Bitcoin
Why, for some, encryption is the defining political issue of our times
But I also understand why figures like Selkis are championing crypto as a political cause. In fact, they are simply realizing that encryption was already a partisan issue and acting accordingly. It’s common to hear that because blockchains strive to be “credibly neutral” the industry itself is apolitical, but this is simply not true. Cryptography is a government control; It is and always has been a political project. As I wrote in 2021:
“If Bitcoin were to solve the climate crisis, it would be through freer, more successful markets – not progressive planning. If Bitcoin expands access to basic financial services, it can never solve economic inequality – it cannot redistribute the massive holdings of early Bitcoiners without destroying the system’s technologically protected property rights. If Bitcoin prevents war by diminishing the power of the state, it will also dismantle the progressive welfare state.”