The hype surrounding blockchain and cryptocurrency has simmered to a dull roar. Last December, the markets spiked as traders drooled over the thought of lining their pockets. They believed they would be billionaires. They had erotic dreams of lambos, mansions, hookers and blow. Many of them embraced a get-rich-quick, shit-brained mentality. They put speculation over philosophy. The majority of them got financially destroyed for their greed. In their fragilista-like thinking, they either forgot the purpose of the technology or came into the space without acknowledging the crypto-anarchism that created it.
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Novel Technology Is Fueled by Hype
Anyone who has studied technological trends could have predicted what happened. Any 
novel technology is originally fueled by hype. When the technology emerges, new entrants see dollar signs. They want to exploit the technology to get rich. These people are pseudo-entrepreneurs or unprincipled traders. They don’t give a damn about changing the world, much less simplifying life for the average person.
There is nothing wrong with earning money or getting rich. That is what the capitalist spirit and entrepreneurial drive are all about. However, if people’s sole focus is to just to make money, they are doomed to failure. There has to be an underlying drive or motivating purpose. Without that fundamental principle guiding the entrepreneur, people are likely to go broke, fall prey to scams, or simply get rich but be unhappy.
Amara’s Law
There is an explanation for why early technologies succumb to bad actors and people with unwholesome motivations. Amara’s Law provides an apt summation. The law states: “We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the long run.”
This overestimation of technology’s effect is accompanied by the fraudsters, pseudo-entrepreneurs, and other unsavory types. When technologies emerge, people take advantage of the newness; they take advantage of the newbies. In this timeframe, there is a swirl of misunderstanding surrounding the tech, and this is fertile ground for the creation of victims. Scam victims. The victims of hype. And victims of greed. In this regard, “overestimation” is a synonym for “hype,” which leads to bad behavior and avarice within the industry.
Consolidation: Weeding out the Bad Actors and Scam Artists
However, in the long term, the ecosystem naturally weeds out the bad actors. Many of 
them get thrown in government cages. The projects that aren’t scams simply fail, and much of the greed begins to dissipate as reality sets in. This is a consolidation phase. In the cryptocurrency environment, this consolidation phase is propped up by self-governance.
Currently, the crypto ecosystem is trying to discover ways to promote self-governance, rather than locking people in cages. This means developers are considering platforms to help vet companies within the space. Indeed, the community must fashion an environment of self-governance to stymie politicians and bureaucrats.
Many in the ecosystem pontificate on the evil nature of scams and money grubbers, but then they vie for government to come solve all the problems. This is muddy thinking, and it verges on hypocrisy. If a person loathes fraudsters, the last thing they are going to do is invite government goons into the melee. Government is one of the largest criminal organizations and conduits of fraud to ever exist. Summoning them would be like calling a murderer to prevent murder. It makes zero sense.
Reawakening to the Purpose of Cryptocurrency
People must acknowledge where cryptocurrency came from. They must recall the past in order to make decisions for the future. If they want to get lost in the hype, they should at least do some research on the cypherpunks and crypto-anarchists. Crypto-anarchy was the underlying motivating factor. It’s the reason for this technology.
In the long term, I don’t believe people will underestimate the technology via Amara’s law. The fact crypto was built to undermine the state apparatus is an idea that can never be underestimated, and thus people will begin embracing it. The beautiful thing about cryptocurrency is it changes people’s psychology. It teaches them about sound money, by rewiring their brain. It also reminds them they own themselves, and that no one deserves to extort the fruits of their labor. The crypto-anarchist dream, then, is the real source of hype – not all the speculation and ramblings about getting rich.
Do you agree that crypto-anarchism should be the real driving force of cryptocurrency adoption? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock.
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