Orange Pilling the White House with David Zell - WBD524

David Zell is a co-founder of the Bitcoin Policy Institute and
Director of Policy at BTC Inc. In this interview, we discuss
fighting to make congress aware of Bitcoin’s social value, the
strategic benefits of Bitcoin for the US and how our rights are
being erased in a digital world and Bitcoin’s defence.


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On June 1st a letter in “Support of Responsible Fintech Policy”
was sent to Congress. Purportedly from 1,500 “computer
scientists, software engineers, and technologists”, it excoriated
blockchain technology, stating it “has been a solution in search
of a problem and has now latched onto concepts such as financial
inclusion and data transparency to justify its existence.”


FUD in the media is one thing. Direct lobbying of congress using
persuasive but purposefully misleading arguments is another.
Coordinated attack vectors have affected Bitcoin at numerous
stages of its evolution. These attacks are now focused on
galvanizing the most powerful of external forces: persuading the
US government Bitcoin is of no social value is arguably the most
dangerous moment yet.


The battles over technical details have now become battles over
ideas. And the constituency over which this battle is being
fought has grown from an informed and knowledgeable clique of
insiders to a less informed but more consequential clique of
legislators.


But, just as the assaults on Bitcoin have become more political
and trenchant, the defensive measures have witnessed significant
maturation. Bitcoin has always had persuasive individuals. Now it
has powerful institutions. Most importantly it has its own think
tank, bringing together some of the most interesting and original
voices within the industry.


In this new stage of Bitcoin’s development, we are lucky to have
those who can see the battle that needs to be fought at the
nation-state level. And we’re also lucky to have those who can
develop arguments that are persuasive to those looking for the
collective needs of wider society.