Crypto and Decentralization – Part One, by SiliconValleySniper
Frustrated by the recent bailout of the woke banking idiots at SVB? Thinking about holding some funds outside of the ‘modern’ banking system? Your first thought is probably to get some gold and silver, not a bad idea. But let’s say you want something that can handle trickier transactions. It’s hard to make change from a 1 oz coin, or send it to someone 1,000 miles away in 10 minutes or less. Enter bitcoin.
Rather than explain why I think bitcoin is worth the trouble, I’ll share a better version from Trevor Zantos. It would be good to read this first: https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/why-decentralization-is-uniquely-american
I can’t tell you when to buy bitcoin, that’s a problem for billionaires and finance bros. Bitcoin has gone from being worth $15k to $65k, then right back to $15k because of them. You can start with $100, or whatever you might feel comfortable losing. Moving on to how this works…
So how do you get bitcoin? Maybe you know a guy, that’s probably the best way. Or you could mine bitcoin, even better. You could use a peer-to-peer network like Bisq, or take your chances with a Bitcoin ATM at the vape shop. The more you look, the more you’ll find. Probably the easiest way is to use a bitcoin broker. There are bad ones out there (FTX), and reputable ones. Unfortunately they all need to ‘know your customer’ to keep the Feds at bay. Be prepared to prove who you are (not great for anonymity).
Choosing a broker is tough. Lots of people lost it all when FTX failed. What were the obvious clues? 1) they made massive donations to Democrats 2) supported woke equity programs 3) ran a Superbowl commercial with Larry David. Compare that to a broker like Coinbase, whose CEO declared the company anti-woke and showed the door to anyone who disagreed. Coinbase is still in business, I don’t think it’s a coincidence.
If you do buy from a broker, you’ll want to immediately transfer it out of your account and into your own wallet. A wallet is what you might expect, a place to store your bitcoin. There are ‘hot’ wallets and ‘cold’ wallets. Hot ones are ready to send bitcoin in a few clicks. Cold ones are physically separated from your computer. A cold wallet is more secure, and more of a pain to use.
Your wallet is protected by your “keys”, it’s basically a password. There’s a saying, “not your keys, not your coin”. If you keep bitcoin in your account with the broker, they have the keys (and the control). Move bitcoin to your own wallet and now you have control. The broker is out of the picture. But with great power comes great responsibility. Lose your keys and you lose your bitcoin. There is no 1-800 number to call, no ‘reset password’ link to use. You lose it forever.
Your “keys” are actually a very long and complicated password. The password is so long and complicated that you will struggle to write it down correctly (like using OTPs). That’s where ‘seed words’ come in. Your seed words are an ordered list of 24 words, like ‘wave’ and ‘wink’. They’re much easier to handle than a private key of ‘E9873D79C…’. You can even beat your seed words into a hunk of metal. So when it’s time to bury your gold, you can also bury your seed words.
Last piece to know is the nuts and bolts of making transactions with bitcoin. Find good wallet software and read the manual, that will get you far. Take a look at Sparrow: https://sparrowwallet.com/docs/quick-start.html or Wasabi: https://docs.wasabiwallet.io/using-wasabi/ELI5.html. There is a learning curve, but if you made it through this article then you can definitely handle it. And you only have to learn it once, then it’s like riding a bike.
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About the Author: Patriotman
Patriotman currently ekes out a survivalist lifestyle in a suburban northeastern state as best as he can. He has varied experience in political science, public policy, biological sciences, and higher education. Proudly Catholic and an Eagle Scout, he has no military experience and thus offers a relatable perspective for the average suburban prepper who is preparing for troubled times on the horizon with less than ideal teams and in less than ideal locations.
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GUNS N GEAR
And when the grid is destroyed and no electrons flow. Which means the Internet is down and then no data electrons flow. Bitcoins rely on electrons.
100% correct. And Bitcoin has been banned in certain countries (ie. China). It’s also vulnerable to a 51% attack, where one bad actor controls the majority of the miners. Potentially quantum computers could crack the encryption. Ultimately you’re relying on a decentralized network of computers that need power and internet. Gold doesn’t get a bug and crash.
I think the most likely doomsday scenario is you’ll lose your seed words :)
Beware of coinbase they are not secure their customer data got hacked and the hackers changed passwords internally etc just saying
100% correct. Some customers got hacked via SMS two-factor auth + phishing/social engineering. Coinbase fully refunded the customers and added new protocols… but SMS two-factor is a bad idea in general and should be avoided. Use Authy or get a YubKey.
It’s another reason to get your coin into your own wallet asap. But if you get rolled up in a phishing scam, just post your password to the comments. I’ll log in and fix it ;)
Find a bitcoin ATM
Buy a Hardware Wallet and configure print the QR code for depositing take this with you
Put down your phone and leave it home
Go to Walmart wearing you ultimate Fauchi worship mask
Buy a basic TrakPhone and have the clerk help you set it up (sometimes it requires a text send to another phone, have the clerk (preferably one who is gender fluid) use theirs.
Now with your “burner” go to Bitcoin ATM with cash and buy bitcoin using your QR code and burner # for the security code it will send
Purchases under $50 generally do not require ID scan wear your Fauchi they have cameras
Leave, remove the battery from your burner and go about your business
Yea the ATM will charge higher fees but this is as close to anon purchase as I have found unless you strap up and use localbitcoin
Shadowrat
If you’re using a phone, even a prepaid one, you’re not anonymous.
Phones are a huge pain in the ass. You’re right to not trust them. Getting into privacy/anonymity… there are training opportunites for that.
There are training opportunities, and phones are definitely a pain in the ass.
Any cellular device though is not ever going to be completely anonymous, nor un-trackable. Taking the battery out also does not change that.
I do this stuff for a living. Never said it was 100% now did I?
I’ve done it and done things with the crypto.
Still here
ShadowRat
Likewise I never implied that you said it is 100%
Whether you intended it to or not, your post does imply that buying a prepaid cellphone, and pulling the battery out, will grant you anonymity, which is a gross oversimplification and misleading.
Nice look at the ATM option. CoinJoin is another privacy option, but has it’s downsides. Might be easier to strap up and go P2P.
Bitcoin has serious flaws that are nearing the tipping point of exploitability due to extreme miner concentration. I like the idea of cryptocurrency that is anonymous and private and uncontrollable. Bitcoin looks more and more like a psyop to pave the way for CDBC’s.
Miner concentration is a big concern, the 51% attack. This happened with Ethereum a few years ago, Coinbase caught it and lessons were learned. There are safeguards in place, but yeah it could happen.
The psyop angle is interesting, gonna ponder that one. Bitcoin has definitely spawned a lot of sh*tcoin. I’d classify CDBCs as government backed sh*tcoin.