Comrades,

I'm of the mind that fragmentation MUST happen, and that the reasons for
it, both concrete and abstract, are healthy and timely. I look around at
some of the wimpy-handed or selling-out going on as well as the
state-pacifiers and their awful ideas and I find myself thinking:
Counterrevolutionaries. Collaborators. Conspirators. And though lynching
the bastards isn't an option, my thoughts and feelings run right along
that track.

I think I mentioned on this list before that people are gathering at the
_beginning of August in Berlin. Please come._ To me, this will be
probably the best and only time we'll have this year for a meeting of
the minds among the decidedly anarcho- and anti-status-quo bitcoiners on
this continent, in a quiet space without a shit-ton of responsibilities
flying at us in event coordination or whatever. 2-4 August is some beer
festival, and perhaps the focal time. Bitch, moan and drink (or
whatever!) among friends, and come to strategize about how we can best
coordinate to stop the beauty that is bitcoin being strangled in the
cradle, as some seem wont to do.

Peace,
Mike


On 06/22/2013 04:04 PM, Adam B. Levine wrote:
> I've been one of the voices trying to avoid fragmentation within the foundation space so early.
The appearance of unity is important, but increasingly unlikely since
the foundation has chosen to go down a political path rather than a
ideology-agnostic protocol-development platform.
>
> If you're going to make a move into the foundation space, I'd

encourage you to think hard about the goals and develop the
structure/framework for it BEFORE launching.  I know there are other
attempts at this out there approaching it from various angles, but an
articulate organization focused on the real potential for meaningful,
positive change that can be applied to hundreds of millions of lives is
a cause worth championing.  The trick is to present your case in such a
way that you don't alienate the broader audience by using key words they
pick up on, and that put you or your movement into the box of something
idealogical that they don't have to pay any attention to.    I am very
happy to help craft that message, style.

>
> My posts from the foundation forums in the topic where this became an
obvious issue:
> --------------
> Hey Mike, Jeff and Brad
>
> You don't have to listen to me - I just wanted to make sure the
position is out there. By choosing to focus on "controversial" issues,
the foundation will never be able to legitimately claim it represents
the "bitcoin using community" because many within it disagree with that
type of action. It doesn't matter what the action is, it just matters
that there is disagreement about whether it is helpful or even
appropriate and that prevents people who would otherwise want to
participate from doing so.
>
> I think it would be better for Bitcoin as a whole if the Foundation

tried to be as broad and inclusive as possible because to not invites
competition in the "foundation" space.    I have no dog in this fight,
the foundation will proceed as its few members want it to.    Keep in
mind the members are self selecting based on the statements and actions
coming out of the foundation.  In an echo chamber, solitude is sometimes
mistaken for unity.  They are not the same thing.

>
> It is always better to be inclusive and avoid the war, especially when
the community is so small.
> -------------
>

>     I don't think this type of organization would receive much support

in the first place, since its scope would be so narrow that there's
little opportunity to take a risk or contribute without upsetting the
balance. We're a diverse group full of opinions!
>
>
> *The foundation would have broad support if it focused entirely on the
stewardship, development, and evolution of the Bitcoin protocol,* not
touching application specifics, use scenarios, national issues, etc.
We're all invested in the success of the Bitcoin protocol, and with
Gavin as head scientist, he lends this foundation a ton of legitimacy
/for protocol specific topics/.
>
> If the foundation focuses on maintaining and improving the protocol,
other organizations and groups will rally to defend it and educate about
it while BF gets to be the city on the hill, the one thing in this
controversial world that everybody agrees about - That we should protect
and develop the protocol with the best minds focusing their productive
time on that one task, for the betterment of the platform for all users
and applications in the ecosystem. Neutrality is the key to it all and
means even those who disagree with you at least respect your consistency
and intentions.
>
> In the beginning the "educate" mission might have made sense because
the community was so much smaller and the audience more technical, Now
the Foundation should spend its obviously very limited time and manpower
making Bitcoin the most functional, secure, trusted, and useful platform
for payments they can. That's something everyone can get behind.
> -----------------
>
> Nice to meet you all
>
> Adam B. Levine
> Editor-in-Chief
> Let's Talk Bitcoin! <http://www.letstalkbitcoin.com>
> 1-855-WETALKBITCOIN Ex.700
> Inline image 2
> Talk to me on Gli.ph <http://Gli.ph>, my preferred communications platform
>
>
> On Sat, Jun 22, 2013 at 6:47 AM, Johnny Teatent
<occupyteatent@??? <mailto:occupyteatent@gmail.com>> wrote:
>

>     splits must happen. there is something big coming next week in the

london protest community (large scale police/coporate infiltration and
out of those ashes i will build a new movement. and hopefully computer
guys athat are a bit from iran and appear on russian state tv might take
seriously the fact that sercuty services /as wells as /trying to creep
up electronically do it IRL too. www.facebook.com/anarchesqueboilerplate
<http://www.facebook.com/anarchesqueboilerplate>
>
>

>     On Sat, Jun 22, 2013 at 1:03 PM, Amir Taaki <genjix@???

<mailto:genjix@riseup.net>> wrote:
>
> Hey,
>
> Many people are telling me they want to avoid a split within the
> Bitcoin community. But it's happening now.
>
> People are calling for a new organisation that:
>
> - Promotes Bitcoin as a tool of big social change.
> - We believe in financial privacy.
> - We believe in freedom of financial speech (lack of censorship)
>
> Furthermore transparency of governance and openness to the community.
>
> There are several groups now organising and a lot of talk going
> around. But for all the blaa blaa, I have stuff here and now.
>
> Here is an update from the foundation:
>
> https://bitcoinfoundation.org/blog/?p=204
>
> They list a bunch of non-complete implementations (excluding the
> complete one), and talk about the foundation's conference.
>
> I need help with the conference. I need resources (programmers) for
> libbitcoin.
>
> For the conference, if I don't get help then I will cancel it. I don't
> have the time. Everyone is telling me to do it, but I haven't got
> anyone helping me. I want to focus my efforts on development.
>
> For libbitcoin, I need developers. There are clear business strategies
> here and several people are already offering me resources here. This
> is going forwards. I've spent a long time on this alone, so it's great
> to see finally.
>
> Focus on the projects first, we can make the organisation after. How
> many of you are actually writing code? It's not enough to complain. We
> need to build real things that people will use - that's how our ideas
> will win out.
>
> The same thing happening now happened to the personal computer
> revolution during the 70s. The big corporations moved in, the
> idealistic hackers were working on fun bullshit, they were not vocal
> enough or pragmatic, and they lost out to the suits who just took
> their work, made it practical and got super rich off it. This is the
> time to struggle for your ideals.
>

> I will be so disappointed if the same thing happens again.
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