Why I’m Committed to Something that Doesn’t Yet Exist
It’s a strange thing that so many people unquestioningly doubt, even oppose, anything that they can’t see, that they can’t count on with absolute certainty, or especially, that lacks the approval of authority. New and useful things, as we’ve all observed, begin as things that can’t be seen… things with no evidence, no substance, and usually no pedigree. Name your convenience and it probably began that way. But let’s move …
Return Engagements (Book One) PART 3… in which I orient myself
Picking up from Part 2, in which I was being pursued across southern Wisconsin… although I didn’t yet know it. Now my examinations came to the outer world: July 10, 1963… what’s happening just now? And why would someone bring me here, with this woman as a companion? The second question was unanswerable, save that there seemed to be no malice involved. The woman seemed to be doing her best …
It’s Heretics Who Save the World
The people who have kept the world from a slide into darkness and pulled it forward have, to a shocking extent, been heretics of one form or another. I’m using “heretic” more broadly than in just a religious context, but please consider this: It’s the punisher who makes the heretic. Without punishers, heretics would be nothing more than people with different ideas. And in our time, the punishers (at least …
Return Engagements (Book One) PART 2… in which my pursuers arrive
An hour later we were on Highway 50 in southern Wisconsin, heading west through farmland. It appeared that the Interstate Highway System was pretty well in place, and being away from people seemed to be helping my companion. She had fallen asleep before hitting the end of the Edens at Clavey Road, and she seemed to be resting more comfortably in farmland than even the sparsely populated suburbs of 1963. …
An Interview on Crypto, Fiat, and the Mid-terms
Here’s an interview Paul did with the Wealth Research Group last week on cryptocurrencies, government money, financial predictions, and the US mid-term elections.
It runs about 21 minutes. (And the YouTube title doesn’t match the content.)
The ECB and the Feds Are Treating Bitcoin Very Differently
Having been involved with digital currencies for quite a long time, I get more information on the subject than most people, and that includes information on what regulators are doing. I’ve been seeing differing strategies among the central banks for some time. But some information I obtained recently made the Euro–American difference very plain to me, and I think I should pass it along. The US Model It seems to …
Return Engagements (Book One) PART 1… in which I arrive
It was mid-June of 2016, the night between the 19th and the 20th. It had been a very normal evening. My wife went to bed a little before 10, leaving me at the kitchen table playing with papers. I went through my pre-bed routine, slid between the sheets, kissed her good-night, and rolled over.
An Interview on Technology and Choice
Here’s an interview Paul did with John Ferguson of Technology & Choice last week, carried on the Let’s Talk Bitcoin network.
Are You Doers of the Word?
There’s a memorable line in the New Testament that adjures the readers to be “doers of the word and not hearers only.” And that’s what I’m urging today. But this isn’t about the Bible; this is about whatever you believe. If you’re a libertarian, be a libertarian. If you’re an objectivist, be an objectivist. If you’re a voluntaryist, be a voluntaryist. If you’re a Christian, be a Christian. If you’re …
Why We’ll Win
A free, post-scarcity world will not be prevented by archaic systems scratching and clawing to retain their domination. We will evolve freely, unburdened by an unfortunate past. This will happen, and today I’m going to tell you why. But more than that, I want you to understand that we deserve to win, and that the future – the world of our children, grandchildren, and so on – very much needs …
Why You Can Do Anything You Want… And Why You Can’t
People frequently tell children “You can do anything you want.” And this causes a lot of confusion, because in the real world, they can’t. And after their first clash with the aforesaid real world, the child is left wondering all sorts of unpleasant things: Did mom and dad lie to me? Are they just ignorant? Am I defective? Should I find someone to blame? The worst thing about this, however, …
How Stupidity Is Manufactured
Yes, manufactured. It’s done all day, every day, and especially in the most advanced parts of the world. And I can prove it to you. Please look at this diagram and tell me which of the lines on the right side, A, B, or C, is the same length as the line on the left. That isn’t too hard, is it? A is obviously shorter and B is obviously longer. …
Weaponized Politics
Politics is ugly by nature. It sows division at all times, and it’s easy to see why: Democracy is the tyranny of the majority over the minority, restrained only by bills of rights, which matter less and less with each passing year. But what’s happening right now is not the traditional norm of American politics, and I think that politically active people of the past (like those of my parents’ …
How Similar Are Judaism and Christianity?
This should really be a book-length discourse, and I may write such a book one of these days. First, however, I want to give you some of the highlights and begin to get my thinking in order. At their cores, Judaism and Christianity are more similar than you might expect. Their appearances of course are different. After all, it is very much in the interests of leaders on both sides …
How to Crush the Gold Cartel
I have friends who are convinced that a cartel is manipulating the gold and silver markets. I have other friends who disagree, but today I’ll hang with the former. And they plead a good case, with there being 100 times more paper gold than physical and a small group in full control of daily price setting… among other things. Accordingly, many holders of gold and silver go on about breaking …
Celebrating Western Civilization, Part 1
I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve heard Western civilization disparaged, in everything from street talk to written screeds to intellectual circles. It would have to be thousands of times at least. In fact, it’s something that people (including people who should know better) repeat endlessly, always confident that they’ll receive a pat on the back for it. Criticizing the West passes for enlightenment these days. Except that it’s …
The Cult of Rules
“The mark of an educated mind,” taught Aristotle, is “to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” And that’s what I’ll be asking of you today. Because as certain as I am that I’m substantially right on this, I’m also sure that its acceptance will take quite some time. But I do want to plant its seeds as best I can.
The True Vision of Satoshi Nakamoto
I had planned to write about the philosophy of Satoshi Nakamoto, based upon his writings. Recently, however, I’ve heard about food fights in the Bitcoin Cash camp, centering on “Satoshi’s Vision.” One thing I’m certain about is that Satoshi would not want to be the subject of fights.
The Plague of Superfluous Intellectuals
Recently I was drawn into the consideration of intellectuals by reading Eric Hoffer’s The Ordeal of Change. I thought parts were dated (it was written almost 60 years ago), but many of his insights interest me. And then, over the past few days, I realized what was happening with intellectuals in our time. What we have in the West is a plague of superfluous intellectuals: college graduates who’ve been trained …
Demolishing the Warren Report with two Images from CBS News
One of my entertainments, from time to time, has been the Kennedy assassination… John Kennedy’s, that is. I’m not particularly a fan of mysteries, but occasionally one of them intrigues me, as this one did. What I’m going to show you today are two images from a CBS News special report from 1967, created because so many people failed to believe the Warren Commission Report. CBS’s images make the Warren …
