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US presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy recently said Senator Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) stance on Bitcoin (BTC) is due to the fact that she believes the state is superior to the individual. “Those of us who are having this conversation believe that we, as individuals, create a government that’s accountable to us,” said Ramaswamy on the WhatBitcoinDid podcast. He continued:
“The alternative worldview, to understand it, is that the state predates the individual. Your rights come from the government. They’re not independent of that, and so this proposes a threat to the existence of that state. Then, it’s perfectly within the rights of the state to come after and prevent that from existing.”
Ramaswamy insisted the minds of the people on Capitol Hill who thought like Sen. Warren remained the same. “The problem isn’t that they don’t know what Bitcoin represents. It’s that they do, and that’s actually what creates the anaphylactic response,” said Ramaswamy, who promised to mention Bitcoin in the coming Republican Presidential debates.
As Ramaswamy notes, Sen Warren wants to limit Bitcoiners’ ability to hold their own Bitcoin in what’s termed “self-custody” as she believes in protecting the state and its fiat currency system, which ultimately empowers nations to go to endless war. Instead of direct taxes, the people pay for the war through a tax called inflation.
In the digital age, we see the threat centralized currencies pose to individuals. Look no further than the trucker strike in Ottawa. Although demonstrations were peaceful, and people were merely exercising their right to protest and petition public officials, they were silenced and punished by the Canadian government.
The government used surveillance techniques to determine their identities through the license plates of their cars, and then closed their bank accounts and deprived them of access to their own money without any charges being filed. The government simply wanted to silence its people. This left people unable to pay their mortgages or even pay for medicine, food, or gasoline to move their vehicles. That’s the power politicians like Sen. Warren wish to preserve.
And now, the nations of the world are on a trajectory towards central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), which would give them ultimate power over the lives of their citizens. CBDCs will become an instrument of power and control, and they’ll be used to abolish cash. The government could then have complete control over the lives of its citizens.
In China, you’re excluded from the financial system if you don’t meet a particular social credit score. For instance, if you’re not wearing your mask correctly or not boosted, the government can turn off your capacity to spend money or program it so your credit cards will only work at a grocery store within a half-mile radius of your home. But the government won’t let you buy gasoline or an airplane ticket.
China is a leading BRIC nation, including the developing countries of Brazil, Russia, India, and China. It is a potential currency bloc that recently added South Africa to its ranks. They likely want to expand this system. The BRICS are working towards an alternative currency bloc because the US has caused other nations to be weary with a belligerent foreign policy. When the US froze the assets of Vladimir Putin, influential people worldwide noticed, and now they want to create their own markets, which is dangerous for the US dollar. That decision could ultimately undermine the US.
The US needs to establish a more predictable and transparent monetary policy. In many ways, the Fed must rewrite its bylaws in a post-Bitcoin world. Issuing treasury bills backed by hard currencies, including Bitcoin, could help discipline the Federal Reserve, giving consumers access to an asset that had some basis in hard currency.
Even though it is the only tool that can innovate the US monetary system in subtle ways at a time of increased competition, the Bitcoin industry must fight not only for its right to exist but also for the right to simple self-custody Bitcoin. Bitcoin should be used as a core technology in the reindustrialization of the West, not subverted by overbearing politicians like Sen. Warren and many others. And Ramaswamy’s comments highlight that you simply can’t persuade someone like Warren.
