Donate to Reason in Bitcoin, You Kooky, Decentralizing, Alt-Culture Freakazoids!

It's Day One of Reason's annual webathon, in which we cajole, bargain with, and tickle you into donating whatever you can–$10, $100, $10,000—for the cause of helping create ever-more libertarian journalism and commentary. Our ambitious goal is to raise $100,000 of tax-deductible donations during this week-long bell-ring, and so far we're off to a pretty good start…except in one key category.

You see, as my comrade Nick Gillespie pointed out earlier, at the bottom of our donation page, underneath a detailed list of goodies you'll get for different giving levels, there is a button there saying "Donate Bitcoins." Because if there's one thing I know about you tuned-in, far-out libertarian freakers out there is that you want to talk in a VERY INSISTENT AND CONVINCING VOICE about how Bitcoin is more than just money—it's an entire alternative ecosystem, a source code for routing around any centralizing force, a blueprint for undermining the nation-state itself. My analog brain might be a bit slow in grasping fully the momentousness of this revolution, but thankfully we've got smarter minds on the case: Jerry Brito, Brian Doherty, J.D. Tuccille and the like.

So I just knew that announcing our ability to take webathon donations in Bitcoin would lead to the sound of big, fat coin-like thingies clanging in our virtual inbox or whatever. Sure enough, we checked the status this noon and saw that we had…two Bitcoin donations, totaling $102.13.

Now, I will never look any Reason gift in the mouth, but…really? TWO BITCOIN DONATIONS???

Do you think Commentary magazine was taking Bitcoin during its recent pledge drive? Hail nah! How 'bout your local NPR affiliate? Yeah, no. At Reason, we are not standing athwart the future yelling "Huh?", we're rushing headlong into the stuff, guided in so many cases by you, the futuretastic, spy-on-this, foundationally experimental Reason reader.

It is through you that we've learned about and understood the urgency of all sorts of what we in the June 2013 special issue called "Experiments in Libertarian Living." There are the free-cities pioneers (and their seasteading antecedents), the Free Staters and Jefferson-loving secessionists, and the DIYers vs. The State—from Cody Wilson and his 3D-printable gun to, well, whichever weirdoes birthed Bitcoin into the world. We are the journalistic source that tells these stories better and with more insider knowledge than anyone out there, and our first and best tips come from you, the cutting-edge, freedom-expanding readertariat.

So…two Bitcoin donations? As a great man once said, "Come on!"

Won't you please donate some Bitcoin right the hell now?

Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Bitcoins? Wait a minute, should I have been hiding my donations to reason all this time? Is the NSA coming to rape me?

[darius404]

Please hold still for the arrival of the insertion team.

[JuliaSimpson63]

I get paid over $87 per hour working from home with 2 kids at home. I never thought I'd be able to do it but my best friend earns over 10k a month doing this and she convinced me to try. The potential with this is endless. Heres what I've been doing,...
?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ??

http://WWW.JUMP85.COM

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COPY LINK TO YOUR BROWSER

[Heroic Mulatto]

I'm not going to donate until you give me the option to use Litecoin.

[deepspeed]

What about Peercoin, Megacoin, Quarkcoin, Worldcoin, Namecoin, Feathercoin, Primecoin, Infinitecoin, Devcoin, Goldcoin, Mincoin, Junkcoin, BBQcoin, Franko, and CryptogenicBullion? Why does Reason hate free markets?

[n8]

I would, but whoever runs bitfloor stole all mine. No longer feeling so hostile to the FDIC...

[deepspeed]

If it makes you feel any better, I'm sure the federal government would have stolen them eventually.

[Eitan]

Clicking on the link in this article for "Donate Bitcoins" does not work correctly. I had to go to the linked donation page. It's like healthcare.gov here!!!

[Eitan]

It's also Wikipedia's panhandling time of the year. I'm perplexed why they don't accept bitcoin. I'm even thinking of stiffing them. Haven't quite decided yet.

[SweatingGin]

Wikipedia not taking bitcoin is part of their political bias showing. The article on bitcoin shows it too (last I checked)

[Eitan]

That makes little sense. The article writers and editors don't actually work for Wikipedia*. And, the founder Jimmy Wales is a libertarian, who purportedly was inspired by Hayek's "the use of knowledge in society" to create Wikipedia.

*And if you think there's bias in the article (I can kinda see it) then you should point it out on the talk page as Wikipedia strives toward NPOV (neutral point of view).

[Boisfeuras]

Wikipedia articles do a pretty good job of showing it's biases, particularly in controversial areas (especially so in leftists' biographies and anything AGW related). Compare:

Fidel Castro: "Cuban communist revolutionary and politician"

Joseph Stalin: "de facto leader of the Soviet Union"

Vladimir Lenin: "Russian communist revolutionary, politician and political theorist"

Augusto Pinochet: "army general and dictator of Chile"

Francisco Franco: "Spanish military leader who ruled as the dictator of Spain"

[Eitan]

No doubt they do, but this is against their policy and should be pointed out in the talk pages in order to improve their articles.

[Killaz]

An Austrian based defense of Bitcoin:

http://libertarianstandard.com.....ary-north/

My take, the long term viability of Bitcoin depends on how well adjusts it to speculative busts. There will be a speculative bust, there always are, gold, tulips, fiat coins, Bitcoin wont be a immune to them. However, if it is still gauged as a useful medium, and I believe it will because the fee-less transfers are a revolutionary product in itself, after its first bust or two, it's going to be a long term winner.

[darius404]

Yup. Like all naturally adopted currencies, it started use as a commodity (even though it wasn't intended for that purpose) but will be (and is being) increasingly adopted as a true currency over time.

[Boisfeuras]

All currency, even fiat currency, can be traced back to commodities according to Menger (Principles of Economics) and Mises' regression theorem (Theory of Money and Credit).

Another interesting defense of bitcoin from an Austrian perspective here.

[Heroic Mulatto]

Thank you for that link. Not because I particularly agree with it, (I read both and ended up agreeing with most of North's criticisms), but because following the links lead me to this, where American sent North an email and North tears him a new asshole.

[Killaz]

That was excellent. Racist who refer to IQ for proof don't even know what is being measured by the test. Unfortunately it is a pretty common fallacy, to which I simply say when it is brought up, an IQ of 100 doesn't mean that the person can't learn calculus, it only means it will take longer to grasp higher abstract concepts for the lower IQ individual. Sure there are higher maths and ideas beyond the grasp of anyone who isn't a genius, but with a knowledge of calculus you still have a ticket to higher social status and worth (in the strictly economic sense of added value). That argument may not get to the heart of IQ measurement either but I've actually used it to dispellthe ugly 'less than human' belief in at least one individual.

[Heroic Mulatto]

an IQ of 100 doesn't mean that the person can't learn calculus, it only means it will take longer to grasp higher abstract concepts for the lower IQ individual.

Not to mention that IQ, as it is mostly refered to is a measurement of g, which stands for "general intelligence factor". A savant could have an IQ of 70, and technically be retarded, that is they have trouble tying their shoes, write at the level of a 5 year old, etc, but can calculate 6 digit prime-counting functions in their head.

[Acosmist]

g factor, look it up. Yikes, the science on IQ is robust. The Bell Curve was over 20 years ago.

[SweatingGin]

It's funny to see the Austrians still divided on it. I thought most had come around to it, but I guess not. Schiff is a doubter, too.

I'd imagine both will come around eventually.

Part of it is just that previous theories have to be revised. It really is a new paradigm (not speaking to the current price.). The ability to move millions of dollars of value to the other side of the world, for free, or,essentially free, is revolutionary.

[Killaz]

I understand the reluctance, and the skepticism is not unwarranted. A new medium that has an oddly serendipitous to Chinese gold mining means to get new units into accounts. It only passes the smell test for me because it works, and it is extremely useful. I don't put skepticism to the side entirely. It is there, analyzing what is happening, positioning to take advantage of any given occurrence, either continued success, inevitable bust and some even more interesting ideas emerging (think of premium services where Bitcoin normalizes into a baseline to be built upon). Austrian skepticism is a healthy attitude and is itself also a useful tool even when it goes against the current.

[Killaz]

A new medium that has an oddly serendipitous to Chinese gold mining means to get new units into accounts.

Which is also a thing of beauty from a libertarian perspective. How do new monies get generated in the American economy? Crony capitalism, where insider banks are given preferred treatment, and the Fed opens up new accounts with them. There is a fundamental injustice at play. How does it occur with bitcoin? GPUs working on busting open algorithms like they were gold nuggets being struck with picks until they broke open. So much more fair, who but a leftard egalitarian poser could complain?

[Killaz]

t is through you that we've learned about and understood the urgency of all sorts of what we in the June 2013 special issue called "Experiments in Libertarian Living." There are the free-cities pioneers (and their seasteading antecedents), the Free Staters and Jefferson-loving secessionists, and the DIYers vs. The State?from Cody Wilson and his 3D-printable gun to, well, whichever weirdoes birthed Bitcoin into the world.

We could beat the statist at their own free shit game. Advertize the digital wallet as an American Express Black Card for Everyman, Beat that Obamaphone!

[SweatingGin]

I sent fiat this mornings. Wanted to send some bitcoin, but I'm hoarding them for the moment.

[RishJoMo]

Soudns liek a solid deal to me dude.

http://www.true-anon.tk

[Marc F Cheney]

ANTE UP YOU SKINFLINTS.

[NotAnotherSkippy]

Well here I was ready to click "OK" and you had to go use the "C" word, Comrade.

[Johnathan Reale]

Done! Between this and Bitcoin Black Friday, I'm like the Bitcoin Santa Claus lately.

[Death Rock and Skull]

I'm pretty sure I left a comment here...

[Pompey]

I suggest making friends, family, and coworkers uncomfortable by pressuring them for donations as well.
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[darius404]

Info blocked by the CIA, huh? FoE, THE SILVER HAS BEEN TARNISHED, I REPEAT THE SILVER HAS BEEN TARNISHED, ABORT ABORT.

[Fist of Etiquette]

GODAMMIT I FORGOT WHAT THAT MEANS. SHOULD I BURN MY PLACE DOWN AND HEAD TO THE SAFE HOUSE OR JUST NOT HAVE TACO BELL FOR DINNER?

[darius404]

Ah, erm, abort the, ah, abortion. Had a slight weapons malfunction, but, uh, everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine--we're all fine here now. Thank you. How are you?

[Fist of Etiquette]

Boring conversation anyway.