From Psychedelics to the Bitcoin Boom with Tuur Demeester - WBD691

Tuur Demeester is a Bitcoin investor and economist. In this
interview, we discuss the significance of Bitcoin as a sound and
auditable form of money, the impact of BlackRock embracing
Bitcoin, and the importance of understanding the financial
system. Tuur shares his insights as an early adopter of Bitcoin
and reflects on its progress over the years. We also discuss
addiction treatment.


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Given that Bitcoin is now being promoted by the world’s largest
asset manager, it is easy to forget how nascent the innovation
still is. In the early days of Bitcoin, just over a decade ago,
understanding Bitcoin was a challenge. And yet, despite the
uncertainties, such as how Bitcoin would scale and the potential
attack vectors, the signal was clear - Bitcoin was driven by
engineers, not money.


The role of cypherpunks should not be underestimated: it was
their diligent work in seeking to protect privacy and human
rights in the digital space that provided the solid basis for
Bitcoin. Fast forward to today, and we see increased adoption and
improved understanding of Bitcoin's vulnerabilities. It's
exciting to witness this combination of increased adoption and
improved understanding.


In this podcast, Tuur Demeester discusses the resistance and
challenges that Bitcoin faces, especially from those who have
built wealth and status within traditional financial systems.
Further, we discuss Bitcoin’s evolving narrative, particularly in
relation to environmental concerns, and how the changing
narrative will be assisted by BlackRock’s endorsement of Bitcoin
which could force mainstream media outlets to reconsider their
negative stance.


Tuur outlines the importance of asking simple questions to
understand the financial system, such as where money comes from
and what determines the price of money. Through this lens, one is
better able to appreciate Bitcoin’s role as an insurance policy.
Tuur also discusses the threats to Bitcoin's expansion,
highlighting the importance of not losing track of the principles
and values that got us here. We also have a fascinating
discussion about addiction treatment.


 


This episode’s sponsors:


Iris Energy - Bitcoin Mining. Done Sustainably
Ledn - Financial services for Bitcoin hodlers
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Ledger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Wasabi Wallet - Privacy by default
Unchained - Secure your bitcoin with confidence