The New World Order: A Thought Experiment into a Crypto Caste System.

Contrary to the idealized free market utopia people believe cryptocurrencies will bring, the world of Sovereign Individuals will likely divide the world further then it already is now. Not as politically simple-minded as Das Kapital, and it will likely ensure any communist style government from occurring ever again.

Cryptocurrency will divide the world not just into those who have and have not but rather how much they have. As the wealth distribution from today’s “old money” of fiat to cryptocurrency shifts. We are already seeing this divide. Those who own a majority of the supply will become the new elites currently dubbed “Whales”. While the poorer individuals dream of owning a single bitcoin. A dream which may become an impossibility in a few years. Those who jump on this train late will be scrambling for the scraps leftover from the early adopters.

A Void that Must be Filled:

As the world continues to move towards the mainstream of cryptocurrencies and the collapse of national governments, new unities will form. Nation or region will no longer be the main identifier of these groups. Something else will take its place. The internet has already created groups and subcultures each with their own language, memes, customs, and out-groups. The individuals who were early adopters of cryptocurrencies, the outcasts, rebels, who against all odds won, will expand their group.

Those who write/wrote the papers’ articles etc. will be the new scholars similar to Madison and the Federalist Papers. This group which will now gain an immense amount of power will naturally flex its muscles. Lamborghini’s being the epitome of this wealth currently. However many will continue accumulation, driving “Old Money“ and the masses to fight for even less.

Thus a caste system will develop from cryptocurrencies. A victor will emerge which will be used as the “gold standard” the one thing that all are measured against, which may not necessarily be Bitcoin. This standard measure of wealth may become so valuable none are traded, except for the highest of prizes. Handed down through the generations as family heirlooms. Those who have many coins would be more wealthy than the richest man currently alive. While a partial coin could secure one’s wealth as today’s middle class. Those unfortunate enough not to have any under this new system would be broke, even if they had old forms of currency.

This will be a global system that will extend beyond the borders of crumbling nation-states, between all continents. No place will not be affected by this new system. While this new system is not totally rigid in terms of hierarchal movement. It will be very rare due to the scale of wealth in which we will find ourselves in.

Rising to the Top: Cream of the Caste.

Yet wealth itself doesn’t necessarily create a caste system. After all today we do not live in a typical caste system. The aforementioned in group out group dynamics as the early adopters were labeled all number of things; may flex their wealth to take retribution. Although more likely they will ensure their new found wealth through the mass purchase of land, capital and luxury goods. This combined with the crumbling of the nation-state will make this group of individuals a powerful cabal. One so powerful that only conspiracy theorists would believe to be true.

These individuals will likely split into clans, families or other factions as humans love tribes. Likely centered around certain philosophies or coins. Dynasties will emerge and carry long-standing grudges. This will cause fighting, on a scale never seen before. New paradigms of war will be waged. Feuds will arise, alliances made. Groups will fight for supremacy and peace similarly to the cartels and mafias of old. These fights will not be too bloody as total mass destruction would be useless. Not to mention the freedom of movement by these individuals would also mitigate any conflict.

Stabilizing Society: the Middle Class.

These individuals own some amount of coins tethered to the main coin. These are generally dubbed “alts”. Perhaps they even own a partial coin which secures their fortune. Regardless these individuals have some money and work to keep their head above water. This group of individuals is less mobile than the upper class. Not because they don’t have the same tools but rather they lack the resources to continually move.

These people unwittingly perpetuate the system by believing they can move up ranks to the top. Or if given long enough will accept their new place and act like a bucket of crabs. Game shows where people can win coins will be popular.

The Dregs of Society: The Lower Rungs of the Caste.

This group of outcasts, criminals, and poor ruffians drew the short end of the straw when it came time to invest in the new system. They are defined by their poor stature on the totem pole, by losing it all, owing someone or not having any to being with. However, they are still competent enough to navigate the system to some degree. They live on the fringes of society doing whatever it takes. Crimes or entrepreneurship are the main jobs of this class.

Cementing the Foundation:

However, this idea of a caste system is cemented by a fact that there are fundamental differences in IQ between people. If IQ is genetically based, we cannot educate people, training them so they understand this new way of life. While if socially based we could theoretically train them. IQ from current research suggests it is mostly genetically based. Simply put there are differences between people, groups, and genders; We can debate the details at a later date.

In layman’s terms, there will be groups who are not technologically literate, let alone actually literate enough to interact and conceptualize this new system. Meaning a vast mass of people will be left out in the cold. Future groups will realize this problem and be left with a few, but all terrible solutions:

• Bastions: Rather than deal with the problem Sovereign Individuals will create and retreat to Bastions they create.
• Eugenics: the group of people will be removed entirely under the guise of being “incompatible.”
• Ghettos: Think District 9 Ghettos or “Zoos” will be created for these individuals to live.
• Robotic Augmentation: augmenting this group of people so they are compatible with society.
• Slavery: Use cheap expendable labour, rather than robots.

The result will likely be the bottom of this new caste. What people will likely term as “Human Debris”. Individuals who are and will never likely be considered human under this system. Even augmented individuals will be considered second-class citizens, perhaps even property.

Corollary: the Bottom of the Caste

The only solution that could remedy this situation would be the normalization of augmentations, specifically brain augmentations. Which would reduce the stigma from these individuals. However, it is still unlikely, as they may still be outmatched compared to other augmented individuals, resulting in a more functional Caste system.

The Myth that Never Dies: The Elephant in the Room.

Yet what about automation, surely that will solve these issues? We can then create a communist utopia, Sadly not. Those who have own cryptocurrency and automation equipment will not simply give up their possessions for the greater good. Human nature of greed, self-determination, revenge, accomplishment and the concept of fairness will override any such measure. Any pooled capital for such a utopia will dwindle as the collective output will not rival any capitalist machine.

Automation does not also help the individuals who are at the bottom of the caste. As it does not remedy the ability to interact with the world as outlined above. In fact, these individuals may even destroy the machines that help them out of naivety.

Reinforcing the System and it’s Inevitable Decline:

The caste system will be stable if there is minimal fluidity between levels. Enough to keep people happy and working towards that goal while the chances that people do is minimal.

The system will eventually die by an external shock that causes the internal fractures mentioned above to shatter the system. If areas are too isolated the system will break along the isolation lines of culture and region again. This will be guaranteed if humans become a multi-planet species.

This system will lead to more wealth than ever before. Although like every system before it will be unequally distributed. History it seems will repeat itself again.

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