Democratic and Public Exchange - a call for action

[democracytobitcoin]

This is a call for community thinking and action. Please join, please respond.

Democratic and Public Exchange

In the light of recent events, the collapse of MtGox and the terrible personal tragedies I suggest to open a serious discussion among us, and to move to action in a democratic and organized way.
there are several point I would like to suggest:
1. The Problem in Bitcoin Economy: private greedy whales Vs. Public Economy.
2. The advantages of Public Exchange
3. MtGox should be taken over by the Public.
4. Some practical considerations.

1. The problem in Bitcoin Economy.

One of the main challenges that the Bitcoin eco-system faces is the tension between a new public sphere created by private people who cares for their freedom, and its abuse by Greedy whales. MtGox is the best example of that: a reliable exchange requires an initial capital and a high functioning management. In the pre-bitcon economy exchange could have taken between people based on their trust. In the bitcoin economy and because of its advantages of anonymity, trust does not exists.  The exchange is supposed to correct this problem and to offer a reliable platform. However, private exchange, as we can see from the MtGox example is susceptible to Greed, wrong doing.
Thus, the contradiction we have is that of Bitcoin Eco-system which is based on total transparency on the one hand, and Private Exchanges which are not controlled by the public. Private exchanges represent all of what is bad in the old economy.

2. The advantages of the public exchange.
There are calls in recent weeks for a stronger supervision on the exchanges. However, the idea of stronger supervision worries many people of the bitcoin community - if supervision means state intervention, then the whole bitcoin eco-system is put into danger. Also, Practically it is problematic because of the international nature of the bitcoin-eco-system.
Therefore, I suggest to consider a public exchange.
A public exchange will not run for profit, and will not be own by any greedy MtGox type company. All of its decision, management practices, etc will be open and transparent, and it will reflect the bitcoin-eco-system spirit and reality.
However, how can it be achieved?

3.  The public takes over MtGox

The problem of establishing a public exchange has two aspects:
A) We need the capital to establish it. A capital that will not be controlled by the whales (MtGox, or this or that 'brothers')
B) We need big enough group of people that takes part in it.

I believe that the collapse of MtGox provides us with a huge opportunity in the right direction.

Mtgox has a million clients, and bascially already an established (flowed) exchange technology. If the MtGox customers unite themselves together they can ask the court to manage and run the exchange.
The benefits of such a power that will be established from the little people can be immense. Here are some examples:
A) This is the basis for a public exchange. it will be now an exchange that run by the people and for the people.
B) The fees that will be collected by the public exchange will pay the debt to the outside creditors (assuming that now the creditors can get back almost nothing. It is in their interest to see MtGox coming back as a solid exchange).
C) The profits from the fees will partly go to pay back the loses of the deposited money and bitcoins of the private customers.
D) Part of the profits from fees will be invested in creating a secure and working bitcoin eco-system.

If the MtGox customers unite themselves with the support of the bitcoin community it can be a real new beginning that will move the power to the people, and will provide us all with a tremendous security and prosperous bitcoin eco-sysyem.

4. Practical Considerations
In order to achieve that we have to think on the following issues:
A) Organizing as many as MtGox clients who will be ready to establish a democratic and functioning body that will represent them in court in the demand to take over.
B) Participation of other people of the Bitcoin Community who will be ready to join this new public exchange.
C) To make sure that this group of people which establishes the new public exchange are not the big investors, and greedy whales. It will be an exchange of the people that work for the people.

This is an initial draft for the Public Exchange. Although it is an initial draft, a lot of thought has been invested in it for public good.

Please take part in discussing this call for thinking and action, and let us all together, the little people take part in creating the economy that works for us!

Greetings.

[1714897229]

1714897229

[1714897229]

1714897229

[1714897229]

1714897229

[1714897229]

1714897229

[1714897229]

1714897229

[whtchocla7e]

Public exchange is not feasible.

The most important principle in Bitcoin is decentralization.

Anytime you have a group of people (you can call yourself "public" whatever) trying to establish control of something, you violate the number #1 principle.

[FreedomFeens]

There is no such thing as public property, it is a fiction created by government.  Go try to plant a garden on "public" property or use a government car without permission-after all its "public" property right so you have a right to use it don't you?  There is no such thing as public property, the government is a private criminal gang that extracts funds at gunpoint from it's victims and monopolizes certain essential services to give the impression that is is essential for the continuance of society when in fact everything it does could be provided better and voluntarily by the market.

The public would not own a "public" exchange, the state and members of it's criminal gang would.  The exchange would never be run successfully since it is not responsive to market forces, only in a market where a business lives or dies by getting money voluntarily from its customers can a business know whether what it is doing is what customers want and is providing value.  In a state system where the money for the service is stolen at gunpoint, there is no way to know whether the service provided is working or is something people want since people cannot withdrawal their funding support.  

Democracy is a tyranny, it is 51% violently forcing their will on 49%.  That is not persuasion, that is not negotiation so that both parties feel served, that is violence.  Democracy is evil.

The nature of bitcoin is to be decentralized.  What you should advocate for is a decentralized exchange that avoids the problems we saw in gox because its decentralized.  The challenge is to determine how to get fiat into the exchange quickly and digitally without using the traditional system.

[democracytobitcoin]

Thank you for the responses.
No disrespect, I wish to hear from other laypersons who wish to take action together, and to further think in a think-tank form about the best ways, the problems, difficulties, and strategies of developing a democratic and public exchange.
(people who believe in people).

[FreedomFeens]

Thank you for the responses.
No disrespect, I wish to hear from other laypersons who wish to take action together, and to further think in a think-tank form about the best ways, the problems, difficulties, and strategies of developing a democratic and public exchange.
(people who believe in people).

I believe in people and people interactions, as long as they are voluntary and not forced by a gun.  What do you mean by "lay" person?

[democracytobitcoin]

Thank you for the responses.
No disrespect, I wish to hear from other laypersons who wish to take action together, and to further think in a think-tank form about the best ways, the problems, difficulties, and strategies of developing a democratic and public exchange.
(people who believe in people).

I believe in people and people interactions, as long as they are voluntary and not forced by a gun.  What do you mean by "lay" person?

If you have the time to reread my post, you will see that I didn't offer anything else but a voluntary cooperation of people.
I sympathize with your commitment to promote freedom. And I understand your objection to state tyranny.
I fail to understand why would you then object to the idea that people (like you and me) will join together and create a reliable exchange, that will work for us? At the moment the exchanges work for their owners, who can (see MtGox) disappear with your money, who work against the interest of their clients.
Perhaps you care to explain how does it interfere with your freedom? I would think that such cooperation increases your freedom, as it liberates you from greedy cooperation whose interests are not the same as their clients (you and me).

 

[FreedomFeens]

Thank you for the responses.
No disrespect, I wish to hear from other laypersons who wish to take action together, and to further think in a think-tank form about the best ways, the problems, difficulties, and strategies of developing a democratic and public exchange.
(people who believe in people).

I believe in people and people interactions, as long as they are voluntary and not forced by a gun.  What do you mean by "lay" person?

If you have the time to reread my post, you will see that I didn't offer anything else but a voluntary cooperation of people.
I sympathize with your commitment to promote freedom. And I understand your objection to state tyranny.
I fail to understand why would you then object to the idea that people (like you and me) will join together and create a reliable exchange, that will work for us? At the moment the exchanges work for their owners, who can (see MtGox) disappear with your money, who work against the interest of their clients.
Perhaps you care to explain how does it interfere with your freedom? I would think that such cooperation increases your freedom, as it liberates you from greedy cooperation whose interests are not the same as their clients (you and me).

 

By public i thought you meant state operated.

[anarchy]

http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1z6qws/open_letter_to_mark_karpeles_and_the_bitcoin/

[QuestionAuthority]

http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1z6qws/open_letter_to_mark_karpeles_and_the_bitcoin/

Cool idea but the largest kickstarter drive in history, Pebble: E-Paper Watch for iPhone and Android, only raised $10,266,845. They might fall short by about $400 million.

[HeliKopterBen]

You are on the right track but I think the solution to nontransparent centralized exchanges is coming.  Mt gox is gone and this highlights the next step in distributed technological evolution.  The solution is to either create a decentralized exchange or a hybrid system. 

We have already seen several projects emerge for decentralized exchanges including bitshares, ethereum, counterparty and mastercoin.  However, it is unclear exactly how this will work because the bridge between fiat and crypto requires centralization on the fiat side.

What may be a more viable solution (at least for now) would be a hybrid system in which users retain control of their coins through a key management system verified against the blockchain while having their coins on exchange.  Andreas Antonopolous has stated that he is working on such a solution.  Also, a bitcoin audit tool for an exchange is a possibility, allowing customers to instantly audit the exchange against the blockchain in real time.  Unfortunately, customers holding fiat will be at the mercy of the exchange and banks because fiat cannot be controlled completely by the customer.