In March 2017, the “scaling debate” commenced when Roger Ver launched a carefully crafted plan to usurp Bitcoin with his “Bitcoin Unlimited” protocol. Shortly after, we learned that Jihan Wu’s Bitmain was his partner-in-crime – as well as a cast of shady crypto characters, including Craig Wright.
https://www.newsbtc.com/2017/12/10/craig-wright-claims-2018-will-be-the-year-of-bitcoin-cash/
Unfortunately, the “plan” quickly ran into major resistance from the Bitcoin community – in the form of the UASF. Ver and Wu scrambled to fight back - with the comically named UAHF; but it was too late, as in July SegWit was locked in, for implementation in mid-August. Thus, Ver and Wu’s “plan” changed again – this time, to haphazardly create “Bitcoin Cash” and hard fork it August 1st; i.e., just before SegWit implementation.
At this point, it was patently obvious they had no discernible plan – let alone, a clue. Wu wanted to protect his ASICS boost fraud; and the “Bitcoin Jesus,” to “manage” Bitcoin. However, in both cases, as viewed in real-time AND hindsight, it was obvious they couldn’t win – to everyone but them. Sure, they spent the next year concocting manipulative schemes to spread propaganda and influence the BCash and Bitcoin prices – but the fact was, that from day one they were doomed to fail. The entire Bitcoin community knew it – including me, despite having ZERO technical knowledge.
In SV’s case, yet another person who should know better, Craig Wright, claims big blocks to be the optimal scaling solution. The fact that this has been mathematically disproven didn’t seem to matter to him - which is why I suspected he “knew something” no one else did. After all, he may not be Satoshi, but he certainly knows the earliest Bitcoin leaders – who perhaps, possessed knowledge that could help him “win.” The way I saw it, his scheme of usurping BCash and Bitcoin with MUCH bigger blocks seemed so hare-brained, it could only be the ravings of a lunatic…or a brilliant, calculating genius. Thus, when SV briefly had a bigger market cap than ABC, I for a brief few days feared the worst.
However, a month after the fork, it’s become patently obvious that Wright has neither a clue nor a plan. What his motivation was for forking SV I’ll never understand, as game theory suggests no favorable outcomes. Which is exactly how it’s playing out – with BOTH ABC and SV violently collapsing…having lost ALL credibility, on their way to well-deserved near-zero valuations.
https://twitter.com/Andy_Hoffman_CG/status/1073924317329600512
There is no doubt in my mind that this is the end of all forms of the malignant crypto cancer BCash – with the only remaining questions being 1) how long it will take before it’s destroyed; and 2) where will the REAL Bitcoin find price support, in discounting its principal “competition” being destroyed? I have no way of knowing, but at today’s comically low valuation, I suspect it won’t be long.
Andy,
Great read! Good compilation of historical facts.
UASF was a historical milestone triumph for the Bitcoin community where it was manifested that the users are in control of BTC's destiny and not the ill-intentioned figureheads and miners.
One slight detail to add is that BCash was created a few days before the UASF took effect.
The malicious actors "ran to the front of the parade" a few days earlier hoping to diminish the importance of the UASF event that was imminent it would occur.
Great win for Bitcoin! The "Civil War" was over!
Now we have SegWit activated and a clear path for further innovation.
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