How important Ross Ulbricht to the bitcoin community?

[GreatArkansas]

yes it's not the best example to represent the crypto universe

Yep, I understand the action was wrong or not legal in many ways. But the vision or the model is good where Silkroad was a free market and accepts Bitcoin for such payments, it's one of the best use cases of Bitcoin in its early days which I agree. It just used in illegal ways, which we can also relate using fiat where a lot of criminals and bad guys always using it in illegal ways.

[Ziskinberg]

If Satoshi truly a bad guy then maybe no one should continue making reference and dealing with what he created, back then Bitcoin was used for illegal activities and until now nothing has changed, scammers are still making use of Bitcoin for their illegal trade maybe every defaulter should be sent on same punishment as Ulbricht.

Satoshi is a hero, not a bad guy! (at least our way of praising him).

Bitcoin is being used as a currency and how we use it is really up to us, and there are laws in place to punish those who do illegal things with Bitcoin, so you can’t blame its creator for that. However if someone creates a platform specifically to facilitate illegal transactions that’s a different story. Those kinds of platforms need to be shut down, and the people behind them should face the consequences.

[Ever-young]

I don't see Ross as a hero and i cannot tell you how important he is to the BTC community, it is also obvious that Ross committed a crime, but c'mon, the sentence he got was crazy and unfair. Did Ross deserve to go to jail? Yes, did he deserve two life sentences plus 40 years, hell no.

It’s not unfair in the eyes of regulators, considering that his platform facilitated a lot of illegal transactions, everything from weapons to illegal drugs, and even, possibly, prostitution. All those activities thrived because of Silk Road, and without it, they likely wouldn’t have had the same reach.

A young man created something for the sake of promoting privacy, anonymity, and the free market, and a group of people took advantage of that space and used it for their illegal activities, which is entirely out of the hands of the developer.

Anything can be used for corrupt practices, even before Silk Road was created, where there were no means of drugs, arms dealers, and other illegal traders conducting deals. They just had to change hands and use Silk Road; no money transmitting services are free from being used for illegal stuffs.

[Solosanz]

You can't really compare the two because they’re totally different. Silk Road was an online marketplace on the dark web that was specifically designed for illegal activities and they used Bitcoin mainly to stay anonymous. The founder Ross was fully aware of what was going on and could have stopped the platform if he wanted to. Bitcoin, on the other hand, is just a currency, like fiat money that can be used for both legal and illegal purposes, so just like fiat currency, they regulate it to continue to be useful for legal transactions.

Why you have a double standard in your post?

Who said Silk Road "was specifically designed" for illegal activities? that's your assumption. Silk Road is just a marketplace, Ross isn't the one who sell drugs, illegal weapons etc.

I can just say Satoshi created Bitcoin was specifically designed for illegal activities, anyone can make assumption.

If Satoshi truly a bad guy then maybe no one should continue making reference and dealing with what he created, back then Bitcoin was used for illegal activities and until now nothing has changed, scammers are still making use of Bitcoin for their illegal trade maybe every defaulter should be sent on same punishment as Ulbricht.

Why only defaulter should get the same punishment as Ross? Satoshi need to be included.

However, Satoshi has better OPSEC than Ross, which make him stay anonymous until now since no one has expose his identity.

[Darker45]

I don't consider Ross as a hero, but he's done one of the firsts in Bitcoin. He's therefore an important figure in the growth and adoption of Bitcoin. He'll forever be a part of Bitcoin's rich history.

The problem, however, is when people begin to blindly support him simply because of his contribution to Bitcoin's acceptance as a currency, to the point that they become oblivious of whatever crimes he may have committed or involved in.

Just because you preach decentralization, freedom, Bitcoin, full control over money, and so forth doesn't mean you can get away with crimes you knowingly and willingly committed or be a part of. I'm not talking about whether his sentence was fair or not.

[avp2306]

I don't consider Ross as a hero, but he's done one of the firsts in Bitcoin. He's therefore an important figure in the growth and adoption of Bitcoin. He'll forever be a part of Bitcoin's rich history.

The problem, however, is when people begin to blindly support him simply because of his contribution to Bitcoin's acceptance as a currency, to the point that they become oblivious of whatever crimes he may have committed or involved in.

Just because you preach decentralization, freedom, Bitcoin, full control over money, and so forth doesn't mean you can get away with crimes you knowingly and willingly committed or be a part of. I'm not talking about whether his sentence was fair or not.

I guess what he do is just to make Bitcoin being recognize at early years of its existence and the platform he do creates a lot of controversy on internet back on early days.

But the activities he done is not actually good to follow since he create a platform which has been used by criminals and he make everything accessible to those bad guys then do their evil plans.

People are just been hook about anonymity and freedom to used Bitcoin that's why they correlate this incident on what happen currently on Ulbritch. People just missing the point on why he is in jail and just believe the fact that he is free from government control.

[rodskee]

I notice a lot of people jumping on the bandwagon, treating Ross like some kind of hero.

well to a lot of people he really is a hero because he became the symbol of what the future could be a decentralized marketplace where you could make transactions privately is something that a lot of people did not think to attempt but it was ross who did

unfortunately it was used for the wrong reasons but the silk road was just a sneak peak to what the future may look like

It would be great to help the community understand what makes him so special now, even if his past actions paint a very different picture.

if you are passionate about privacy, anonymity, and decentralization then it would not be difficult to know why ross is such a relevant person to the community

[BenCodie]

Given that, it’s clear he isn’t exactly the "good guy" some might think. But what’s interesting is why he remains so relevant today despite his past. Being relevant in this context likely means he has gained the love and support of many, with people donating millions to him. That level of support suggests there’s something about him that resonates deeply with others. It would be great to help the community understand what makes him so special now, even if his past actions paint a very different picture.

A lot of what was being traded was (and still is) available through private connections or marketplaces, and depending on the items, can be dangerous to trade. Ross created a marketplace and ecosystem using Bitcoin that added safeguards to these trades. It's said he didn't participate in these trades himself, and since the platform allowed listings of all kinds, it was the people that made it a marketplace for illicit items, not Ross. The reason why so many support Ross (in my opinion) is due to the way in which he was arrested, which was reportedly corrupt and not in line with the natural course of justice or law. People support Ross he was a pioneer for Bitcoin and freedom, and was arrested unjustly. That's why he was able to get a presidential pardon. If he was a true criminal and the way he was arrested was correct and proper, maybe (most likely) he would not have gotten a pardon.

There's a lot more to this - it doesn't take into account more intricate details about Ross and the whole saga...though it's a summary to answer the question.

Each persona have different reason. But some part of Bitcoin community view Ross's sentence is extremely severe, when compared with other criminal with similar crime. That makes them think or believe US government intentionally do that to disrupt Bitcoin reputation and usage.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

There are so murders, and traffickers who are walking free but Ross's sentence as you pointed out so well was extremely severe. The intention to cause reputational damage to bitcoin and its adoption was counterproductive.

Thank goodness he is out and he's gotten support from the public. Let's hope he doesn't do something like the silk road again.

Ross Ulbricht's grief was totally disproportionate. Sentencing a young man to life when, prior to the Silkroad affair, he had no criminal record, means that people can never change and that mistakes are unforgivable.

Ross Ulbricht wrote: as a young man, he believed that people should have the right and freedom to buy and sell whatever they wanted, even drugs. In prison he realized the damage drugs were doing and he changed his mind.

Given that he was no longer a danger to society, and that he had shown in prison that he was a good person, notably by raising funds with his art for the children of prisoners, it was important that he be released. Life in prison is a kind of slow death, a nightmare.

He's going down in bitcoin history, not in the best way no doubt, but this time he's got big things to achieve, no doubt because he's an intelligent person. He was probably overwhelmed by his platform, had ideals that, when confronted with reality, made an explosive cocktail.

Those who think he deserved to stay in prison have probably never made a mistake in their lives.

Great posts both!

[Die_empty]

Satoshi is a hero, not a bad guy! (at least our way of praising him).

Bitcoin is being used as a currency and how we use it is really up to us, and there are laws in place to punish those who do illegal things with Bitcoin, so you can’t blame its creator for that. However if someone creates a platform specifically to facilitate illegal transactions that’s a different story. Those kinds of platforms need to be shut down, and the people behind them should face the consequences.

Some people lost family members to drugs and other illegal goods that were facilitated by Silk Road. Therefore, I would not say what he did was right or celebrate him as a hero. But at a time when Bitcoin was struggling to establish itself in the global financial space, Ross Ulbricht created a platform that practicalized the nature of an anonymous digital currency. Although in a negative form, Silk Road made Bitcoin popular. The platform he created was wrong and he deserved to go to jail but the sentence was harsh.   

[ancafe]

For those who truly understand his importance, feel free to share your insights. I notice a lot of people jumping on the bandwagon, treating Ross like some kind of hero. The reality is, this guy was convicted for running a platform involved in illegal drugs, weapons, and other unlawful activities, which led to him being sentenced to double life imprisonment plus an extra 40 years. Recently, he was pardoned by President Trump.

He was pardoned by Trump and that was something some people were hoping for even though his past was full of mistakes. People saw that as a very harsh sentence given to him and perhaps undeserved considering that many others who committed more crimes than him got much lighter sentences. Those of us who didn’t know him personally may have forgotten about him after he was sentenced, although he is now being talked about again after being pardoned by Trump.

Our stance is clear that people who commit crimes need to be punished, but the punishment given should be proportionate to others who do the same thing. Regardless of how he contributed to bitcoin communication because the law should look the same for everyone regardless of who they are or who they are behind.

[Becassine]

However if someone creates a platform specifically to facilitate illegal transactions that’s a different story. Those kinds of platforms need to be shut down, and the people behind them should face the consequences.

Ross Ulbricht faced the consequences of his actions and served 12 years in prison, enduring this sentence with virtually no hope of ever getting out again. Can you imagine the psychological pain? Not to mention that none of his co-defendants, not even the administrators of Silk Road 2.0 (Blake Benthall and Thomas White), received such long sentences. Even the special agent who laundered and stole bitcoins from the US government, Shaun Bridges, has long since been released. (https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-secret-service-agent-sentenced-scheme-related-silk-road-investigation)

As for the DEA agent, who should have been exemplary ... I'll let you read the judgment.

A former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for extortion, money laundering and obstruction of justice, which crimes he committed while working as an undercover agent investigating Silk Road, an online marketplace used to facilitate the sale and purchase of illegal drugs and other contraband.

(https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-dea-agent-sentenced-extortion-money-laundering-and-obstruction-related-silk-road)

So either Ross Ulbricht had very bad lawyers, or he didn't report anyone, or both.

[Accardo]

That wasn't his intention to run a marketplace for selling drugs and illicit products. He was only a "fall guy" after he handed out the operation of the site to other people who then turned it to a place of illegal deals. Ross only wanted a free marketplace where people would enjoy anonymity. Take Satoshi for instance, if he was reachable he may have gotten a jail sentence for creating bitcoin, because it's also used for crime. Moreover, Ross' punishment is way too much, and Trump thoughts happened to be that the last administration had much hatred for Bitcoin technology and needed to use him as an escape goat.

Even the guy who worked on Ross arrest also tried to stop Trump from ruling. It all contributes to why the President chose to release him. As for the crypto community being happy, these are the people who really understood what happened during the incident and thought of it as wickedness to get a young developer locked up that long for running a marketplace that accepts Bitcoin.

[Obim34]

You can't really compare the two because they’re totally different. Silk Road was an online marketplace on the dark web that was specifically designed for illegal activities and they used Bitcoin mainly to stay anonymous. The founder Ross was fully aware of what was going on and could have stopped the platform if he wanted to. Bitcoin, on the other hand, is just a currency, like fiat money that can be used for both legal and illegal purposes, so just like fiat currency, they regulate it to continue to be useful for legal transactions.

Why you have a double standard in your post?

Who said Silk Road "was specifically designed" for illegal activities? that's your assumption. Silk Road is just a marketplace, Ross isn't the one who sell drugs, illegal weapons etc.

I can just say Satoshi created Bitcoin was specifically designed for illegal activities, anyone can make assumption.

If Satoshi truly a bad guy then maybe no one should continue making reference and dealing with what he created, back then Bitcoin was used for illegal activities and until now nothing has changed, scammers are still making use of Bitcoin for their illegal trade maybe every defaulter should be sent on same punishment as Ulbricht.

Why only defaulter should get the same punishment as Ross? Satoshi need to be included.

However, Satoshi has better OPSEC than Ross, which make him stay anonymous until now since no one has expose his identity.

Which are you standing for, should Satoshi really be punished, what was his offence?. I don't want to believe this crazy assumptions are still on, surely at the early stages of Bitcoin development, if Satoshi was to be known he would have also been put in prison by the government, meanwhile that still wouldn't stop Bitcoin growth because the blockchain is totally decentralized as long communities continue making use of it there will be no difference between Satoshi being anonymous or when he is known.

The government blaming Ross, what happens to their own currency, US fiat is no good and inside there are illegal trades accompanying the currency. We can't stop the actual illegal use of these currencies, it's difficult and nearly impossible, they just need to understand the sole purpose of it's creation, make the environment favorable and then also find means to combat manipulations in the system.

[Synchronice]

Each persona have different reason. But some part of Bitcoin community view Ross's sentence is extremely severe, when compared with other criminal with similar crime. That makes them think or believe US government intentionally do that to disrupt Bitcoin reputation and usage.

Compared to other criminals, his sentence was extremely severe but the problem is that other criminals weren't punished the way they should be, i.e. the sentence for other criminals should be much higher. I think I know what you are talking about, so I won't go into details.

I don't see Ross as a hero and i cannot tell you how important he is to the BTC community, it is also obvious that Ross committed a crime, but c'mon, the sentence he got was crazy and unfair. Did Ross deserve to go to jail? Yes, did he deserve two life sentences plus 40 years, hell no. I believe the reason why the BTC community is happy with the pardon is because the initial sentencing was more like the authorities condemning BTC because it was the currency used in the Silk Road.

I think that people are very delusional and have double standards. First of all, what this man did is terrible, it's not good for Bitcoin too. He started a website where people were selling lots of illegal things and he made Bitcoin look dirty because of that. I understand that people love decentralization but what he did is beyond normal. We can't have a decentralized marketplace, people aren't that good and today, majority of people will use that for illegal activities. He knew it very well but he was making a fortune and was closing eye on that.

[franky1]

silk road customers of 2011-2013... how many of them are populating this very forum today... hmm not many responders im guessing

silk road itself did not facilitate 100m customers
silk road did not facilitate 10m customers
silk road did not facilitate 1m customers

if you look at the number of accounts coinbase(over 70m) or binance(over 200m) has in recent times.. the comparison puts things into prospective

it was the NEWS of some illegal site using bitcoin that caught SOME attention of tv viewers to then learn about bitcoin. but again not millions of people

if you look at the popularity of bitcoin 2011-2013.. and then compare it to other bitcoin events of 2014-2025 and look at the amount of users learning about bitcoin in different events, it puts things into prospective, SR was small.

take me for instance.
i came to this forum in 2012. but my first approach of learning about bitcoin in late 2011 start of 2012 was not due to gossip of SR, but instead my interest in investments of traditional finance and then getting gossip through the coding/tech community about bitcoin as a financial tool and deflationary money, others i knew also learned of bitcoin via the tech/finance industry gossip, not from the drug dealer site

all in all. SR may have given some news media gossip intro into bitcoin. but lets not pretend SR was some messiah/martyr complex of bitcoin religion

[tread93]

He was pretty damn important to the progression of bitcoin and instrumental in establishing a global market that you can buy and sell literally anything on there. I knew a guy from college who lost a bunch from ordering drugs i was something like 30 bitcoins actually. I can only imagine having so much once in your possession and then losing it, much like Ross. I hope he gets access to some old wallets or something and gets some of his money back.

[ronin445]

I do think Mr.Ross is being an angel  At the beginning times !
 its so calming to listen his history he had a big role in bitcoin when btc is baby.
But what about after ?
he saw the system getting involved in criminal activities but he agree to continue.
He is pardoned kindly ok
more than 10+ years , he learn his lesson.

[john_egbert]

He was pretty damn important to the progression of bitcoin and instrumental in establishing a global market that you can buy and sell literally anything on there. I knew a guy from college who lost a bunch from ordering drugs i was something like 30 bitcoins actually. I can only imagine having so much once in your possession and then losing it, much like Ross. I hope he gets access to some old wallets or something and gets some of his money back.

He is already happy as he is free from being persecuted, so there is that.
Even though he was instrumental to the platform that utilized BTC greatly, I don't think of him that highly. I am just happy for him to be away from government attention.

[Ziskinberg]

He is already happy as he is free from being persecuted, so there is that.
Even though he was instrumental to the platform that utilized BTC greatly, I don't think of him that highly. I am just happy for him to be away from government attention.

Now that he's a free man, the government might pay even more attention to him. I mean, when he was locked up he was serving a life sentence, and an extra 40 years. So, without the pardon he’d be rotting in jail. Now that he's out, we really don't know what his next move will be. Given his legendary status in the Bitcoin world, he could come up with another stupid idea that might be even worse than before. These are just possibilities since he's capable of surprising us,  while we hope he won’t do anything crazy, we shouldn't close our eyes to that possibility.

[YUriy1991]

Every mistake is definitely dealing with the law whoever the person is and must be held accountable for what has been done. Like what Ross did was wrong from a legal perspective but on the other hand like @ChiBitCTy's opinion he has a BIG role in the rise of bitcoin and what we regret if it is true is that Ross is only a victim of the legal system that wants to make an example of him even though there is an implied message for others if they try it.