{"id":8229,"date":"2018-03-29T10:47:44","date_gmt":"2018-03-29T17:47:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=8229"},"modified":"2018-03-29T10:50:43","modified_gmt":"2018-03-29T17:50:43","slug":"santiago-siri-crypto-politics-beyond-the-nation-state-blockstack-berlin-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2018\/03\/29\/santiago-siri-crypto-politics-beyond-the-nation-state-blockstack-berlin-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Santiago Siri: “Crypto Politics: Beyond the Nation-state” | Blockstack Berlin 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Throughout the world, we are seeing a decline in democracy.\u00a0China’s\u00a0🇨🇳 Xi Jinping has named himself president for life. In Russia 🇷🇺, Vladimir Putin runs unopposed while state employees vote at multiple polling stations to swell voter turnout statistics.\u00a0In Spain 🇪🇸, five Catalan leaders are jailed. In Venezuela 🇻🇪, hyperinflation of more than six thousand percent spurs thousands of starving citizens daily across the border to Colombia 🇨🇴 in search of food and crucial medicines.<\/p>\n
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Replace the State with Bitcoin<\/strong>
\nDespite this dark picture, there is hope, as Santi Siri points out in his hugely popular appearance at the at\u00a0BlockstackBerlin<\/a>\u00a0<\/a>🇩🇪 conference<\/a>\u00a0earlier this month.\u00a0 Bitcoin blockchain technology already offers people a way to fight back against the rampant corruption at the core of democracy’s demise. It enables people in developing nations with corrupt governments and fraudulent banking practices to not be held captive to a tyrannical reality –\u00a0to fight back by opting out. In this sense, Bitcoin is already saving lives.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

But there are also grave challenges. None other than\u00a0Edward Snowden\u00a0<\/a>sounded a clear warning to the world’s leading blockchain developers gathered in Berlin: any technology or innovation that humans are able to create will end up being abused by corrupt actors.\u00a0 At this writing, powerful, energy-rich nations including Turkey\u00a0🇹🇷 and Iran 🇮🇷 are announcing plans for Initial Country Offerings. Venezuela was the first to launch a cryptocurrency – the Petro – and has demonstrated how a state can enact a systematic plan to attack Bitcoin miners and violently appropriate their technology to retain its iron grip on a catastrophically failing economy and the helpless citizens trapped within it.<\/p>\n

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Cryptopolitics<\/strong>
\nDemocracy Earth coined the phrase cryptopolitics because as an organization and movement we are sitting at the intersection of technology and politics.\u00a0 We believe that blockchain as a censorship-resistant technology that is borderless and can reach any place in the world, can act as a liberating force for communities that need it the most.\u00a0 The kind of default transparency and permissionless accountability blockchains bring to any organization – even nonprofits like Democracy Earth Foundation – is how governments should be run. It is the promise of democracy made real.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Token Sale Update<\/strong><\/span>
\nDemocracy Earth will hold a token sale in 2Q 2018.\u00a0 If you are an\u00a0accredited investor\u00a0<\/a>interested in the pre-sale, there is still time to participate – just click the button below to visit our ICO website and download the SAFT (Simple Agreement For Tokens) for review.\u00a0Investor accreditation is verified by CoinList.\u00a0 Though SEC regulations prohibit investors from New York or China from participating in the pre-sale, the public sale will be open to all investors, globally.\u00a0\u00a0Join the DEF\u00a0Telegram<\/a>\u00a0channel to stay updated on token sale details and Q&A with the founders.<\/span><\/p>\n

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ICO Democracy Earth<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Democracy Earth Ambassadors<\/strong><\/span>
\nWe have recently announced\u00a0our new Ambassador in\u00a0<\/a>Brazil<\/a>\u00a0<\/a><\/span>🇧🇷<\/strong><\/a>, Diogo Busse<\/a>, who\u00a0<\/span>will stand\u00a0for election for Brazil’s House of Representatives as a liquid democracy “Trojan Horse” candidate.\u00a0In May we will have four more candidates for the City Council of Birmingham, organized by our UK Ambassador\u00a0Sunny Sangha<\/a>\u00a0through his People Power Brum initiative.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After launching this past December, we have brought the Democracy Earth Ambassadors program\u00a0up to full speed, announcing Ambassadors in\u00a0Brazil<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>🇧🇷<\/strong>,\u00a0Thailand<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>🇹🇭<\/strong>,\u00a0Sri Lanka<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>🇱🇰<\/strong>, andEngland<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>🇬🇧<\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>The response to our call for Ambassadors has been truly overwhelming! We are continuing to process applications from the US\u00a0<\/span>🇺🇸<\/strong>, Belgium\u00a0<\/span>🇧🇪<\/strong>, Mexico\u00a0<\/span>🇲🇽<\/strong>, Australia\u00a0<\/span>🇦🇺<\/strong>, Costa Rica\u00a0<\/span>🇨🇷<\/strong>, Panama\u00a0<\/span>🇵🇦<\/strong>, Israel\u00a0<\/span>🇮🇱<\/strong>, Uruguay 🇺🇾<\/span>, Netherlands\u00a0<\/span>🇳🇱<\/strong>, and Wales and will formally re-open the application process at\u00a0Ambassadors.Democracy.Earth<\/a>\u00a0in the second quarter.<\/span><\/p>\n

More Ambassador activity:<\/em><\/p>\n