Live on Bitcoin

  When the Government Compels Corporate Labor: A Case That Looks a Lot Like Slavery If American law insists that a corporation is a “person,” then the government’s treatment of corporations raises a troubling question: Can the state compel a legal person to perform work without compensation? Under the Thirteenth Amendment, forcing any person to labor without pay is the very definition of slavery or involuntary servitude. In Bailey v. Alabama (1911), the Supreme Court struck down even indirect forms of coerced work. In Pollock v. Williams (1944), the Court reaffirmed that the Thirteenth Amendment forbids “all forms of compelled service” that a person cannot freely refuse. Corporations, however, are routinely compelled to perform extensive unpaid labor on behalf of the government. Businesses must collect payroll taxes under 26 U.S.C. §3102, process employee withholding, produce tax documentation, and often act as an arm of the IRS without a penny of compensation. In many states...

Proposal: Utilizing Starlink’s Laser Inter-Satellite Link (ISL) Network for Space Debris Mapping and Tracking Submitted by: Dean Cook, Southbridge Software Services Software Engineer | Systems Designer | AI & Data Automation Specialist Executive Summary This proposal outlines an opportunity for SpaceX to leverage its existing Starlink laser inter-satellite link (ISL) infrastructure as a distributed optical sensing network to monitor and map orbital debris (space junk) in real time. By slightly modifying data collection and calibration routines across the Starlink constellation, the same high-precision optical hardware used for inter-satellite communication can be repurposed for active debris detection, ranging, and tracking — turning the Starlink mesh into the largest space situational awareness (SSA) system ever built. This initiative would not only enhance space safety for Starlink and other satellites but could also position SpaceX as a leader in orbital traffic m...

  Bitcoin Core 30 — The Great Betrayal How Knots Defends Node Sovereignty and the Right to Choose Bitcoin began as a revolution — a decentralized network where every node operator had full control over what their system did and didn’t do. It was built on freedom: freedom from banks, from governments, and from centralized control. But with Bitcoin Core 30 , that freedom is under attack. The Core developers have started removing filters — the tools that allow node operators to decide which transactions and messages they relay. Without these filters, nodes are forced to relay everything on the network — junk, spam, or worse — with no way to say no. That’s not decentralization. That’s obedience . Your Node, Your Rules Running a Bitcoin node has always meant running your own piece of the network — under your control. You choose what to validate, what to relay, and how to participate. But when Core removes those filters, it’s effectively saying: “We decide what your node ...

  The Fine Art of Not Taking Advice (Especially Mine) If you’ve ever stumbled onto a blog in search of wisdom, you may have noticed a pattern: people handing out life-changing secrets like they’re free mints at a diner. Not here. Nope. What you’ll get here is more like the fortune inside a cookie that was written by someone running late for lunch. Take, for example, financial advice. Other blogs will tell you to diversify your portfolio. Me? I’ll tell you not to keep all your eggs in one basket…unless the basket is really big, made of titanium, and guarded by three very angry geese. Same idea, but clearly less actionable. Or medical advice. Some blogs will explain the benefits of leafy greens. I’ll remind you that pizza is technically a salad if you squint at the toppings. Don’t quote me on that at your next doctor’s visit, though. And relationship advice? The best I’ve got is: don’t text your ex at 2 a.m., unless you’re a historian, in which case… maybe you’re just fact-chec...

  For years, whispers about Bitcoin’s origins have swirled around the internet. Was it an eccentric coder? A group of cryptographers? A pseudonymous genius? Among the many theories, one always resurfaces: what if the CIA had a hand in creating Bitcoin? Usually, the suggestion comes with a dark overtone — control, surveillance, some sinister financial plot. But what if the opposite were true? What if, for once, the CIA were the good guys ? A Country on the Brink Picture the U.S. in the late 2000s: spiraling deficits, ballooning government spending, and a fiat system fraying at the edges. The financial crisis exposed the vulnerabilities of money backed by nothing but promises. Inside intelligence circles, the writing may have been on the wall: the dollar’s long-term supremacy was under threat, and with it, America’s global standing. Maybe, just maybe, a handful of idealists within the agency saw Bitcoin as a lifeline — a tool to protect not just the U.S., but the world, from th...

  Volatility is the main reason many people hesitate to get involved with Bitcoin. The sharp rises and sudden drops in price can feel intimidating compared to traditional investments. But here’s the twist: volatility isn’t always the enemy—it can actually be your friend if you understand how to work with it. The Stock Market Lesson In the world of stocks, investors sometimes use “loss harvesting” as a strategy. Imagine you buy shares of a company at $100, and later the price dips to $80. On paper, that’s a loss. But in practice, you can sell those shares, record the $20 loss against your taxable gains, and then repurchase the stock later. Over time, those harvested losses can soften the blow of market swings and even improve overall returns. Applying Loss Harvesting to Bitcoin Bitcoin doesn’t behave exactly like stocks, but the idea of benefiting from price swings still applies. Because Bitcoin is volatile, there are more frequent opportunities to buy at dips and average down ...

🧭 How to Live on Bitcoin: A Practical Guide for the Sovereign Individual Imagine a life where your bank is your node, your wallet is your freedom, and your money is censorship-resistant, global, and borderless. That’s the promise of living on Bitcoin — and today, it’s not just possible, it’s practical. In this guide, I’ll show you how to ditch the dollar and live entirely on Bitcoin — using off-the-shelf tools and services that make the Bitcoin standard not just livable, but liberating. 🧱 Step 1: Build Your Bitcoin Stack Start by choosing the right wallets for savings, spending, and fast payments: Cold Storage (Savings): Secure your long-term holdings with a hardware wallet like Coldcard , Trezor , or Foundation Devices . Hot Wallet (Spending): Use mobile wallets like Phoenix or BlueWallet to handle everyday expenses. Lightning Wallets (Fast Transactions): Lightning wallets like Breez or Zeus allow instant payments with near-zero fees — ideal for coffee sho...