Gairika Mitra
Vitalik Buterin, co-creator of Ethereum, warned against voting for candidates who express their fondness for crypto in the upcoming U.S. presidential elections. He mentioned that politics is far more complicated than the winner of the next election, and it affects a lot of other levers.
In his blog, Buterin revealed that blockchain was not the ideology behind building and creating crypto. In fact, he said what created crypto originally was the cypherpunk movement – a loosely organized group of people who spoke about cryptography and protecting individual freedoms in the digital age.
He then alluded to Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous pioneering developer of Bitcoin who noted, “You will not find a solution to political problems in cryptography. Yes, but we can win a major battle in the arms race and gain a new territory of freedom for several years. Governments are good at cutting off the heads of centrally controlled networks like Napster, but pure P2P networks like Gnutella and Tor seem to be holding their own.”
Buterin noted that freedom is important and decentralized networks are good at protecting freedom. He made a mention of money, calling it an important sphere where such networks can be applied.
“If you care about freedom, you might want the government to respect your freedom to have the kind of family you want. If you care about building more efficient and equitable economies, you might want to look at the implications of that in housing. And so on,” he said in his blog post.
In terms of a pro-crypto politician’s stance, he revealed that if a politician has talked about the freedom to trade coins but not about the above topics, then the “underlying thought process that causes them to support the freedom to trade coins is very different from mine (and possibly yours).”
Buterin also expressed his optimism for internationalism and said that he judges politicians on the basis of how much they care about the outside world, highlighting incidents where visa accessibility has been a major cause of concern for several nationals. “The crypto industry is uniquely international, and so immigration law is crypto law. Which politicians, and which countries, recognize this?” he said.
To drive his point home, he said anyone claiming to be crypto-friendly now doesn’t guarantee they will remain so in the next five years. He asked readers to find out what this person’s stance was five years ago.
The Shib Daily reported that Trump had been an outspoken critic of the crypto space previously.
“If you see a ‘pro-crypto’ politician today, it’s worth it to explore their underlying values and see which side they will prioritize if a conflict does arise,” he added.
If a politician is pro-crypto, Buterin says that it must be understood if they are in it for the right reasons.
“Do they have a vision of how technology, politics and the economy should go in the 21st century that aligns with yours? Do they have a good positive vision, that goes beyond near-term concerns like ‘smash the bad other tribe’? If they do, then great: you should support them, and make clear that that’s why you are supporting them. If not, then either stay out entirely or find better forces to align with,” he concluded.
People have mostly supported Buterin’s blog post. Jake Chervinsky, chief legal officer of Variant, a crypto venture capital firm, commented, “You make some solid points here. Too many people will read the headline as ‘vote Biden!’ and miss the rest.
“That said, overall, much of this seems too clever by half. The good crypto policy requires electing pro-crypto candidates, period. Political reality beats idealism every time.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, venture capitalist Peter Thiel, and prominent crypto figures such as Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss have been supporting Trump in his campaigns. The crypto players believe that Trump’s administration might help in offering a favorable regulatory environment as compared to others. Some of the economic policies of Trump such as tax reforms and deregulation are seen as beneficial to the crypto space.
Notably, the Trump administration has always adopted a pro-tech stance, helping crypto players build robust strategic alliances, navigate regulatory challenges, and obtain favorable treatment from the government.
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Gairika holds positions in BTC. This article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The Shib Magazine and The Shib Daily are the official media and publications of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency project. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.
