Is there something about information technology that makes censorship unsustainable?

Welcome to Bitcoin Roundup #9.

You couldn't get away from the news about Twitter if you tried.

Elon Musk said that his acquisition was made to amplify the voices of individuals and reduce static on the platform. What happens next remains to be seen.

However, this whole affair got us thinking about censorship, and how digital money is really a form of information technology.

In the past few years, Twitter has been involved in scandal after scandal involving censorship. It's unlikely that Twitter had an official policy of political bias, yet somehow its "content moderation" consistently supported a set of positions shared by the elite ruling class of the country in which it operates.

In a similar fashion, we are told the policies for how much money the government creates and how it gets distributed are impartial and egalitarian. And yet, somehow, those closer to power always get the lions share.

Could it be that Twitter became unstable as a result of its draconian censorship policies, and if Musk hadn't come along, some other externality would have shaken up the status quo?

And could it be that we as a free people long for a form of money that is free of undue influence and control, and that bitcoin's meteoric rise is a symptom of that longing?

Forty years ago, we learned that information wants to be free. As it turns out, money does too.

News

🍿 Twitter takeover bodes well for bitcoin

After Elon Musk took Twitter private for $44 billion, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, who left Twitter to focus on bitcoin, praised the move. With Musk also leading the company with the second largest bitcoin treasury in the world, prospects have improved for bitcoin to become a feature of Twitter.

🌍 Bitcoin adoption continues worldwide

The Central African Republic became the second country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender. Lawmakers said they hope the move will put their developing nation "on the map of the world's boldest and most visionary countries."

Mexican lawmakers installed a bitcoin ATM on the floor of the Mexican Senate to familiarize lawmakers with bitcoin and build support for its adoption as legal tender.

Fort Worth became the first U.S. city to mine bitcoin when Mayor Mattie Parker installed mining machines in City Hall. Parker noted that she believes putting bitcoin on the city's balance sheet will serve as an example to local governments and that building out mining infrastructure will harden the electrical grid.

🏦 Fidelity will offer bitcoin in its 401(k)s

Fidelity announced employers will be able to offer bitcoin in employee retirement plans. Employees may allocate up to 20% of their savings to bitcoin. This will make bitcoin accessible to a new and abundant source of investment capital. Fidelity holds an estimated $2.7 trillion in 401(k) assets.

💳 Morgan Stanley: "Bitcoin is close to becoming a currency"

Citing the integration of Lightning Network with the largest payment processor in the world, Morgan Stanley noted in a research report that bitcoin is closer than ever to becoming a viable medium of exchange in the United States.

⚠️ Powell floats rate hike to tame inflation

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell shocked markets stating a 50 basis point hike is possible in May. He described rate hikes as "absolutely essential to restore price stability" but noted that avoiding a recession will be challenging. The resulting stock market decline was the largest since 2020. Inflation is on everyone's minds, including at the Fed.

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How bitcoin works

Learn one key idea about bitcoin each week. This week: Bitcoin ensures your vote counts.

Come election time, many people feel as though their vote doesn't matter. In fact, the very idea of "swing states" shows this, since only a handful of states determine the winner of the American Presidential election.

When you stop to think about it, money and voting have a lot in common.

Money can be seen as a vehicle by which we communicate value in society. It's our "vote" that says: more of this and not that, please.

With fiat money, this vote is subject to manipulation through dilution, redistribution, and transaction censorship.

Bitcoin offers an alternative and superior solution. It lets people use their money as a transparent vote for the type of society they'd like to live in.

Coin check

Which country holds the largest share of the bitcoin mining hashrate?

1. Saudi Arabia
2. Iceland
3. USA
4. China

Check your answer at the end of the page.

From the meme pool

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Coin Check answer: 3. USA