:30,018
If the Fed comes out and admits, yeah, inflation higher for longer,

400
00:27:30,218 --> 00:27:35,638
well, then the only reasonable thing to do as an investor is to embrace and plan for that.

401
00:27:36,318 --> 00:27:40,498
And anyone paying attention is going to see that. Bitcoin is a worldwide asset as well.

402
00:27:40,618 --> 00:27:44,258
So while the U.S. figures this out, and it does play a big role in price action

403
00:27:44,258 --> 00:27:45,478
and user adoption right now.

404
00:27:46,574 --> 00:27:50,134
There's things on the horizon that we might need to talk about more in the future,

405
00:27:50,294 --> 00:27:55,834
like China's economy is experiencing one of its largest collapses since it joined the WTO in 2022.

406
00:27:56,554 --> 00:28:00,974
Ten-year Chinese government bonds are now around a 1.75% yield.

407
00:28:01,134 --> 00:28:02,994
30-year bonds are below 2%.

408
00:28:03,694 --> 00:28:07,554
People all around the world need hard money outside of their government's control.

409
00:28:07,974 --> 00:28:11,234
And so they're looking for a solution. And Bitcoin is that solution.

410
00:28:11,494 --> 00:28:13,934
And it's easier than ever now to stack sats.

411
00:28:16,974 --> 00:28:21,674
Speaking of that precious scarcity that makes it such a great inflation hedge,

412
00:28:23,434 --> 00:28:27,914
BlackRock freaked a bunch of people out this week when they released a seemingly

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00:28:27,914 --> 00:28:32,714
helpful educational video that explains what Bitcoin is.

414
00:28:32,874 --> 00:28:36,994
And I'll play a little bit of this for you because it's not bad, at least at first.

415
00:28:38,614 --> 00:28:44,094
Bitcoin, bit by bit. We've all heard about Bitcoin, but what exactly is Bitcoin?

416
00:28:44,794 --> 00:28:48,134
Let's start at the beginning. around 100,000 years ago.

417
00:28:48,494 --> 00:28:51,694
Oh, okay. This is like we're going way back, Putin style. You know,

418
00:28:51,834 --> 00:28:55,574
I actually was really thrilled to see this. I mean, we'll get to the bad part here in a moment.

419
00:28:55,714 --> 00:28:59,074
But, you know, when we heard that BlackRock and others were going to be selling

420
00:28:59,074 --> 00:29:04,394
Bitcoin ETFs, it meant that they're going to be putting their marketing money behind Bitcoin.

421
00:29:04,594 --> 00:29:08,614
And that eventually we would have these videos that were meant to be shared on social media.

422
00:29:08,814 --> 00:29:12,954
And here we are, one of the very first. And they're starting with the evolution

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00:29:12,954 --> 00:29:14,614
of money and bringing us up to Bitcoin.

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00:29:17,234 --> 00:29:22,934
Throughout history, we've used all kinds of objects to help make transactions and store value.

425
00:29:23,434 --> 00:29:27,914
From seashells, to shiny metals, to paper notes.

426
00:29:28,314 --> 00:29:33,134
That's because the value isn't just in the object itself, it's in how much we

427
00:29:33,134 --> 00:29:34,794
agree the object represents.

428
00:29:33,840 --> 00:29:44,880
Music.

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00:29:35,414 --> 00:29:41,314
So the object can be many things, even, as it turns out, a string of digital code.

430
00:29:44,854 --> 00:29:49,534
The Internet changed everything. It connected the world, changing how we communicate,

431
00:29:49,914 --> 00:29:53,314
work, shop, and manage finances.

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00:29:54,354 --> 00:29:57,434
It also opened the door to a new kind of currency and asset.

433
00:29:57,934 --> 00:30:02,734
Enter Bitcoin, a digital currency not governed by banks or governments,

434
00:30:03,074 --> 00:30:05,114
but by its global community of users.

435
00:30:05,840 --> 00:30:12,080
Music.

436
00:30:11,988 --> 00:30:17,148
Bitcoin exchanges happen person to person anywhere in the world in near real

437
00:30:17,148 --> 00:30:23,708
time and for near zero transaction costs, saving money, time and opening financial

438
00:30:23,708 --> 00:30:26,648
opportunity to those without access to a banking system.

439
00:30:29,708 --> 00:30:34,528
OK, there you go. That's money. Now, number two, Bitcoin's fixed supply. All right.

440
00:30:34,768 --> 00:30:38,408
One of obviously the most important things about Bitcoin, something that makes

441
00:30:38,408 --> 00:30:42,968
it a great inflation hedge. BlackRock is going to educate us about Bitcoin's fixed supply.

442
00:30:44,048 --> 00:30:48,528
Bitcoin has a fixed supply of 21 million Bitcoins. Uh-oh.

443
00:30:50,788 --> 00:30:56,768
While the voiceover is correct, what's on screen is a little distressing.

444
00:30:57,348 --> 00:31:00,788
About one minute and 30 seconds into the video, which I'll have linked in the

445
00:31:00,788 --> 00:31:04,288
show notes, superimposed over the baked-in captions already,

446
00:31:04,728 --> 00:31:07,968
BlackRock has a legal disclaimer that reads, quote,

447
00:31:08,528 --> 00:31:11,448
there is no guarantee that bitcoin's 21 million supply

448
00:31:11,448 --> 00:31:14,928
cap will not be changed and that's

449
00:31:14,928 --> 00:31:18,028
crap i understand lawyers probably looked

450
00:31:18,028 --> 00:31:21,588
through this marketing sent it to them for review and they said no you have

451
00:31:21,588 --> 00:31:26,168
to put this disclaimer on there lawyers don't understand how bitcoin works but

452
00:31:26,168 --> 00:31:29,808
it's kind of distressing to see blackrock imply that there's no guarantee that

453
00:31:29,808 --> 00:31:35,348
bitcoin's 21 million supply cannot be changed and of course a lot of doom doomsayers doomsdayers,

454
00:31:37,008 --> 00:31:38,328
doomsdayers thought this is the

455
00:31:38,328 --> 00:31:42,828
first sign that BlackRock is going to fork Bitcoin and create more coins.

456
00:31:43,008 --> 00:31:45,548
I don't know why they would do that, because it would dilute their value and

457
00:31:45,548 --> 00:31:47,048
make their investment go down to value.

458
00:31:47,128 --> 00:31:52,788
But that was the conclusion, is this is the very beginning of kind of priming

459
00:31:52,788 --> 00:31:56,968
you, priming you for the idea that we could increase the supply of Bitcoin.

460
00:31:57,288 --> 00:31:59,868
And that's why BlackRock put this disclaimer in there.

461
00:32:00,690 --> 00:32:06,150
But, I don't know about that. You see, we should probably be clear about how

462
00:32:06,150 --> 00:32:07,810
Bitcoin's 21 million cap works.

463
00:32:08,190 --> 00:32:14,150
The 21 million supply is not enforced by a single line of code or any single function in Bitcoin.

464
00:32:14,370 --> 00:32:18,530
You can't open up a code editor and change a number from 21 to 30.

465
00:32:18,990 --> 00:32:22,590
It's the outcome of Bitcoin's issuance schedule combined with the rules of the

466
00:32:22,590 --> 00:32:28,230
Bitcoin protocol. So, okay, how would you actually change the supply cap?

467
00:32:28,810 --> 00:32:36,070
To change Bitcoin's total supply cap, developers would have to change Bitcoin's

468
00:32:36,070 --> 00:32:41,350
fundamental issuance schedule, which is hard-coded into the Bitcoin core software.

469
00:32:41,970 --> 00:32:45,770
To change that, developers would need to modify part of the code that controls

470
00:32:45,770 --> 00:32:50,810
the block subsidy, that's the amount of Bitcoin rewarded for mining a block, and the halving logic.

471
00:32:51,190 --> 00:32:56,530
Could you imagine the scope of that adjustment? Just imagine getting that through

472
00:32:56,530 --> 00:32:57,750
the Bitcoin development process.

473
00:32:57,870 --> 00:33:00,370
Just imagine. And that would be step one.

474
00:33:00,910 --> 00:33:03,990
Step two would be to actually enforce the change.

475
00:33:04,110 --> 00:33:08,170
So you'd have to get the miners, the node operators, all of the end users with

476
00:33:08,170 --> 00:33:12,570
wallets and Bitcoin Core would all have to agree.

477
00:33:12,890 --> 00:33:18,270
All of them with their individual incentives would have to agree to then upgrade

478
00:33:18,270 --> 00:33:20,370
to the new version that increases the supply cap.

479
00:33:20,570 --> 00:33:24,510
All of them would have to move against their own financial incentive.

480
00:33:24,990 --> 00:33:29,490
Since Bitcoin's value really comes from its hardness and that fixed supply of

481
00:33:29,490 --> 00:33:35,150
21 million and how good it is as functional as money, it would be shooting yourself in the foot.

482
00:33:35,550 --> 00:33:40,850
You would be taking away the hard moneyness of Bitcoin and diluting its value.

483
00:33:41,130 --> 00:33:44,870
So the incentives don't line up in that group. So even if you could somehow

484
00:33:44,870 --> 00:33:50,310
fundamentally change the way the block subsidy works and the halving logic and

485
00:33:50,310 --> 00:33:56,010
get that through Bitcoin core and then somehow release that,

486
00:33:56,270 --> 00:33:59,990
there's no way you get all the miners and node operators and end users to upgrade

487
00:33:59,990 --> 00:34:02,950
because they wouldn't want to dilute the value of their coins.

488
00:34:03,730 --> 00:34:07,830
So people don't need, I don't think people need to freak out about this. Or am I just off base?

489
00:34:08,190 --> 00:34:12,110
Is BlackRock and these other ETFs a big threat and I'm missing something here?

490
00:34:12,670 --> 00:34:16,870
I mean, I agree it is spooky seeing them slap disclaimers about supply caps

491
00:34:16,870 --> 00:34:18,670
on a video that's supposed to be educational.

492
00:34:19,110 --> 00:34:21,870
And then, you know, you go retweet that or retweet it or whatever.

493
00:34:22,030 --> 00:34:25,050
And then, you know, that that stinkers in there. That's a turd.

494
00:34:25,550 --> 00:34:30,210
But I don't think it's a nefarious like plan to prime you. I think it's covering their butt.

495
00:34:30,930 --> 00:34:34,290
But I'd like you to boost me your thoughts. Maybe I am missing something with

496
00:34:34,290 --> 00:34:39,230
these ETFs because I sense not a panic, but a growing concern.

497
00:34:39,310 --> 00:34:43,070
I think it would be a fair way to label it about these ETFs.

498
00:34:43,130 --> 00:34:47,250
And keep in mind, you also have a chance to toss in a 2025 prediction as well.

499
00:34:48,330 --> 00:34:49,510
Send me a boost. Let me know.

500
00:34:49,840 --> 00:35:05,840
Music.

501
00:35:06,191 --> 00:35:10,811
All right, coming up on the show, your boosts, a brief election reflection with

502
00:35:10,811 --> 00:35:15,851
a crypto angle, some big updates, final clip of the week, state of the network and more.

503
00:35:16,051 --> 00:35:19,491
So let me just mention some ways you can support the show by doing what you do.

504
00:35:19,751 --> 00:35:21,511
If you want to stack sats, buy them

505
00:35:21,511 --> 00:35:24,831
on River. I think it's one of the best resources in the United States.

506
00:35:25,211 --> 00:35:28,111
They own their entire platform. They have proof of reserves.

507
00:35:28,251 --> 00:35:29,171
They're on the Lightning Network.

508
00:35:29,291 --> 00:35:32,471
They have a brilliant UI and lots of options and ways to stack sats.

509
00:35:32,911 --> 00:35:37,011
The Bitcoin Well is another amazing option, especially for those of you in Canada,

510
00:35:37,191 --> 00:35:39,211
with some great self-custody options.

511
00:35:39,431 --> 00:35:43,531
So if you want to stack sats, River or the Bitcoin Well, I have links in the show notes.

512
00:35:43,691 --> 00:35:48,211
No official relationship with them, but that affiliate link generates some sats for the show.

513
00:35:48,491 --> 00:35:52,211
If you want to spend your sats, the Bitcoin company makes it really easy to

514
00:35:52,211 --> 00:35:53,691
buy gift cards over Lightning.

515
00:35:53,971 --> 00:35:56,891
You can log in with a Lightning address. You don't need to create an account,

516
00:35:56,931 --> 00:35:58,371
and you can get set up in just seconds.

517
00:35:58,731 --> 00:36:02,511
Use my promo code JUPITER. you get extra sats and the show gets some sats.

518
00:36:02,911 --> 00:36:06,611
Now, you can stack sats by paying your bills. That's the Fold Card.

519
00:36:07,351 --> 00:36:11,191
I got a link to that. That's how I pay all my bills. And I stack sats every

520
00:36:11,191 --> 00:36:12,351
single month using the Fold Card.

521
00:36:12,671 --> 00:36:15,571
And if you want to get access to your Bitcoin value without selling it,

522
00:36:16,071 --> 00:36:17,451
careful when the market's choppy.

523
00:36:17,571 --> 00:36:22,451
But I'll put my Salt Lending affiliate link in there too. That's what I use when time comes.

524
00:36:22,671 --> 00:36:25,631
All of those links help support the show. Thank you everybody who does that.

525
00:36:25,671 --> 00:36:29,071
And of course, we also have a bunch of boosts that support the show.

526
00:36:29,711 --> 00:36:34,851
The lever you have pulled breaks. He's not in service. Please make a note of

527
00:36:34,851 --> 00:36:37,111
it. Let's get into the boost this week.

528
00:36:38,491 --> 00:36:44,731
And now it is time for le boost. And our baller boost is the podfather himself, Mr.

529
00:36:44,951 --> 00:36:48,871
Adam Curry, coming in with 50,000 sats. Hey, rich lobster!

530
00:36:50,871 --> 00:36:57,631
He says, I'm loving Salty Chris. Yeah, man, that fuck got me worked up.

531
00:36:57,811 --> 00:36:58,791
I'm feeling better this week.

532
00:36:59,071 --> 00:37:01,531
I was a little emotionally drained afterwards. I was like, I got to take it easy.

533
00:37:02,111 --> 00:37:05,351
But, you know, I got it out of my system, and I think I'm doing much better now.

534
00:37:05,791 --> 00:37:10,211
And that boost helps, too. Thanks, Podfather. Nice to hear from you. Thank you very much.

535
00:37:12,311 --> 00:37:18,651
User 3836652 comes in with 20,000 sats. Use a boost. This old duck still got it. Make it so.

536
00:37:19,331 --> 00:37:23,091
Now, I think, user, you can go into Fountain and set your profile name and follow

537
00:37:23,091 --> 00:37:25,911
up with your name if you'd like, and I'll try to include that.

538
00:37:26,011 --> 00:37:29,531
But he writes, hi, thanks for all the quality content. I think you touched on

539
00:37:29,531 --> 00:37:34,511
the topic of QC going after a BTC address, and I've heard that older addresses

540
00:37:34,511 --> 00:37:36,691
are more susceptible, like, say, Satoshi's addresses.

541
00:37:36,851 --> 00:37:40,031
Can you explain why older addresses are more susceptible and why?

542
00:37:40,391 --> 00:37:42,251
Oh, QC quantum computing.

543
00:37:44,071 --> 00:37:46,491
I thought you were talking about, like, quantitative easing or quantitative

544
00:37:46,491 --> 00:37:50,971
tightening because I'm still in Federal Reserve mode. No, I don't think so. Not at this point.

545
00:37:51,431 --> 00:37:55,251
I would keep in mind that the Willow chip,

546
00:37:56,190 --> 00:38:00,590
only ran for just a few moments and doesn't do any actual functions or operations

547
00:38:00,590 --> 00:38:04,930
beyond the benchmark that they have particularly written for it at this moment.

548
00:38:05,090 --> 00:38:08,010
And it only can run for just a brief period of time.

549
00:38:08,690 --> 00:38:12,610
And that is what, what did they say, 106 qubits and you need at least a million

550
00:38:12,610 --> 00:38:17,110
to start chipping away at Bitcoin and you need to build a run continuously to do that?

551
00:38:17,490 --> 00:38:19,730
I think we're easily 20 years away from that.

552
00:38:20,110 --> 00:38:23,050
I think we're easily. Now, it could Wall street

553
00:38:23,050 --> 00:38:25,830
be looking for its next thing to go crazy on

554
00:38:25,830 --> 00:38:29,450
and invest a ton of money into quantum computing and

555
00:38:29,450 --> 00:38:33,130
shorten that down to 10 years maybe yeah maybe

556
00:38:33,130 --> 00:38:36,110
but the fact that we already have some proof of concept in

557
00:38:36,110 --> 00:38:38,790
place and we have other ways we could potentially solve it doesn't leave me

558
00:38:38,790 --> 00:38:42,250
too concerned i think what you're thinking about is probably like the different

559
00:38:42,250 --> 00:38:46,130
additions and improvements that have come along to bitcoin over the years and

560
00:38:46,130 --> 00:38:48,250
that is something we could definitely get into in the future thank you user

561
00:38:48,250 --> 00:38:54,330
appreciate that boost one dull geek comes in with 4,444 sats.

562
00:38:54,530 --> 00:38:58,710
That's two rows of ducks, which I don't know, I'm going to say that's an Aflac duck, right?

563
00:38:59,250 --> 00:39:03,410
Aflac! Yeah, there he is. It's difficult to convince someone whose salary depends

564
00:39:03,410 --> 00:39:05,450
on remaining ignorant. Love the long shows.

565
00:39:05,890 --> 00:39:10,870
Probably talking there about Chris Hayes, and I still... I don't think Chris

566
00:39:10,870 --> 00:39:12,590
Hayes' salary depends on him being ignorant.

567
00:39:12,830 --> 00:39:17,150
Wouldn't he be more successful if he was helping his viewers become financially

568
00:39:17,150 --> 00:39:18,130
successful and literate?

569
00:39:18,630 --> 00:39:22,910
How does his salary benefit from losing audience over time. I just don't get

570
00:39:22,910 --> 00:39:24,190
it, Wendell Geek. That's the thing.

571
00:39:24,590 --> 00:39:27,870
Like, I think you're right in the short term, but how does that work out long term?

572
00:39:28,470 --> 00:39:32,510
Don't make no sense. Glad you like the long shows. Thanks, Wendell. Nice to hear from you.

573
00:39:33,190 --> 00:39:37,070
Nor Flomo comes in with a row of ducks, 2,222 cents.

574
00:39:38,270 --> 00:39:41,610
Your response commentary to all the FUD was brilliant. Stay salty.

575
00:39:44,950 --> 00:39:47,810
I can't help it. The FUD gets me fired up. It does.

576
00:39:48,110 --> 00:39:52,090
It does after all these years, too. You know, I thought eventually,

577
00:39:52,350 --> 00:39:55,110
you know, I just wouldn't care to get into some sort of Zen state.

578
00:39:55,370 --> 00:40:00,330
But, you know, when you look at how much good Bitcoin could do for the middle

579
00:40:00,330 --> 00:40:02,490
class folk and people that are really hurting from inflation,

580
00:40:02,710 --> 00:40:07,990
it just feels like a harm to humanity to slow down adoption like they do. It just gets me.

581
00:40:08,290 --> 00:40:11,530
It just it just gets me. Thanks, Norfomo.

582
00:40:12,470 --> 00:40:15,330
Probably saying that exactly right. And thanks for the boost.

583
00:40:15,930 --> 00:40:18,210
Sept comes in with 3000 sats.

584
00:40:19,290 --> 00:40:22,210
Really good episode. The length of the episode was perfecto.

585
00:40:22,590 --> 00:40:26,310
Thanks for the hard work. Thank you for recognizing the longer episodes do take

586
00:40:26,310 --> 00:40:27,030
a bit of work. It's funny.

587
00:40:27,270 --> 00:40:31,190
Short, short episodes are a ton of work. And well, longer episodes are a lot

588
00:40:31,190 --> 00:40:35,570
of work just because I don't edit this show, but I do prep the clips,

589
00:40:35,950 --> 00:40:37,290
right? That's where the edit work is.

590
00:40:37,370 --> 00:40:41,490
And this show is I prep all the clips, trim them to length, pre-watch them,

591
00:40:41,970 --> 00:40:43,950
you know, organize them, collect them.

592
00:40:44,170 --> 00:40:48,090
That's where the bulk of the work is. And so a long show can definitely,

593
00:40:48,090 --> 00:40:53,170
definitely mean a lot more clips and a lot more work. And I appreciate the value there.

594
00:40:54,138 --> 00:40:58,338
User 24 9 comes in with 15,000. Fun will now commence.

595
00:40:58,638 --> 00:41:02,138
Great show. If you don't expect these people, I don't know if you expect these

596
00:41:02,138 --> 00:41:03,218
people to ever actually get it.

597
00:41:03,438 --> 00:41:06,318
But I posted on X right after I saw that Critic Slam Crypto.

598
00:41:06,398 --> 00:41:08,178
It says MSNBC at the bottom of the screen.

599
00:41:08,658 --> 00:41:11,978
People either aren't watching or don't find them credible. It's either stupidity

600
00:41:11,978 --> 00:41:15,238
or malice. And intelligent people are no longer taking them seriously.

601
00:41:15,598 --> 00:41:20,638
That's just it. That's just it, User 24. It's like, they're hurting themselves with this?

602
00:41:20,858 --> 00:41:23,678
Maybe temporarily, like they're getting some hater to watch?

603
00:41:23,678 --> 00:41:29,118
For the evening, but long term, they're just undermining their credibility. I think it's wild.

604
00:41:29,578 --> 00:41:32,738
I continue, I would like to run a Bitcoin node and have a dedicated Linux laptop

605
00:41:32,738 --> 00:41:36,038
for all things Bitcoin. Any good resources available?

606
00:41:36,618 --> 00:41:40,198
Oh, how exciting. Become a node runner. I very much encourage it.

607
00:41:40,338 --> 00:41:44,318
It's like the next, it unlocks the next level of understanding and appreciation for Bitcoin.

608
00:41:44,658 --> 00:41:49,978
So starting from order of easy to hard, I think the easiest is probably something

609
00:41:49,978 --> 00:41:54,338
like Start9 if you could dedicate the entire machine to it. And it sounds like you could.

610
00:41:54,598 --> 00:41:57,438
I don't know if you have other things running on there, but Start9 can host some other stuff.

611
00:41:57,678 --> 00:42:01,998
Also, I think Umbral is worth looking at. I think Start9 kind of has an edge

612
00:42:01,998 --> 00:42:05,458
in terms of practical use and stability and things like that.

613
00:42:05,518 --> 00:42:09,558
But I think Umbral is trying to be very, very aggressive and competitive there too.

614
00:42:09,978 --> 00:42:13,338
And then if you have a Linux box already and you just want to install things,

615
00:42:13,478 --> 00:42:18,318
you could install just something like Bitcoin D and LND and then put AlbiHub

616
00:42:18,318 --> 00:42:19,438
as a Docker container on there.

617
00:42:19,558 --> 00:42:21,978
And you could literally just run the individual components and you don't need

618
00:42:21,978 --> 00:42:23,018
a whole orchestration OS.

619
00:42:23,538 --> 00:42:26,818
Kind of depends on your comfort level. I'd say easiest to start nine,

620
00:42:27,038 --> 00:42:29,218
most complicated is just loading the services yourself.

621
00:42:29,658 --> 00:42:33,238
But, you know, that's the beautiful thing about free software is there's a lot

622
00:42:33,238 --> 00:42:37,618
of routes you can take from totally under your control to a prepackaged experience.

623
00:42:37,618 --> 00:42:40,198
Kind of like Linux distros, but for nodes.

624
00:42:40,738 --> 00:42:43,338
Those are the top two I recommend. I know there's others out there and if I

625
00:42:43,338 --> 00:42:47,458
missed one you really like, boost it and share your experience for node OSs,

626
00:42:47,578 --> 00:42:48,978
I guess they would be considered.

627
00:42:49,458 --> 00:42:54,978
Not sure. Let us know how it goes, 24, and nice to hear from you. Mufurio!

628
00:42:56,218 --> 00:43:01,058
Mufurio! Comes in with 10,000 sats. It's over 9,000! Which was really two Jar

629
00:43:01,058 --> 00:43:02,878
Jar boosts, 5,000 sats. You suppose!

630
00:43:03,398 --> 00:43:07,198
No message, though. Thank you for the value. I really appreciate it.

631
00:43:07,838 --> 00:43:13,018
Bola Pura comes in with 17,000 sats. The traders love the vol.

632
00:43:13,678 --> 00:43:17,458
I've been procrastinating on setting up a Nix Bitcoin and now my Albie wallet,

633
00:43:17,978 --> 00:43:21,718
needs immediate attention so I thought I'd just send the stats to you thanks

634
00:43:21,718 --> 00:43:25,338
for the show thanks, you know, I hope that doesn't mean you're going away I've

635
00:43:25,338 --> 00:43:29,158
kind of been getting like one or two of these a day from folks that are winding down their Albie,

636
00:43:29,738 --> 00:43:32,378
wallets I will point out,

637
00:43:33,298 --> 00:43:37,878
that Fountain FM, you could go create an account with Fountain they run a hosted

638
00:43:37,878 --> 00:43:40,078
wallet for you could send all the stats there.

639
00:43:41,238 --> 00:43:44,578
And then you can just boost from Fountain's website with your account.

640
00:43:44,658 --> 00:43:45,798
You don't actually have to use the app.

641
00:43:45,898 --> 00:43:48,798
Once you got an account and a wallet set up with Fountain, which you might have

642
00:43:48,798 --> 00:43:52,038
to do through the app, all your future boosts can be from the web.

643
00:43:52,498 --> 00:43:54,378
And you can use whatever podcast app you want.

644
00:43:54,878 --> 00:43:57,998
So you don't have to empty out the Albi wallet. I've seen a lot of people doing that.

645
00:43:58,098 --> 00:44:00,358
And I hope that doesn't mean you're not going to participate because there's

646
00:44:00,358 --> 00:44:05,598
a lot of exciting improvements in Q1 and Q2 for the boost experience.

647
00:44:06,138 --> 00:44:08,678
So we're going through a transition with Albi's custodial service.

648
00:44:09,398 --> 00:44:12,598
On the other end of it, what's being built and what is getting worked on right

649
00:44:12,598 --> 00:44:14,218
now is extremely exciting.

650
00:44:14,698 --> 00:44:19,938
So about, you know, spring, it's going to be it's going to be a whole new experience.

651
00:44:20,118 --> 00:44:20,978
It's going to be really slick.

652
00:44:21,238 --> 00:44:24,498
Lots of new options. But, you know, in the meantime, it means Albie is going away.

653
00:44:24,578 --> 00:44:29,198
And I hope people don't bail from the overall value for value boost experience

654
00:44:29,198 --> 00:44:32,018
because it will crush us. We love you guys.

655
00:44:32,158 --> 00:44:34,798
This is my favorite way to hear from you and support the show.

656
00:44:34,798 --> 00:44:39,878
I mean, if I had to hunt down sponsors and spend 15 hours a week for sponsors

657
00:44:39,878 --> 00:44:42,818
on the show, it wouldn't be viable. I just wouldn't be able to do the show.

658
00:44:43,278 --> 00:44:46,018
But I do appreciate that support. It's great to hear from you both.

659
00:44:46,398 --> 00:44:49,158
And I hope to hear from you in the future very much.

660
00:44:50,018 --> 00:44:55,838
Ah, Mr. Kaspeland is back with 2,100 sats.

661
00:44:57,298 --> 00:45:02,398
Fountain 1.1.110 is still having sat streaming issues. Oh, I wish I would have

662
00:45:02,398 --> 00:45:04,378
read this this morning. I had a meeting with them this morning.

663
00:45:05,458 --> 00:45:09,698
Well, a little birdie tells me that around Christmas, there'll be another update.

664
00:45:10,018 --> 00:45:12,458
So keep updating, and I will follow up on that.

665
00:45:12,838 --> 00:45:15,758
I love you, SatStreamer, so I'm sorry to hear that, Koss, and thank you for

666
00:45:15,758 --> 00:45:19,578
not only telling me about it, but then kind of closing the gap there with a little boost.

667
00:45:19,758 --> 00:45:22,478
That's really a stand-up thing to do. Appreciate that.

668
00:45:22,998 --> 00:45:28,518
Mix is here with 5,000 sats. You're so boost. Thanks for the episode. Thank you for the boost.

669
00:45:30,318 --> 00:45:34,738
Nakamoto6102 is here with 4,000 sats. Thanks for the show.

670
00:45:34,898 --> 00:45:37,698
You've mentioned using Liquid Network on previous shows. Is that for privacy

671
00:45:37,698 --> 00:45:40,158
purposes? Any recommended Liquid wallets?

672
00:45:40,758 --> 00:45:45,258
It's both for privacy and ease of use and being cheap.

673
00:45:46,126 --> 00:45:49,046
The Liquid network is a side chain. There's essentially a clone of Bitcoin,

674
00:45:49,046 --> 00:45:50,866
but its block time is down to two minutes.

675
00:45:51,046 --> 00:45:54,786
And it's run by a consortium of like 20 operators.

676
00:45:55,046 --> 00:45:56,786
And then there's a bunch of other node operators, including,

677
00:45:56,786 --> 00:45:57,906
you know, individuals and whatnot.

678
00:45:58,566 --> 00:46:03,186
And when you move your Bitcoin into the Liquid network, you kind of lose track of it.

679
00:46:03,566 --> 00:46:06,646
And when you come out of the Liquid network, you go to a new address.

680
00:46:06,886 --> 00:46:10,306
And so the tracking is sort of broken there.

681
00:46:11,026 --> 00:46:15,266
That's nice, but that's not the main reason. The main reason I like Liquid is

682
00:46:15,266 --> 00:46:19,746
it's a hot wallet for me where, say, I need to add liquidity to a Lightning node.

683
00:46:20,246 --> 00:46:24,446
That's just a quick swap from Bolts from Liquid. I use Bolts.exchange,

684
00:46:24,446 --> 00:46:27,406
and I go from Liquid right into Lightning Sats.

685
00:46:28,006 --> 00:46:30,986
And I don't have to break out my cold wallet. I don't have to go through all

686
00:46:30,986 --> 00:46:35,466
that whole process. And so it's also a great way to send sats to my kids.

687
00:46:35,926 --> 00:46:39,046
So my kids get their bitcoin bitcoin when they

688
00:46:39,046 --> 00:46:41,846
get allowances or for their birthday or for christmas in a

689
00:46:41,846 --> 00:46:44,686
liquid wallet that we then at the end of the year sweep to a hard wallet

690
00:46:44,686 --> 00:46:49,006
for them and that way like if i want to send them 5 000 sats i don't have to

691
00:46:49,006 --> 00:46:53,486
have a lightning node for them and i don't have to pay high fees and they get

692
00:46:53,486 --> 00:46:57,446
it essentially instantly which is an experience kids like and so i'll send them

693
00:46:57,446 --> 00:47:01,626
essentially their allowance sats over liquid so it's a side chain that allows

694
00:47:01,626 --> 00:47:03,766
you to move around privately and cheaper,

695
00:47:03,926 --> 00:47:06,966
and then you peg in and peg out. It's permissioned, though.

696
00:47:07,506 --> 00:47:11,446
So it's the equivalent of an exchange with a more...

697
00:47:12,728 --> 00:47:15,548
With a more appealing risk profile. That's how I look at it.

698
00:47:15,588 --> 00:47:18,168
I hope that high level helps. Thank you for the boost, Nakamoto.

699
00:47:18,828 --> 00:47:25,028
Gene Bean's here with 6,492 sats.

700
00:47:25,288 --> 00:47:28,988
This is a tasty burger. That's some ducks and a bit more. He says,

701
00:47:29,088 --> 00:47:32,568
you know, if the smaller pools are worthwhile, listeners of the show could form one.

702
00:47:32,868 --> 00:47:35,888
Oh, a mining pool? This Week in Bitcoin mining pool?

703
00:47:36,328 --> 00:47:40,408
That would be cool. What apps or programs should I start off running myself?

704
00:47:40,408 --> 00:47:43,908
I ask because I've been looking at Nick's Bitcoin as the type of node to spin

705
00:47:43,908 --> 00:47:45,788
up since I already use NixOS.

706
00:47:46,028 --> 00:47:51,148
Okay, if you're comfortable with NixOS, NixBitcoin is the nuclear grade,

707
00:47:51,368 --> 00:47:57,588
put it in space, land it on Mars, and depend on it for 15 years using seriously hardened technology.

708
00:47:58,008 --> 00:48:03,428
I really have the most faith in NixOS. If I'm going to run something as a commercial

709
00:48:03,428 --> 00:48:06,728
appliance that's running like lightning services for the network or something

710
00:48:06,728 --> 00:48:10,088
like that, I'm running it on NixOS and using NixBitcoin from this point forward.

711
00:48:10,788 --> 00:48:15,488
Everything being described in a configuration file means the system is self-documenting.

712
00:48:15,608 --> 00:48:19,008
What port things are on, how things are installed, what packages I went with,

713
00:48:19,068 --> 00:48:22,188
what the backup is configured to do, it's all self-documenting.

714
00:48:22,448 --> 00:48:27,908
It also, when it does updates, it self-checks. And if the update has any kind

715
00:48:27,908 --> 00:48:30,368
of problem at all, it won't build.

716
00:48:30,648 --> 00:48:34,488
And even once it does build, you can build in a way where you run your current

717
00:48:34,488 --> 00:48:38,548
environment until you reboot. And then you reboot into the new built updated environment.

718
00:48:38,768 --> 00:48:41,308
And if there's any problems, as you know, you can roll back.

719
00:48:41,308 --> 00:48:46,068
That, to me, is massive when it comes to managing a Lightning node.

720
00:48:47,414 --> 00:48:49,994
You know, if you're not comfortable, I don't recommend NixBitcoin unless you're

721
00:48:49,994 --> 00:48:53,014
comfortable with NixOS. Otherwise, I'd say Start9 or Umbral, probably.

722
00:48:53,654 --> 00:48:56,614
Let me know how it goes, Gene. I'm really excited to hear you're doing that. That's great.

723
00:48:57,494 --> 00:49:01,554
Whomever whiz comes in with 10,011 sats. Oh, my God, this drawer is filled with

724
00:49:01,554 --> 00:49:04,534
fruit loads. Well, I finally got my AlbiHub and I bought my first sats.

725
00:49:04,674 --> 00:49:06,994
Hey, congratulations, dude.

726
00:49:11,074 --> 00:49:18,314
Aha, that's great. Feeling a slight twinge of regret that I never set up the mining rig in 2009.

727
00:49:18,734 --> 00:49:22,594
I was an econ major. I read the white paper, and I even had a home lab with dual WAN.

728
00:49:22,774 --> 00:49:26,234
I talked a big game to my profs, but ultimately spent my time and energy on

729
00:49:26,234 --> 00:49:28,314
video encoding and PDP file sharing instead.

730
00:49:28,734 --> 00:49:32,294
The catalyst for this boost, though, was hearing that you needed a binary boost clip.

731
00:49:32,494 --> 00:49:38,914
So here is my submission. Ah, I see now 10,011 sats. I see what you're doing

732
00:49:38,914 --> 00:49:40,134
there. That's the binary boost.

733
00:49:40,594 --> 00:49:42,714
Oh, you give me a few options here. Uh-huh.

734
00:49:43,254 --> 00:49:47,474
Okay, thank you. I'm going to take a look. It's six, five different options?

735
00:49:47,594 --> 00:49:49,214
Five different options. All right.

736
00:49:50,014 --> 00:49:53,874
Oh, the downloads aren't working, though. Oh, the downloads aren't working.

737
00:49:54,254 --> 00:49:55,594
You might try linking them again.

738
00:49:56,034 --> 00:49:58,594
That's pretty good. I like where your head's at there.

739
00:49:59,234 --> 00:50:03,094
Thanks, WhomeverWiz. Nice to hear from you. And congratulations on getting your first sats.

740
00:50:03,294 --> 00:50:07,774
It's never too late to start stacking because you don't need to be a billionaire, right?

741
00:50:07,834 --> 00:50:10,834
I mean, I'm sure I'd love to be, but really it's about protecting yourself from

742
00:50:10,834 --> 00:50:14,714
debasement and just building some savings that will grow over time.

743
00:50:14,874 --> 00:50:17,054
And you don't have to do any kind of crazy gambling to get there.

744
00:50:17,274 --> 00:50:21,254
Thank you so much for boosting in, and congratulations on the new AlbiHub setup.

745
00:50:23,254 --> 00:50:28,994
Hey, it's Jim from InkTink. What? Jay from Mateek? I don't know how I'm going to say that one anymore.

746
00:50:29,174 --> 00:50:32,674
Well, let's hear it good, buddy. I tried. I'm going to say Jim from Mateek.

747
00:50:32,814 --> 00:50:34,634
Just pump the brakes right there. Okay, I'm sorry.

748
00:50:35,074 --> 00:50:38,394
Hey, Chris, I don't plan to give Bitcoin for Christmas. Okay, I was asking this.

749
00:50:39,465 --> 00:50:43,645
If I would, it's still only two conditions. One, I make sure they know how to hodl it well.

750
00:50:43,965 --> 00:50:46,945
The IT security has to be taken very seriously, and they have to understand

751
00:50:46,945 --> 00:50:49,165
the appropriate measure to secure 12-word C phrases.

752
00:50:49,345 --> 00:50:53,085
Number two, they have to buy some first to engage with it.

753
00:50:53,565 --> 00:50:56,645
Such is a gift with Bitcoin for sure. People will underestimate it.

754
00:50:56,765 --> 00:50:58,925
Maybe take it lightly and lose it. Hmm.

755
00:50:59,505 --> 00:51:02,085
Maybe. You might be right. Number one, I suppose if they bought it,

756
00:51:02,145 --> 00:51:03,065
there's definitely a lot more online.

757
00:51:03,505 --> 00:51:07,145
He says, also continuing, once in a Bitcoin meetup in 2019, someone sent me

758
00:51:07,145 --> 00:51:09,805
some sats on a mobile app. I don't remember which one.

759
00:51:09,945 --> 00:51:12,285
After having an issue with the phone, I had to reinstall it,

760
00:51:12,345 --> 00:51:13,805
and it seems I didn't do a proper backup.

761
00:51:14,065 --> 00:51:16,205
I was not ready at that time to huddle well.

762
00:51:17,545 --> 00:51:22,085
That, I think, is maybe a rite of passage for a lot of people, unfortunately.

763
00:51:22,725 --> 00:51:30,385
Some of us learn by making mistakes, and I think a lot of us take a first pass

764
00:51:30,385 --> 00:51:33,245
or two at our understanding of Bitcoin. I mean, I certainly did.

765
00:51:34,085 --> 00:51:38,605
I mean, look at me, man. I was mining it and getting 50 Bitcoin at a time.

766
00:51:39,205 --> 00:51:42,805
And I didn't understand what I had on my hands. I bought into the PayPal narrative.

767
00:51:43,045 --> 00:51:44,445
Thought we needed to replace PayPal.

768
00:51:44,705 --> 00:51:47,585
And I spent it thinking that was what the future was.

769
00:51:48,540 --> 00:51:51,380
And now it's like, well, maybe I should have spent it. Maybe I should have saved

770
00:51:51,380 --> 00:51:53,800
a little bit. Didn't realize we're going through price discovery.

771
00:51:54,300 --> 00:51:57,640
We have to figure out what this thing's worth. It's a monetization phase for a while.

772
00:51:59,160 --> 00:52:02,800
So I think a lot of us lost Bitcoin or spent Bitcoin because we just didn't,

773
00:52:02,920 --> 00:52:04,640
you know, on our first pass, didn't really wrap our head around it.

774
00:52:04,640 --> 00:52:08,820
And it takes a little bit of time to figure it out. Not everybody, but for some of us.

775
00:52:09,380 --> 00:52:11,360
Thanks for the boost, Matik. Nice to hear from you.

776
00:52:11,980 --> 00:52:16,400
BitCryptics here with 2,048 sats. Oh, that's pretty spicy, I'd say.

777
00:52:16,400 --> 00:52:18,960
Oh, boy, day one of them is our guarantee.

778
00:52:19,420 --> 00:52:22,520
Number one, or plus one for longer episodes, plus one for salty sometimes,

779
00:52:22,640 --> 00:52:24,960
and plus one for being in team disruption.

780
00:52:25,120 --> 00:52:28,480
The human nature element is always the same. For ones being disrupted,

781
00:52:28,680 --> 00:52:31,080
they get scared of losing their nice, stable thing.

782
00:52:31,680 --> 00:52:35,460
Hmm. Yeah. Kind of thinking about the Chris Hayes take and the others.

783
00:52:36,100 --> 00:52:39,880
That's really what it is, isn't it? It's a disruption to the established way

784
00:52:39,880 --> 00:52:43,000
that they've benefited from. He says, in this case, it's the whole fiat system.

785
00:52:43,320 --> 00:52:46,800
And they lash out and they'll tell lies. And, of course, the loudest ones are

786
00:52:46,800 --> 00:52:49,840
those getting the biggest benefit from the status quo. Oh.

787
00:52:51,820 --> 00:52:56,040
That's how we know disruptors are on the right track. Let's go.

788
00:52:56,260 --> 00:52:57,860
I think that's pretty insightful.

789
00:52:58,160 --> 00:53:03,640
Thanks, BitCryptic. I like that one. It pumped me up a little bit. Woo! Woo!

790
00:53:05,800 --> 00:53:11,860
I think you're onto something there. Zach Keele's comes in with 4,000 sats. That's pretty funny.

791
00:53:12,120 --> 00:53:17,920
Next caller. I like River, but their IRA option through Rocket Dollar seems

792
00:53:17,920 --> 00:53:21,480
to have a relatively high fee. What are your thoughts on iTrust Capital?

793
00:53:21,740 --> 00:53:25,880
They seem to be the good guys with the IRA option and no monthly fees.

794
00:53:26,000 --> 00:53:29,000
Oh, you know, that's a name I have heard a few times. I don't have a strong

795
00:53:29,000 --> 00:53:30,640
opinion on iTrust Capital.

796
00:53:31,080 --> 00:53:38,680
You know, I don't know if I fully embrace the IRA Bitcoin stacking solution.

797
00:53:38,680 --> 00:53:42,880
I do love the idea of getting access to it tax-free, but...

798
00:53:43,984 --> 00:53:48,864
Man, I want access to it in my 40s. I want access to it in my 50s.

799
00:53:49,104 --> 00:53:54,404
I want access to it in my early 60s. I want to be able to have rolling access to it all the time.

800
00:53:54,584 --> 00:53:57,524
And to me, it just seems Bitcoin appreciates so fast.

801
00:53:57,744 --> 00:54:00,944
And you have things like loans and other tools you get access to.

802
00:54:01,444 --> 00:54:04,624
It's like the IRA feels so constrictive and restricting.

803
00:54:04,804 --> 00:54:07,264
When Bitcoin itself is appreciating at such a rate right now,

804
00:54:07,324 --> 00:54:09,684
like that's one of the great things about the time we live in.

805
00:54:09,684 --> 00:54:13,844
We won't get to live probably to hyper-Bitcoinization like at the scale most

806
00:54:13,844 --> 00:54:18,304
Bitcoiners dream of, but we get to watch the monetization phase where this thing's

807
00:54:18,304 --> 00:54:20,384
growing at like 60% a year on average.

808
00:54:21,104 --> 00:54:27,004
And you can get access to that value without having to sell it. I don't know.

809
00:54:27,384 --> 00:54:30,684
I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this and what they think is a good IRA option.

810
00:54:31,284 --> 00:54:35,364
I know Unchained Capital is also pretty good at retirement accounts,

811
00:54:35,444 --> 00:54:37,124
but again, I don't have any personal experience there.

812
00:54:37,664 --> 00:54:42,104
I am really glad, those Achilles, that you did look at the river one and followed up with the fees.

813
00:54:42,264 --> 00:54:46,364
That's good to know. That's something I will keep in mind. Appreciate that.

814
00:54:47,104 --> 00:54:51,364
Nico the Greek comes in with 10,000 sets. Did you buy that from a certified vendor?

815
00:54:51,564 --> 00:54:54,604
Coming in with a long overdue boost. Love this show. I was hoping you were going

816
00:54:54,604 --> 00:54:58,864
to cover this week's FUD. And you over-delivered when you called out Chris Hayes as a dumbass.

817
00:55:00,124 --> 00:55:04,504
Did I do that? I did get salty. Very much appreciate the constant,

818
00:55:04,804 --> 00:55:07,584
great, and constructive analysis. Well, I appreciate the boost, Nick.

819
00:55:07,724 --> 00:55:10,464
Thank you very much. It is good to hear from you.

820
00:55:11,397 --> 00:55:16,417
Ace Ackerman's here with AroaDucks. If a national currency backed by Bitcoin

821
00:55:16,417 --> 00:55:20,777
is developed, do you think it will be in the form of an Ethereum token or a

822
00:55:20,777 --> 00:55:24,477
Bitcoin chain or something else? Oh, Ace.

823
00:55:27,237 --> 00:55:30,177
It's the holidays, man. How could you do this to me?

824
00:55:30,677 --> 00:55:37,057
Oh, God. Could you imagine? Could you imagine like a nation state currency backed

825
00:55:37,057 --> 00:55:38,777
by Bitcoin on an Ethereum blockchain?

826
00:55:39,197 --> 00:55:42,577
You just gave me nightmares, dude. I don't even know if I have an answer to that.

827
00:55:43,017 --> 00:55:45,637
That's pretty good, though. Can I say no?

828
00:55:47,237 --> 00:55:51,497
Mug Daddy's here with 10,000 sats. Banks are Ponzi schemes run by morons.

829
00:55:51,637 --> 00:55:54,977
Man, another great episode. You always find the absolute worst FUD from the worst people.

830
00:55:57,217 --> 00:56:01,717
Hey, man, I'm just doing my job. He says, I also finally set up a node.

831
00:56:02,917 --> 00:56:06,377
Oh, congratulations. Well done. I'd love to hear more details about the direction you went.

832
00:56:08,017 --> 00:56:11,157
I'm getting the sense from the audience. there's a lot of interest in how people

833
00:56:11,157 --> 00:56:15,017
are setting up their nodes. So if you do like to share, I think it'd be helpful for the class.

834
00:56:15,557 --> 00:56:18,337
And well done. Thanks, Mug Daddy. Appreciate that.

835
00:56:18,917 --> 00:56:20,937
The mutologist is here with a row of ducks.

836
00:56:21,977 --> 00:56:26,797
I believe a lot of people have seen experts. I believe a lot of people and even

837
00:56:26,797 --> 00:56:29,557
experts see Bitcoin as the same as Dogecoin.

838
00:56:29,717 --> 00:56:33,737
Basically, it's a gambling asset and people profit on its volatility.

839
00:56:34,377 --> 00:56:37,977
Bitcoin is not the most valuable. Bitcoin is not the most valuable cryptocurrency

840
00:56:37,977 --> 00:56:41,477
due to it being the first, but actually being truly decentralized,

841
00:56:41,477 --> 00:56:44,477
free, and inflation-proof storage of value.

842
00:56:44,837 --> 00:56:47,937
Yeah, and it also, it just makes a really good money. It makes a better money

843
00:56:47,937 --> 00:56:50,217
than gold. It's the best money ever invented.

844
00:56:50,417 --> 00:56:54,137
Go look up on Google what makes good money, what makes good hard money,

845
00:56:54,177 --> 00:56:56,997
and look at boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. Bitcoin hits every one of them.

846
00:56:57,397 --> 00:57:00,097
But I think you're right. A lot of people just look at it as like a risk stock, like –,

847
00:57:00,963 --> 00:57:05,443
like Tesla. They look at it like Tesla as well, for better or for worse, for now.

848
00:57:05,763 --> 00:57:09,123
But I think if the inflation narrative really sets in and people really look

849
00:57:09,123 --> 00:57:12,963
at a long-term inflation world, I think that could change.

850
00:57:13,583 --> 00:57:17,943
We'll see. I hope I'm right. I really do. Thanks, immunologist. Nice to hear from you.

851
00:57:18,923 --> 00:57:22,643
User308's here with 10,000 sats. Boy, they are doing a lot with mayo these days.

852
00:57:22,743 --> 00:57:24,803
Well, I've been looking for a great explanation for the willow clip.

853
00:57:25,003 --> 00:57:27,783
Thanks. Thank you for sending the value back. Appreciate that.

854
00:57:28,163 --> 00:57:31,963
And Baffo is back with 5,000 sats. You're so boost.

855
00:57:32,223 --> 00:57:38,603
On point as usual, although at these prices, a slight bit of angst is going to kick in.

856
00:57:38,703 --> 00:57:42,463
Well, good news, Baffo, 90,000 is back.

857
00:57:43,783 --> 00:57:47,283
Baffo. So there you go. As I record right now, it's at 96.

858
00:57:47,303 --> 00:57:51,823
So I guess it's back on sale, right? Isn't that a good thing? Don't we love it?

859
00:57:52,383 --> 00:57:56,263
Chatty Mike's here with 3,000 three sats. This is a tasty burger.

860
00:57:56,503 --> 00:57:59,603
Seems like FUD was order of the day. If politicians get away with blatant lying,

861
00:57:59,843 --> 00:58:03,543
then why can't the media and everyone else? Oh, savage.

862
00:58:04,123 --> 00:58:07,843
I'm against companies holding excess assets like cash. Other than a reserve,

863
00:58:07,863 --> 00:58:10,663
they should invest or at least pay out dividends. Hmm.

864
00:58:11,643 --> 00:58:16,203
Okay. Okay. Yeah. Unless your business trades Bitcoin or accepts it for payment,

865
00:58:16,323 --> 00:58:18,883
there's no need to hold it on the balance sheet. That's just my hot take.

866
00:58:19,543 --> 00:58:23,943
Yeah, I wonder if I agree. I think there is advantages to having Bitcoin on

867
00:58:23,943 --> 00:58:27,163
a business balance sheet, just like there's advantages to having real estate

868
00:58:27,163 --> 00:58:29,983
on a business balance sheet.

869
00:58:30,143 --> 00:58:34,043
But, yeah, we're seeing a lot of companies just try to add – or we will see

870
00:58:34,043 --> 00:58:37,843
more and more – companies that are sort of zombie companies that aren't doing

871
00:58:37,843 --> 00:58:40,743
great. And they'll try adding Bitcoin and all of a sudden they're doing fantastic

872
00:58:40,743 --> 00:58:41,863
or something like that. Yeah.

873
00:58:42,914 --> 00:58:45,134
It's going to be an interesting thing to watch is, you know,

874
00:58:45,314 --> 00:58:49,734
there's going to be a little bit of that going on, like saving a failing company

875
00:58:49,734 --> 00:58:55,374
by throwing some Bitcoin on the balance sheet and just, you know, riding the gains.

876
00:58:55,834 --> 00:58:58,834
All right. That's all the boosts above 2000 sats. Thank you,

877
00:58:58,954 --> 00:59:02,014
everybody, for supporting the show and making episode 40 possible.

878
00:59:02,014 --> 00:59:05,014
It's 40 episodes of This Week in Bitcoin.

879
00:59:05,254 --> 00:59:09,474
Thank you so much for supporting the podcast. I mean, it really means a lot.

880
00:59:09,474 --> 00:59:14,154
It's a passion project for me, and these boosts feel like I really get to connect

881
00:59:14,154 --> 00:59:15,474
with part of the Bitcoin community.

882
00:59:15,614 --> 00:59:17,754
If you'd like to boost in, you can start with the easy mode.

883
00:59:17,874 --> 00:59:21,054
That's Fountain FM, and you can go all the way to the self-sovereign,

884
00:59:21,174 --> 00:59:25,594
self-hosted with AlbiHub and lots of great podcast apps at podcastapps.com.

885
00:59:25,674 --> 00:59:28,054
You just need to get some sats and start boosting.

886
00:59:28,294 --> 00:59:32,994
It's a lot of fun and a good way to kind of get your toe into the ecosystem as well.

887
00:59:33,114 --> 00:59:38,474
There's a lot going on. It's pretty exciting. We had 42 individuals stream SATs

888
00:59:38,474 --> 00:59:42,934
just listening to the podcast, and it was a long one.

889
00:59:43,074 --> 00:59:46,934
And you helped me stack 86,789 SATs for the show.

890
00:59:47,094 --> 00:59:51,674
When you combine that with all of the boosts, we had 66 unique participants

891
00:59:51,674 --> 00:59:54,714
in This Week in Bitcoin Episode 40, Value for Value Model.

892
00:59:54,894 --> 01:00:00,694
And we stacked a grand total of 293,354 SATs.

893
01:00:05,554 --> 01:00:09,714
Not too bad at all. Thank you, everybody. Really appreciate that.

894
01:00:10,054 --> 01:00:13,374
We're going to ride off into the holidays with that little win.

895
01:00:13,714 --> 01:00:18,054
And I'd love to hear from you and keep that ball rolling because there's a lot

896
01:00:18,054 --> 01:00:21,454
more to cover as we get into 2025. I mean, can you even imagine?

897
01:00:20,400 --> 01:00:31,120
Music.

898
01:00:24,234 --> 01:00:26,654
Appreciate all of you. All right, let's get into it.

899
01:00:32,454 --> 01:00:37,094
All right, now let's have a little election reflection, if we could.

900
01:00:38,440 --> 01:00:42,220
I hope enough time has passed. This isn't an emotionally triggering question,

901
01:00:42,220 --> 01:00:45,800
because I'd like to really source the community's wisdom on this one.

902
01:00:46,400 --> 01:00:50,860
During the leading and final days of the election, and really since the election

903
01:00:50,860 --> 01:00:56,760
has wrapped up, the crypto lobby and the crypto voting bloc has been a big part

904
01:00:56,760 --> 01:00:59,600
of the discussion, kind of bigger than I expected, to be honest.

905
01:00:59,600 --> 01:01:03,580
And I think it's a fair question to ask, did Liz Warren and her anti-crypto

906
01:01:03,580 --> 01:01:09,720
army play a role, at least somewhat, in the Democrats' loss of the presidential election?

907
01:01:10,560 --> 01:01:16,920
Van Jones, who is a commentator on CNN, was at an event put on by the New York Times.

908
01:01:17,280 --> 01:01:24,040
And he seems to believe that the Democrats were hypocritical in their stance

909
01:01:24,040 --> 01:01:25,280
towards the middle class.

910
01:01:26,200 --> 01:01:32,760
And the way they viewed and treated the crypto voting bloc had a lot to do with their loss.

911
01:01:33,100 --> 01:01:36,580
So you have two parties that have fundamental hypocrisies built into them.

912
01:01:36,740 --> 01:01:39,100
We thought that their hypocrisy was going to blow them up.

913
01:01:39,640 --> 01:01:41,780
We thought that playing 50 with all these crazy people was going to blow up,

914
01:01:41,840 --> 01:01:43,680
but it's our hypocrisy that blew us up.

915
01:01:44,300 --> 01:01:46,520
And so rather than sitting up here and trying to defend everything,

916
01:01:46,840 --> 01:01:48,760
I think there's an opportunity because most people listening to this,

917
01:01:48,860 --> 01:01:49,940
the New York Times is going to be our people.

918
01:01:50,380 --> 01:01:53,960
So look, there's a bunch of stuff we did wrong. You touched one of them.

919
01:01:54,420 --> 01:01:57,220
People hurting economically, and we kept trying to tell them that,

920
01:01:57,240 --> 01:02:00,380
you know, we're building cathedrals for them in 20 years with this Inflation

921
01:02:00,380 --> 01:02:01,600
Reduction Act. It didn't work.

922
01:02:01,980 --> 01:02:04,780
We also ran people out of our party on crypto.

923
01:02:05,720 --> 01:02:09,940
50 million people bought some crypto. That's a bet on a future.

924
01:02:10,240 --> 01:02:12,000
They are trying to get to a better future.

925
01:02:12,680 --> 01:02:17,100
Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, beating the hell out of crypto,

926
01:02:17,500 --> 01:02:20,020
beating the hell out of Silicon Valley people was not smart.

927
01:02:20,240 --> 01:02:21,780
Now, here's what I'm trying to put together.

928
01:02:22,340 --> 01:02:26,880
Is this reality or is this just a convenient scapegoat?

929
01:02:27,320 --> 01:02:31,820
You know, they are maybe Van Jones is looking at several narratives out there,

930
01:02:32,040 --> 01:02:36,300
putting them all together and coming together with a convenient scapegoat.

931
01:02:36,964 --> 01:02:39,504
Without having to really say, oh, you know, our candidate wasn't very good at

932
01:02:39,504 --> 01:02:41,824
this, this, or that. They didn't do these, that, or that interviews.

933
01:02:42,364 --> 01:02:46,664
Instead, it was crypto. Is that what this is? Or is there something more real to this?

934
01:02:47,504 --> 01:02:54,524
Another big Democrat player or spokesperson for the election was Mark Cuban.

935
01:02:54,904 --> 01:02:59,864
And he says that young men voted against Harris because of crypto and her crypto policies.

936
01:03:00,504 --> 01:03:04,924
Another area was crypto. I mean, I was very clear early on that there was data

937
01:03:04,924 --> 01:03:10,584
from Pew Research that said, you know, at least 40 percent of young men were into crypto.

938
01:03:10,704 --> 01:03:15,644
And the way I explained it to them wasn't a big picture crypto thing at all.

939
01:03:15,764 --> 01:03:18,984
I was like, look, for a 21 year old kid, particularly men these days,

940
01:03:19,204 --> 01:03:23,064
they're not like we were when we were growing up, where it was a rite of passage

941
01:03:23,064 --> 01:03:25,944
to open up a bank account or to get a savings account.

942
01:03:26,124 --> 01:03:31,064
Now they download Robinhood or Coinbase or some app and they live in an app economy.

943
01:03:31,064 --> 01:03:35,524
And if you downloaded Robinhood or Coinbase, you're buying crypto over stocks

944
01:03:35,524 --> 01:03:40,204
and you're buying crypto not just because you want to see it go up,

945
01:03:40,244 --> 01:03:42,404
but because it makes you part of a community.

946
01:03:42,844 --> 01:03:45,824
You know, Dogecoin is a meme stock that everybody talks about,

947
01:03:45,944 --> 01:03:47,424
Bitcoin, whatever it may be.

948
01:03:47,424 --> 01:03:53,724
And so if these young men have their entire net worth tied up in crypto and

949
01:03:53,724 --> 01:03:56,124
you've got an SEC head, Gary Gensler,

950
01:03:56,484 --> 01:04:01,124
doing everything possible to reduce the value of their net worth and everything

951
01:04:01,124 --> 01:04:06,064
they read in those apps about what's happening to the price of their crypto

952
01:04:06,064 --> 01:04:11,904
is driven and talked about relating to Gary Gensler, they're not going to vote for you.

953
01:04:11,904 --> 01:04:14,944
And I said it to Gary Gensler directly. I said it to Kamala.

954
01:04:15,024 --> 01:04:19,004
I said it to her team that Gary Gensler could cost her the election.

955
01:04:19,244 --> 01:04:22,304
And there's an argument to be made when you look at the numbers.

956
01:04:22,544 --> 01:04:27,404
You know, a whole lot of young men voted against Kamala Harris.

957
01:04:27,544 --> 01:04:30,024
And I think crypto had a lot to do with it.

958
01:04:30,344 --> 01:04:35,644
All right. Is that a scapegoat or is it the truth we chase? A fleeting shadow or a clear cut?

959
01:04:35,600 --> 01:04:41,360
Music.

960
01:04:43,331 --> 01:04:47,511
I think part of the analysis is that people want to people want to be able to trade crypto.

961
01:04:47,651 --> 01:04:50,591
And I think why meme coins do as well as they do is people can only afford to

962
01:04:50,591 --> 01:04:52,051
get in at very low, low prices.

963
01:04:52,471 --> 01:04:55,451
They got 50 bucks, 100 bucks, and they want a thousand X that.

964
01:04:56,411 --> 01:05:03,971
I think that's a part of what the Harris administration missed and what plays into this.

965
01:05:04,351 --> 01:05:06,451
All right. Time for some updates.

966
01:05:06,991 --> 01:05:10,891
And I want to start with one that's coming out of El Salvador this week.

967
01:05:11,591 --> 01:05:19,011
El Salvador is scaling back some of their Bitcoin policies in trade for a $1.4 billion IMF loan deal.

968
01:05:19,471 --> 01:05:24,831
Now, some of the policies that they're scaling back is the agreement makes Bitcoin

969
01:05:24,831 --> 01:05:26,831
use voluntary for the private sector.

970
01:05:27,011 --> 01:05:29,131
It limits public sector Bitcoin activities

971
01:05:29,131 --> 01:05:32,631
and phases out the government's involvement with the Chivo wallet.

972
01:05:33,571 --> 01:05:37,691
Let's take this in reverse. So the Chivo wallet, I never thought was a very good idea.

973
01:05:37,971 --> 01:05:41,831
Having the government hands in a Bitcoin wallet, not great. having that spinoff

974
01:05:41,831 --> 01:05:43,411
independent is probably an improvement.

975
01:05:44,291 --> 01:05:49,071
It makes it impossible to pay for your taxes in Bitcoin. That's,

976
01:05:49,151 --> 01:05:50,051
I think, the biggest blow.

977
01:05:50,891 --> 01:05:55,611
Because that, to me, is A, a pretty critical part of a real currency,

978
01:05:55,651 --> 01:05:58,931
and B, a lot of El Salvadorians are saving in Bitcoin.

979
01:05:59,371 --> 01:06:02,031
They spend in dollars, and they save in Bitcoin.

980
01:06:02,611 --> 01:06:07,251
And tax bills are the kind of thing you save up for. And then lastly there,

981
01:06:07,511 --> 01:06:12,951
what they started with is they're not going to force private businesses to accept Bitcoin anymore.

982
01:06:13,311 --> 01:06:16,291
I think a lot of Bitcoiners would agree that's always should have been that

983
01:06:16,291 --> 01:06:19,951
way. People should be free to choose to or not to adopt Bitcoin.

984
01:06:21,129 --> 01:06:25,509
The reason why mandating it is nice is because it creates a streamlined experience,

985
01:06:25,509 --> 01:06:29,989
but the people that really benefit from that experience are the tourists, not the locals.

986
01:06:30,249 --> 01:06:33,609
The locals are, again, spending in cash. I do think tourism,

987
01:06:33,749 --> 01:06:37,669
though, will incentivize many businesses to continue to accept Bitcoin as means

988
01:06:37,669 --> 01:06:41,249
of payment, like in El Zante Beach at the hotel I stayed at.

989
01:06:42,189 --> 01:06:48,309
They're catering specifically to Bitcoiners, so they're going to obviously continue to accept Bitcoin.

990
01:06:48,509 --> 01:06:50,689
They have the option. They just don't have to do it now.

991
01:06:51,269 --> 01:06:53,269
Tax is only being paid in U.S. dollars.

992
01:06:54,089 --> 01:06:58,549
That's concerning to me. They also, the IMF, says they want to see transparency,

993
01:06:58,809 --> 01:07:03,089
regulation, and supervision of digital assets and enhanced safeguards of the

994
01:07:03,089 --> 01:07:05,829
consumer protection and investor protections. Yeah, we'll see.

995
01:07:06,309 --> 01:07:09,749
We haven't got a lot out of El Salvador. Bichelli did say that they're going

996
01:07:09,749 --> 01:07:13,249
to continue to daily buy and perhaps increase their Bitcoin purchase.

997
01:07:13,769 --> 01:07:18,249
But this seems like they tried to strike a deal. The overall Bitcoin glow has

998
01:07:18,249 --> 01:07:21,149
faded a bit, but Bitcoin is still technically legal tender.

999
01:07:21,329 --> 01:07:25,009
You can go to El Salvador and spend it, and that hasn't been changed.

1000
01:07:25,429 --> 01:07:28,969
But forcing people to accept it has changed. Being able to pay your taxes in

1001
01:07:28,969 --> 01:07:32,449
it has changed, and their involvement in the Chivo wallet is going to be phased out.

1002
01:07:32,629 --> 01:07:36,829
In exchange, they get $1.4 billion from the IMF.

1003
01:07:37,349 --> 01:07:42,389
Good, bad. I'm a little indifferent on that one. And I think El Salvador is

1004
01:07:42,389 --> 01:07:46,389
a wait-and-see five-year thing, and we're about five years – or it has another

1005
01:07:46,389 --> 01:07:48,449
five years, and we're about five years into it, so a total of 10 years.

1006
01:07:48,989 --> 01:07:52,929
You know, Picheli will have two terms. I'd like to see where it goes after Picheli's

1007
01:07:52,929 --> 01:07:56,009
two terms and see where the country – and if it continues down this path,

1008
01:07:56,089 --> 01:07:57,509
then I think there's a real opportunity there.

1009
01:07:58,309 --> 01:08:04,469
Now let's talk about the ETFs. I just want to mention just the absolute scale of these things.

1010
01:08:05,229 --> 01:08:10,469
The Bitcoin ETFs yesterday, as I record, collectively bought 2,500 Bitcoin in one day.

1011
01:08:10,749 --> 01:08:14,889
In the past week, the ETFs have bought 23,800 Bitcoin.

1012
01:08:15,209 --> 01:08:21,749
In the past month, the Bitcoin ETFs collectively have bought 84,000 Bitcoin.

1013
01:08:22,029 --> 01:08:26,929
And so far this year, since the ETFs opened, they collectively have stacked.

1014
01:08:28,061 --> 01:08:32,541
$525,000 Bitcoin. That's an awful lot.

1015
01:08:32,821 --> 01:08:36,141
They now are surpassing Satoshi's stash.

1016
01:08:36,541 --> 01:08:39,801
And they're getting to be one of the larger holders.

1017
01:08:40,121 --> 01:08:44,581
World governments and the plebs still dramatically outstrip them.

1018
01:08:44,701 --> 01:08:46,401
But they're getting up there in size.

1019
01:08:46,581 --> 01:08:50,241
The ETFs have stacked $525,000 Bitcoin. Not sats.

1020
01:08:51,581 --> 01:08:54,161
Not sats. Individual Bitcoin.

1021
01:08:57,461 --> 01:09:02,781
OK, our last clip of the week before we get to the state of the network goes

1022
01:09:02,781 --> 01:09:04,541
back to the Bitcoin reserve topic.

1023
01:09:05,261 --> 01:09:09,661
President Trump earlier this week rang the bell on Wall Street and your good

1024
01:09:09,661 --> 01:09:12,101
buddy Jim Cramer had a chance to interview him.

1025
01:09:12,281 --> 01:09:18,401
And this was Trump's comments on a Bitcoin reserve and where that's at right

1026
01:09:18,401 --> 01:09:21,341
now as of this week. In time, how about a crypto?

1027
01:09:21,741 --> 01:09:24,841
Really, we do need, I think, to some, you're embracing crypto,

1028
01:09:25,141 --> 01:09:29,381
very different from the previous administration, strategic petroleum reserve like for crypto.

1029
01:09:29,601 --> 01:09:32,961
I think so. We're going to do something great with crypto because we don't want

1030
01:09:32,961 --> 01:09:36,981
China or anybody else, not just China, but others are embracing it.

1031
01:09:37,081 --> 01:09:37,941
And we want to be the head.

1032
01:09:38,321 --> 01:09:41,141
We're going to be ahead of A.I. We're going to be way ahead of A.I.

1033
01:09:41,221 --> 01:09:45,021
And we've got to produce tremendous amounts of electricity. You know that it's

1034
01:09:45,021 --> 01:09:49,601
unbelievable when you think that we need more than twice what we already have.

1035
01:09:49,761 --> 01:09:54,201
If you think that's pretty for a specific industry, but we'll be able to do it.

1036
01:09:54,461 --> 01:09:58,441
We have Lee Zeldin in charge of the environment. He's going to be giving us

1037
01:09:58,441 --> 01:10:00,201
very strong approvals, I think.

1038
01:10:00,381 --> 01:10:03,281
And he's going to make sure everything's good and clean and proper,

1039
01:10:03,401 --> 01:10:05,281
but he's going to give us very fast approvals.

1040
01:10:06,640 --> 01:10:19,760
Music.

1041
01:10:22,141 --> 01:10:26,361
Let's take a look at the state of the network. As I record, the Bitcoin price

1042
01:10:26,361 --> 01:10:32,041
has ticked up just a bit to 97,670 U.S. greenbacks.

1043
01:10:32,461 --> 01:10:38,061
We're back above 1,000 satoshis per dollar, 1,024 satoshis to one U.S. dollar.

1044
01:10:38,221 --> 01:10:41,421
We're down 2.4% since the last episode.

1045
01:10:41,981 --> 01:10:44,361
We're down 9.8% from our all-time high.

1046
01:10:45,001 --> 01:10:51,421
We've flirted with 108,280 US dollars to Bitcoin, and on some exchanges even got to 110.

1047
01:10:54,001 --> 01:10:58,281
But we've slid a little bit. The reachable nodes has also slid just a little bit.

1048
01:10:58,441 --> 01:11:02,841
19,973 reachable Bitcoin nodes on the network.

1049
01:11:03,801 --> 01:11:09,741
And this episode was recorded at block height 875,490.

1050
01:11:10,441 --> 01:11:15,261
The state of the Bitcoin network is choppy, but the fundamentals remain very strong.

1051
01:11:16,721 --> 01:11:20,281
Where it goes from here, I'm not sure. If you've made it this far,

1052
01:11:20,501 --> 01:11:24,281
I want to let you know I'll be off next week. I'll be off for the holidays for a little bit.

1053
01:11:24,381 --> 01:11:26,581
Not quite sure when I'm coming back, but it will be soon.

1054
01:11:26,721 --> 01:11:29,721
So in the meantime, go catch up on the back catalog.

1055
01:11:29,961 --> 01:11:32,381
We'll have all of that at ThisWeekInBitcoin.show.

1056
01:11:32,801 --> 01:11:36,341
And please do consider boosting into the show with what you'd like to hear from it.

1057
01:11:36,841 --> 01:11:39,561
And consider sharing it with a friend. And, you know, it's always a great way

1058
01:11:39,561 --> 01:11:43,701
to orange pill somebody is hit them with the Bitcoin hard truth and do the one-two

1059
01:11:43,701 --> 01:11:45,201
combo with this week in Bitcoin.

1060
01:11:46,001 --> 01:11:48,601
Anyways, even if you don't share it, I just hope you have a great holiday.

1061
01:11:49,061 --> 01:11:51,361
Maybe you get a chance to orange pill a friend or a family member,

1062
01:11:51,461 --> 01:11:52,501
or maybe you don't bother.

1063
01:11:53,021 --> 01:11:56,381
Just hope you enjoy it. Now, I'm going to wrap us up with a value for value

1064
01:11:56,381 --> 01:12:00,241
track like I always do. I hope you have a great holiday.

1065
01:12:00,561 --> 01:12:03,241
And don't forget, while you're listening to our wrap-up track,

1066
01:12:03,901 --> 01:12:07,741
90% of your boosts go to the artist while the music is playing.

1067
01:12:08,400 --> 01:16:16,343
Music.