The Thief’s Almanac

a problematic part about crypto today is that a large part of its participants promote values that are a net negative for the world, not better than the fiat cartel: extracting money with essentially useless projects and irrelevant entertainment tokens 1/2

walk learn build ˗ˏˋ ⭐️ ˎˊ˗ 

// old skool btc

somewhat agree, started off as an idealistic youth wanting to "change the world" with magic internet money. then slowly drifted to making money, after all, its relatively easy to make money in crypto (compared to tradfi). truth is probably need to know the difference + find a balance.

I agree that balance needs to be found. Imho it’s relatively easy (for you, me, and other sophisticated participants) to make money in crypto, just as it's easy for others to lose it. In its current form, crypto is a system where money is redistributed through token vehicles, which tends to be neither sustainable nor productive in the long run. As a result, some individuals become financially richer while others lose/get broke.

That said, we need to find balance indeed, not just by returning to the core value propositions of this technology (decentralization, permissionlessness, immutability...), but also by creating new systems with it that are sustainable and genuinely add value to society and humanity.

About that pivotal moment, I've felt it too. What started for me as a desire to be free enough to move around and live without financial worries has, at times, turned into something far more consuming. There's this addictive thrill to making money, it’s a lot of fun. Even though I always try not to, in this space, it’s so easy to get trapped in a cycle where enough feels like too little.

I remind myself of what I actually really wanted: not more and more, but simply freedom, peace of mind, and the chance to contribute something cool and valuable. The challenge is breaking out of this paradigm while staying true to the core principles of crypto that originally inspired me, and building systems that genuinely uplift others. It’s a tough balance, but conversations like this remind me why it’s worth striving for. Thanks for the discussion thief, it’s sparking a lot of reflection on my end.

Thinking back, the pivotal moment was deciding to "trade crypto" full time, there's a lot of things I hate for the same reasons you mention but I just cannot afford to be close-minded. Going on a tangent, I think about "effective altruism" more and more, and wonder if it actually has merits or just my brain trying to trick me to make money at all costs.