This is an opinion editorial by Captain Sidd, finance writer and contributor to Bitcoin Magazine.
“When deeds speak, words are nothing.” — African proverb
Grokking Bitcoin’s potential impact on the world often starts with diving into the enormity of the problem with fiat currency. The vast moral hazards and twisted incentives inherent in any centrally controlled monetary system or market make for plenty of pains to highlight. It’s no surprise then that Bitcoiners — especially on the internet through forums like Twitter — frequently lambast institutions that seek to control markets and people in the name of fixing the very problems to which they’re often a major contributor.
Keeping us informed about government encroachments on liberty or misinformed policies that create more problems than they seek to solve is important work. I appreciate those messages and what they make me aware of, however, being inundated with these views and attitudes can become depressing and demotivating. It’s my sense that social networks are fantastic at curating the content that triggers an emotional response — which can quickly devolve toward the negative.
However, when I go out and touch grass, I am excited by the people who are responding to this changing world by doing and building strong and beautiful things: families, homesteads, movements that lead to healthier, happier people. While it is easy to see a lot of negativity in the Bitcoin community, there are also bright rays of hope about the future that I rarely see in other communities. I wanted to meet the people bringing a better future to bear, and I figured what better way to meet them than through Bitcoin meetups.
Through 11,500 miles across the U.S. during summer 2022, I visited 30 Bitcoin meetups on my Harley Davidson and spoke with hundreds of Bitcoiners.
