Bitcoin Can Fix Financial Deplatforming of Canada's Truckers—But It Won't Be Easy

[Kamaji]

Bitcoin Can Fix Financial Deplatforming of Canada's Truckers—But It Won't Be Easy

The government controls on the traditional banking system also apply to custodial cryptocurrency services.

By Andrea O'Sullivan
February 22, 2022

Things are getting pretty wild up in Canada. While other countries are removing their COVID restrictions, our neighbors to the north have decided to invoke emergency powers to seize the bank accounts of those who oppose lockdowns and mandates. Meanwhile, state media is prowling through a hacked database of convoy donors (isn't that a bannable offense on Twitter?) to dox and open targets to harassment.

Financial deplatforming has always been a threat, but it's mostly been a remote one. With these unprecedented banking punishments against the Canadian trucker convoy and its supporters, the reality of the controls baked into our financial system have become clear to the world.

Yes, "bitcoin fixes this." But it's not as simple as repeating this mantra. It is absolutely possible to transfer value directly with a peer without any bank or government being able to stop or reverse it. But it's not easy. Preparing for an explicitly politically controlled financial system means learning now about how to use cryptocurrency and what controls the government still has over certain service providers.

Our legacy financial system is controllable because it is largely operated by third party custodians—banks and payment processors—that move your money around. If we don't use cash (physical or digital), we are dependent on these financial institutions to go about our days.

Governments saw the power of financial control long ago. Banks are required to compile dossiers on customers—your identifying information, your commercial habits, your recipients—to share with governments or other institutions.

Furthermore, institutions can be directed to shut off financial access to enemies of the state. This has traditionally been "rogue" nations and terrorist outfits, but Canada decided to expand this net to include the hundreds of thousands of normal Canadians who oppose government lockdowns and mandates.

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Source:  https://reason.com/2022/02/22/bitcoin-can-fix-financial-deplatforming-of-canadas-truckers-but-it-wont-be-easy/

[roamer_1]

Nah. Street.

Butt-tons of CASH money. You might be surprised how few trucks you need to haul 10m bucks around.

I am going to give again. Benjamins. Direct.

[Ghost Bear]

Nah. Street.

Butt-tons of CASH money. You might be surprised how few trucks you need to haul 10m bucks around.

I am going to give again. Benjamins. Direct.

Sure, lots of cash works, until a cop at a checkpoint sees it and confiscates it, because "it might be drug money!" 

[roamer_1]

Sure, lots of cash works, until a cop at a checkpoint sees it and confiscates it, because "it might be drug money!" 

There's that whole 'eggs in one basket' thing. Distributed works.