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it is quite simple the money system is simply broken and that's affecting all parts and aspects

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of society and life at the moment that's where the cost of living is so high um we now have this

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thing called bitcoin which is a decentralized monetary network and it's it's open for everyone

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and if connor is coming along and he's you know wanting to give power back to the people

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there's no better tool to do that you know bitcoin is that one tool that individuals can take and own

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because it's money you can own money you control yourself it's not you know you're not giving your

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money over to a central entity a bank where you actually don't own your money anymore you can take

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full ownership of that money and decide what you want to do with that and you can go anywhere with

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that um people have never had that level of freedom before and when people understand that

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you don't have to wait to be told what to do by your government by you know an entity a bank and

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institution. You can simply make your decisions yourself, live more free, and really set up a more

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stable financial future for yourself and your family. Boom, we're live. Awesome. This is a

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emergency spontaneous podcast episode. We like to do those sometimes here. It's been a while though.

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We usually try to keep this podcast fairly evergreen, but today we have a different kind

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of evergreen. Speaking of green, we've got Ireland being in the news of the last 24 hours.

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We had Conor McGregor come out and say, we need to get Ireland a Bitcoin strategic reserve. And

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it quickly rose to over a million views. And I was watching this. I know you guys were watching

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this. And it's just super cool to see all these different places all over the world picking up on

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Bitcoin. So today I have Chris McLaughlin and Alan Bryden, who are the co-founders of Emerge

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21 over in Ireland. So why don't we just start by you guys each talking a little bit about your

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Bitcoin backstory, how you entered this space before we get rolling. We'll start with Alan.

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Yeah, well, Bitcoin, it all started for me back in 2017. I'm actually an optometrist. I run my

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own optometry practice back here in Ireland while I'm in the north of Ireland. And it was trying to

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just figure out ways of you know generating extra income outside my practice um i discovered well

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basically the crypto space initially it was at a business conference they were talking about bitcoin

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and crypto so unfortunately i had to go through the whole the whole mistake after mistake through

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the crypto scene first of all to figure out what was what but i eventually got to understand bitcoin

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really 2020 when lockdown happened it was coveted it was a pivotal moment for many business owners

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being closed, not being able to work.

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And then sitting back and looking at all this money being created out of thin air, effectively,

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that was the first time I questioned what is money.

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And then that took me down a rabbit hole.

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I had a bit of an awareness about Bitcoin.

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But then once I realized what was happening with the money system, how it was so broken,

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and then realized what Bitcoin was through listening to people like Simon Dixon based

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out of the Isle of Man, Michael Saylor, those kind of real kind of mainstream guys that are

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really in the space with a big name in the space, I started to pay attention more and really became

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Bitcoin focused, Bitcoin only in 2021 into 2022 and started accepting Bitcoin in my practice as

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well during that period. So I really went deep down the rabbit hole and, you know, I really am

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passionate about Bitcoin and which led me to start Emerge 21 with Chris as well. We actually,

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we spoke at the Bitcoin conference in Ireland last year and from that we struck up a friendship

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and then with our passion for Bitcoin and wanting to educate more people,

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with me in the business space and with Chris with his background with technology,

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and Chris has actually written a book, which he'll tell you about,

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we decided to start Emerge 21, and it's kind of developed from that.

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So, yeah, recently, again, with the whole Conor McGregor thing,

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this past couple of days, well, past 24 hours,

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there's been a bit of a whirlwind with a lot of DMs, messages,

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X kind of reposting, et cetera.

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So it's gained a lot of traction in recent times, and it's really exciting to see what's happening with the strategic reserve possibility.

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Again, with what the U.S. is doing, obviously El Salvador, other countries and other jurisdictions around the world doing this Bitcoin strategic reserve, potentially spreading globally now in different places.

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It's a very interesting time for Bitcoiners, and hopefully things will develop with Conor, as we'll probably discuss in the podcast.

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Yeah, and something just to throw in real quick to interject.

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I think I forgot an important piece in the beginning there, which is why I brought you guys on,

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which is after Connor talked about the Bitcoin strategic reserve and he used the bad C word in that post.

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And so my first thought was, oh, no, all the crypto bros are going to come after him now and just totally pull him off course.

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But today, this morning, he retweets one of your guys' podcasts that you've done.

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So that tells me that, OK, he's really looking at Bitcoin here, which is awesome.

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So, yeah, go ahead, Chris.

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Let's hear your side of the story before we continue here.

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Yeah, and thanks, Ben, for reaching out and taking the opportunity as well to reach out and connect because, yeah, we want to speak to as many book owners as we can.

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It's always a great conversation.

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So, yeah, a bit of background about me.

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Yeah, my professional background has been in technology for a while and studied economics as well.

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So I kind of probably would have naturally been curious enough to try and study something like Bitcoin over time.

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So it was probably 2016 when I came across it first.

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I did have a bit of dabbling into different investments, real estate and stocks and things like that.

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Not really a question, you know, why I was investing.

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But 2016 dabbled a bit in Bitcoin.

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My kind of thought at that stage was, look, do a small bit of research on it.

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Take a small position on it.

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um everyone has the regret of not buying as much as they could should have uh when they look back

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and that's probably every bitcoiners um regret but 2017 happened then and it ran up you know

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furiously um over that year and obviously that peaked interest and um same same kind of thing as

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alan and a lot of accounters around that time it was seen as the technology play there was a lot a

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lot of other um altcoins as they're referred to um and yeah made some money got burned and that

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um it's a lesson learned for that for a lot of people um but the one thing then that came through

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was um obviously bitcoin was number one for for quite a long time and a lot of the other things

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started to not make sense um over time and throughout 2018 2019 then you know i applied

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a lot more learning to it uh read every book that it could um again knew that it wasn't going away

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that it was something here to stay there was a lot more to it than than um you first the first

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time you come across it so spending 2018 and 2019 learning everything about it um andrea santanopoulos

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was actually a big influence on me um at that time uh but yeah spent time studying head down then as

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a lot of other uh back owners do you try and tell other people about it and you try and educate

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people about it and you try and come across as positively can about it um but again it's a very

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nascent technology and new on subject that um it doesn't yeah it's hard to take up um straight away

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for people so 2020 happened then um conviction heightened a lot same with a lot of other people

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um kind of seeing how this was playing out a lot of it made a lot more sense at that stage

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um so start writing small bits about it so we started doing a couple articles um and that

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eventually turned into a book um so i wrote the book called white bitcoin and very small book the

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aim of it was to kind of educate people from a layman's perspective like take a lot of what was

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in my head and what i was trying to tell people um write it down in its most simplistic form um and

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get it out there um like a small book i think 130 pages um not not large at all so uh released that

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and yeah it's done fine um i don't push it too much if anybody wants to pick it up a lot of it's

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gone through word of mouth um good feedback on it uh but obviously that gave me a major sense of pride

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um and i started uh started speaking about it more in public spoke about coin conference

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spoke at a couple other podcasts um and then yeah as alan said met at the bitcoin conference

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and last year uh decided to take it to the next level um instead of just going solo and trying to

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educate through a book and a couple of articles and trying to do something more in the public eye.

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So podcasting is a big part of what we do as well, like yourself, Ben. And yeah, trying to get as

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much content as possible. And obviously, as you said, the last 24 hours with Conor McGregor

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mentioning Bitcoin Strategic Reserve in Ireland, we decided to throw a tweet out there and a podcast

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that we've done probably four months ago now

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with Rich O'Hagan.

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Fantastic guy, by the way.

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Big credit to him for the podcast.

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But yeah, Conor McGregor retweeted it.

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I'm hoping that he listened to it

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or his team listened to it at least

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and can take something from it.

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So yeah, here we are.

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And yeah, happy to meet up with Alan the last year.

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And yeah, we've been kicking on with Emerge 21.

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That's awesome.

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So this is just a cool moment for you guys, I'm sure,

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just the work you've been putting in is getting noticed in a big way.

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So that's really exciting.

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And I think this would be a good chance to dive into what you talked about on that podcast

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that you retweeted, which is generally the problems happening in Ireland right now and

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how Bitcoin fixes it generally.

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So I think, could we just start with what would you guys consider are the big issues

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facing Ireland right now that you think Bitcoin will make a really big impact on helping turn

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around?

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Yeah, maybe Alan, I'll take a go at this and then if you want to follow up or even give a different flavor on it. But yeah, I think one of the huge, like, first of all, Ireland's a great country. It's fantastic. I don't know if you've seen the interview that McGregor did with Tucker Carson recently, talking about Ireland. And it's got its problems for sure, but it's an unbelievable country. It's amazing. It's beautiful. People are fantastic here.

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so like it is a great place it's a place that i want to um be in and um probably for the rest of

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my life and i'll never say never but yeah fantastic country but it has got its problems and i think

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a lot of it stems from um like again very industrious population very well educated population

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um but it is it is actually gdp per capita is actually a pretty strong country like it's a

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it's a powerhouse for the size of it not a powerhouse but it we punch it above our weight and

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put it that way um but over time you know there's been uh an excess of um you know credit in certain

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ways i think the 2008 great financial crisis had ironed uh massively and that was again not trying

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to steal too much of richest under but that was a big topic that he spoke about um it was never

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really sorted as well you know 2008 was a great financial crisis that was kind of swept under the

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the carpet and away we go again.

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And those kind of fundamental things hadn been fixed globally but particularly in Ireland And one of the big things that we seeing at the minute is a housing crisis and there probably multiple reasons for that obviously there always a supply side for a housing crisis for in real estate but one of the big things that came through

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in that podcast was um like real estate is uh is used as a store of value um and in ireland and

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particularly it's it's you're almost proud you know to own your house and many other countries

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It's not like that in every country, but it is like that in Ireland.

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And there are people using that as their investment vehicle as well,

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so buying up a lot of the supply.

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And that kind of dynamic has a negative impact over time.

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You can see in certain parts of the country where 30, 40 years ago,

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everybody had their own home rented or bought.

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Now you can see in certain parts of the country where you can have six or seven people

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into one shared accommodation.

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I know student life can be like that at times,

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but adults are working full-time,

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six or seven people sharing a home

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just so that they can have somewhere to live.

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So I think that the housing crisis had a huge impact in Ireland,

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and that's where, obviously, we see Bitcoin as part of that solution.

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I think if we get back to a store of value

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that's not related to housing,

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I think we can all have a better life in terms of the ability to buy property.

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So, again, we know it's kind of perverse incentives where, you know,

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somebody can buy up 16 homes, only live in one,

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and they're using that as an investment vehicle.

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I've actually seen a documentary probably 10 years ago or so on the BBC

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where it was saying that, you know, people say rich investors from Hong Kong

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were buying up London real estate, but they weren't even renting it out because it was

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appreciating that much in value as a store of value, that they didn't need to deal with

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the hassle of renting it out.

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So you're taking property off the market there, you're taking supply off the market, and that

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again compounds the issue.

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So that was kind of the, I think, the main point.

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Now, again, I don't want to talk too much on behalf of Rich because it was his podcast,

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but we do kind of see have very similar views.

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But we're also struggling at the moment to have a voice in Ireland

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that's speaking about Bitcoin,

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and that's what we're trying to do with Emerge 21.

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I think in the political scene, again,

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a lot of people probably are old school in a way,

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you know, how to think about politics and economics.

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And again, Ireland's done very well over the years,

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but to move this new technology,

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I think everyone's a bit slow at the moment,

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dealing with kind of day-to-day challenges that are in Ireland and not looking at the bigger picture.

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And there's a team of people called Bitcoin Network Ireland who are looking at this from

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a political standpoint. Us from Ameris21 are looking at it more from a grassroots standpoint.

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So we're trying to educate as many people as we can from the grassroots level down. Now,

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we love what Bitcoin Network Ireland are doing because they're looking at it from a political

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standpoint not necessarily to say you know ireland let's go and buy um uh you know all the

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bitcoin that we can it's more let's be open to this let's be permissive about it you know let's

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let's be um yeah open-minded towards bitcoin don't fight it don't push against it and that's i think

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that's an admirable goal um for them guys so yeah that was kind of the podcast that we we shared

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with connor there's plenty of good content on it definitely worth a watch um and yet again rich

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great guy i think it articulates things very very well alan anything from you no i get as chris says

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like you've covered most of the main points there and i think it is you know from the political

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point of view and a strategic reserve from a national standpoint you know it satisfies a lot

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of needs it causes it covers up and you know helps out with a lot of issues that are you know

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financially driven but it all boils down to the broken system that the fiat financial system and

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And it's the same problem that everybody has across the globe, you know, from a grassroots level.

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It's the cost of living.

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It's, you know, the increase of the money supply, the debasement of the currency.

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People are, you know, in Ireland here, especially in the UK, it's a different kettle of fish completely.

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But, you know, Ireland's a strange little country where you've got Ireland, part of the EU, north of Ireland, northern Ireland, where we live.

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It's part of the UK.

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So it's a similar concept where people need Bitcoin, like individuals need Bitcoin, businesses need Bitcoin.

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countries need Bitcoin, but it's getting that education through.

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And I think that's the thing with Connor, when he kind of started talking about this,

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as you say, the first tweet he put out was something he said, something about crypto.

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Crypto is the way forward, crypto is the future.

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And, you know, that's the thing that triggers us.

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It's like, it's trying to get in there, trying to get in front of people and educate those

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people on, you know, what Bitcoin really is, that it's Bitcoin.

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And then crypto is all this other stuff.

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And just being clear about why Bitcoin is so important.

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and it is it's it's the concept of what the problem is the problem is the broken money supply

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the money system and that's tricky from a political point of view because obviously

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their whole system is ingrained with the monetary system the central banks the political the

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government systems but it's trying to break those barriers down and get people to understand

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for the betterment of society for the betterment of everybody we need to separate that we need to

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separate the money from state ultimately.

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But in the interim, in the coming years,

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having Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset for your country,

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it solves a lot of problems, a lot of issues from deficits,

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from the actual issues with the way the debt-based system

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has created these problems over the last 60 plus years.

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So it's important from an educational standpoint,

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getting the right core foundation of knowledge around what Bitcoin is,

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and then progressing forward potentially within the strategic reserve angle

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and pushing that forward within the political realms as well.

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And I know we've talked to the Bitcoin Policy UK as well in the UK,

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and they push a lot of context and content towards government within the UK.

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And they have found it difficult in many respects

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just trying to get basic information across.

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It's surprising people in positions of power,

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the lack of understanding and knowledge over certain concepts within economics.

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But as Chris says, you've got the Kenzian economic system, whereas you really got to separate yourself from that and be open minded to why we need Bitcoin.

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And it's just important to educate on that concept.

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Yeah. And I think one of the big things that has been surprising in this journey, Ben, over time is Ireland, again, small, small country.

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we hear a lot coming out from the US

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like that's where

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the main education I would say

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globally happens

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there are some things in other parts of the world

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but I was very surprised when we

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started this journey

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actually October last year we launched

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the business of how many

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again extremely intelligent

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and articulate people

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that could speak about Bitcoin

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maybe it doesn't have a platform and again

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it's not filtering up the level

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into top government or anything like that.

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But yeah, the reach out that we've had in Ireland

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was surprising to us because again,

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a lot's happened in the US for a while

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and you feel like you're in this country

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and there's not much going on, but it's not the case.

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And again, I think there's a lot of people

253
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that can jump into this space over time

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and keep driving the country forward.

255
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Awesome.

256
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Yeah, and I think that a good way

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to sort of wrap up the real estate point,

258
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because I know this is what I keep hearing

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is one of the major issues over there for you guys is that the housing affordability crisis.

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And as you mentioned, there's a lot of different facets of that that cause it to be such a problem.

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But the one that we can really drill in with for why Bitcoin is a solution is the fact that

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there's tons of big money investors that are using houses as a investment instead of a home

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because the fiat currency is so trash that it's losing value all the time being inflated away.

264
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So it's better for them to flood into housing and dump their money into that instead, which is pumping all the prices up.

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So once we have this better form of savings, which we'd say is Bitcoin, which you don't have to clean the toilets of Bitcoin and manage the house of Bitcoin, it's really a much better option for people whose main goal is to save their money.

266
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The capital will fly out of the housing into Bitcoin, which is much better as a savings tool.

267
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Is there anything you would add to that sort of as the one-on-one reason why Irish folks should understand?

268
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Yeah, and I think there's probably an emotional attachment as well.

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Again, this is generations of people saying, you know, the phrase, you know, own your own house, you know, that's security in itself, which is fine.

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And we can differentiate, again, as you said, rightly, like there's going to be a store of value.

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There's going to be an investment vehicle at the moment for that.

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But it does have some utility value.

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And that will eventually, again, starting this long enough, you'll know that it comes down to the utility value of a home, which I don't know what it is.

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but i know that's overinflated at the moment because of its monetary um value that it's given

275
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so um yeah i see again anything in bitcoin that isn't an event it's a you know it's a process it's

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going to take time and i do see that happening over time like if you you can take so many people

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who own property at the moment and you break it down to them in terms of bitcoin and and again

278
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because you can buy a fraction of bitcoin if you're a big real estate investor and you know

279
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you usually buy certain amount of houses every couple of years, you know,

280
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real estate, commercial real estate or whatever.

281
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And this thing comes along and it's given you, you know,

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an easy time in terms of, you know, being able to store it,

283
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being able to keep it, being able to maintain it compared to, you know,

284
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property, then there is a chance that maybe it'll start off as a small

285
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unwinding where, you know,

286
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this person who owns 25 properties was going to buy the 26th, but maybe not,

287
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maybe this time they're going to buy or they were going to buy you know an extra five properties in

288
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this land um here but maybe they might buy three and they might spend some on bitcoin you know just

289
00:21:48,046 --> 00:21:52,486
dabble on it again so i think that is going to be as i say a process rather than an event that

290
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it's not going to happen overnight but i can see it already because i've spoken to some people who

291
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are real estate investors who switched to bitcoin now to completely switch over as i say it's an

292
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emotional thing i think it's ingrained a lot and one of the things that we talked about recently was

293
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maybe demographics is going to play a part you know the people that have the money um at the

294
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moment they're generally you know the older generation they may not sway too much towards

295
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bitcoin compared to um compared to the younger generation but that again i think as demographics

296
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change over time and the native internet and the people who grew up in a native internet world

297
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uh will uh but kind of put them a lot easier so yeah um but corners can see it um so easy and when

298
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you break it down the principles between property and and bitcoin it's so easy and obvious to see

299
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just going to take time and a mentality shift and maybe some demographics

300
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yeah for sure now one of the things that you you mentioned a little bit earlier there is

301
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this eu character that's sort of facilitating so much of this stuff the european union

302
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i would love to hear just for my american and other international listeners out there how would

303
00:23:02,186 --> 00:23:11,412
you describe what is this mysterious EU force that we keep hearing in these tidbits of news all these things are changing all over Europe What is that and how is it affecting Ireland

304
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Well, yeah, it's hard.

305
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It's like everything.

306
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They make it so complex to try to understand what's happening that people don't understand what's happening.

307
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So it's just a matter of it's the regulations in place and the number of regulations they have, especially around Bitcoin specifically.

308
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And even just not taking on the concept of, again, understanding what this is, or perhaps it is from a point of view where they don't want people to get traction with Bitcoin.

309
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It's hard to know what the angle is there.

310
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But there's a few different, Europe's a strange place where you've got a few areas where within the likes of Switzerland, you know, Lugano, very Bitcoin friendly, other tax sort of more advantageous countries like Portugal as well, where they're more kind of, you know, friendly towards Bitcoin ownership and even from a tax point of view as well.

311
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but regards to the the concept of the eu itself within ireland it's it's it's basically you you're

312
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controlled by a centralized again centralized authority that you know governs europe generally

313
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but countries have their individual kind of decision makers as well but it's a difficult

314
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it's a difficult one to break down i'm not sure chris do you have any more insight

315
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specifically around ireland what what the kind of issues are as far as with the eu the central banks

316
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you know, European Central Bank, the interest it has on Ireland.

317
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Yeah, I think the whole thing comes down to a mindset, again, of control.

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And again, Europe's always seen as the kind of grandfather of the world.

319
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You know, they've been through a lot of battles, through a lot of history

320
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and want to maintain, you know, a lot of things.

321
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And I think we're in a world where, you know, you need to keep innovating over time.

322
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I don't see that happening from Europe.

323
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I see, you know, the US, obviously, loads of big companies there.

324
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South Korea has been amazing over the years.

325
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There's certain parts of the world that are innovating.

326
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Again, Europe's had its time in the past,

327
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huge manufacturing, car manufacturing area.

328
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But one of the big things is I think Europe's fracturing at the moment,

329
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and I think it's an attempt to control and hang on to power.

330
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And if you look over time throughout history,

331
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any nation and not even a nation you can do this at the you know city level even at the work level

332
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like you micromanage people and you uh you control people you stifle innovation like the most freest

333
00:25:39,472 --> 00:25:44,392
economies generally thrive over time they're never perfect but they thrive over time and the more you

334
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try and control a nation a country you know again down to the individual level that'll stifle

335
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innovation over time and i think that's where europe's falling behind and when you do that and

336
00:25:53,232 --> 00:25:58,912
feel you're falling behind you try and implement more control measures now i don't know you can

337
00:25:58,912 --> 00:26:04,032
always have your reasons for why uh say things that currency controls are in place and people

338
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you know they'll throw about it's for safety you know it's for national security and things like

339
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this i don't know if you've seen it ben as well but just yesterday i think it was or the day before

340
00:26:13,712 --> 00:26:22,352
in spain um they put out a a new legislation where you cannot take more than 3 000 euros

341
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worth of cash out of any banking system without reporting it to the government.

342
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And if you don't do that, you can be fined. Now, I'm sure there's ranges here, but you can be fined up to €150,000 for doing that.

343
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So that's a real control. Yeah, it's crazy how it is. I don't think Ireland's quite there yet in terms of those capital controls,

344
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but there are individual cases that get highlighted that you'll see on X, where certain people have been locked out of the banking system

345
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or maybe had accounts frozen, things like that. So I don't think it's bad, but the trajectory is

346
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there for sure in Europe. And I think something like a friendly approach to Bitcoin is needed.

347
00:27:06,512 --> 00:27:12,192
I don't generally see it. There's also talk about CBDC, kind of digital euro, being released and

348
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tried out. I don't know what the extent of it is. I haven't looked at it too much at this stage, but

349
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from October, I don't know, again, it could be a small population, a trial or whatever,

350
00:27:20,672 --> 00:27:25,712
but they're definitely looking to go full steam ahead and that and again i think that's a mechanism

351
00:27:25,712 --> 00:27:33,072
for control so and again europe's a beautiful place like it is it's got amazing history as i

352
00:27:33,072 --> 00:27:36,832
say it's been through a lot there's a lot of lessons learned but i think during this period

353
00:27:37,792 --> 00:27:43,552
it's fracturing in a way you can see it and the way to handle by central authorities a lot of time

354
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to handle a fracture in institutions

355
00:27:48,372 --> 00:27:50,272
is to try and control everything.

356
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And that doesn't go down well.

357
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In a word, the EU is your fiat monster.

358
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Every part of the world has some fiat monster

359
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that is just that centralizing force

360
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that tries to control everything

361
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and take away people's freedom

362
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and throw false flags out

363
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so they can have excuses to take more freedom

364
00:28:12,212 --> 00:28:13,972
and just control people more.

365
00:28:14,472 --> 00:28:18,172
So Bitcoin is such a good tool against that.

366
00:28:18,272 --> 00:28:20,892
And it makes sense to me why they're trying to regulate it to death

367
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because it removes their power.

368
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And I think that's why it's so exciting.

369
00:28:25,052 --> 00:28:27,252
It looks like people like Conor McGregor are figuring that out.

370
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And it makes me really happy to see because maybe this is a good transition

371
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to a different topic.

372
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I'll go ahead and throw this grenade into the room.

373
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Another thing I know Ireland is dealing with is immigration.

374
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and this is also an EU thing that they're doing.

375
00:28:44,332 --> 00:28:46,732
They're facilitating that mass immigration

376
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into these small Irish rural towns,

377
00:28:49,472 --> 00:28:52,052
like completely taking over them with immigrants.

378
00:28:52,312 --> 00:28:53,272
Now, would you guys,

379
00:28:53,412 --> 00:28:55,972
I'll let you set the pace on how toxic we get here

380
00:28:55,972 --> 00:28:58,192
because I get crazy toxic about it on Noster.

381
00:28:58,792 --> 00:29:00,692
I don't know how hard you want to go,

382
00:29:00,832 --> 00:29:04,912
but how would you lay out the immigration situation in Ireland,

383
00:29:05,312 --> 00:29:07,072
how it's affecting the Irish people,

384
00:29:07,072 --> 00:29:11,732
and then we'll get into how Bitcoin may change the game for that as well.

385
00:29:13,272 --> 00:29:16,392
Yeah, I think, Alan, if you don't mind, I'll go first.

386
00:29:16,492 --> 00:29:20,352
And I'll probably be a bit softer on this topic as well.

387
00:29:20,812 --> 00:29:23,152
But I do see it as a concern overall.

388
00:29:23,372 --> 00:29:30,452
And again, I think where we're at at the moment is that it's not being spoken about publicly.

389
00:29:30,452 --> 00:29:33,272
And a lot of people are afraid to speak about it publicly.

390
00:29:33,272 --> 00:29:45,172
Now, what I would say, and I don't think there's any problem saying this, is that I don't think there's any issues with immigration as a category.

391
00:29:45,412 --> 00:29:57,312
You know, most countries in Ireland had a lot of immigration from Ireland to other countries and had successful times around the world.

392
00:29:57,312 --> 00:30:02,892
but what i think nobody's like you can't even say things like i think there's an immigration volume

393
00:30:02,892 --> 00:30:08,732
problem like 100 like and that's taking its toll on you know likes of services and things like that

394
00:30:08,732 --> 00:30:14,332
like just do the simple math and say you know if you put on an extra like if you if you brought in

395
00:30:14,332 --> 00:30:20,372
an extra you know 20 population in the country and you can't ram up services that quickly uh again

396
00:30:20,372 --> 00:30:25,872
maybe contributes to the housing crisis which i'm sure it does but it has it has a an effect on on

397
00:30:25,872 --> 00:30:29,652
everyone and it pushes up general prices like again there's more demand for absolutely everything so

398
00:30:29,652 --> 00:30:35,092
why it's happening how it's happening exactly i'm not really in the weeds in that but i know

399
00:30:35,092 --> 00:30:40,872
what's happening i know people are not wanting to talk about it um in public um and sometimes you

400
00:30:40,872 --> 00:30:46,892
can get a reputation for talking about it in public again i think certain guidelines and rules

401
00:30:46,892 --> 00:30:53,152
around immigration is probably healthy for a company for a country but just to have open borders

402
00:30:53,152 --> 00:30:57,452
and zero rules and guidelines around it

403
00:30:57,452 --> 00:30:59,032
is a recipe for disaster.

404
00:30:59,232 --> 00:31:01,592
And I think it is completely fair to say

405
00:31:01,592 --> 00:31:03,812
that Ireland has an immigration volume problem.

406
00:31:05,412 --> 00:31:06,972
Yeah, no, I'd agree.

407
00:31:07,192 --> 00:31:08,672
Funny, it's well said, volume.

408
00:31:08,832 --> 00:31:10,012
Volume is a key word there.

409
00:31:10,552 --> 00:31:12,072
I think, yeah, like immigration, as you say,

410
00:31:12,132 --> 00:31:15,512
Ireland, you know, from immigrants towards even the US,

411
00:31:15,512 --> 00:31:18,232
like the amount of Irish people have gone over to the States

412
00:31:18,232 --> 00:31:19,292
over the years.

413
00:31:20,272 --> 00:31:21,832
Immigration is a thing that happens.

414
00:31:21,972 --> 00:31:22,432
It's natural.

415
00:31:22,432 --> 00:31:26,752
we integrate with different populations around the world, different cultures, societies.

416
00:31:26,752 --> 00:31:36,832
And, you know, based in Northern Ireland where we live, where I live locally here, like the positives of immigration I'm seeing within local schools.

417
00:31:36,832 --> 00:31:40,832
For instance, my kids go to a school where it's actually the same school I went to when I was young.

418
00:31:40,832 --> 00:31:46,832
And there was no other cultures, no other nationalities within my whole school at the time.

419
00:31:46,832 --> 00:31:51,672
whereas now we've got such a diverse array of different you know cultures and people and

420
00:31:51,672 --> 00:31:56,132
nationalities within the school so i think from a positive point of view putting a positive spin on

421
00:31:56,132 --> 00:32:00,872
it it's very good because it brings diversity you know open-mindedness across you know the actual

422
00:32:00,872 --> 00:32:07,352
classroom itself at the educational levels at a very young age which is great but the volume

423
00:32:07,352 --> 00:32:12,112
of immigration is is an issue and it's more it seems to be affecting more southern ireland

424
00:32:12,112 --> 00:32:17,312
obviously around you know obviously dublin conor mcgregor's talked about this he's very vocal about

425
00:32:17,312 --> 00:32:22,832
it um and again his societies of people that he would you know talk to have issues around their

426
00:32:22,832 --> 00:32:28,352
local areas and that's understandable because of as chris says the volume um but again it's trying

427
00:32:28,352 --> 00:32:32,992
to again go down that rabbit hole and dig down into the the weeds of like what is the core root

428
00:32:32,992 --> 00:32:37,792
of of the cause of immigration why is this happening and you can go deep down that rabbit

429
00:32:37,792 --> 00:32:42,272
hole and you know bring it back to the fact of you know say the proof of weapons the fiat kind

430
00:32:42,272 --> 00:32:47,712
of war system the military industrial complex that's caused issues and disturbed different

431
00:32:47,712 --> 00:32:52,272
regions of the globe and in the global south people are having to emigrate because you know

432
00:32:52,272 --> 00:32:56,352
they fear for their lives their families so they want to go somewhere where they're going to survive

433
00:32:56,352 --> 00:33:01,632
and live so you know there's something that's driving these people to come um but there's also

434
00:33:01,632 --> 00:33:07,152
potential other options and issues around you know factors why is this happening and why is it being

435
00:33:07,152 --> 00:33:12,672
let happen um the uk is a massive problem as well um there's people out in the streets rioting

436
00:33:12,672 --> 00:33:19,072
protesting um but i think it is you hear a lot of the stuff and again as a bitcoiner stuff you hear

437
00:33:19,072 --> 00:33:24,032
from the mainstream media as well it seems to trigger people you know people read the headlines

438
00:33:24,032 --> 00:33:28,992
they come up with a reason because reason behind why this this is happening why there's so many

439
00:33:28,992 --> 00:33:33,312
immigrants coming into the different areas in the country and they'll get riled up by that they'll

440
00:33:33,312 --> 00:33:36,152
They'll get really passionate about standing up for their own country.

441
00:33:36,352 --> 00:33:38,332
And that's understandable.

442
00:33:39,112 --> 00:33:43,732
But you really have to kind of really break down and go into the weeds of why is this happening?

443
00:33:43,852 --> 00:33:45,492
What are the main reasons of that?

444
00:33:45,772 --> 00:33:46,372
And that's tricky.

445
00:33:46,692 --> 00:33:48,172
Like that is a minefield in a way.

446
00:33:48,532 --> 00:33:51,992
You're having to really pick through a lot of different factors and issues there.

447
00:33:51,992 --> 00:33:53,612
But it is a problem.

448
00:33:54,172 --> 00:34:01,752
And from a sort of civil unrest societal point of view in a localized area, especially in Ireland, different pockets and different villages,

449
00:34:01,752 --> 00:34:07,452
that can cause a lot of problems um groups factions can form groups can form and it can

450
00:34:07,452 --> 00:34:11,972
cause a lot of civil unrest and i think we have been seeing that to the extent how that develops

451
00:34:11,972 --> 00:34:18,352
and what the actual government will do um it's hard to know but again people have different

452
00:34:18,352 --> 00:34:22,792
opinions on on connor and you know what is political kind of affiliations and opinions are

453
00:34:22,792 --> 00:34:27,672
but he's standing up and speaking out about this and it's a subject and a topic that you know

454
00:34:27,672 --> 00:34:30,292
really needs to have more discussion around.

455
00:34:30,292 --> 00:34:33,212
And it's like, you know, from taking history as an example,

456
00:34:33,212 --> 00:34:35,052
especially from Northern Ireland,

457
00:34:35,052 --> 00:34:48,018
you have to talk you have to sit down you have to talk There needs to be dialogue around these things People can get heated up They can get passionate about certain kind of ideologies potentially as well within local areas But people need to have a conversation

458
00:34:48,398 --> 00:34:58,838
And that's where the political side of things, the government needs to sit down with the people and have open discussions in a more decentralized way, perhaps similar to obviously what Bitcoin brings.

459
00:34:58,838 --> 00:35:13,419
I think Bitcoin is that key factor, the linchpin, we could say, that will really potentially dissolve the issues and actually bring people together more in an understanding way and more of an amicable way to resolve these issues, I suppose.

460
00:35:13,618 --> 00:35:14,578
I think that's what I'm trying to say.

461
00:35:15,498 --> 00:35:17,038
It's a complex topic, yeah.

462
00:35:17,878 --> 00:35:21,638
But to me, it's all the second or third order effects of this.

463
00:35:21,638 --> 00:35:27,398
like I'm hearing again examples and I know these are true as well that for example like again you

464
00:35:27,398 --> 00:35:34,618
always need an educated um to a certain extent uh uh society you know to thrive uh in the future

465
00:35:34,618 --> 00:35:40,138
and you want the children of your country to have a certain level of education and I know homeschooling

466
00:35:40,138 --> 00:35:46,038
is a big thing uh now as well but even that that kind of like a certain amount of time spent uh

467
00:35:46,038 --> 00:35:50,979
with someone teaching life lessons and whatever it is whatever subject it is but one of the

468
00:35:50,979 --> 00:35:56,038
challenges that I hear recently I don't know this isn't all over but as some of the

469
00:35:56,038 --> 00:36:03,258
immigration that has happened in certain areas there's non-english speaking people coming

470
00:36:03,258 --> 00:36:10,419
into the country and that slows down you know schools in terms of the people who are speaking

471
00:36:10,419 --> 00:36:15,258
English and trying to push on teachers will have to stop and slow their pace and change their pace

472
00:36:15,258 --> 00:36:20,578
and now a lot of the talk as well is you know do we need to separate these out so you're going to

473
00:36:20,578 --> 00:36:25,058
more teachers you're going to need more classroom space this is all cost as well so it's these kind

474
00:36:25,058 --> 00:36:31,058
of second and third order effects that i don't know if somebody again is like we always talk

475
00:36:31,058 --> 00:36:36,578
with this ben and but when like there's a lot of this incompetence like or is it you know it is it

476
00:36:36,578 --> 00:36:43,858
done on purpose um and that's kind of um challenge that you have but if somebody who is taking these

477
00:36:43,858 --> 00:36:50,419
actions they're not certainly at the uh will of every everyone in the country um there's a lot of

478
00:36:50,419 --> 00:36:55,258
of people against this but are they thinking about this from end to end like are they thinking about

479
00:36:55,258 --> 00:37:00,098
the full consequences of of what's happening here and how it could be so disruptive um in a country

480
00:37:00,098 --> 00:37:06,078
so that's the void like again i think you have to be selective and careful over immigration um and i

481
00:37:06,078 --> 00:37:12,858
don't think it's been handled very well at all at the moment and i like how alan you put it well

482
00:37:12,858 --> 00:37:18,419
just saying that bitcoin brings people of all sides together whether your politics are completely

483
00:37:18,419 --> 00:37:21,338
on the left or completely on the right, there's always something in it for everyone.

484
00:37:21,919 --> 00:37:27,758
By just giving what Conor called himself the people's money, bringing the people's money

485
00:37:27,758 --> 00:37:29,098
in, which gives everyone freedom.

486
00:37:29,798 --> 00:37:33,538
And even just hearing your guys' take on it, my take is very different than you guys,

487
00:37:34,018 --> 00:37:36,238
but we can all agree that Bitcoin is going to make things better.

488
00:37:36,358 --> 00:37:38,298
So it doesn't matter where you are at.

489
00:37:38,598 --> 00:37:41,518
It's just going to get rid of the centralizing power.

490
00:37:41,598 --> 00:37:48,078
And it doesn't really ultimately matter how much of a tinfoil hat you have over how intentional

491
00:37:48,078 --> 00:37:50,778
the damage is done by any of these policies.

492
00:37:51,138 --> 00:37:55,439
I think we should all just agree that there should not be this much power in a centralizing

493
00:37:55,439 --> 00:38:00,558
forces hands at the very top, just, you know, moving people and countries around like pawns

494
00:38:00,558 --> 00:38:01,238
on a chessboard.

495
00:38:01,459 --> 00:38:04,258
There should be more bottom up power.

496
00:38:04,498 --> 00:38:09,318
And I think that that's what Bitcoin really represents and why so many of us get so excited

497
00:38:09,318 --> 00:38:09,678
about it.

498
00:38:09,718 --> 00:38:14,738
And there's such a mix of different personalities and ideologies that find their way to Bitcoin,

499
00:38:14,898 --> 00:38:15,858
which is super exciting.

500
00:38:16,858 --> 00:38:31,278
Why don't we talk a little bit about something I want to just sprinkle in here, which is, like I said in the beginning, the first thing that I was thinking of when I saw Connor talking about this, which is why we really need to focus on Bitcoin here, not crypto.

501
00:38:32,098 --> 00:38:39,439
Because as soon as any large figure mentions Bitcoin, you get a flooding of the crypto people saying, oh, you should get this coin.

502
00:38:39,518 --> 00:38:40,578
Look at this coin. Look at this coin.

503
00:38:40,578 --> 00:38:48,078
and uh chris you yeah chris you are the author of why bitcoin so i think maybe you'd be the perfect

504
00:38:48,078 --> 00:38:53,118
person to kick this one off because i'm assuming by the title of that book that you understand why

505
00:38:53,118 --> 00:38:58,698
bitcoin only and not crypto so so give your case to connor and to the other people out there who

506
00:38:58,698 --> 00:39:03,439
are following connor like why we really need to focus on bitcoin here as we make these changes

507
00:39:03,439 --> 00:39:10,718
yeah and i think again a lot of it takes a bit of work to get there um first of all none of this is

508
00:39:10,718 --> 00:39:16,818
obvious at the beginning um but there's a couple of things that separate uh bitcoin from from

509
00:39:16,818 --> 00:39:22,078
everything else i think um conor mcgregor is a well-connected man but i would say if i gave him

510
00:39:22,078 --> 00:39:26,398
all the time and effort in the world to go and find the creator of uh bitcoin it's not going to

511
00:39:26,398 --> 00:39:33,178
happen but if i name any other um crypto uh that's out there and you'll be able to find a head

512
00:39:33,178 --> 00:39:36,939
at that somewhere like with with the connections that he has and the money that he has the power

513
00:39:36,939 --> 00:39:41,658
that he has he'll be able to knock on the door uh sometime and figure that out so like bitcoin and

514
00:39:41,658 --> 00:39:47,578
we talk about the immaculate conception um it has no finder it is one of the main reasons for it

515
00:39:47,578 --> 00:39:52,698
it's also a very decentralized system and the only decentralized system where the power is really in

516
00:39:52,698 --> 00:39:58,459
the hands of other people and um without getting too in the weeds satoshi nakamoto who is the

517
00:39:58,459 --> 00:40:05,018
pseudonymous creator of bitcoin um created in a certain way so that people could actually run and

518
00:40:05,018 --> 00:40:11,258
store the network and govern the network from a laptop at their home like in a very simplistic way

519
00:40:11,258 --> 00:40:19,338
and you don't need google or amazon or apple to run um run the software out of a data center which

520
00:40:19,338 --> 00:40:25,018
again can be like um having a finder the head can be chopped off that way so there's a couple of

521
00:40:25,018 --> 00:40:29,818
things there that make the protocol um unbelievably guarded and decentralized truly decentralized

522
00:40:29,818 --> 00:40:36,138
which you can't say about any other um cryptocurrency and any other cryptocurrency at all

523
00:40:36,138 --> 00:40:39,898
there's also proof of work which is if people are listening for the first time it's probably a

524
00:40:39,898 --> 00:40:46,858
different terminology uh nobody's um not many have come across before but um essentially that's uh

525
00:40:48,058 --> 00:40:52,378
you can't you can't create something out of nothing um and that's that's a fact if you

526
00:40:52,378 --> 00:40:57,098
if you were able to create something if nothing eventually it's going to be um corrupted in some

527
00:40:57,098 --> 00:41:02,618
way or you know the supply is going to get out of hand um but the way this bitcoin was designed is

528
00:41:02,618 --> 00:41:08,298
it has a cap supply and there needs to be work done to create something again all these points

529
00:41:08,298 --> 00:41:13,419
are basically leading to what what makes bitcoin um so special and there's a couple of nuanced

530
00:41:13,419 --> 00:41:18,378
things on there as well you know that i like to um you know talk about it as obviously uh the

531
00:41:18,378 --> 00:41:23,578
difficulty adjustment and things like that and the halving and the issuance schedule and supply

532
00:41:23,578 --> 00:41:28,858
and things like that but really it comes down to the principles of it being completely decentralized

533
00:41:30,618 --> 00:41:35,578
but but i think even in that i can see why people get caught up in it because we've been brought up

534
00:41:35,578 --> 00:41:42,058
in a fiat world for so long and all the other cryptocurrencies and they're talking about you

535
00:41:42,058 --> 00:41:47,338
know yield and they're talking about you know new technology and we can spin up this and we can spin

536
00:41:47,338 --> 00:41:51,818
up that and we can uh you know we have this roadmap that's going to go on for for for years

537
00:41:51,818 --> 00:41:56,058
and we're going to build up this basically centralized um application that's going to do

538
00:41:56,058 --> 00:42:00,618
everything but really that's just a company like that's just a company starting starting software

539
00:42:00,618 --> 00:42:07,258
um and building it up and if anyone understands companies again there's flaws in that system

540
00:42:07,258 --> 00:42:13,178
like once you control it once you try and change it it's going to fall over at some point so uh

541
00:42:13,178 --> 00:42:20,138
uh yeah the the main thing is the way it's set up decentralized but again i i don't sympathize

542
00:42:20,138 --> 00:42:26,138
with people who uh get into crypto but i can see why they do it at the beginning but if they're

543
00:42:26,138 --> 00:42:31,898
if you're getting into technology conversation with somebody in crypto i think you've gone too

544
00:42:31,898 --> 00:42:36,818
far like you haven't studied the principles of it and you haven't understood you know what is money

545
00:42:36,818 --> 00:42:41,078
and what is this built on and there's a whole history as well one of the main things i like

546
00:42:41,078 --> 00:42:47,718
talk about with people to try and get to understand it is bitcoin was created in 2009 2008 if you want

547
00:42:47,718 --> 00:42:53,398
to say but released in 2009 but it wasn't like it was a reactionary thing even though it came out at

548
00:42:53,398 --> 00:42:57,238
the time of the great financial crisis it wasn't a reactionary thing did you say i need to spun

549
00:42:57,238 --> 00:43:02,919
something off quickly and to solve this problem this has been in train for decades before and you

550
00:43:02,919 --> 00:43:07,238
can see that in the white paper as well you can see uh the references you know to proof of work

551
00:43:07,238 --> 00:43:13,798
and hash cache and work even back as far as I think the earliest reference on it is 1957,

552
00:43:13,798 --> 00:43:17,439
you know, for how distributed systems are going to come about.

553
00:43:17,439 --> 00:43:22,078
So this was decades, a couple of failed attempts obviously before, but it was decades in the

554
00:43:22,078 --> 00:43:23,078
making.

555
00:43:23,078 --> 00:43:25,698
It wasn't just something that some genius just spun up.

556
00:43:25,698 --> 00:43:29,618
It was taking the learnings of everyone else from decades before.

557
00:43:29,618 --> 00:43:33,298
It isn't a project that was just discovered and, you know, thought of.

558
00:43:33,298 --> 00:43:38,258
and then you know somebody like Vitalik Buterin comes along and and I think rides on the coattails

559
00:43:38,258 --> 00:43:43,218
of that and seen as a super genius whereas they basically copied a lot of the code and and created

560
00:43:43,218 --> 00:43:48,338
a centralized version of bitcoin and you know hailed as a genius but never took any of the

561
00:43:48,338 --> 00:43:52,738
principles of why it was created you know it was created to destroy central banks it wasn't created

562
00:43:52,738 --> 00:43:57,618
to be a toy you know or this virtual machine or whatever they call it it was created to solve

563
00:43:58,419 --> 00:44:02,578
not a technology problem even though it does it was to solve a fundamental money problem

564
00:44:03,298 --> 00:44:10,118
I love that. Alan, do you have anything to add there just for the Bitcoin versus crypto

565
00:44:10,118 --> 00:44:13,078
conversation? I think this is one that we can always just drill in more and more.

566
00:44:14,158 --> 00:44:19,038
Yeah, I think the key concept is like Bitcoin is, it's the first time we've had a fixed supply

567
00:44:19,038 --> 00:44:24,439
asset. We've never had this before in the history of humanity. It's a paradigm shift. It's completely

568
00:44:24,439 --> 00:44:29,318
new. People can't get their heads around it from the outset, which is why they confuse Bitcoin and

569
00:44:29,318 --> 00:44:33,618
crypto. But when you're looking at it, you just got to break it down. The current monetary system

570
00:44:33,618 --> 00:44:38,979
is a centralized system, which is basically a debt-based Ponzi scheme. So the system requires

571
00:44:38,979 --> 00:44:44,858
more debt to function, which basically means we need inflation. So without inflation, the system

572
00:44:44,858 --> 00:44:49,578
would collapse. Things are going to get more expansive in the current system. So the longer

573
00:44:49,578 --> 00:44:53,919
we go on in the system, things are going to get more and more expensive. And that's the key issues

574
00:44:53,919 --> 00:44:58,479
that we're having and experiencing at the moment is the cost of living issues. All the property

575
00:44:58,479 --> 00:45:02,778
prices are going up people can't afford housing because of the price because of the monetary units

576
00:45:02,778 --> 00:45:08,419
being created and being brought into existence out of thin air so this debt-based system it isn't

577
00:45:08,419 --> 00:45:13,778
working it's at a point of breakage effectively and then we've got bitcoin which basically is a

578
00:45:13,778 --> 00:45:20,678
decentralized global system um doesn't require an individual issuer doesn't require a company

579
00:45:20,678 --> 00:45:26,258
there's no ceo um and then you combine that with technology you've got you know productivity gains

580
00:45:26,258 --> 00:45:31,479
are increasing dramatically, which means you bring Bitcoin into the equation, it's decentralized,

581
00:45:32,078 --> 00:45:35,818
it's effectively neutralized, it's a neutral money. In fact, we've never had this neutral money

582
00:45:35,818 --> 00:45:42,378
before. So with Bitcoin and technology, things should be getting cheaper for everybody. So if

583
00:45:42,378 --> 00:45:48,058
people want to live in a society where the price of goods and services are actually falling over

584
00:45:48,058 --> 00:45:52,919
time and will continue to fall in the future, then Bitcoin is that monetary system we need to be

585
00:45:52,919 --> 00:45:55,258
And it's really as simple as that.

586
00:45:55,258 --> 00:45:57,479
It's just a completely new paradigm shift

587
00:45:57,479 --> 00:45:59,878
that we just haven't experienced.

588
00:45:59,878 --> 00:46:02,398
And it's difficult to get your head around.

589
00:46:02,398 --> 00:46:04,758
And with all the noise, again, with Emerge 21,

590
00:46:04,758 --> 00:46:07,658
what we try to do is finding the signal and the noise.

591
00:46:07,658 --> 00:46:09,018
Bitcoin is the signal.

592
00:46:09,018 --> 00:46:11,558
Focus on Bitcoin because you'll get distracted

593
00:46:11,558 --> 00:46:15,098
by all these other crypto projects in the crypto industry.

594
00:46:15,144 --> 00:46:20,744
and web three and all these other things but bitcoin is that you know ossifying base layer

595
00:46:20,744 --> 00:46:27,704
of money which the the global monetary system needs right now um and it it takes away that that

596
00:46:27,704 --> 00:46:32,664
fiat that base ponzi scheme that you know as bitcoiners we know is is causing all sorts of

597
00:46:32,664 --> 00:46:37,224
problems obviously within the monetary system but you know into society into food into

598
00:46:37,944 --> 00:46:41,384
healthcare that you know you could go down a lot of different rabbit holes there but

599
00:46:41,384 --> 00:46:50,224
But yeah, I think that's a key message that I would probably push towards, especially towards Conor McGregor as well, in that really understand the difference.

600
00:46:50,424 --> 00:46:51,724
Like you have to focus.

601
00:46:51,724 --> 00:47:00,804
If you're trying to make change, real, real change within a nation state, like within Ireland, with a Bitcoin strategic reserve, it's Bitcoin only.

602
00:47:01,344 --> 00:47:09,904
Do not go and pay any attention to all the other crypto stuff because you're going to get burned or other people will get burned along that path.

603
00:47:09,904 --> 00:47:15,064
and so many of us have to take that route i mean the vast majority of us have been through the

604
00:47:15,064 --> 00:47:20,124
crypto phase which is why you know we have to have some grace with people who are new because

605
00:47:20,124 --> 00:47:25,744
i spent three years doing a crypto blog you know i was researching all these different altcoins how

606
00:47:25,744 --> 00:47:31,384
they're going to fix all these problems and what ultimately came down for me was just like you

607
00:47:31,384 --> 00:47:36,784
mentioned earlier you need to know the fundamentals of money before you even go there so i so many of

608
00:47:36,784 --> 00:47:41,504
always recommend the bitcoin standard and we got your book now why bitcoin there's so many people

609
00:47:41,504 --> 00:47:46,224
creating this educational content that's out there for folks to consume i think it's so important for

610
00:47:46,224 --> 00:47:52,464
people to look at these resources before you following people on the internet because there's

611
00:47:52,464 --> 00:47:58,384
a lot of different directions that will take you and most of them are not to your best interest or

612
00:47:58,384 --> 00:48:03,584
the interest of your wallets or your time yeah i think but that is true it's getting people to get

613
00:48:03,584 --> 00:48:06,964
Pointing them to the correct resources to like, you know, justify.

614
00:48:07,144 --> 00:48:12,124
You have to follow this path, understand the problem, what money is, and then realize what Bitcoin is.

615
00:48:12,344 --> 00:48:17,404
But you can, you know, yeah, you can miss a few steps there and be taken completely the wrong way.

616
00:48:18,004 --> 00:48:27,364
So it's a very, you know, you have to be very strategic and be very kind of assured of where you're going and where you're getting your information in the current state of things.

617
00:48:28,864 --> 00:48:29,264
Absolutely.

618
00:48:30,064 --> 00:48:32,904
So, gentlemen, I know it's quite late for you guys over there.

619
00:48:32,904 --> 00:48:34,764
your time, I want to make sure I respect it.

620
00:48:34,764 --> 00:48:39,944
So why don't we wrap things up here with an elevator pitch from either of you?

621
00:48:39,944 --> 00:48:52,158
And actually let do this Since Carter talking about doing this Twitter space about Bitcoin let assume you guys both get up there to talk What is your message going to be to the people of the world who are listening

622
00:48:52,598 --> 00:48:55,078
How Bitcoin fixes Ireland? Give us a spiel.

623
00:48:55,818 --> 00:48:57,238
This is your warm-up for when he does this.

624
00:48:59,378 --> 00:49:00,578
Do you want to go first, Alan?

625
00:49:00,978 --> 00:49:01,878
I think you should go.

626
00:49:01,878 --> 00:49:02,998
My voice is a bit creepy.

627
00:49:05,118 --> 00:49:05,598
Yeah.

628
00:49:05,598 --> 00:49:12,038
So I think people understand now that there's something not right in the world.

629
00:49:12,118 --> 00:49:15,958
And I think many people are reaching this conclusion, but they can't quite put their finger on it.

630
00:49:16,638 --> 00:49:19,658
I think it is worthwhile studying the history of money.

631
00:49:20,018 --> 00:49:24,778
Now, again, when I say studying, you don't need to put in thousands of hours and read every single book.

632
00:49:24,778 --> 00:49:28,058
There's a bit of common sense in this and how things operate at the moment.

633
00:49:28,438 --> 00:49:30,378
We do have central banks 100 years ago.

634
00:49:30,618 --> 00:49:34,538
Well, maybe 100 odd years ago, we didn't have central banks everywhere.

635
00:49:34,538 --> 00:49:40,938
now albeit again studying the history you have uh i think back as far as 1100s there's some central

636
00:49:40,938 --> 00:49:46,458
bank in china but this system isn't working it isn't solving problems for people and if anything

637
00:49:46,458 --> 00:49:53,178
look at directories um around the world um you can say alan pointed out earlier technology is

638
00:49:53,178 --> 00:49:59,418
getting better technology should be making life better and i think people get distracted by

639
00:49:59,418 --> 00:50:05,898
thinking that because we have more stuff in the world that things are better but what we don't have

640
00:50:05,898 --> 00:50:13,098
is more freedom and more ability to have free time i think if you look at uh obviously declining

641
00:50:13,098 --> 00:50:18,458
birth rates at the moment we're going to have to work harder and work more to get the same as what

642
00:50:18,458 --> 00:50:26,458
we got before that's a flawed system i think we can't retire as early as we used to i think people

643
00:50:26,458 --> 00:50:34,778
are working extremely long hours long weeks long years long decades now so all this is broke and

644
00:50:34,778 --> 00:50:38,778
people are pointing their fingers at different people you know individuals governments and things

645
00:50:38,778 --> 00:50:43,418
like that but if every government and every individual like they're pointing at the fingers

646
00:50:43,418 --> 00:50:51,018
at companies as well um but this isn't the core problem the core problem is that the money system

647
00:50:51,018 --> 00:50:57,018
is broke do the research look at why the money system is broke and do that fundamental research

648
00:50:57,018 --> 00:51:00,778
first of all then move on to bitcoin and understand why bitcoin is so special

649
00:51:02,698 --> 00:51:09,818
yeah yeah well said i think yeah it is i think my my message would be you know we currently live

650
00:51:10,538 --> 00:51:24,372
in a system of extraction when you break it down with inflation the debt money system with taxes as well That another topic of content to talk around as well But we live in a system of extraction and the longer it goes on

651
00:51:24,472 --> 00:51:26,372
the worse things will get effectively for people.

652
00:51:26,372 --> 00:51:28,592
Whereas we've got this thing now, which, as you say,

653
00:51:28,652 --> 00:51:31,712
Bitcoin is a decentralized open source network.

654
00:51:31,872 --> 00:51:35,112
It's effectively a ledger for money that isn't controlled

655
00:51:35,112 --> 00:51:37,392
or manipulated by any centralized entity.

656
00:51:37,652 --> 00:51:39,552
So you take humans out of the equation,

657
00:51:40,152 --> 00:51:42,092
and instead of relying on a centralized system,

658
00:51:42,092 --> 00:51:47,012
And that's really manipulated by only a few people, a few individuals and entities and institutions.

659
00:51:47,872 --> 00:51:58,992
And if you want your life to be better in the future for your kids, for your grandkids, you know, pay attention to what's happening and focus in on learning about what the problem is.

660
00:51:58,992 --> 00:52:06,472
Because it is quite simple. The money system is simply broken and that's affecting all parts and aspects of society and life at the moment.

661
00:52:07,112 --> 00:52:08,872
That's why the cost of living is so high.

662
00:52:08,872 --> 00:52:11,392
we now have this thing called Bitcoin

663
00:52:11,392 --> 00:52:13,672
which is a decentralized monetary network

664
00:52:13,672 --> 00:52:16,172
and it's open for everyone

665
00:52:16,172 --> 00:52:18,232
and if Connor is coming along

666
00:52:18,232 --> 00:52:20,252
and he's wanting to give power back to the people

667
00:52:20,252 --> 00:52:22,252
there's no better tool to do that

668
00:52:22,252 --> 00:52:24,212
Bitcoin is that one tool

669
00:52:24,212 --> 00:52:26,652
that individuals can take and own

670
00:52:26,652 --> 00:52:28,192
it's money you can own

671
00:52:28,192 --> 00:52:29,412
money you control yourself

672
00:52:29,412 --> 00:52:32,812
you're not giving your money over to a central entity

673
00:52:32,812 --> 00:52:35,392
a bank where you actually don't own your money anymore

674
00:52:35,392 --> 00:52:37,192
you can take full ownership of that money

675
00:52:37,192 --> 00:52:38,672
and decide what you want to do with that

676
00:52:38,672 --> 00:52:40,772
and you can go anywhere with that.

677
00:52:41,432 --> 00:52:43,452
People have never had that level of freedom before.

678
00:52:43,552 --> 00:52:44,712
And when people understand that,

679
00:52:45,032 --> 00:52:47,372
you don't have to wait to be told what to do

680
00:52:47,372 --> 00:52:51,812
by your government, by an entity, a bank and institution.

681
00:52:52,192 --> 00:52:54,112
You can simply make your decisions yourself,

682
00:52:54,672 --> 00:52:57,372
live more free and really set up

683
00:52:57,372 --> 00:53:00,132
a more stable financial future for yourself and your family.

684
00:53:00,832 --> 00:53:05,132
And that will help a lot of other aspects of society as well.

685
00:53:05,132 --> 00:53:07,492
So yeah, it's just understanding the difference

686
00:53:07,492 --> 00:53:09,452
between what's happening with the centralized system.

687
00:53:09,872 --> 00:53:12,692
You've now got a decentralized system in Bitcoin.

688
00:53:13,132 --> 00:53:14,852
And when you bring that into the monetary system,

689
00:53:15,052 --> 00:53:16,852
it changes the game for everything.

690
00:53:17,172 --> 00:53:20,232
So I think that's my kind of more kind of high level,

691
00:53:20,232 --> 00:53:23,952
but kind of more basic view of what the message I would give

692
00:53:23,952 --> 00:53:25,892
in that space would be.

693
00:53:27,732 --> 00:53:28,532
Beautifully said.

694
00:53:28,672 --> 00:53:30,492
I love it and agree with all of that.

695
00:53:30,672 --> 00:53:33,292
And no matter how many different places I travel to,

696
00:53:33,392 --> 00:53:35,772
which I've been to a lot, I'm in Costa Rica right now,

697
00:53:36,032 --> 00:53:37,632
which is why my Wi-Fi sucks earlier.

698
00:53:38,152 --> 00:53:39,772
I'm just out in the middle of the jungle right now.

699
00:53:40,332 --> 00:53:42,492
Everywhere I go, it's a similar message

700
00:53:42,492 --> 00:53:54,266
that people just need more freedom And that will fix a lot of the problems we talk about including financial freedom away from the fiat system where a select few get to print their own money

701
00:53:54,266 --> 00:53:56,926
and steal the purchasing power from everyone else

702
00:53:56,926 --> 00:53:58,166
by diluting their currency.

703
00:53:58,846 --> 00:54:00,666
And I think that in a nutshell is for me

704
00:54:00,666 --> 00:54:03,786
why Bitcoin fixes so many things out there.

705
00:54:03,786 --> 00:54:05,446
Because once you give the people

706
00:54:05,446 --> 00:54:08,386
more ability to save for the future,

707
00:54:08,506 --> 00:54:10,806
they're able to think longer term.

708
00:54:10,806 --> 00:54:12,706
And these problems like real estate,

709
00:54:12,706 --> 00:54:14,986
we talked about will organically melt away.

710
00:54:15,626 --> 00:54:19,026
And so this is why us Bitcoiners get passionate about really saying,

711
00:54:19,166 --> 00:54:21,246
like, you know, Bitcoin truly fixes so much.

712
00:54:21,306 --> 00:54:24,306
We have to focus on this, stay laser focused.

713
00:54:24,446 --> 00:54:26,706
We see all the laser eyes on Twitter talk about.

714
00:54:27,406 --> 00:54:29,226
And it's really exciting times.

715
00:54:29,226 --> 00:54:31,206
And no matter what next steps happen here,

716
00:54:31,206 --> 00:54:34,386
this is super exciting to see someone with such a big platform

717
00:54:34,386 --> 00:54:35,886
bring it onto more people's radar.

718
00:54:36,146 --> 00:54:38,866
So the great awakening will continue.

719
00:54:39,286 --> 00:54:40,266
Love to see it.

720
00:54:40,666 --> 00:54:42,466
All right, Jens, where can people follow you?

721
00:54:42,706 --> 00:54:45,346
and stay in touch with all the work that you're doing.

722
00:54:47,126 --> 00:54:49,906
Yeah, well, mainly on X,

723
00:54:50,246 --> 00:54:52,566
we do have an Instagram account for the company as well.

724
00:54:52,846 --> 00:54:57,206
But yeah, chrismac__l is my Twitter handle,

725
00:54:57,406 --> 00:54:59,106
but emerge21 is our company.

726
00:54:59,606 --> 00:55:03,146
So we've got emerge__21 as the handle as well.

727
00:55:03,706 --> 00:55:05,566
Me and Alan both run that actively

728
00:55:05,566 --> 00:55:08,086
and do podcasts from that

729
00:55:08,086 --> 00:55:09,526
and push out a lot of free content.

730
00:55:09,526 --> 00:55:11,826
Obviously, we've got a consultancy business as well,

731
00:55:11,826 --> 00:55:16,006
which, Connor, if you're listening, you can tap us up and we'll have a conversation.

732
00:55:17,026 --> 00:55:18,246
Yeah, that's our main context.

733
00:55:18,666 --> 00:55:19,826
I have to scold you.

734
00:55:19,906 --> 00:55:21,446
I just looked up on Nostra.

735
00:55:21,526 --> 00:55:24,646
There is an Emerge 21 account, but there hasn't been a post in six months.

736
00:55:24,966 --> 00:55:27,306
Yeah, it is disgraceful, yeah.

737
00:55:28,306 --> 00:55:29,186
I'm on Nostra.

738
00:55:29,246 --> 00:55:31,086
Again, probably don't check my one either.

739
00:55:31,486 --> 00:55:32,346
I'm on Nostra.

740
00:55:32,486 --> 00:55:35,206
I think I'm the Bitcoin optometrist on Nostra.

741
00:55:36,186 --> 00:55:39,526
I'm Hodlei on Axe, H-O-D-L-E-Y-E.

742
00:55:39,526 --> 00:55:42,206
and those are the two main places.

743
00:55:42,326 --> 00:55:44,866
I'm also on Instagram, Facebook just as Alan Brydon.

744
00:55:45,106 --> 00:55:46,486
You'll probably find me there somewhere,

745
00:55:46,626 --> 00:55:48,226
but yeah, that's the main ones.

746
00:55:49,866 --> 00:55:50,306
Fantastic.

747
00:55:50,546 --> 00:55:53,506
Well, Chris McLaughlin and Alan Brydon,

748
00:55:53,646 --> 00:55:56,646
gentlemen, it's been a pleasure pulling this together.

749
00:55:56,786 --> 00:55:57,806
It's a little bit of a hectic one,

750
00:55:57,866 --> 00:55:59,186
but that's what we like to do sometimes.

751
00:55:59,286 --> 00:56:01,106
We've got to talk about the current events

752
00:56:01,106 --> 00:56:03,906
and there's exciting times happening over there in Ireland,

753
00:56:04,026 --> 00:56:06,046
so I'm super happy for you guys, all that you're doing.

754
00:56:06,186 --> 00:56:08,526
Congrats on the boost you got this morning

755
00:56:08,526 --> 00:56:11,886
and look forward to keeping in touch and continuing to build on his energy.

756
00:56:12,686 --> 00:56:15,006
Yeah, I appreciate you having us on as well.

757
00:56:15,566 --> 00:56:17,466
Yeah, thanks, Ben. Fantastic. I had a great time.