2 years ago
Perhaps nary contributor to Bitcoin Magazine has explored the motivation and ethical imperative of Bitcoin much extensively than Alex Gladstein.
Gladstein is the main strategy serviceman astatine the Human Rights Foundation and helium has besides served arsenic vice president of strategy for the Oslo Freedom Forum since its inception successful 2009. His unsocial quality to overgarment a elaborate representation of economical hardships that individuals look passim the satellite has further opened the eyes of truthful galore radical this year. The ngo of Bitcoin, arsenic a instrumentality for anticipation and furthering quality freedom, is becoming much evident to a wider audience, acknowledgment to his contributions. It would beryllium a missed accidental not to reappraisal his seminal works that person illustrated the request for Bitcoin arsenic an unfastened and neutral planetary wealth for humanity.
Works In Review
In April, Gladstein published “Bitcoin Is A Trojan Horse For Freedom,” which discussed however Bitcoin recruits individuals and nations to go promoters of state against tyranny and authoritarianism by triggering innate quality emotions of self-preservation and greed — adjacent if 1 has zero altruism. This is an important instauration to the crippled mentation down Bitcoin. It’s unwavering mathematics are designed to alteration each and each 1 of america for the better. And successful this way, we tin further quality rights crossed the globe.
His adjacent contribution, “Uncovering The Hidden Costs Of The Petrodollar,” was a heavy dive into the tarnished past down the American dollar’s ascent to planetary reserve currency presumption and its toll connected overseas policy, vigor and the environment. He described however the United States was capable to clasp unparalleled and outsized economical dominance utilizing an exclusive subject pact with Saudi Arabia that led the satellite into pricing lipid successful dollars and stockpiling U.S. debt. While Bitcoin’s unfastened transparency makes it an casual people for critics to bemoan its vigor consumption, the adverse effects of the dollar are little visible. Gladstein’s effort was a important measurement guardant successful our knowing of wherefore a dollar-based reserve currency is unsustainable and undesirable for nations crossed the globe.
In May, Gladstein’s effort “Check Your Financial Privilege” recalled anecdotes from emerging markets to exemplify however Bitcoin offers important and valid usage cases to those who deficiency the fiscal information that galore of america instrumentality for granted successful the Western world. Those who deride Bitcoin are often blinded to the information that 87% of the satellite lives nether autocracy oregon is forced into untrustworthy currencies. 4.3 cardinal radical unrecorded nether authoritarianism, and 1.2 cardinal radical unrecorded nether double- oregon triple-digit inflation. Examining however Bitcoin is utilized successful countries specified arsenic Nigeria, Sudan and Ethiopia, gave readers a caller position connected wherefore it’s an important instrumentality of liberation to truthful galore radical passim the world.
“The Humanitarian And Environmental Case For Bitcoin” looked astatine the issues of overseas assistance corruption and dependency, arsenic good arsenic however Bitcoin tin foster renewable vigor successful the processing world. Indeed, overmuch of the assistance sent to emerging markets flows into the coffers of the elite. Gladstein argues that overmuch of this corruption could beryllium avoided with Bitcoin arsenic a corruption-resistant outgo rail. Furthermore, processing nations tin liberate themselves from oppressive and corrupt sources of overseas assistance by extracting worth retired of stranded power, done Bitcoin mining.
A fewer weeks later, Gladstein took the accidental to ask El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, if his authorities had considered mining Bitcoin. Bukele replied that helium hadn’t considered it, but the question instantly led him to recognize that his state had untapped geothermal resources that could beryllium utilized for mining. By November, El Salvador had announced a $1 cardinal volcano bond.
In June, Gladstein interviewed Jack Dorsey astatine Bitcoin 2021 successful Miami, and discussed what it was astir Bitcoin that drove Dorsey to absorption connected it. The speech covered a fig of topics, including Bitcoin’s important relation successful banking the unbanked, furthering fiscal rights successful emerging markets, censorship resistance, favoritism resistance, aforesaid custody and quality rights. The interrogation gained planetary media attraction and helped further the communicative of Bitcoin’s humanitarian mission. By December, Dorsey would measurement down from Twitter and turn his afloat attraction to his recently rebranded company, Spiral, and Bitcoin.
Gladstein’s adjacent essay, “Fighting Monetary Colonialism With Open-Source Code” exposed France’s monetary colonialism which continues to exploit 15 African nations. It retold however families successful Senegal mislaid 50% of their purchasing powerfulness overnight and went into large item astir the insidious, unfair monetary and commercialized policies imposed done the CFA franc, arsenic portion of a hidden colonialism that persists years aft decolonization. Rising retired of this oppression emerges a hopeful story, arsenic Fodé Diop’s ngo to bring Bitcoin to Senegal is told.
On Independence Day, “Bitcoin And The American Idea” gave america readers the accidental to bespeak connected America’s founding and the pressures that pb america astray from its cherished values. Recalling President Eisenhower’s farewell address, we present person the payment of hindsight to spot Eisenhower’s fears realized by the emergence of the military-industrial analyzable and Bitcoin emerging successful effect to those acheronian forces. Gladstein reminds america astir Isaiah Jackson’s enactment communicating however Bitcoin tin assistance assistance up achromatic Americans successful spite of a discriminatory banking strategy that continues to neglect the community. And we learned of Al Mutar, who believes Bitcoin tin assistance liberate radical astir the satellite and dispersed American values much efficaciously than U.S. subject campaigns ever can. We are near inspired by Bitcoin arsenic a caller declaration of optimistic values for the aboriginal of our civilization.
In precocious July, Gladstein explored the imaginable for Bitcoin to springiness Palestinians an accidental for peaceful protestation and sovereignty successful effect to oppressive economical policies outlined successful his essay, “Can Bitcoin Be Palestine’s Currency Of Freedom?” While galore radical whitethorn beryllium alert of the challenges of surviving successful the occupied Palestinian territories, fewer are alert of the economical hardships that compound already intolerable surviving conditions. Bitcoin, again, is shown arsenic a solution that tin assistance with remittances from abroad, supply banking, assistance forestall confiscation and debar debasement of household wealth.
August ushered successful “Inside Cuba’s Bitcoin Revolution,” which investigated the country’s quality rights situation and the increasing gyration of utilizing Bitcoin arsenic a peaceful protestation successful effect to oppressive economical policies. Gladstein summarizes the past and circumstances that led to the dire economical concern and inequitable relation of the Cuban convertible peso (CUC) successful regular life. Bitcoin adoption is allowing Cuba’s citizens a mode astir these hardships and a accidental astatine economical sovereignty.
Next, helium published “Finding Financial Freedom In Afghanistan,” which tells the communicative of Roya Mahboob — the archetypal pistillate Afghan tech CEO and 1 of the archetypal entrepreneurs to present Bitcoin to Afghanistan. Once again, we larn of utmost economical illness and hardships for the radical of Afghanistan and the important relation that Bitcoin tin play successful providing a lifeline.
In September, Gladstein reported his question experiences successful “The Village And The Strongman: The Unlikely Story Of Bitcoin And El Salvador” aft visiting El Salvador to acquisition its pioneering adoption of bitcoin arsenic ineligible tender. We learned of the proliferation of QR codes and Bitcoin ATMs coming to beingness successful the largely-unbanked country. He covered the accelerated emergence of the Lightning Network wrong the country’s borders and the nationalist skepticism and absorption to the Bitcoin instrumentality and the concerns with the country’s opportunist president.
In October, “The Quest For Digital Cash” gave america the elaborate past of the cypherpunk question and the improvement of Bitcoin realized by Satoshi Nakamoto. So overmuch of the integer privateness and encryption we instrumentality for granted contiguous tin beryllium traced backmost to this question for idiosyncratic sovereignty and quality rights. By retelling this history, readers are fixed a caller appreciation for the sacrifices and efforts of this procreation of cryptography advocates. It demonstrates to readers that Bitcoin is the culmination of a agelong travel that dates backmost to the aboriginal days of the integer revolution.
“The End Of Super Imperialism” is the latest installment from Gladstein, published this November. In it, we larn astir Michael Hudson’s publication “Super Imperialism,” which documents the events that led to the dollar-dominated satellite system and its far-reaching impact. Much similar the harsh monetary colonialism of the CFA franc, the U.S. dollar affords Americans the exorbitant privilege astatine the disbursal of different nations. Gladstein’s retelling of Hudson’s enactment exposes the mostly unseen effects of a dollar-based monetary system.
It tin beryllium hard to support up with Gladstein’s prolific writing. Thankfully, Guy Swann has recorded each 1 of Gladstein’s essays connected Bitcoin Audible.
His essays are practically required speechmaking for those who privation to recognize the motivation statement for adopting a Bitcoin standard. They springiness readers a look into the regions, peoples and economical hardships that galore of america are privileged capable to beryllium unaware of. The much we larn the much we tin statesman to admit and recognize that Bitcoin is acold much important than immoderate of america tin imagine. These essays cement the important ngo of bringing economical sovereignty to the satellite erstwhile it’s needed most. We look guardant to continuing that travel with Gladstein into 2022 and beyond. We can’t convey him capable for teaching america astir however Bitcoin means truthful overmuch to those extracurricular of our lives and for envisioning a brighter aboriginal for humanity and idiosyncratic quality rights.
This is simply a impermanent station by Level39. Opinions expressed are wholly their ain and bash not needfully bespeak those of BTC Inc oregon Bitcoin Magazine.
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