21 sats \ 2 replies \ @036644cfc0 14 Feb 2023 \ parent \ on: A decentralized vpn using lightning network? bitcoin
There's also this: https://vpn.sovereign.engineering/account
Yes, I believe there is one in development by these guys: https://www.cloakedwireless.com/
Fixing mobile networks is phase 1 of their journey. The next phase will be to replace Helium by allowing residential users to provide 5G connections and get paid in lightning.
Linked to this will be the ability to route those connections over lightning in a similar way to Tor.
I'm rooting for them!
I'd also like to see an app where you can share your bandwidth to anyone in the vicinity, anonymously, and get paid in sats.
The nice thing about stacker news is that all the content can be indexed / is linkable, which is great for SEO etc.
It's also super FAST to navigate, I don't need to wait for a bunch of (massively duplicated) messages to arrive, taking up bandwidth and memory.
I don't get all this talk of migrating SN over to Nostr. What would be the benefit?
am not bashing Nostr but to me it serves a totally different use case to SN.
27 sats \ 1 reply \ @036644cfc0 13 Feb 2023 \ parent \ on: Inflation: Get Ready For The 2nd Wave bitcoin
Actually it was the yanks who blew it up - https://seymourhersh.substack.com/p/how-america-took-out-the-nord-stream
Thanks. Indeed, in future, it would make more sense to open lightning channels than to store in cold addresses.
I agree that Bitcoin will ultimately be a settlement layer only. The TX fees will simply price out normies from cold storage, who instead will hold spending money in lightning, and main stack in an account at a fedimint or a BTC bank.
Securing BTC on-chain would then be a significant event, used for inheritance / moving large amounts / specific reasons.
Demand for blockspace on the most decentralised blockchain that ever was / ever will be, is not going away.
most likely, yes!
which sites though? There must be a BTC friendly option.
Expedia stopped in 2018..
17 sats \ 9 replies \ @036644cfc0 10 Feb 2023 \ parent \ on: Becoming A Sovereign Individual bitcoin
Yes I'm serious, lol
If you don't pay your taxes, you will end up in hot water.
The good news is that you can, quite legally, avoid (not evade) the majority of taxes through jurisdictional and regulatory arbitrage.
For an individual, fighting the government (who has infinite patience and resources) is a losing game. Better to play a different game altogether.
53 sats \ 5 replies \ @036644cfc0 10 Feb 2023 \ parent \ on: Becoming A Sovereign Individual bitcoin
The only (and recommended) protection from state is to move to a friendlier jurisdiction
If everyone did this, we'd have friendlier jurisdictions. Period.
There are plenty of examples of good governments! It depends what you are looking for in that government:
- Freedom & Liberty
- Specific tax structures
- Healthcare / Education
- Infrastructure
- Regulatory environment
Also remember that governments are made up of people. People are not inherently bad. Most are trying to do (or at least, believe they are doing) good.
- The remit of government is to serve the people (social good).
- The remit of corporations is to serve shareholders (financial imperative).
I would proffer that most of the sh!t we see from governments is sourced from private sector.
- Wars fund weapons companies (considerably)
- Pandemics fund pharma (considerably)
- xxx funds XXX
As a result politicians receive significant lobbying and influence from vested interests.
I'm not saying capitalism is bad, and I don't have the answer to all this. We need reform, 100%.
I don't know what such reform would look like... probably not some utopia where there is 100% transparency in every public decision. But it would be nice.
463 sats \ 19 replies \ @036644cfc0 10 Feb 2023 \ parent \ on: Becoming A Sovereign Individual bitcoin
Not worthless, this isn't about going on the run!
- Nobody should evade or "not pay" taxes (avoidance is ok)
- Voting is good. Vote wisely, if you are able to (register to) vote.
- Travelling without passport/govID is risky and dangerous, don't do it
- Laws DO protect if you understand (and follow) them
The tools in my list will protect you from CORPORATE dragnet surveillance systems, not government forces. Let's consider the government is on our side, for now.
Data is most valuable when distributed quickly and widely. We should not pretend firewalls nor jurisdictional boundaries prevent anyone, anywhere, from obtaining it.
Example of 1st party surveillance data being misused: https://www.nbcnewyork.com/investigations/face-recognition-tech-gets-girl-scout-mom-booted-from-rockettes-show-due-to-her-employer/4004677/
Example of 3rd party surveillance data being misused: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/12/20/opinion/location-data-national-security.html
To quote from the article:
While the Constitution prevents companies from sharing location data with the government without a warrant, there are no federal protections limiting how they use or share it privately.
(emphasis added)
What does this have to do with being sovereign?
Three things:
1. Safety
None of us want to be on this list: https://github.com/jlopp/physical-bitcoin-attacks/blob/master/README.md
2. Censorship
Censorship comes from what corporations think (or are explicitly told what) the government thinks.
Hence banks will close your account if your details don't "smell" right - eg mentioning "crypto" on the phone / sending or receiving the wrong kind of international payments / being born in the wrong country.
Future censorship will come from algorithms - based directly on aforementioned surveillance data.
Say the "wrong thing, beam GPS from the wrong place, connect with the wrong person - and you may find yourself without:
- your files
- your phone connection
- your finances
Remember that algorithms are probabilistic, not perfect. And the cost of censorship is virtually zero. And the rules change all the time.
3. Legacy
We stack to build a better future. It's a small step from "letting" ourselves be tracked, numbered, and monitored - to being "obligated" to be as such.
Like you say, we need to CONFRONT the oppression (which actually begins in private sector) by refusing to engage in such things as:
-
CBDCs
-
KYC
-
Mobile Phone Numbers (as identifiers, communication channels, or 2FA)
In terms of digital life, I would set things up as follows:
Phone - pixel 7 running GrapheneOS. Enable airplane mode and don't use a sim.
Mobile Internet - Mudi VPN Router. Stick a PAYG, data only sim card in this. Install Blue Merle to randomise your IMEI every time you change the sim. Use MullVad VPN (pay with lightning)
SMS - subscribe to a number on https://crypton.sh, no email account needed, pay with lightning. You can use this number for banking apps etc.
Public Messaging - Nostr
Private Messaging - use Simplex Chat. Much better than Nostr as there are no identifiers.
Home Internet - set up a VPN router as described here
Laptop - be sure the Intel ME is (or can be) disabled, and booted using CoreBoot. In the US, purchase from Librem. In the EU, Tuxedo.
Laptop OS - if you have linux skills, use Qubes. Else use a free distro like Debian. If you're new to Linux, use Ubuntu or Mint.
Home Server - get an Embassy Pro from Start 9. Can run Nextcloud, BTC Node, Lightning, Bitwarden (which can be both password manager and TOTP authenticator) and much more.
Bitcoin Vault - set up a multisig using at least 2 manufacturers. Here's a good guide: https://github.com/fresheneesz/tordlwalletprotocols
Hot Lightning - Phoenix or Blixt. Not Muun! Every time you spend all your satoshis, open a new wallet for greater privacy.
Purchasing Bitcoin - Robosats
Multiple identities - much easier with Qubes, but otherwise use different VMs for different identities. This helps to avoid accidentally using the wrong one. With graphene you can also multiple user accounts on your phone for different reasons.
Try and keep at least 2-3 months of spending money in Cash. When sh*t hits the fan, the ATMs will be empty. Keep water and tinned food at home. Don't tell people your real name, if you can help it. Never EVER give your number out (it's best if you just don't have one).
If you own your own domain you can create 'catch all' emails which means you can give a different email to every service you sign up with.
Avoid any software from these companies entirely:
- Facebook (use signal with crypton.sh sms over whatsapp, ditch insta / fb)
- Microsoft (use gitlab over github, nostr over linkedin, linux over windows)
- Google (self-host email or use protonmail, nextcloud over drive)
Have a home CCTV system, if your jurisdiction allows. Do NOT use amazon, build one with a raspberry pi or old android, so that the footage never leaves your network.
Always pay in Bitcoin or Cash. If you must use the banking system, start a company, and make payments from the company account.
Don't purchase, or allow in your home:
- Smart TVs
- Alexa or similar
- Oculus headsets
- Anything that can send audio, images, or other sensory information to servers you don't control