Tower of Babel Wiki
According to the story, a united human race in the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating eastward, comes to the land of Shinar. There they agree to build a city and a tower tall enough to reach heaven. God, observing their city and tower, confounds their speech so that they can no longer understand each other, and scatters them around the world.
As an Atheist, I don't put much stock in Biblical stories, but this one was clanking around my noggin the other day. It's a simple story that answers a simple question. Why did humans sprawl all across the globe, and why are their so many languages? Why didn't they just stay in one place and use their combined powers to continue growing and developing from there?
After all, if we all spoke the same language that would be really efficient. If we all lived in the same place that would be really efficient. If we all worked together that would be really efficient.
The problem with efficiency, is that it leads to centralization. Centralization leads to corruption. Corruption leads distrust. Distrust leads to revolution. Revolution leads to systemic failure. Let's burn it all to the ground and hope we get it right the next time. New boss, same as the old boss. Oops, but maybe if we do it right the next time... or the time after that... or the time after that...
Failure to scale
So the more I think about it, the more I realize that this story is all about how centralization and imperialism are ultimately failing strategies in the long run. We need to build on solid ground; flat architecture. Many languages, less points of failure, more trust, more redundancy. Inefficient but lasting; Wasteful yet robust.
Bitcoin Book of Genesis
Everything needs an origin story, and crypto is no different. Andreas Antonopoulos taught me that currency is the language of conveying value. I thoroughly rejected that idea when I first heard it, but now it makes perfect sense. It seems that 'God' is once again coming to 'confuse' the issue and break up this monopoly of 'language'.
Explosive environmental change and evolution
In the last decade, Bitcoin has gone from a fringe concept to a possible replacement of value across all corporations and governments. This concept of decentralized ledger tech has already fractured into over 5000 networks and counting. The centralized corruption gripping this world is about to be scattered to the wind once again.
America didn't make it very far.
When we look at the history of it all, the Roman Empire lasted for over a thousand years. American Imperialism hasn't even made it 200 years, and fractional reserve central banking has only been around half that time. Timelines are moving forward at an exponential pace, and will likely continue to do so.
It becomes clear that now is the best time to be learning many "languages". Education is the most valuable resource. Figuring out today how the new world should operate tomorrow puts us in a very important position with a lot of responsibility. Again, it's not about the money. This is an issue of survival and thriving on a macro scale. Our petty individual fates are of little consequence on the grand scheme.
My mom became a Jehovah's Witness when I was in the forth grade. It's quite an interesting cult, maybe I'll create one of my own these days. I may identify as an atheist, but I believe a lot of crazy shit. Just because I think all modern religions have it wrong and they are far too outdated... I still have some faith in things that could likely never be proven one way or another.
Imagine trying to explain smart phones to people 2000 years ago. Even a lightbulb or a plastic water bottle would blow their minds. Bring a fully automatic sub-machine gun 2000 years into the past and all of a sudden you've become the God of War.
The ironic thing about modern religion is that the "new gods" are centralized into a single God while the "old gods" were decentralized into many. Religion is such a sign of the times, and the times they are a changin'.
There's a reason why "God hates shrimp".
http://www.godhatesshrimp.com/
Shrimp, crab, lobster, clams, mussels, all these are an abomination before the Lord, just as gays are an abomination. Why stop at protesting gay marriage? Bring all of God's law unto the heathens and the sodomites. We call upon all Christians to join the crusade against Long John Silver's and Red Lobster. Yea, even Popeye's shall be cleansed. The name of Bubba shall be anathema. We must stop the unbelievers from destroying the sanctity of our restaurants.
Leviticus 11:9-12 says: 9 These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat. 10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you: 11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination. 12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
Why does God hate shrimp?
Because if thousands of people get sick and die from paralytic Red Tide Poisoning during that time period are we really surprised when that story makes it into the religious texts? And so it is with much of the advice that the Bible gives; not all of it is timeless and much of it is simply a reflection of the history around the time it was written.
Regardless, it's pretty crazy that pretty much exactly 2000 years after the life/death of the Jesus and some of the most famous history surrounding the Roman Empire that we find ourselves in this situation. When I first got here in December 2017 I even teased the idea that Satoshi Nakamoto was Jesus himself.
Jehovah's Witnesses
The interesting thing about this particular cult is that they don't vote. The politics and governments of man are corrupt so they will not partake in these systems. Now there's a message I can get behind, and have done many times. They await the time that God's Kingdom comes to Earth and we are governed by a superior system.
The funny thing here is that they seem to believe that this superior government is just going to fall into place without them having to do anything. Why are you here if not to do God's work? How could you possibly think God is just going to live your life for you? That's the whole point of this free-will simulation.
So I float these ideas to them like yep, that what Bitcoin and crypto is all about. Automating governance and putting our ideals in charge programmatically rather than putting a person in charge. Let me tell you, they are not on board, but they will be soon enough, along with the rest of the world.
If 2020 has shown us anything, this is all happening so fast it makes one's head spin. Trust me, this ride isn't going to slow down any time soon. Condolences to those who have a weak stomach.
It's a metaphor!
Again, imagine trying to explain to someone 2000 years in the past the concept of infinite dimensions, aliens, black holes, relationships between gravity and time, etc. It would be easier to explain such things to a 4-year-old today than a fully grown adult in the past. People get set in their ways and will not accept a reality so far removed from their own.
So in order to reach those people you must create metaphors that can penetrate those pretentiously thick human skulls. Such is religion. It's not about truth, it's about walking The Golden Path. Believing in things that aren't real can be focused into a great tool for living on the proper time-space fork. Perception is reality.
Conclusion
This whole "recent" fascination with "decentralization", "disruption", and "innovation" has existed since the dawn of time. It's a story from the very first book of the Bible for God's sake. Humans have known that centralization is bad for thousands of years. The ends justifying necessary evils can only last so long.
People think they are so smart because they can identify the problem. Well I have news: it's the solutions that are tricky, and they are never ideal, the same as all solutions born of necessity and evolution. Bitcoin is our "good enough" solution.
The Byzantine Generals would be proud.
Consensus is in:
This city will fall.
English and USD imperialism will be shattered. Peace be with you.
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