It's early days of the blockchain. The new, revolutionary and 'disruptive' technology affecting all sectors of society is just a baby. It has yet to really change the world. We are in the time 'before' it does. Just like we once were in the time before the internet when we looked things up in books, the time before mobile phones when we used payphones in the street and the time before color television when the world was black & white.
Like any new idea, there is enthusiasm for it. A growing enthusiasm. The blockchain promises a move away from centralized control structures that redistributes that power. Giving 'power to the people'.
The blockchain was spawned out of a need. And immense social pressure.
Since the year 2000, we have lived through the 9/11 era of terrorism, the global financial crisis of '08-'09, money printing by governments, austerity for the people, bail outs for the rich, globalism leading to mass job losses. Not to mention Snowden's privacy issues and the host of other social ills since 2000. No wonder there is a growing enthusiasm for the blockchain. A technology that promises to redistribute power and give people back control of their lives.
Redistribution of power was sorely needed. Society was bursting and people were crying out for change so something like this had to happen.
On top of our collective, deep desire for personal freedom, there is another reason for our enthusiasm for the blockchain. The poster child of the blockchain - Bitcoin - promises to not only give people their power back. It also promises to make them rich.
In the age of austerity, this seems like a miracle from heaven.
These two things - empowering people & wealth-out-of-thin-air - are more than just promises too. The new technology will redistribute power, it will shift how the world works and it will make a lot of people rich.
The blockchain is a real phenomena. And represents a long overdue 'correction' in the global power structure.
But as I said at the start of this article, it is still the early days for the blockchain. The idea and the tech are only now just beginning to infiltrate society and the systems that we have in place. There are some growing pains with the adoption of the blockchain. There is some friction from governments as they try to relate to the idea. There is push back from the banks and organized institutions who will be impacted by the technology.
That is natural. And to be expected. Not because of conspiracy but just because there is a social-machine already in place. And besides, change does that to people. We push, pull, twist and wrestle with anything new until we have a concept of it and have worked it into our modus operandi. Multiply this out, from individuals to the collective, and you will get friction from the larger body of society.
But despite the clamp downs and controls, the blockchain presses forward. The blockchain is a technological virus infecting the world we live in. And fast. It is a 'social-change virus' that is being carried to the major sectors of society in the same way that a virus is carried in the bloodstream to the major organs of the body.
The blockchain is growing. And the world is absorbing it.
The only question is, what is it growing into? The answer to that question is anyones guess. I don't have a crystal ball to tell you what the actual implications of the blockchain will be in 10 years, 5 years or even in 5 days from now.
What I do know is that the technology will grow into something that has a tangible effect and will shift the balance of society into a new shape. A shape we will live with. There will be change. But change can be anything, not necessarily creative.
The question is will we get the peace, love and rainbows we were promised?
Right now, because the idea of the blockchain is still new and systems are only really being just rolled out, we live in a "honeymoon period". We don't know what it will become in reality.
So we live on the speculation, mental projections and fantasy for wealth, early retirement and yellow lamborghinis. What is the point of infinite wealth if you live in a box?
Many cryptocurrency investors live in a 'false Idaho'. They live in the idea that the enthusiasm they feel for the blockchain will last forever. And that the 'infinite riches' being made off cryptocurrency will also keep rolling on infinitum.
Our projection of a return to power is enough for us. So why question a comfortable fantasy?
The current mindset of (a) enthusiasm for the tech and (b) hype for the riches will only last so long. A new sentiment will replace them as the blockchain evolves and we begin to realize the effect that it brings to the world. And our lives. Yours and mine.
While the majority in the crypto space are focused on price action and news tidbits like 'how the banks will be disrupted by the blockchain", we fail to see one important thing. We don't see that we, ourselves, may be disrupted in our lives.
At some stage, our own fantasy thinking will be disrupted also. Concrete reality has a way of doing that.
While I'm an optimist, I am a realistic optimist. I aim for a better future but also like to have a 'Plan B'. My optimism exists because I spend time questioning both sides of the equation. Which means I delve into some of the darker sides of life and troubleshoot the problems before they become demons. I neutralize the threats and this leaves me a little more positive about life. My optimism for my career, my life as a whole and for where society is headed is based on a good hard look at reality and good hard think about the issues I am having.
My optimism is won out of hard work. Not out of simply ignoring the potential issues. That's denial, not optimism.
Right now, we are in a cryptocurrency gold boom. We are delirious with enthusiasm & relief. We are on our honeymoon. But there will come a time - and soon - where we will see the blockchain in action. We will see the cogs of society turn in a new direction and we will have to live with the results of it.
We won't be living on our enthusiasm for change anymore. We will be living on change itself and whatever direction that moves us all.
The question on my mind is this. Is decentralization just the next stage of centralization? An extension of it, not the destruction of it.
What is the world we are building? Decentralized networks in a wider web. Unhackable databases. Indelible ledgers.
Does no one see the potential for problem?
- The 'elite' and powerful obtaining more power?
- The SkyNet of Terminator with an AI that can't be shut down.
- A perfect prison system that looks like freedom in a 1984-style future?
To think that the blockchain ( and the next evolutions of the tech ) will remain in the hands of freedom loving, open source developers who desire positive social change is just not going to happen. The blockchain we imagine will be adopted by people in power and people with money.
From governments to Google, the major players haven't even showed up in the space yet. Which is a little ominous in my mind because you don't know what behemoths they plan to roll out.
In the end, we may be pleasantly surprised. We may find that the world does indeed turn into a digital utopia. But we may be rudely shocked too. When the giant companies and central organizations come along and 'disrupt the social disruptor'. Using the blockchain for purposes we are yet to imagine. Purposes that we may be less than enthusiastic about.
Thanks for watching,
Brendan Rohan - Indie developer of 'next gen' natural medicine from Melbourne, Australia
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DISCLAIMER: This article is written by an amateur investor and is offered purely for information purposes. This is not financial advice and you should always seek the advice of a finance professional.