This talk is very much worth your time.This talk is very much worth your time.
Back in late January, Jon Atak (one of the BIP editors), gave a talk at the PlanB conference in El Salvador (#1423399). The subject of the talk was Bitcoin Core's culture. At the time, PlanB hadn't posted the video for the talk, and I lost track of it until today when I saw that Kratter posted something about it. So I went and watched Atak's talk.
There is a lot to think about in this talk and I wish they had given it a bit more time (Atak had to hurry through the end of the talk because of time constraints).
One of the first pieces I ever wrote about Bitcoin was about multiple implementations (#86303). I remember that I got a lot of pushback. This was a time when you would hear things like Core must be matched bug for bug.
I still feel the way I did in 2022:
I like the idea of running alternate implementations. For it to matter, though, I've probably got to use it to verify coins I receive and broadcast my own transactions. And I have to admit, that makes me nervous.
I still run Bitcoin Core. I'm not too enthused about running something like Knots. I like the idea of libbitcoin, but I'm not yet comfortable with the idea of running it as the node my wallets rely on. But I have to ask myself, what is going to change that?
He live in El Salvador now...
Did you know about his arrest because of an old woke law in El Salvador ?
Allegedly you cannot even debate with a woman or you get instant jail time LOL
https://www.binance.com/en/square/post/26569821672561
A friend of mine told me that if they have a dispute with a neighbor, he sent his wife to "talk" with the neighbor woman, so they cannot accuse him of anything :) That law applies only if there's a man and woman... hahahahaha
Such "freedom" in El Salvador...
I've not been to El Salvador, but I am interested to visit...even if I don't trust Bukele farther than I can spit.
its a good time, well worth a visit. bitcoin beach is small and quiet though. el tunco - the town over, is where you want to stay for a longer time / weekend.
well done jon
Jon's talks on governance always hit different because he's actually in the room where these decisions happen. Most people have no idea how Bitcoin Core actually operates — the deliberation, the resistance to change, the emphasis on not breaking things. Understanding that culture is genuinely important if you're holding Bitcoin long-term, because it's what protects the monetary properties you're counting on. The more people who understand why Bitcoin Core moves slowly and carefully, the less vulnerable the ecosystem is to pressure for misguided changes.