@Cryptoman

Appreciate the reply. There was a post that suggested I start a blog, but I like being here. I concur that privacy is a fundamental right and has been demonized lately in the name of whatever pressing task seems to occupy the talking heads on tv. I'm encouraged that projects like Bitcoin exist, it demonstrates a common belief in freedom no matter where you are in the world.

@PLATO

Anything that removes finance as a factor in policy making would be an improvement. I personally believe it is one of the biggest problems in our society, where monetized influence is accepted without much argument or debate.

Why Bitcoin is better than your bank?

No Oppressive Fee Structure - most banks set minimum balances, monthly fees when your balance falls below
a set amount, ATM usage fees and a slew of other caveats and 'gotchas' that make opening a new account at
a bank a rather harrowing experience. Rather than straining your eyes reading the fine print of an
account agreement, downloading and installing the Bitcoin client is easy - the only startup task is the
mandatory downloading of the blockchain, a secure transaction history communicated to every client
connected to the internet. You can have *zero* in your balance, 0.01 or whatever amount you desire --
there's no middleman waiting in the wings to charge you anything.

Try getting that kind of deal at your local bank. We'll save you the trouble -- you can't.

Transaction Security - banks maintain their own private networks for securing your bank balance
information, the strings of ones and zeros that describe your account balance, debits and credits, among
other things. This means that you are reliant on their diligence. Most large corporations conceal the
release of sensitive data, mostly out of the fear of their stock price plummeting when the event is
revealed, among other shareholder-centric policies. This results in a data leak not being addressed when
it should, and the harm being much greater than it would if everything was out in the open. Bitcoin
brings transparency to the security process. How? The source code, instructions that tell the computer
exactly how to construct bitcoins and transfer them securely are open-source. This means anyone can read
the code, and be able to tell if there are any flaws or obvious problems. It also means upgrading
encryption methods is possible in a short time frame, if any weakness is found in the future.

There are no standards in banking today that require any sort of code review in a public forum. Their
secrecy and lack of transparency only hurt you, not help you.

No Chargebacks - the current financial system is prone to problems that often beset such schemes, the
untrustworthyness of potential trading partners, customers who write bad checks and skip out on the debt,
credit charges that are disputed and reversed. This creates a very hairy problem for running a small
business when dealing with banks. Your accounts could be debited from a customer reversing a transaction,
potentially stuffing up the entire operation of your fledgling enterprise. Bitcoin solves this problem by
only allowing you to spend like cash, once you've made a payment - it is verified and sent immediately.
By virtue of its encryption methods, it also allows you to trade with others you may not necessarily
trust. Bitcoin's secure transfer and proof-of-work (a main mechanism that ensures the entire transaction
integrity stored in the 'blockchain') is the only guarantee you need. No chargebacks, ever.

Banks will never offer this type of service, ever. (Unless they adopt Bitcoin as a payment method.)

Financial Freedom - you should spend your money the way you want it spent. Want to contribute to a cause?
Go do it. Want to support someone you believe in for political office? Spend away. Bitcoin doesn't put
arbitrary policy decisions on your money. The entire project is decentralized, which means there isn't a
single person who can control where or when you make a transaction. This makes other methods seem
downright barbaric and feudal in comparison.

Banks will never protect your monetary rights. Their allegiance is to their stockholders, not you. The
moment a political cause becomes too controversial, their predictable reaction is to reverse course and
run with their tail between their legs. Isn't it time you had a financial system with some backbone?





1P8GkNyFonL9a6CZGuQTdNtmKwHrE1ThXK

Mr. Hearn, I apologize if this was in the wrong category, I'm a very avid supporter of bitcoin and perhaps selected the wrong sub-forum.

I'll try to be more discerning in the future.

Cheers,

Exponere Mendaces

@SgtSpike

I see your point, but I meant it in the context of failure, not supporting regulation of finance. Just an example of the systemic flaws inherent in the existing structure.

@adrian33

I'm not running for any office, I'm afraid. I'd also go further to say that anyone who actively pursues politics probably shouldn't be allowed to attain any position of power. The best decision makers are those reluctantly given the task, not those seeking control.

@robmon

Appreciate your response, thank you.

@Indemnified

Thank you, I shall check my client for the confirmations. It also inspires me to continue contributing to the cause.

Cheers,

Exponere Mendaces

Bitcoin is nothing less than a binary revolution. It is a statement of purpose that embodies the sentiment "Don't tread on me". We're tired of endless ineffective regulation, a body of law that only protects the top 1% of the wealth-holders in the country, while fee structures and arbitrary transaction policies push common citizens to the brink of poverty.

Bitcoin is the upthrust fist of all internet citizens who simply wish to live their lives without needless interference. The existing banking system has become a defective node that will be routed around, if you don't 'talk' Bitcoin, we won't understand you or need you.

By running the Bitcoin client, you are telling the existing financial system you don't need them anymore. They've become the inefficient middleman in an increasingly networked world. The buggy-whip makers in the age of the automobile, the "dead tree" news distribution dinosaur gasping its last breath in the freewheeling ecosystem of blogs and up-to-the-second news sites.

Financial policy and regulations are now decided by who has the most money to contribute, the best lobbyists, public relations flacks and speechwriters. Monetary decisions are made by men who have never earned minimum wages beyond their teen years -- if ever, and never have had to live hand-to-mouth just to survive.

They can't relate, because simply - they don't have to. Bitcoin users know this, which is why the collective will to bootstrap the system and change the world has surged throughout the internet, filtered down to the most remote nodes and places on the planet. We've seen the financial disaster of 2008 unfold, seen the lack of regulation enforcement, the greed and corruption, and we've had enough.

It took the pendulum of greed and corruption swinging through the country like a wrecking ball, destroying lives and homes as the sub-prime monster fed on financial ignorance and bank-enabled butchery, to fuel our growing discontent. Watching the talking heads on popular news programs, announcing another round of congressional interrogation proved ultimately futile, to feed our belligerence.

It is time to take up the standard, hoist the digital flag high and cry out "NO MORE!". It is time to take hold of your own destiny and financial future by deciding for yourself where to put your trust. In each other, not a financial system that benefits the few at the expense of the whole.

They have awakened a large slumbering giant, and we will utterly change the face of finance.





1AsJaJ2AKuYySfKnjDczxoZsNekaY18NJD