Old Man Yells!

This episode explains some the basics of how Bitcoin blocks are created and pools interact with miners. It then explores the recent revelation of a major Bitcoin mining pool admitting to censoring transactions.

Today I am releasing the first in a series of shows on mining pools. This one focuses on why they exist (versus solo mining) and the crucial role they have played in the growth of the Bitcoin ecosystem. I hope you'll give it a try.

In this episode the background of the Tenth Man concept is explained and then Bob explores why this is so important in society and in the Bitcoin world.

Bob Burnett, CEO of Barefoot Mining discusses The Purpose of Bitcoin from a first principles perspective. In it he discloses that it was created for two reasons, to remove control of money from the hands of government and so that the world has a cash-like option in the digital world.

In this episode Bob discusses the impact of the Biden Excise Tax proposal called DAME. With it, the Biden Administration is budgeting a 30% tax on Bitcoin mining electricity consumption. This is a frontal attack on Bitcoin and the manner in which the Bitcoin fights back is critical. There are several potential strategy but Bob asserts that the one the community should rally around is that it is an assault on freedom and privacy and it gives the government the power of being a moral authority on energy consumption. Everyone, even Bitcoin haters, should be alarmed and afraid of the Pandora Box this would open. Fight back. Write your congress people, your senators, and your governor (states rights are infringed as well.)

In this episode Bob explores the recent explosion in Bitcoin fees. This includes a discussion of what these means for Bitcoin Mining revenue and the lessons that we can learn. Especially important are that it could shift a change in hosting space availability and mining server prices, that it gives us a great lesson in the power of scarcity, and that it busts the FUD surrounding the long term security of the network as the Bitcoin subsidy declines.

In this episode Bob expands more on the value of Bitcoin and the blockchain itself. Bitcoin is much more than a monetary network, it is a point of truth, maybe the only point of truth, for all of society. As time goes by, space will become more and more precious and more and more expensive.

Bob reflects on Miami and the maturity of the conference and the Bitcoin industry. He also shares some history of conferences in the Personal Computer industry. And, last but not least, gives some insight on what the real value is in attending events like Bitcoin 2023.

The spike in blockspace usage and the associated fees gave us a glimpse of the future. Not only will this get expensive but it will be a catalyst to big changes in the Bitcoin ecosystem and in how Bitcoin users interact with the base layer.

While the desire to ossify Bitcoin and provide stability and assurance, there is also a need to make sure the needs of Layer 2 and 3 solutions are met first. Without the scaling provided by these, Bitcoin has a capacity problem. So we need a little patience to get there.

Third and final installment of a series on publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies. In this episode Bob discusses some of the dark side of being a public company and specifically why he believes it is impossible to be a public Bitcoin mining company and consistently operate within the ethos of Bitcoin.

This episode is an examination of the state of the public mining sector and its less than rosy recent performance and it prospects going forward in the post-halving world.

Core Scientific's implosion is a classic example of what happens when the ethos of Wall Street takes over a company - especially a Bitcoin company. In this show, Bob reviews the clues to the implosion that were laid out right in Core's S1, reflects on the massive mistakes that took place in the eleven months between their IPO and bankruptcy, and offers some insight in the damage they caused - damage that extends well beyond just their shareholders.

On this episode of OLD MAN YELLS Bob reviews the announcement made by South Korean researchers about LK99 Superconductor.