Of Monsters And Maximalism — Bitcoin Culture Is Created By Value Alignment

This is an opinion editorial by John Vallis, host of the Bitcoin Rapid-Fire podcast, passionate bitcoin advocate and enthusiastic explorer of the profound implications it represents.

TL;DR: Stay humble, stack sats.

There’s been a lot of really ignorant takes on “bitcoin maximalism” and “purity tests” lately, and as I sit here with a fresh coconut water, blissed-out from nearly being choked unconscious this morning (a common hazard of rolling with blackbelts), a gentle wind upon my face, and the serene sounds of birds chirping … I’m struck with a question, one that puts my entire worldview in jeopardy, and which risks disrupting the peaceful Zen of an otherwise magnificent morning: Am I the baddy?

Can it be that I am a part of some toxic online cult made up of intolerant, mostly white (and, probably, very supreme) dudes who get off on browbeating into submission anyone who opposes their views on economics, politics, nutrition, relationships and much more besides?

My god, what have I become? How did I get here? And how can I rid myself of this insufferable and deplorable intolerance and get back to being … being what? Being … I guess … someone who adopts the dominant cultural worldview? Or who blindly accepts authority? Or who says nothing outside the bounds of political correctness? Or who ignores the fundamental importance of character? Or who lacks the courage and internal consistency to stand up against the status quo? Or who’d rather be more critical of a budding culture centered around certain fundamental principles and values, than the one run by criminals and incompetents which makes egregious violations of rights, decency and property a matter of course, and who fails to realize that bitcoin is likely the only thing that has a shot at fixing that? Or who wants to stay within a nice, familiar, comfortable conception of themselves and just ignore the individual changes that may be required to tilt things toward a more beneficial future for all?

Yes, yes, for the love of God get me back to that immediately before I’m forced to attend one more tedious steak dinner!

Ok, it seems I’m off to a bit of a sloppy start here.

Reign it in, John. Take your time, be thoughtful and clear with your language. Nobody likes messy writing.

Well, that may be true, but the last time I tried to write something “proper” about the whole “maximalist toxicity/culture” thing, was January 2021, and a year later it somehow resulted in a 40,000-word treatise on how bitcoin may very well represent the notion of “the second coming of Christ,” — and I’d prefer to avoid such a detour this time, if possible.

Ah fuck. I just lost like 95% of you with that whole Jesus bit didn’t I? Well, there’s no turning back now. I made sure to have a pee before starting this, and the stream of consciousness train has left the station baby! (I hope you heard that in a George Costanza voice, because that’s how it played in my head.) So we’re just going to have to work with what we’ve got. Prepare for your grammatical sensibilities to be violated.

On the upside, this foible has probably transported me back into the warm, fuzzy and intoxicating confines of the bitcoin maxi echo chamber. Ahhhh, permit me a moment to bask in its glory and breathe a sigh of relief.

Now that we’ve filtered out the non-believers, non-playing characters, professional offense-takers, Cartesians … no wait, that’s taken … Cartonians … nope, fuck, how is that taken?!

Hmmm, Carterians [Kar-tare-ee-en]? Yes, Carterians, I like that. It’s there on the internet already, some jazz song, but that’s not sufficient to deter me from a better use of it here. And finally, people who find themselves working at the Bitcoin Policy Institute (I kid, I kid, there’s some good people there) we can get down to brass tacks, which makes me think of brass balls, which makes me think of the lack of balls on the robot bull at the Bitcoin Conference this year, and how dumb that was. Male bulls fuck stuff. We’re trying to fuck the fiat system here. Get over it. (Plus, how is that bull supposed to sun his balls if he doesn’t even have any? Ever think of that BRAINIACS?!)

Anyhoo, where was I?

I suppose my motivation for tackling this issue, aside from a perhaps self-serving desire to depart, briefly, from the (actually) tedious, and presumably far less “violent” task of writing a book about value, is the absolutely confounding contrast between what I hear about this (insert pejorative-laden characterization of bitcoin maximalists), and my own experience of “them.”

Case in point, this past April, I brought my father to the famed, or infamous (depending on your perspective), beefsteak in Miami.

Naturally, before entering, I warned him what words to use and not use, never to turn down an offer of beef (even if full to the point of vomiting), to make sure he isn’t seen eating anything that might generate suspicion of containing either sugar or seed oils (Fuck you, Mandrik!), and for the love of God do not, under any circumstances, mention that, on occasion, you give mom a foot rub (Sometimes I can’t even believe you were able to get mom pregnant with that much estrogen pumping through your veins. No frame!).

Of course, I’m joking — or at least trying to.

What I actually told him was; “Be yourself, that’s all you need to know.”

And that, if you weren’t already aware, is the point of all of this — freedom.

What followed was an experience that will forever be one of the most cherished of my life.

For about the first two hours, we didn’t go further than 10 meters from the front door, not even into the main area of the venue.

Anyone who’s attended a beefsteak knows why.

You see someone you know, or someone comes up to you and says “Hey, it’s me, @btcforevercryharder on Twitter” (not an actual handle, at least not at time of writing); what follows is a look of jubilant surprise, a “holy” followed by either “fuck,” “shit,” “balls,” or some other term denoting extreme happiness, a long, slow and tight bringing together of the hearts and dicks (also known as a hug), and then, for several unbroken hours, what can only be characterized as sheer enjoyment of one another’s company, quite often centered around radical authenticity, and discussions on such offensive topics as:

• “How has bitcoin caused you to take more responsibility in your life?”
• “What are the implications of such an absolute and verifiable form of truth emerging in the world?”
• “How did you get your permaculture ranch started?”
• “What are some of the most interesting books you’ve read lately?”
• “What advice do you have for raising strong, competent, independent, understanding children?”
• “I’m trying to write, contribute, build a product/service/business, do you have any advice?”

Followed by “Eric Cason is scaring me, am I destined for this fate if I continue down the rabbit hole?” And perhaps more concerning than all of these, several extremely sincere expressions of gratitude/praise/respect, followed by the sharing of quite intimate (and often challenging) life events, who’s resolution was precipitated, or at least greatly aided, by not only pursuing an understanding of bitcoin, and learning how it might best resolve some of the worlds biggest problems, but also, and often more powerfully, finding a group of people, dare I say, a distributed emerging culture, who share that perspective, and who are likewise being beneficially transformed in the process of pursuing a similar goal, and with whom some of the most genuine and positive relationships of their life have quickly been established.

To put more meat on this bone for you, the latter encounters often go something like this:

“Before bitcoin I was depressed, despondent, nihilistic, had very little meaning in my life and that led to treating myself and others poorly, holding myself to a very low standard, and basically just drifting through life. I couldn’t see how the many giant problems of the world could be resolved, and felt things were fucked up beyond repair, so I guess I just let myself off the hook for whatever responsibility I hold for trying to fix it, or myself. It was a dark and isolating feeling, which I compensated for in several “destructive” or unhealthy ways. I even considered killing myself (this one was not as common, but not uncommon either). But since I started learning about bitcoin, everything has begun to change. I now see light at the end of the tunnel. I now have HOPE! And this has awakened in me a renewed, even unprecedented sense of enthusiasm and energy, and a recognition of, and responsibility for, the central role that my own development, my own actions, my own character, play in turning this thing around. I see bitcoin as a tool for aiding me in that endeavor, and fixing, at a fundamental level, the system that generates so many of the problems that I was lamenting, or subconsciously being affected by (and likely contributing to). You, along with many others here, have helped me to see and appreciate that, and instilled in me the knowledge/wisdom/courage/optimism required to turn myself into someone that can be part of the solution, and I just wanted to come, shake your hand, and say thank you.”

Oh the horror!! The unmitigated toxicity!! Get me out of here!!

There are those who might say, “But, what if a topic comes up that I actually seem to have pretty divergent views on from the “orthodoxy?” The pressure to conform is crushing! Where is the safe space in this godforsaken den of vipers!?”

Well, firstly, such a thing, the “orthodoxy,” doesn’t exist, at least nowhere other than your own mind. You made it up. Full stop.

“Why did I do that!?” you might ask.

Well, I’m no Sigmund Freud here, but it may be the case that you’ve invented a boogeyman to serve as a convenient scapegoat to avoid confronting something within yourself. Perhaps you’re doing this in order to ignore or diminish a perspective that challenges one you currently hold, which helps to alleviate any internal tension or discomfort it may be causing, and might even justify some criticism that you may, as a result of that tension, feel compelled to levy.

Your interpretation (read: projection) of “bitcoin culture” is about YOU. That is to say, it’s subjective. And this is the case for all of us.

Now, that’s not to say that many people don’t perceive it in a very similar way, as it seems apparent that they do.

But there is no checklist, no secret handshake (or is there?), and no test to take. Rather, there’s a (mostly unspoken) recognition among one another of a similar set of values — a similarly structured internal value hierarchy, if you will — and a mutual interest among one another about how each…