The Unpopularity of Bitcoin and the American Revolution

“The Men deprav’d,
who quit their Sphere,
Without Remorse or Shame or Fear,
And boldly rush they know not where;
Seduc’d, alas! by fond Applause,
Of gaping Mobs and loud Huzzas.
Unconscious all of nobler Aim,
Than sordid Pelf [riches] or vulgar Fame;
Men undefin’d by any Rules,
Ambiguous Things, half Knaves, half Fools.”

~ Rev. Myles Cooper, in opposition to the American Revolution, 1775 ¹

“If you’re stupid enough to buy Bitcoin,
you’ll pay the price for it one day.”

~ Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, 2017 ²

In 1776, a new country was born. For the first time in the history of humanity, a nation was born not based on genealogy, mythology or treaties, but based solely on a shared idea. The United States of America was created by people who sought to sever the ties between government and individuals, and start again on their own terms with a finely-tuned system, designed to fix all of the problems that they had witnessed in the past.

Fast forward to 2017.

Now, for the first time in the history of our planet, private citizens of the world have independently developed a way to communicate value to one another, instantly and without trust being necessary, regardless of geolocation or national borders, and without having to use a government-issued monetary system or tool.

For the first time, people have successfully developed their own global currency. And it, too, is based upon an idea.

But neither of these revolutions were unanimously supported by the populace.

There was a sizable number of people who opposed the American Revolution and everything that it stood for.³ For them, change was not of interest and the status quo was worth fighting for. Among their ranks was Rev. Myles Cooper, quoted above.

Today, Bitcoin, which was designed as a response to the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, is quickly being adopted by millions of people in every country around the globe regardless of their nationality. But, as governments and institutions scramble to keep up with the Bitcoin movement, a portion of today’s population is quickly emerging to show their opposition to this fundamental change in the way we think about money.

“It’s a bubble!” is the most common refrain from those who criticize the Bitcoin phenomenon. “Those who deal in Bitcoin are naive, childish and ignorant!”

Sound familiar?

Are those who oppose the Bitcoin Revolution focusing on the wrong aspects?

Loyalists to the Crown resisted radical change. They clung to sentimental attachments and were afraid of what life may look like without the oversight of a strict ruler. They were fearful of the unknown and obscured their own purview to better justify their own beliefs.

Similarly, Bitcoin’s opponents are unable to imagine a world where governments don’t have total control over the money supply. Many of them believe that while “Power to the People” looks great on a t-shirt, allowing it in practice is far too dangerous of an idea.

Digging a little deeper, it is revealed that the mistake made by most Bitcoin critics is their failure to consider the power of the decentralized blockchain apart from Bitcoin’s current volatility against fiat currencies. They fail to realize that the trading metrics of Bitcoin have absolutely nothing to do with the human achievement that it represents.

For thousands of years, money has been created by governments and forced upon their citizens. Now, with the advent of cryptocurrencies, the power of the Internet is being harnessed to give economic freedom back to individuals. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies add a groundbreaking layer to the Internet that did not exist before, and reveal the truly unlimited power of global connectivity.

In fact, if Bitcoin were to drop to $1 tomorrow, the intellectual shift that it has sparked would still represent an unstoppable and historical breakthrough in the evolution of money.

In 1776, Loyalists to the crown vehemently opposed the grassroots revolution that was shaking up their world.

In 2017, opponents of Bitcoin stand staunchly against the people-powered movement that is poised to disrupt a corrupted global economic system.

Which side of history will you stand on?

Tweet me @ChrisBlec.