Has Ethereum Been State Captured? With Mark Goodwin
Where to find the show
Download Episode MP3 File
The file will open in a new window. Click down arrow to download the file.
SHOW DESCRIPTION
Mark Goodwin is the director of print editorial at Bitcoin Magazine. In this interview, we discuss the US government's sanctions on Tornado Cash, the upcoming Ethereum merge, and why this is vitally important for the future of Bitcoin.
- - - -
On 24th August, the Ethereum Foundation's Protocol Support team announced the Ethereum merge is expected to take place between September 10th and September 20th. The event marks Ethereum’s shift from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake, which would eliminate mining from the network consensus mechanism.
However, major concerns are surfacing that move beyond the well-worn battle lines. There is a growing desire for the Ethereum PoW consensus to continue resulting in a network fork. But, Ethereum has effectively been co-opted by USDC and USDT stablecoins. Because these stablecoins are widely used on the network and due to the centralised nature of these stablecoins, the issuers can throw around their financial weight by deciding which fork to censor. And the organisations behind these stablecoins have shown a readiness to comply with state sanctions. What will this make Ethereum?
On the same day of the merge announcement, a Dutch judge ruled that the developer of the Tornado Cash mixing service on the Ethereum blockchain must stay in jail for 90 days as he awaits charges. What these charges will be is not necessarily clear at the moment, but it seems that authorities will tie it into hacking and money laundering schemes.
The Dutch action was coordinated with (and probably orchestrated by) the US government, which has imposed sanctions on addresses associated with Tornado Cash. The actions by the State Department are reminiscent of the original battles with cypher punks in the 1990s that resulted in the first “Code is Speech” ruling. Do they want to retest that ruling?
These events, on the face of things, reinforce the unique position of Bitcoin. But, any rejoicing would miss the existential dangers. The state may be setting a precedent to outlaw code, sending a message to developers seeking to protect privacy which is already having a chilling effect, whatever the protocol.
Could we be witnessing the development of a state-coerced digital currency?
TIMESTAMPS
00:01:27: Introductions
00:04:39: Working for Bitcoin Magazine
00:09:40: Bitcoin jobs versus a fiat jobs
00:14:38: A broader range of guests, Bitcoin is for all
00:19:35: Fighting the state for rights
00:26:44: Pointless political debates
00:31:51: Spotify and algorithmic music
00:46:10: Tornado Cash and state sanctions
00:57:20: The criminal implications associated with open-source code
01:00:35: Vegans and vegetarians
01:03:58: The Ethereum merge
01:07:46: The state capture of Ethereum
01:15:37: The use of USDC as a CBDC
01:18:51: The beauty of Bitcoin's simplicity
01:23:10: Anonymity and support for developers
01:24:45: Final comments
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | TuneIn | RSS Feed
Leave a review on iTunes
Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
Subscribe to the newsletter on my website
Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube
If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.
SPONSORS
SHOW NOTES
Connect with Mark:
On Twitter
Articles for Bitcoin Magazine
Bitcoin Magazine Subscription
His Website
Mentioned in the interview:
Feds Sell 29,656 Bitcoins to Tim Draper in Silk Road Auction - Cointelegraph, Jul 2014
Miles Suter - @milessuter, Twitter thread re: Ethereum merge, Aug 18th 2022
US sanctions Tornado Cash over fears of aiding North Korean hackers - the Guardian, Aug 8th 2022
The Lazarus Heist — a rollicking ride through North Korean cyber crime - FT, Aug 4th 2022
Ethereum Foundation Confirms Date for Long-Awaited Merge Upgrade - Decrypt, Aug 24th 2022
The Future of Bitcoin Mining Protocols [Stratum V2] - Galaxy Digital Research, Feb 18th 2022
The Birth Of The Bitcoin-Dollar - Mark Goodwin, Bitcoin Magazine, Sep 2021
Fedimint – The Evolution Of Bitcoin Custody - Obi Nwosu, Bitcoin Magazine, Mar 12th 2022
What are Bitcoin covenants, and how do they work? - Cointelegraph, Jun 26th 2022
Other Relevant WBD Podcasts:
WBD518: Bitcoin Privacy with Matt Odell
WBD490: Freedom Technologies & Civil Disobedience with Austin Hill
WBD463: Can Bitcoin Mining Save the Environment? with Troy Cross
WBD459: Bitcoin & The Canadian Truckers with Greg Foss & NobodyCaribou
WBD405: The Bitcoin v Crypto War with Udi Wertheimer, Crypto Cobain, Alex Gladstein & Allen Farrington
WBD187: The Beginner’s Guide to Bitcoin Part 6: How Bitcoin Works with Shinobi
WBD182: The Beginner’s Guide to Bitcoin Part 1: Andreas M. Antonopoulos on Why We Need Bitcoin
Defiance081: Ross Ulbricht & The Silk Road