The threat to Bank and Government: Crypto

in #philosophy7 years ago (edited)

Crypto, a great way to make a little extra and in some cases, a lot but, what is really happening below the surface of it all, is there more to it? Yes, a lot more in my opinion and even though I am no expert in finance or geopolitics but I do like to think about some of these things.

Many seem to think that the threats are going to be from competition among alt coins and new platforms combined with the threat to the existing competition but, this is only a small part of the story. There are so many threats to governments and banks that will have a larger effect adoption of crypto increases, at least from what I see.

There are fundamental problems with crypto if you are a bank or a government, as well as many upsides. For them, legislation is going to be an attempt at maximising control without stifling the upside potential of the varying technologies. But, this is going to tread a fine line as there are many potential threats to their existence, at least as they stand today.

This is no expose, no in depth analysis, just a few thoughts of mine for people who may not have thought much about it at all so far. You should though, it is going to potentially get bloody in various ways.

Death of a banker

People like to talk about the richest people in the world, Gates, Bezos, Bloomberg, The Kochs but, as individuals they are actually largely insignificant when you consider the size of the funds that the banks control and, the banks also have control over large portions of the Billionaire assets too in different ways. they don't keep it under mattresses I assume.

But, cryptocurrency threatens this as it puts money management and (importantly) transfers into the hands of users. Sure, currently the market cap is relatively insignificant compared to the 150 Trillion yearly world gross product value but, in time, it will be possible for the largest of companies and users to transfer the largest of sums without ever requiring a bank. That alone is a massive blow to the bottom line.

Combine that with the ability for an everyday investor to become a millionaire without ever crossing into a bank database and suddenly, the all powerful banks have significantly less capital at their disposal to perform all of the manipulative things that have done for the last 4 or 500 years. Major headaches for them are coming so it is no wonder they are doing all they can to FUD the system and buy in at the dips, create artificial noise and warn everyday Joes to stay away.

Essentially, cryptocurrencies will slowly offer a much more self-managed system that puts control back in the hands of the user. Banks are unlikely to be impressed considering it is their business to take control away from the user by offering false security as a trade off. If it wasn't false security, they wouldn't have caused so many economic meltdowns through their greed and centralization of control and lobbying.

But again, the banks are only a fraction of the problems to come also, albeit a significant fraction as they work hand in hand with their pals, governments.

A loss of control

Governments are set up with laws and once across borders, agreements with other nations. These agreements cover all kinds of things including economic policy. For all intents and purposes, if they were businesses, this would be classed as collusion. For the most part, even when they disagree publicly, the underlying agreement of 'maintain control over the populace' holds true. This can also be hacked and manipulated when nations choose to FUD another nation.

But, cryptocurrency does not care about these borders, does not care where it was generated or where it is spent. It doesn't care about exchange rates set by an arbitrary authority as the rate is set by the market itself. It also doesn't care if, where or how the taxes are paid.

Remember General Qaddafi from Libya? Do you know why he was killed? You may think it was because he was some evil dictator who oppressed his people and perhaps that is part of the story but, he had been there decades without opposition. What changed? He was planning to set up an african currency that he would back with the gold they held.

"Qaddafi's government holds 143 tons of gold, and a similar amount in silver ... This gold was accumulated prior to the current rebellion and was intended to be used to establish a pan-African currency based on the Libyan golden Dinar. This plan was designed to provide the Francophone African Countries with an alternative to the French franc (CFA)." -Sidney Blumenthal

You might remember Sidney from many of the Hillary Clinton leaked emails.

What does it matter if there is an independent currency in Africa, well, nearly all trade is done in US dollars (especially oil) which creates demand for the currency. You know what happens when people demand STEEM? Imagine if STEEM was the currency to buy and sell oil with... The US would miss a large slice of pie, very large.

But, more importantly than that was the idea that he had, not the actual implementation of it. What he did was prove that a, poor, small, independent country could finance itself without outside assistance. Essentially, they were creating a an expanding network of self-reliance in Africa. Sound familiar?

The risk of Free folk

Independent people are notoriously hard to manage aren't they? There is a quote somewhere about wrangling cats that likely suits for this. Nations are constantly on a matrix of knife edges where they are trying to balance all of the functions they must take care of such as infrastructure and education whilst still increasing the wealth of the conglomerates, banks and investment funds.

What happens when larger and larger sums of capital are crossing the invisible borders to be spent in places with large discrepancies in tax law, if there is a tax at all. How can a government balance the books when they can't know, track or easily manage the funds in and out? Countries currently struggle with black money economies, what happens when that is the majority of transactions?

Sure, they can impose laws but the problem will come when we the people are unwilling to handover what is ours to middlemen providers who do what we can do ourselves with much less efficiency. About a year ago, my daughter was sent $100 dollars Australian for her account, it cost $16 in bank fees alone. And took days.

Those days are over soon as more and more make invisible transactions across invisible borders many times almost instantly. Sure, they may not be invisible for long but here is another major headache to come for bank, government and corporations between. Transparency. If they can track us, can we track them?

They definitely will not want such a radical notion as transaction transparency at the highest levels. How will they fund their blackops? Of course, they will find multiple ways around this in practice but there still lays the problem that cryptocurrencies will be able to perform many of the functions of the middlemen cheaper, faster and with much more individual sensitivity and control.

Why then would we give up financial freedom and control and pay more for it? And this is the problem. They already have almost complete control of us and how we use and transfer our funds and they benefit massively from it. Why would THEY give up control willingly?

There are so many sides to this and so much depth and conjecture to what is happening, what could happen and more importantly for us all, what will happen in the long run. My point of writing this though is so to introduse that there is much more at stake here than crypto being just an extra revenue stream.

It is going to get potentially very bloody in time and the economic systems are going to take a pounding when that arrives and potentially one where the tradition or the crypto won't survive. The threat to Bank and Government from the ideals of freedom from authority has never been greater than this point now.

Be prepared. Learn about possibilities. Don't rely on an authority to protect you, they can't, they won't, they haven't.

Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]

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Decentralisation does the job, and it does so slowly.
Bankers don't scare me. Policemen scare me; but policemen follow orders, and those orders come from politicians, who are only in the role for a few years.
Those of them who understand what's going on will quietly line their own pockets with crypto while they can.
They're not ardent, fervent, zealous believers in government, they're filthy opportunists.

Yes, this is going to vbe an interesting ride for sure! I certainly do not have enough knowledge or intelligense to predict anything, but I sure am hoping that in time this will balance out so we the people have more freedom and control of our own assets. I do believe this is the way the world is moving, that it will be bloody or bumby, that is for sure. If I have understood correctly, crypto transactions are very tracable though, its not like we can hide it, right!? For the time being I am learning as much as I can and hopefully make some profits towards finacial freedom. Because at the moment I am LOVING this :) It was about time

Cryptocurrency is not a threat to governments or the banking cartels. This new technology allows for intensified centralization of power by permitting elimination of lower bureaucrats and clerks with "immutable" virtual ledger system. More resources can be shifted towards increasing the enforcement arm, when the accompanying bureacracy can be curtailed to a few programmers from departments of clerical drones.

Banks, likewise, can eliminate tellers and local branches, consolidating their already significant wealth into fewer and fewer hands. Cryptocurrency is but a tool, and in the proper hands, such tools can be used to extend slavery to encompass the entire globe, rather than be limited to a geographic area. When the nation-state dies, it would be replaced by a global rule, where every financial transaction can be tracked and monitored by the banking and political elite. At least with 19th century bureaucracy, the power could not concentrate too much, as the limits of bureaucracy limited the natural extension of influence. With virtual ledgers replacing all the costs associated maintaining an overblown bureaucracy, humanity's final descent into global conformity can be actualized.

Now @soo.chong163, that's indeed a cunning flip of the 'coin' to see each angle of the 'token' from new perspectives. }:)

Sounds a lot like you have resigned yourself to a future reality.

Actually, I prefer my current masters divided into competing nation-states, but maybe globalized slavery could be an improvement. With the right sort of fella on the throne, he can enact policies towards global conservation and sustainable industries.

With the right sort of fella on the throne, he can enact policies towards global conservation and sustainable industries.

Can you get upvoted into this position I wonder ;)

The #1 hurdle roadblock that will be faced for crypto is governments. Some will do everything in their power to stop any chance that the sheep gain any level of control over their lives.

Would not out it past governments to on the surface say they are allowing crypto while behind the scenes doing whatever they can to discredit, add risk, and in the end stop the wealth creation portion of crypto.

Time will tell, but everyone needs to maintain a close eye on things as things can change very quickly.

There are so many sides to this and so much depth and conjecture to what is happening, what could happen and more importantly for us all, what will happen in the long run.

A senator in my country (Nigeria) stood up one day during plenary and faulted cryptocurrencies that "he loves using his hands to count his money". And coupled with the fact that for cryptocurrency to be widely accepted and a legal means of payment in a particular country, it has to go through legislative scrutiny. So imagine a bill on cryptocurrency coming into the floor of the Senate and meeting with senators like the aforementioned? i would confidently say that it would be strongly opposed.

Cryptocurrency has so many advantages but its success is still largely dependent on some big wigs and i feel it might take time for cryptocurrency to be widely accepted.

my thoughts tho.

thanks for sharing @tarazkp

Yes, here in Venezuela they have not gotten so full with the cryptocurrency, but if they messed with that I need to take control in the area of coin mining.

I totally agree with you. Banks on my country charge for everything; from your ATM card to bank transaction alerts. In fact, if you leave your account for six months with 5,000 inside it, by the time you go back to that account they will have deducted everything and pinned it on account maintenance charges, ATM maintenance charges and so on. It is quite disgusting, the means with which they steal from us.
The cryptocurrency world is truly a threat to the banking industry and they will not take it lying down. Big business too will definitely not like the idea as they depend on the goodwill of the banks to keep their mergers and acquisitions in a balanced state.
I feel that the banks using governments as stooges will retaliate and create ways with which this freedom can be again chained.

Like you said, we have to be prepared for it will definitely come. The day a country decides to run its currency backed by a cryptocurrency, that day the assassinations and dark alley fighting will move into the open and true war will begin. I just pray crypto wins. I love the freedom it offers.

Well written..You and me are several thousand miles away and still feel like at a hand's distance..It was not the case some 25 years ago..Everything bound to change..We have come a long way from 'Barter system' to the 'fiat currency'.

I'm hopeful that in near future any one out of the all 200+ world countries will come up with a revolutionary policy of making cryptos a legit mode of transaction.

I can't say I'm not happy with the knowledge at my finger tips and early adoption (somewhat) under my belt. But I worry about the implications for people I care about, and I'm curious to see how this could influence the job sphere as I become of age and ability.

I am new to crypto, but not to studying banks and their manipulations of the U.S. economy. I have a few thoughts on this, some that run contrary to the ideas held by many. My first thought is banks have been wanting a cashless society for many years. Crypto allows this.

Second, it seems obvious to me that the record high of Bitcoin two months ago was the result of a massive pump. There was absolutely no reason for the value to skyrocket as it did. Nothing about Bitcoin had changed that dramatically. This tells me even the largest coin is susceptible to manipulation. I suspect Tether had a little to do with this given their mass increase during this time.

Third, since fiat is used to buy in, who could instantly make themselves a whale if not a group who can print money out of thin air as the bankers do? They will be able to play this (and already are I suspect) the same way they do with the stock market.

My last thought on this is on the recent U.S. clarification that all trades are taxable events. Taxes for the most part were not a thing in the U.S. until Rothschild and his cohorts regained their central bank they call the Federal Reserve. Taxes were installed and increased again in WW2 under the Victory tax for the sole purpose of paying them their interest for this printed from nothing money. Mark my words, by the end of next spring there will be major news of big crypto players being fined and possibly imprisoned for not paying their taxes, to scare the rest into compliance.

I suspect banks, despite playing a mind game that crypto scares them, are happy it exists. It is going to be the tool that enables them to keep their house of illusion running just a little while longer.

Again!! splendid reply @practicalthought. Same like @soo.chong163 observation. That's indeed a cunning flip of the 'coin' we all need to do in order to be able to see each angle of the 'token' from totally new perspectives. }:)