A brief history...
Coins served two major functions for pre-modern societies: they improved the efficacy of commerce and they provided a vehicle to visually promote the state and its ruler.
What happens when the vehicle has rules and no rulers?
Alexander The Great would take the existing money of conquered regions and melt it down to re-mint his own image, in the guise of the hero Herakles (Hercules). Of course this was all to spread the message of his god like status by passing coins through the hands of the masses. This trait has continued throughout history and has been used to legitimise regimes and spread propaganda.
So are inscriptions the new form on coin propaganda?
There is already a 'movement' In the Ordinals world for a pro OP_CAT NFT collection called Quantum Cats. The idea is that it signals you are in favour of the OP_CAT BIP. Sound spretty dumb but I can imagine some people getting behind it.
Seems like people are using the idea of NFTs and tokens to market information to people, whether factual or true, and they can show support by joining that NFT space or own that token. Here is another recent example I stumbled across on nostr.
The importance of Bubbles
For sure, NFTs are a bubble –bubbles always accompany new technology. But bubbles also serve a purpose in that they accelerate investment and adoption. Without the railway bubbles, the tracks would not have been laid; nor, without dotcom in 2000, would the cables. Tulips were a bubble and, 400 years on, the Dutch still rule the roost in flowers. Scorn bubbles at your peril.
It feels like Inscriptions and Runes on Bitcoin are leading up to another 'bubble'. It will bring a whole lot of shitcoinery to Bitcoin. There will be alot of losers. It also brings with it investment and adoption, and many will be brought to Bitcoin for the memes and NFTs, then stay for the revolution.
All this came to me when listening to the Frisby Series on the What Is Money podcast. Worth a listen!
Shower thoughts...
History sure does have some rhythm and rhyme