1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,000 Greetings and salutations my fellow plebs. My name is Walker and this is the Bitcoin podcast. 2 00:00:06,000 --> 00:00:15,440 It's Wednesday, October 18th, 2023. The Bitcoin block height is 812800 and the value of one 3 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:21,560 Bitcoin is still one Bitcoin. Today's episode is the Bitcoin news roundup. I'm going to cover 4 00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:26,560 a couple of big stories, run through some rapid fire news, then zoom out and give you 5 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:32,040 some perspective. You can find all the links and accounts mentioned in this episode via the 6 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:38,080 article version of the show linked in the show notes or by going to Bitcoinpodcast.net slash 7 00:00:38,080 --> 00:00:44,920 words. And of course you can always watch the Bitcoin podcast on rumble or YouTube or listen 8 00:00:44,920 --> 00:00:51,280 on fountain.fm or wherever you get your podcasts. If you listen to the Bitcoin podcast on fountain, 9 00:00:51,280 --> 00:00:56,400 consider giving the show a boost or creating a clip of something you found interesting. For 10 00:00:56,400 --> 00:01:01,680 those that have boosted the show already or zapped me on Noster, thank you. And if you haven't 11 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:06,640 checked out fountain yet, I highly recommend it. You can send Bitcoin to your favorite podcasters 12 00:01:06,640 --> 00:01:12,400 and also earn Bitcoin just for listening. Without further ado, let's get into the Bitcoin news 13 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:13,020 roundup. 14 00:01:13,020 --> 00:01:27,560 Geriatric Warhawks. In a recent interview with Sky News, US Treasury Secretary Janet 15 00:01:27,560 --> 00:01:33,880 Yellen was asked about America's ability to afford to support wars on two fronts with 16 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:41,080 Russia and Ukraine on the one hand and Israel and Hamas on the other. Here's what she said. 17 00:01:41,080 --> 00:01:45,140 Paul Tudor Jones, the famed investor, was on CNBC this week and he said, this is the 18 00:01:45,140 --> 00:01:49,540 most threatening and challenging geopolitical environment that I've ever seen. At the same 19 00:01:49,540 --> 00:01:57,580 time, the US is in its weakest fiscal position since World War II, with debt to GDP at 122%. 20 00:01:57,580 --> 00:02:01,620 Can America, can the West afford another war at this time? 21 00:02:01,620 --> 00:02:09,220 I think the answer is absolutely. America can certainly afford to stand with Israel 22 00:02:09,220 --> 00:02:17,700 and to support Israel's military needs. And we also can and must support Ukraine in its 23 00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:25,140 struggle against Russia. And look, the American economy is doing extremely well. 24 00:02:25,140 --> 00:02:30,500 This is a strange thing to say, because we can't even afford to support our veterans 25 00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:35,820 here at home. Actually, we can afford to. We just apparently prioritize funding for 26 00:02:35,820 --> 00:02:40,780 ever wars on foreign soil to keep the military industrial complex fat and happy instead of 27 00:02:40,780 --> 00:02:44,540 taking care of the men and women who actually serve our country. 28 00:02:44,540 --> 00:02:50,340 Also this week, our octogenarian in chief, Joseph Robinette Biden, yes, that is his real 29 00:02:50,340 --> 00:02:55,780 middle name, look it up, made a statement on 60 minutes that would honestly seem like 30 00:02:55,780 --> 00:03:00,860 an AI deepfake if the president hadn't posted it on X himself. 31 00:03:00,860 --> 00:03:05,900 Where the war is in Israel and Ukraine more than the United States can take on at the 32 00:03:05,900 --> 00:03:09,380 same time. Where the United States of America, God's 33 00:03:09,380 --> 00:03:16,740 sake, the most powerful nation in the history of the world, and the history of the world, 34 00:03:16,740 --> 00:03:21,180 we can take care of both of these and still maintain our overall international defense. 35 00:03:21,180 --> 00:03:26,500 I don't know about you, but I'm getting some serious late stage Roman Empire vibes from 36 00:03:26,500 --> 00:03:33,340 Biden. Moreover, this statement clearly shows Biden's dementia is in full force, because 37 00:03:33,340 --> 00:03:38,900 he seems to have forgotten how our involvement in and withdrawal from Afghanistan turned 38 00:03:38,900 --> 00:03:47,220 out. IE with $83 billion spent and around $7 billion worth of weapons and military equipment 39 00:03:47,220 --> 00:03:54,220 left in the hands of the Taliban. We've already sent roughly $76.8 billion to Ukraine, and 40 00:03:54,220 --> 00:03:59,380 I'm sure many more billions will start flowing into the Middle East again shortly. Meanwhile, 41 00:03:59,380 --> 00:04:08,420 the US public debt is $33.5 trillion and growing. Debt to GDP is at 120%, and the purchasing 42 00:04:08,420 --> 00:04:16,100 power of the US dollar has never been lower. But fear not, because according to Paul Krugman, 43 00:04:16,100 --> 00:04:20,460 the fight against inflation is over, mission accomplished, as long as you don't count 44 00:04:20,460 --> 00:04:27,580 unimportant things like food, energy, housing, or used cars. Who needs them anyway? So what 45 00:04:27,580 --> 00:04:33,260 can you do to protect yourself from these geriatric war hawks, central bankers and fiat 46 00:04:33,260 --> 00:04:41,260 economists' chills? Study Bitcoin. Save in Bitcoin. Teach other people about Bitcoin. 47 00:04:41,260 --> 00:04:49,420 Vote with your money and opt out of their system. 48 00:04:49,420 --> 00:04:55,380 Breaking Bitcoin ETF News If you thought this section was actually going 49 00:04:55,380 --> 00:05:00,700 to give you some breaking Bitcoin ETF news, I'm sorry to disappoint. I don't know about 50 00:05:00,700 --> 00:05:05,500 you, but I am sick and tired of hearing about the Bitcoin ETF, about the delays, about the 51 00:05:05,500 --> 00:05:11,300 new filings. There's just so much engagement. Clickbait out there, and very little actual 52 00:05:11,300 --> 00:05:17,140 substance. We even saw a coin telegraph share fake news about a Bitcoin ETF approval, and 53 00:05:17,140 --> 00:05:21,420 many people jump on the bandwagon sharing the fake story, but hey, at least they got 54 00:05:21,420 --> 00:05:27,300 clicks and maybe some of that X advertising revenue, right? Yes, bags will be pumped when 55 00:05:27,300 --> 00:05:32,980 the ETF is approved. And yes, it's a matter of when and not if. And yes, everyone will 56 00:05:32,980 --> 00:05:38,300 continue engagement farming with speculation about the ETF. And yes, it will continue to 57 00:05:38,300 --> 00:05:43,220 be annoying and there will be more fake news. So instead of running through the same shit 58 00:05:43,220 --> 00:05:49,100 you've heard on repeat on X, I'll share with you a quote from my recent Bitcoin talk with 59 00:05:49,100 --> 00:05:50,980 BTC sessions. 60 00:05:50,980 --> 00:05:57,900 If top down was all that mattered, top down would have already given us Bitcoin. We needed 61 00:05:57,900 --> 00:06:05,260 ground up for Bitcoin to even have a chance at existing. No top down system would have 62 00:06:05,260 --> 00:06:11,780 said, you know, it's a good idea. Taking away all our power. It's a great idea. Let's build 63 00:06:11,780 --> 00:06:19,460 that thing. It's not just that it's nice to have it's that you need you need bottom up. 64 00:06:19,460 --> 00:06:25,500 I'm not saying that top down can't exist. I'm not saying that top down isn't going to 65 00:06:25,500 --> 00:06:32,140 pump a bunch of bags, because it probably will right like that's but but that that's 66 00:06:32,140 --> 00:06:38,500 not that's not the thing that changes lives. That's not the thing that changes the world. 67 00:06:38,500 --> 00:06:47,140 Right. It's the bottom up that changes the world when when you go and you see places 68 00:06:47,140 --> 00:06:56,460 where people have had their their livelihoods and their life savings destroyed by fiat central 69 00:06:56,460 --> 00:07:06,100 bankers by by the currency devaluation by mandated or or official exchange rates and 70 00:07:06,100 --> 00:07:12,980 all these all these predatory things that happen to everyone but you know with the dial 71 00:07:12,980 --> 00:07:20,140 cranked to 11 in many countries. The only thing that solves that is bottom up is individuals 72 00:07:20,140 --> 00:07:28,340 saying I am opting out and I'm opting into a system where this cannot happen. Thank you 73 00:07:28,340 --> 00:07:35,100 to BTC sessions for putting things in perspective and reminding us all that bottom up adoption 74 00:07:35,100 --> 00:07:48,540 is why we're all here in the first place. Now for some rapid fire news. Black Rock CEO 75 00:07:48,540 --> 00:07:55,100 Larry Fink calls Bitcoin a flight to quality. Technically he said crypto but as Brad Mills 76 00:07:55,100 --> 00:08:00,740 pointed out he's publicly stated on TV that he can't say Bitcoin. So when he says crypto 77 00:08:00,740 --> 00:08:08,100 he means Bitcoin and I'm sorry to disappoint the altcoin shills out there via BTC times. 78 00:08:08,100 --> 00:08:12,420 Blockstream unveils green light to enable scalable and non custodial lighting network 79 00:08:12,420 --> 00:08:17,940 integration and via blockstream themselves in the spirit of Bitcoin and to encourage 80 00:08:17,940 --> 00:08:23,060 the growth of the non custodial lighting options. We are offering a free green light 81 00:08:23,060 --> 00:08:29,020 plan designed to empower small businesses. The plan allows developers to deploy up to 82 00:08:29,020 --> 00:08:38,220 1000 on demand nodes via BTC times. Thunder has introduced clinch an API aimed at facilitating 83 00:08:38,220 --> 00:08:43,580 instant cross border low cost peer to peer betting using the Bitcoin lightning network 84 00:08:43,580 --> 00:08:51,060 setting their sites on the $95 billion gambling industry via GG on Noster. OpenSats announces 85 00:08:51,060 --> 00:08:57,380 its third wave of Noster grants. We are happy to announce 12 grants for open source projects 86 00:08:57,380 --> 00:09:03,100 in the Noster ecosystem. Adding to the 16 grants announced in July plus the three grants 87 00:09:03,100 --> 00:09:08,740 announced in August. The total number of Noster projects funded by OpenSats as of October 88 00:09:08,740 --> 00:09:16,900 is 31 via BTC times. Madeira and president launches Bitcoin business hub to spur innovation 89 00:09:16,900 --> 00:09:26,500 and via documenting Bitcoin. New record Bitcoin hash rate of 440 sex trillion hashes per second. 90 00:09:26,500 --> 00:09:37,900 Nice. To wrap up today's show, let's zoom out. If you've been following Bitcoin and 91 00:09:37,900 --> 00:09:44,700 global politics, then you've certainly heard of Javier Malay, the pro Bitcoin anti central 92 00:09:44,700 --> 00:09:49,660 bank presidential candidate in Argentina. Argentina's presidential election is coming 93 00:09:49,660 --> 00:09:56,460 up fast on October 22. Ahead of the election, Argentina's minister of economy Sergio Massa 94 00:09:56,460 --> 00:10:02,420 who is also running for president and lagging behind Malay in the polls confirmed that Argentina 95 00:10:02,420 --> 00:10:08,620 will completely eliminate income tax. Now, while this might sound great at first glance, 96 00:10:08,620 --> 00:10:16,020 I mean, who likes paying taxes, right? A discerning individual will quickly realize what this means. 97 00:10:16,020 --> 00:10:22,260 This is the government blatantly admitting that they do not need to tax your income because 98 00:10:22,260 --> 00:10:27,620 they can just print money out of thin air. Unfortunately, financing government spending 99 00:10:27,620 --> 00:10:33,740 with the old money printer instead of through taxation in a balanced budget has consequences. 100 00:10:33,740 --> 00:10:40,140 And in Argentina, those money printers are sure working overtime. The September inflation 101 00:10:40,140 --> 00:10:47,420 came in an almost 140% year over year. This is a great example of something we bit coiners 102 00:10:47,420 --> 00:10:55,060 talk about all the time. Inflation is a silent tax. Even worse, it's a tax whose rate can 103 00:10:55,060 --> 00:11:00,140 be arbitrarily changed at the drop of a hat. And when people start to complain about prices 104 00:11:00,140 --> 00:11:04,660 increasing everywhere, the government can conveniently blame greedy corporations or 105 00:11:04,660 --> 00:11:10,900 certain people not paying their fair share or Putin or literally anything else. But what 106 00:11:10,900 --> 00:11:17,380 they will never do is admit that inflating the money supply is the root of the problem. 107 00:11:17,380 --> 00:11:23,320 Worse still, inflation is a silent tax that hurts the poor and middle class the most while 108 00:11:23,320 --> 00:11:29,300 benefiting the already rich who are in closest proximity to the creation of new money. It's 109 00:11:29,300 --> 00:11:34,780 as simple as this. When the government and central bank increase the quantity of money 110 00:11:34,780 --> 00:11:40,860 from nothing, the purchasing power of the money you hold decreases. If you're new to 111 00:11:40,860 --> 00:11:46,060 the Bitcoin space and this sounds confusing to you, fear not, I've done several episodes 112 00:11:46,060 --> 00:11:52,900 and read covering inflation. To paraphrase Jeff Booth, abundance in money creates scarcity 113 00:11:52,900 --> 00:11:59,420 everywhere else. Scarcity in money creates abundance everywhere else. And here's the 114 00:11:59,420 --> 00:12:06,420 point. Politicians in Argentina, the US, Canada, Europe, and everywhere in the world 115 00:12:06,420 --> 00:12:12,620 will do anything in their power to stay in power. They'll make changes they claim are 116 00:12:12,620 --> 00:12:16,980 good for you, say they're lending you a helping hand, unlike that other guy who's just some 117 00:12:16,980 --> 00:12:24,020 kooky libertarian conspiracy theorist nut. And ultimately they sacrifice future prosperity 118 00:12:24,020 --> 00:12:30,340 for a politically convenient short term solution that is not a solution at all, but rather 119 00:12:30,340 --> 00:12:37,780 the cause of more problems. Jimmy Song summed up the situation in Argentina well. So Argentina 120 00:12:37,780 --> 00:12:42,420 has abolished the income tax ahead of its presidential election in a last ditch attempt 121 00:12:42,420 --> 00:12:48,220 to defeat the libertarian candidate who's leading in the polls. This proves, one, they're 122 00:12:48,220 --> 00:12:54,380 granting money. They really don't need to tax you explicitly. Two, that inflation itself 123 00:12:54,380 --> 00:13:00,500 is a stealth tax that can be imposed without any legislation or transparency. The mechanics 124 00:13:00,500 --> 00:13:07,260 of money are going to become way more obvious to people going forward. So my fellow plebs, 125 00:13:07,260 --> 00:13:12,420 I hope you're awake. I hope you're paying attention. I hope you're ready and willing 126 00:13:12,420 --> 00:13:17,900 to call out the monetary idiocracy, becoming ever more prevalent in our societies and our 127 00:13:17,900 --> 00:13:23,700 politics. But that's also a tale as old as time. As more and more people wake up to the 128 00:13:23,700 --> 00:13:29,380 realization that our money is broken, they're going to look for answers. And for those of 129 00:13:29,380 --> 00:13:35,700 us who already understand that Bitcoin is the answer, we need to keep educating informing 130 00:13:35,700 --> 00:13:45,580 and helping those who are blind to see the power of sound money. And that's a wrap on 131 00:13:45,580 --> 00:13:51,420 this week's Bitcoin news roundup. If you are a Bitcoin only company interested in sponsoring 132 00:13:51,420 --> 00:13:58,220 the Bitcoin podcast, head to BitcoinPodcast.net or send me a DM on social media. You can find 133 00:13:58,220 --> 00:14:03,220 me on noster by going to primal.net slash Walker. If you want to follow the Bitcoin 134 00:14:03,220 --> 00:14:09,860 podcast on Twitter, go to at TIT coin podcast and at Walker America. You can also find the 135 00:14:09,860 --> 00:14:16,460 video version of this podcast at youtube.com slash at Walker America and at Walker America 136 00:14:16,460 --> 00:14:23,580 on rumble. Bitcoin is scarce. There will only ever be 21 million, but Bitcoin podcasts are 137 00:14:23,580 --> 00:14:31,460 abundant. So thank you for spending your scarce time to listen to another fucking Bitcoin podcast. 138 00:14:31,460 --> 00:14:43,220 Until next time, stay free.