Quote from: cr1776 on January 19, 2021, 06:31:25 PM

One thing that I don't see mentioned as often as it should be:
just stay in bitcoin. Once you have bitcoin, stay in it. You don't need to trade in and out. Then you can truly use the p2p nature of bitcoin (or other crypto) to its full extent. Buy something with it, the seller uses the bitcoin for something else.

If you can stay in bitcoin, just stay in bitcoin.

Yes, this is how things were meant to be. Satoshi offered Bitcoin as a replacement for the actual corrupt financial system. By using only Bitcoin the corruption from actual monies, from governs, from all the elites would be rendered as irrelevant; the power would be taken from the elites and given back to people, as it always should have been.

When I wrote that

Quote from: GazetaBitcoin on January 18, 2021, 09:07:17 PM

Do you want to live something like that? If not, then cease using Bitcoin together with centralized exchanges and banks! Use crypto cash-in / cash-out ATMs, which offer you anonymity. Use decentralized exchanges, which don't hold a dime of clients' money and act just to connect the users one with each other. Use peer-to-peer transfers. Use crypto wallets which have embedded anonymous exchanges, allowing you to exchange a cryptocurrency with another one. Use any method to preserve your anonymity and financial privacy. It's for your own good.

I thought also at those wishing to exchange BTC for corrupt fiat money, but offering them ways to do it anonymous. But of course, the intended way of using Bitcoin is by staying in it, paying with it for services, accepting it as payment for your goods / services and so on. This is what Satoshi wanted.

The below image, although it should be funny, is a premonitory tale:

And yes, this is how things should have been from the very beginning...

Quote from: kryptqnick on January 19, 2021, 04:19:04 PM

It's not all about anarchy for many people, and I think it's fine.

Actually it's not fine... It is both wrong and sad. Bitcoin was invented by a crypto-anarchist, which created it for anarchic and libertarian reasons. All Cypherpunks were crypto-anarchists and Satoshi was a Cypherpunk. Maybe the last Cypherpunk. Bitcoin radiates from all its bones messages expressing Satoshi's crypto-anarchic and libertarian ideology. Even the Genesis block expresses this ideology, with the message Satoshi wrote inside it:

"Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks".

It is a subtle message, pointing to the corruption of governs and banks, which should be avoided. And he offered a method to avoid both.

Quote from: kryptqnick on January 19, 2021, 04:19:04 PM

Using an exchange to buy or to sell Bitcoin seems like a good thing to do [...] and it doesn't make one a slave.

This sentence is even more dramatic. For it means a sweet and easy victory of the elites. What easier and more sweet victory could governs imagine, than inoculating citizens that the harm they bring upon them is actually a good thing?

All those which suffer from governs oppression, all those enslaved by the elites, which steal their money, but don't see it happening, are doomed.

If all would think the same way then everything would be lost.

What you are saying, sadly, remembers me of George Orwell's 1984. Have you read it? In that dystopian world, which actually became true in our days, when Big Brother's surveillance is almost unavoidable; in that book which actually inspired the Cypherpunks in their continuous work of providing people ways of private communications and private money, for helping them escape from Big Brother, the leit-motive of the Party was "WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH".

The citizens believed that or were forced to believe it.

If you reach the state of believing the lies told by governs, for bad things being good for people, then you are a lost cause. And Big Brother will flavor his sweet and easy victory! What else could he ask for? Steal people's money, forcing them to pay ridiculous taxes, constantly surveilling them and not allowing them to slam the door in his face, having citizens happily accepting the fact that if they don't obey they should be punished... What else could Big Brother ask for?

In Romania, 45% of the gross salary goes to the govern as taxes. In other countries the taxes may go up even to 60%!!! Sadly, some think it is normal that 60% of the money they earn with their hard work, with the sweat from their efforts, to go in elites' pockets. No, this is not normal! This is wrong! This is theft!

Besides, if you take a look inside your neighbor's house, you may be accused of breaking inside his intimacy. You are not allowed to do that. But if a group of law enforcement does that, then it is okay. No, it is not okay! Nobody should have the right to sneak inside someone else's private life and everybody should be allowed to slam the door in the face of any intruder and say "No!".

Those thinking it is normal to be constantly surveilled are doomed. They are lost causes, as Big Brother managed to erase their brains already and they can't distinguish anymore what is good and bad for them. Fortunately, there are still some which think clear, which can stand and fight.

Quote from: kryptqnick on January 19, 2021, 04:19:04 PM

Holding money in a personal wallet is already a good step towards freedom, and so is just holding funds in BTC because it is not regulated by any central bank of any country.

Do you think this will last longer? Have you read about latest ideas of Big Brother...?

A Cooin Telegraph article from Dec. 18th, 2020, is a premonitory tale. The articles depicts FinCEN's intentions for monitoring the cryptocurrencies going off the centralized exchanges into personal crypto wallets. The entire proposal can be read here.

I don't know if this will happen. But if it will, we are at one step away of total surveillance over all crypto wallets. If that will happen then we will be just like Phil Zimmerman said: "If privacy is outlawed, only outlaws will have privacy".