Fernandez beat Navarro yesterday in 2 sets and lines uo a quarter final clash with Kenin.
The odds are Fernandez 2.0 - 1.8 Kenin, I think Fernandez is good value at 2.0. Kenin can
sometimes get in her own way mentally when things get tough but lately she seems to
snap out of it sooner - going to be tough.

I have a transaction that I set at around 13 sats per vbyte within the last few days, and so I already have an understanding that it could take several days and maybe weeks to clear.

A few months ago, I had some others that took a while to go through when I set them at the lower end of the range of what had been being cleared, and surely I can see that there remains a bit of a gap between my transaction and the ones that are currently clearing in the 20-ish sats per vbyte, as you mentioned.

Wen clear?


hahahahaha

I don't really care that much.. I set my fees in that kind of way  just to watch it, but if I was transacting with a stranger, probably there would be a need to set it in the 30-50 sats per vbyte range in order to NOT piss anyone off or to risk losing reputation/credibility.

Totally agree. Retirement means that you're just reducing any work-related activities and you focus more on yourself and your well-being. Most retired people have an investment or businesses, so that even if they stopped working, they are still able to earn for their living. We should also take note that early retirement doesn't necessarily mean that a person is not happy anymore with their job. But it can be a sign that they have reached financial stability and independence that's why they retired. Remember that retirement takes a lot of planning and preparation and it was not an easy decision to make.


I couldn't agree more. You have to be prepared if you planned to retire in the future, because the moment you do so, you cannot turn back and change your decision. I believe that retirement is a bold decision to make, because you need to consider various factors before deciding whether to or not to resign.

It brings about an interesting issue. They were a business to business setup.

f2pool is large company.
paypal is large
paxos is large.

If you solo mine or mine at a few small pools there is no pool wallet coins are simply few direct to the miners.

I am U.S.A. based miners. I mine at this pool

https://pool.laurentiapool.org/#/miners
https://pool.laurentiapool.org/#/work

if we had hit it those coins go directly to us not to a pool wallet

I would have received 9.6 coins about 7.2 would have been a mistake
another miner would have received about 11.5 coins about 8 would have been a mistake
the third miner would have got 4 coins about 3 would have been a mistake

If I refund those coins 7.2 I would need quite a lot of assurance from PayPal and paxos that 194k of taxable income goes on their books not mine. I would need to create a legal agreement to refund them.

Well not my problem and some programmer is going to be in trouble for the error.

Not because of scarcity (since bitcoin supply is always increasing) but because of less new-sell-pressure as miners will have less income and they will be able to sell less freshly mined coins in the market.

My first reaction is to say legalise it, no restrictions but make everyone aware of
the dangers of it. If someone dies then others weill be held responsible then on
the other hand this could result in kids taking drugs trying to make it into professionalism.

---

Anyone following the WTA1000 event in Guadalajara?

Layla Fernandez is doing really well and is into the last 16 and now plays Emma Navarro.
Fernandez is slight favourite @1.83 v 2.00 for Navarro.

If she progresses she could be in the company of Ostapenko, Sakkari and Kenin.

I read a very interesting article that actually happened very realistically.

Read More: https://www.msn.com/en-xl/money/other/i-retired-early-and-regretted-it-why-i-went-back-to-work-to-continue-building-wealth/ar-AA1fBYHz?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=f2c759f9480f49fea02aa0d8288cc290&ei=16

this story is the same as what my cousin experienced, he retired early (at the age of around 35 years) now he is around 45 years old but there is an illness he is suffering from and he has to get proper treatment which quite expensive, so he sold some of his valuables and also withdrew his investment in shares.

as long as you can still make money, don't even think about retiring early, I know early retirement is everyone's dream but who knows what will happen next, you have to maintain your grades and productivity so that you stay healthy and respected by people.

I have been thinking and trying to analyze what is really causing the high cost of food in Nigeria, I came to realize that monopoly is the major factors, Nigeria government are the enablers. How can one person be the sole major distributor, government should welcome competition in the business sector, every business person should be allowed to produce.

Russia fires cruise missiles at the entire territory of Ukraine almost every day and launches dozens of attack drones. You can tell different things about where the Russians are aiming, but the missiles mainly hit civilian infrastructure and residential buildings of civilian citizens of Ukraine. Either the Russians have crooked hands, or the Russians’ military equipment is so inaccurate, or they still deliberately shoot in such a way as to cause more harm to the economy of Ukraine and kill more civilians. Just yesterday, on September 8, Russia launched missile attacks on Sumy, Zaporozhye and Krivoy Rog, where civilian infrastructure and residential buildings were hit.
Source:
https://rus.azattyq.org/a/32584034.html

I can also give you an example. On September 6, the Russians fired rockets at the market in the city of Konstantinovka, Donetsk region. The attack took place around 2 p.m., when there were a lot of people in the market. There are 17 deaths and 32 wounded among the civilian population. 28 trade pavilions were destroyed. There were no military targets nearby, that is, the attack was carried out exclusively on civilians. There is already a reaction from officials in the US, Europe and other countries to this terrorist attack.
Source:
https://uatv.ua/takoj-tragedii-gorod-eshhe-ne-videl-posledstviya-rossijskogo-obstrela-rynka-v-konstantinovke-video/

So you are saying that there is no point in such shelling? No one in their right mind would waste ammunition on destroying cities instead of an army? Apparently the Kremlin and the Russian army have not been guided by common sense for a long time, because this has been going on for a year and a half.

But evidence collected and analyzed by The New York Times, including missile fragments, satellite imagery, witness accounts and social media posts, strongly suggests the catastrophic strike was the result of an errant Ukrainian air defense missile fired by a Buk launch system.

The attack appears to have been a tragic mishap. Air defense experts say missiles like the one that hit the market can go off course for a variety of reasons, including an electronic malfunction or a guidance fin that is damaged or sheared off at the time of launch.

It's laughable that the people I talk to that remain in denial of the high-probability of Stagflation that's going to happen in many regions around the world.

In Europe, Christine Lagarde raised interest rates again, it's the tenth hike and she won't truly confirm when she'll stop. That will slow down most European economies. But in other parts of the world, China's Stimulus and the supply cuts for Crude Oil will cause higher fuel prices and therefore more inflation.

Stagflation will not merely be a narrative.

I have read some painful stories online about Bitcoin fans that lost their Bitcoin to hacks more than once and how they gave up because of the hacks, this made me curious about people on the forum, I will like to ask you guys how many times you have lost Bitcoin to hacks or your own mistakes, and why are you still not giving up.

Can you keep buying bitcoin if you have already get hacked like twice or more in the past?

Like a story about an American who lost his love for Bitcoin because of the hacks, I believe it's because of his own carelessness though, because you can't leave your wallet on a bench outside your home and not expect someone to steal it, and you come out and say your wallet was stolen by a thief, like what do expect?

What advice is worth passing out to people who have lost their Bitcoin more than once and are on the hedge of giving up?

Bitcoin's price seems to be caught in a limbo between bull and bear market. Even if we're still 60% above the November 2022 heights, there is again some fear lurking around. I think thus, it's time to remember why Bitcoin could be a much bigger success than it currently is.

Some will know the blog article The Bullish Case for Bitcoin by Vijay Boyapati, which has been transformed into a general introductory book about Bitcoin.

I agree with many of the ideas displayed in the article, but I get the impression that the linear "adoption timeline" the author pleads for, needs an update.

Basically the author argues that Bitcoin adoption will have four stages:

1. Collectible: A thing some people like to collect, even if its value is still undetermined.
2. Store of value: An asset used to store an abstract "value", for example to invest money in it and get the same or more value/money in the future.
3. Medium of exchange: A currency used to purchase goods and services.
4. Unit of account: A currency which can be used as a base to calculate prices.

We've successfully moved away somewhat from Phase 1. But I've got the impression that Bitcoin is currently caught in an intermediate "limbo" with characteristics of the first three stages, but without progress to evolve into the fourth (unit of account) stage. Even more: it seems that people's hopes currently are linked to the store of value concept, and usage as a medium of exchange was already more popular a few years ago. And as a store of value, it's only useful considering very long timespans (>2-3 years) due to harsh volatility.

My theory is that the order for Bitcoin's "bullish case" has to be updated. For me the stages are:

1. Collectible
2. Medium of exchange
3. Store of value
4. Unit of account

Why? There are basically two reasons.

1) The first one is liquidity and demand. Bitcoin's liquidity is better than 10 years ago, but hasn't made significant progress in the last 2-3 years. This makes its market still vulnerable to panic, FOMO, manipulation and other plagues which lead to its erratic price behavior.

If Bitcoin was used more as a medium of exchange, it would have significantly higher liquidity. Because each time you buy and sell something for Bitcoin it's a market operation where you're establishing its value. Even more important: Each time somebody agrees to sell something for Bitcoin, this can be considered a buy offer in the order book.

Thus, with more usage as medium of exchange and "boosted" liquidity, Bitcoin's volatility would probably lower, and it would become a safer store of value. Imagine you wouldn't have to fear an 70-85% depreciation in a bear market cycle but only 30% in the worst case. Would you invest more in it than now?

People also seem to misunderstand the concept of "scarcity". Scarcity is not equal to "limited supply". Scarcity exists when there is more demand than supply. A limited supply helps, but it does not mean something is really scarce. Many altcoins have a more limited supply than Bitcoin but have dramatically failed. Demand is crucial. If demand is erratic and only depends on FOMO cycles, then no reliable store of value can be achieved.

While if there is an explosion of merchants and everyday people accepting Bitcoin, then this means that there's also an explosion of demand. Again: Each of these offers is an offer in an imaginary orderbook where Bitcoin is traded against "real value".

Of course if volatility lowers then the bull runs will become less steep too. But that isn't a problem because Bitcoin has anyway the potential for values largely above $100,000. And that leads us to the second issue:

2) Many people forgot why Bitcoin is such a big innovation. It is the first digital value exchange medium which lacks central intermediaries completely and thus has its known advantages like censorship resistance. All previous attempts needed some kind of "bank" controlling the system.

This is Bitcoin's USP. Bitcoin can be used by anyone, anywhere (where there is Internet access) and anytime, without the need that someone "allows" you to do so. And this characteristic is most useful for a currency, not so much for a store of value. The internet (and this forum) is full of complaints about banks having closed accounts of people and made your life a pain. Bitcoin fixes this (And no, Ethereum and other centralized coins do not really fix it, as their censorship resistances is much lower).

In my opinion, Bitcoin's big advantages all really shine when it's used as a currency. And thus long term success in the future depends if it's used as a medium of exchange or not.

Once a path to currency usage becomes clear, Bitcoin will thus become a reliable store of value. Not before - before it will be subject to the same wild swings we've seen in the past years.

I would even say: There'll be no $200,000+ ("digital gold") Bitcoin without usage as a currency.

(And if you are worried about scalability: There's LN, there's even progress with sidechains, like projects like Stacks or Nomic and rollups show. It's nothing unsolvable.)

It's hilarious that people who don't know how to save money, people who make such mistakes, are millionaires.

The biggest Issue I see is that BRICS has the poorest population. That is an issue and the numbers of trade won't make a difference.
They BRICS population should get wiser and invest in education, their own.

Everyone used to take the right quantity. Things beyond the limit gonna be troublesome. For some players it is normal to have good stamina and good power. Some used to achieve it through regular fitness training whereas some go with these kind of drugs. As said, almost everyone will be taking, while the body that reacts get caught. Recently one of the sporting authority planned of conducting Olympic games with no restrictions on doping. The event didn't take place, but this is how the thinking.

we are trying to make water wet .

Saw this interview video clip posted on telegram by a news channel i am following, the interview had former president of PayPal and in the video clip, he's saying that,  they are trying to turn Bitcoin into a Global payment Network, and in my own words, what I heard is "they are trying to make water wet 😂..

Who exactly are they trying to fool?, Bitcoin in my own understanding is already a payment system for the entire globe, the former president of PayPal now saying that they are the ones trying to turn Bitcoin into a global payment Network is highly ridiculous and laughable.

Are they trying to steal Satoshi's glory? Not possible I believe..

Source: https://t.me/WatcherGuru/5234

Germany apparently imports Russian oil via India
Because of the war in Ukraine, Germany stopped its direct imports of oil from Russia. But now the material apparently comes via a detour. The beneficiaries: Indian billionaires and Russian investors.

Figures from the Federal Statistical Office suggest that Germany continues to import large quantities of Russian oil via India. Imports of petroleum products from India increased more than twelvefold in the first seven months of this year compared to the same period last year, as the Wiesbaden authority announced on Tuesday. Their value increased from just 37 million euros in the first seven months of 2022 to 451 million euros from January to July 2023.

India, on the other hand, is currently purchasing large quantities of crude oil from Russia: in July alone there were almost 60 million barrels (159 liters each), as the analysis house Vortexa calculated. This corresponded to around 40 percent of the total oil imports of the most populous country in the world. Imports fell in August, but in 2021 the Russian share of India's oil imports was just two percent.

But since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, trade flows have fundamentally shifted. While the EU, among other things, bans the import of Russian crude oil by sea, has imposed an embargo on Russian diesel and Russian gasoline, and Germany has stopped its direct oil imports from Russia, India has been buying even more oil from Russia ever since. This often happens at significant discounts. And the statistics indicate that some of this material ends up in Germany in processed form.

The main owners of India's second largest refinery are Russians

The imports from India “were mainly gas oils that are used to produce diesel or heating oil,” said the German statisticians. India has recently been producing a significant proportion of these gas oils from Russian crude oil.

The big beneficiaries of this business are the owners of India's large refineries: for example the industrial conglomerate Reliance, which belongs to the Indian billionaire Ambani family. Or Nayara Energy, operator of the country's second largest refinery. One of Nayara's main owners is the Russian oil company Rosneft, which claims to hold more than 49 percent of the shares. A further 49 percent belong to a consortium in which the Russian investor group UCP holds almost half.

The Western states have also introduced a price cap for Russian oil, which they want to enforce internationally using their market power in the shipping and insurance sectors. According to SPIEGEL information, this mechanism does not work as planned.

Data from the KSE Institute of the Kyiv School of Economics show that the oil price cap for Russian oil is flopping: significantly more is still being paid for the Russian reference grade Urals than the maximum price of $60 per barrel prescribed by the G7 countries. There is obviously a problem, especially when it comes to checking compliance with the cap by the authorities in the countries in which the shipping companies and insurers are based.

According to the industry portal oilprice.com, a barrel of Urals was paid for a good $74 on Monday, and over $84 for another Russian variety called Sokol.

That is a very unlikely situation for the majority of people: many bitcoiners are also hodlers, and that doesn't necessarily mean that your are going to spend 0 crypto, if you need a new smartphone there is nothing wrong with it; buying a new model every single year is a totally different thing. I don't know about you, but I know very few people who change their smartphone every year.

A player has trained for a long time and is well prepared for a tournament. 1 week before, he notices he is getting a cold. I do not think he just drinks warm tea with lemon and eats little more fruits

And I not really assume that all the top players and athletes in the various kind of sports (soccer, Tennis, athletics, swimming etc.) are only at the top because their genetics are good, they do a plant based diet and yoga and taking an icecold tub after the training.

Certainly, there are exceptions. And we all have seen them, the talents of the century. But they are in the minority. But nevertheless, at some point they will also be in the situation of quitting or playing this one more game with illegal performance-enhancing substances.