Justin Rezvani is the founder and CEO of Zion. In this interview, we discuss completing Ironman, his near-death experience, recovery and perspectives, and motivations for building a new business. Justin explains his vision to enable creators to own distribution and the future of social media.

- - - -

Not many of us walk through life thinking any day could be our last. But most live as though we have unlimited tomorrows. We leave dreams unfulfilled, arguments unresolved, our attention diverted to the wrong priorities. For those who experience death, but live to tell the tale, it is a pivotal event that leads to a refocused life.

And for those who do get a second chance, they tend to grab opportunities as they arise. Justin came through a near-death experience and traumatic rehabilitation. Once recovered he seized the chance to use Bitcoin to remake social media. Better for creators, and users. Better for the curation and protection of online discussion. Better for the development of communities.

The issues with current centralised platforms are obvious to all at the moment. Business models are incentivised to capture attention, not to nurture civil debate. The digital town square has turned into a digital bear bit. And yet censorship has turned into a blunt instrument open to abuse. The rule book needs rewriting.

Bitcoin, decentralised identification and other technology offer an opportunity to provide creators ownership of the distribution. Communities will no longer be tied to a platform. There will always be aggregators of content, but creators and their audience will now have the flexibility to move across a decentralised internet if and when they choose or require.

“I don’t think it’s going to work, I’m sure it’s going to work. Because the fundamentals are there. We can have some bumps in the road like everything… but, the fundamentals are the same. And it’s going to work because the philosophy of it is right. Just give it time. It’s going to work for El Salvador, it’s going to work for Bitcoin, it’s going to work for the world.”
— Nayib Bukele

The full interview with President Nayib Bukele, undertaken days after the Bitcoin Law became effective on September 7th 2021, sections of which were included in my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. In this interview, we discuss motivation, opposition and legacy. 

- - - - 

A few days following Bitcoin being given legal status, I was granted an exclusive access interview with President Bukele for the purposes of my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. Following the release of the film, it is time to publish the full interview. 

It has been over 8 months since El Salvador became the first country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender. A lot has been written about El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law, and a lot has happened since. But what was it like to be at the centre of this unprecedented event? An event that could change not just El Salvador’s future, but also Bitcoin’s and the rest of the world. 

The discussion covers President Bukele’s enthusiasm for what Bitcoin can do for his country and his people; the incredible timescale within which the law was passed (it was a mere 3 months from being enacted to becoming law); the strategy behind the country’s purchases of Bitcoin; internal and external opposition; and the plan behind the articles of the Bitcoin Law. 

As background noise to all these changes is vocal concerns about authoritarian actions Bukele is taking; he has removed judges, influenced a change in the constitution to enable a potential second term, had troops enter parliament, and implemented stern policies aimed at reducing gang violence. The term “dictator” is banded around. 

Nevertheless, he is an extremely popular president: he has an approval rating of 85%. Many citizens, sick of the years of violence and corruption, are pleased to finally see a decisive Salvadoran President. Could he become a beacon for the wider region? Could he be the leader of the Bitcoin age?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD505 - Show Notes

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you

Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The full interview with President Nayib Bukele, undertaken days after the Bitcoin Law became effective on September 7th 2021, sections of which were included in my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. In this interview, we discuss motivation, opposition and legacy. 

- - - - 

A few days following Bitcoin being given legal status, I was granted an exclusive access interview with President Bukele for the purposes of my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. Following the release of the film, it is time to publish the full interview. 

It has been over 8 months since El Salvador became the first country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender. A lot has been written about El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law, and a lot has happened since. But what was it like to be at the centre of this unprecedented event? An event that could change not just El Salvador’s future, but also Bitcoin’s and the rest of the world. 

The discussion covers President Bukele’s enthusiasm for what Bitcoin can do for his country and his people; the incredible timescale within which the law was passed (it was a mere 3 months from being enacted to becoming law); the strategy behind the country’s purchases of Bitcoin; internal and external opposition; and the plan behind the articles of the Bitcoin Law. 

As background noise to all these changes is vocal concerns about authoritarian actions Bukele is taking; he has removed judges, influenced a change in the constitution to enable a potential second term, had troops enter parliament, and implemented stern policies aimed at reducing gang violence. The term “dictator” is banded around. 

Nevertheless, he is an extremely popular president: he has an approval rating of 85%. Many citizens, sick of the years of violence and corruption, are pleased to finally see a decisive Salvadoran President. Could he become a beacon for the wider region? Could he be the leader of the Bitcoin age?

“I think we’re at the precipice of really next-level civilizational change, and it’s probably going to be messy a little bit in the transitionary period. But on the other side of this, or as we move forward, I think more good is coming than bad, and that’s something to be hopeful for.”
— John Vallis

John Vallis is a Bitcoin podcaster who hosts Bitcoin Rapid Fire. In this interview, we discuss what freedom means, parallels between Bitcoin and religious values, living a meaningful life, psychedelics and their importance, and a new civilisation centred on truth.

- - - -

Bitcoin provides freedom. Financial freedom; freedom from coercion; freedom of movement. But how should those who benefit from Bitcoin use this freedom? Should they use it to fulfil their own desires? Or are there higher values that Bitcoiners should strive to attain? Should Bitcoiners draw back into their citadels? Or, should they actively engage in trying to shape a better world?

Such decisions will be influenced by the values such individuals hold. In our fiat economy, self-interest is deemed to be the principle that supports a functioning and prosperous society. Institutionally driven moral codes have been supplemented by the needs of the market. Religion has been replaced; prayer and faith have given way to data and patterns.

It is assumed that science and rejection of the divine have driven a more advanced society. And yet, ephemeral pursuits of money and power seem to be the root of a lot of the problems we face today. Some feel that more sophisticated behaviours were displayed by previous civilisations: humans have previously been more in tune with nature.

Psychedelics is thought to have played a part in this process. Many cultures throughout history used psychedelic practices to enable them to break away from their ego. This gave them a wider perspective - a more holistic view of the world around them.

Bitcoin shows that current values in a fiat world are misaligned: selfish short term pursuits are failing us; we have lost sight of the truth. Could psychedelics hold the key to helping more people to make that shift to see the fallacy of our current systems? Is the loss of ego needed to determine how best to mould this new world evolving around us?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD504 - Show Notes

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you

Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

John Vallis is a Bitcoin podcaster who hosts Bitcoin Rapid Fire. In this interview, we discuss what freedom means, parallels between Bitcoin and religious values, living a meaningful life, psychedelics and their importance, and a new civilisation centred on truth.

- - - -

Bitcoin provides freedom. Financial freedom; freedom from coercion; freedom of movement. But how should those who benefit from Bitcoin use this freedom? Should they use it to fulfil their own desires? Or are there higher values that Bitcoiners should strive to attain? Should Bitcoiners draw back into their citadels? Or, should they actively engage in trying to shape a better world?

Such decisions will be influenced by the values such individuals hold. In our fiat economy, self-interest is deemed to be the principle that supports a functioning and prosperous society. Institutionally driven moral codes have been supplemented by the needs of the market. Religion has been replaced; prayer and faith have given way to data and patterns.

It is assumed that science and rejection of the divine have driven a more advanced society. And yet, ephemeral pursuits of money and power seem to be the root of a lot of the problems we face today. Some feel that more sophisticated behaviours were displayed by previous civilisations: humans have previously been more in tune with nature.

Psychedelics is thought to have played a part in this process. Many cultures throughout history used psychedelic practices to enable them to break away from their ego. This gave them a wider perspective - a more holistic view of the world around them.

Bitcoin shows that current values in a fiat world are misaligned: selfish short term pursuits are failing us; we have lost sight of the truth. Could psychedelics hold the key to helping more people to make that shift to see the fallacy of our current systems? Is the loss of ego needed to determine how best to mould this new world evolving around us?

“It’s a competition of ideas… and it’s a collaborative competition of ideas. So if you propose an organised set of ideas as a proposal, some parts of them might end up being good and used, and some parts might not. And you just have to be open to that.”
— Adam Back

Adam Back, an original cypherpunk, inventor of Hashcash and co-founder and CEO of Blockstream. We discuss the controversy around BIP 119: the soft fork proposal aiming to add “covenants” to Bitcoin. We also talk about the collapse of Luna.

- - - -

Flexible smart contracts are a USP of Ethereum and other blockchains. Currently, Bitcoin only enables basic smart contract functionality, such as a timelock that specifies when a transaction can be spent. BIP 119 proposes to add more flexibility for applying restrictions to transactions via a new programme operation code (opcode) called CheckTemplateVerify (CTV).

CTV would enable conditions on spending UTXOs that would limit, not when they are spent, but how. These are referred to as “covenants”. It is envisaged CTV could significantly enhance Bitcoin by enabling a raft of new and powerful applications to be developed; these could bring new security, privacy and scalability benefits.

The concern is that CTV is a significant change and could open up potential unknown security risks, or that if this functionality is desirable, it could be possible be better achieved with a different technical approach

BIP119 has been authored and enthusiastically promoted by Bitcoin developer, Jeremy Rubin. It has been around now for 2 years, and whilst Rubin has generated support for BIP119, he has also faced criticism from prominent Bitcoiners for his approach and so far there doesn’t seem to be consensus among the protocol development community on implementing the proposal.

The consideration, approval and activation of changes to Bitcoin are methodical and slow. Further, such changes normally involve the development of competing ideas, and a collaborative approach to combine the best elements from these efforts. Notable critics feel that BIP119 is being too forcefully promoted and that more time is needed to test and consider alternatives.

The pressure to innovate will always be there. The issue at hand is Bitcoin’s USP: it has never been hacked. This has been hard-won. So it seems BIP119 isn’t going to get a formal consensus at the moment. Rubin, however, could bypass the Core developers and implement a UASF. Could we again be about to test the limits of Bitcoin’s rough consensus process?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD503 - Show Notes

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you

Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Adam Back, an original cypherpunk, inventor of Hashcash and co-founder and CEO of Blockstream. We discuss the controversy around BIP 119: the soft fork proposal aiming to add “covenants” to Bitcoin. We also talk about the collapse of Luna.

- - - -

Flexible smart contracts are a USP of Ethereum and other blockchains. Currently, Bitcoin only enables basic smart contract functionality, such as a timelock that specifies when a transaction can be spent. BIP 119 proposes to add more flexibility for applying restrictions to transactions via a new programme operation code (opcode) called CheckTemplateVerify (CTV).

CTV would enable conditions on spending UTXOs that would limit, not when they are spent, but how. These are referred to as “covenants”. It is envisaged CTV could significantly enhance Bitcoin by enabling a raft of new and powerful applications to be developed; these could bring new security, privacy and scalability benefits.

The concern is that CTV is a significant change and could open up potential unknown security risks, or that if this functionality is desirable, it could be possible be better achieved with a different technical approach

BIP119 has been authored and enthusiastically promoted by Bitcoin developer, Jeremy Rubin. It has been around now for 2 years, and whilst Rubin has generated support for BIP119, he has also faced criticism from prominent Bitcoiners for his approach and so far there doesn’t seem to be consensus among the protocol development community on implementing the proposal.

The consideration, approval and activation of changes to Bitcoin are methodical and slow. Further, such changes normally involve the development of competing ideas, and a collaborative approach to combine the best elements from these efforts. Notable critics feel that BIP119 is being too forcefully promoted and that more time is needed to test and consider alternatives.

The pressure to innovate will always be there. The issue at hand is Bitcoin’s USP: it has never been hacked. This has been hard-won. So it seems BIP119 isn’t going to get a formal consensus at the moment. Rubin, however, could bypass the Core developers and implement a UASF. Could we again be about to test the limits of Bitcoin’s rough consensus process?

“What’s the end game? It is honestly to do less harm. Bitcoin doesn’t actually need politicians to make it succeed, it will succeed on its own merits; what would be helpful is to not have people actively attacking it and elongating the inevitable collapse of their own currencies, but also rise of Bitcoin as a global reserve currency.”
— Will Cole

Will Cole is Chief Product Officer at Unchained Capital. In this interview, we discuss Texas and Austin as ideological centres for Bitcoin, the undervalued importance of state sovereignty in the US, CBDCs being the greatest disaster for liberty and personal freedom, and toxicity on Twitter.

- - - -

Something is happening in Texas. It has always had an independent streak, rooted in its rich history. The state was born of revolution, and it was initially a republic in the mid 19th century before the Mexican-American War. That thirst for freedom is hard-wired into the Texan psyche. Now it is a beacon to Americans from other states seeking increasingly elusive sovereignty.

It is therefore not surprising then that Bitcoin has been adopted and fostered in Texas.

From very early in it’s history, a strong community of maximalists united and sought to safeguard Bitcoin in this part of the US. That effort is now starting to pay off. The strong affinity for Bitcoin by Texans has evolved such that the state is fast becoming the centre of groundbreaking efforts to integrate Bitcoin and energy grids.

The state is arguably spearheading a new adoption wave within the US that includes serious politicians. Could Texas take the next step and create the conditions to orange pill a nation?

Those Bitcoiners in the state aren’t waiting to find out. They’re moving at pace to help Texas and other states continue the outreach, policy drafting and technical buildout to realise the benefits of what is a keenly American innovation. They’re also keenly focused on the attack vectors on the horizon, be it CBDCs or divisions within the community.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD502 - Show Notes

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you

Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Will Cole is Chief Product Officer at Unchained Capital. In this interview, we discuss Texas and Austin as ideological centres for Bitcoin, the undervalued importance of state sovereignty in the US, CBDCs being the greatest disaster for liberty and personal freedom, and toxicity on Twitter.

- - - -

Something is happening in Texas. It has always had an independent streak, rooted in its rich history. The state was born of revolution, and it was initially a republic in the mid 19th century before the Mexican-American War. That thirst for freedom is hard-wired into the Texan psyche. Now it is a beacon to Americans from other states seeking increasingly elusive sovereignty.

It is therefore not surprising then that Bitcoin has been adopted and fostered in Texas.

From very early in it’s history, a strong community of maximalists united and sought to safeguard Bitcoin in this part of the US. That effort is now starting to pay off. The strong affinity for Bitcoin by Texans has evolved such that the state is fast becoming the centre of groundbreaking efforts to integrate Bitcoin and energy grids.

The state is arguably spearheading a new adoption wave within the US that includes serious politicians. Could Texas take the next step and create the conditions to orange pill a nation?

Those Bitcoiners in the state aren’t waiting to find out. They’re moving at pace to help Texas and other states continue the outreach, policy drafting and technical buildout to realise the benefits of what is a keenly American innovation. They’re also keenly focused on the attack vectors on the horizon, be it CBDCs or divisions within the community.

“The idea is that fix the money fix the world, the thing that’s often said, and that most of our problems in the world come from bad money. And I think my point is that malevolence in man is something that is so core to the human condition that fixing the money isn’t going to actually magically fix all these problems.”
— Rob Hamilton

Rob Hamilton is a programmer and data scientist. In this interview, we discuss the risks associated with a transition to hyperbitcoinisation, the limits to what Bitcoin fixes, the issues of a libertarian world run on a Bitcoin standard, the benefits to the energy grid, and Bitcoin’s eternal September.

- - - -

Hyperbitcoinization, the adoption of Bitcoin as global money, was once a theoretical pipe dream that all but the most hardened Bitcoiners thought would be an impossibility. But we have witnessed a number of unprecedented events in recent years that mean impossible scenarios have now shifted into the realm of the possible.

Does this create a new foundation for conversations regarding hyperbitcoinization? The abstract idea of hyperbitcoinization has been enthusiastically supported: it is a fresh new idea that provides hope for a better world. But where such discussions could afford to be utopian a few years ago, do discussions now need to mature as a Bitcoin standard becomes more real?

Are there limits to what Bitcoin can fix? Further, does hyperbitcoinization create new issues? Would we be replacing one elite for another? And, if this new world is shaped by a libertarian ideology, who will determine how to organise consensus, solve problems and resolve conflict? The reality of what may be possible certainly requires more sober consideration.

The flip side is that the tremendous benefits that Bitcoin has to offer could actually be realised. A better world may be within our reach. The excitement for proponents is that Bitcoin’s potential is more than just as a new currency; it has second-order effects such as its use as a payments rail and arguably more importantly, as a catalyst for a stronger and more sustainable energy grid.

And all the time, there are new users of Bitcoin who are seeing in it both novel opportunities, and also new risks to be mitigated. Wider adoption, therefore, means that what hyperbitcoinization will become is always evolving. The discussions on what this means have only just begun.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD501 - Show Notes

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you

Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.