noufsmith on Nostr: #Bitcoin expands possibilities of gratitude manifestation 🧡 ...
#Bitcoin expands possibilities of gratitude manifestation 🧡
quoting note1xtc…v94cI think Bitcoin brings about something that was not really possible before - Anonymous monetary gifting.
In normal gifting, the receiver generally feels a reciprocal burden. The need/desire to even the score. Whether that's explicit or implicit, that burden cannot be escaped because the receiver knows who gifted him the value (the author talks about this). It may be repaid by a future gift or future favour but the sense of obligation is hard to avoid. Reciprocity is hardwired into our behaviors as social creatures.
To be able to give unconditionally while still allowing for the reciprocity to be paid (anonymously or otherwise) is pretty special. Value is subjective & providing value to another can provide value in & of itself. I give for the selfish reason that it feels good to give, I do not do it from some altruistic quality I posses.
Prior to Bitcoin, I'd need to provide a physical location for reciprocal gifts to be placed anonymously. This requires the consumer to donate there & then. They cannot donate 2 days later in bed when they feel a random sense of gratitude & desire to reciprocate. If I don't provide a way to reciprocate, the gift is not enjoyed as much by those who now feel a sense of obligation. I feel this discomfort & it impacts the value I experience from giving because of the perceived burden.
Take the Assange donation of 8 BTC to cover the debt forced onto him by the Aus gov. He cannot know specifically who donated the money. If he feels a sense of obligation around this gift, he can only pay it forward in a general sense. He cannot directly provide value back to the gifter. There are also no conditions tied to the gift & if someone later tries to claim there are, the gift cannot be rescinded (Bitcoin's finality of settlement). Unconditional giving is a beautiful act that was not easily achieved before Bitcoin.
I'm a little disappointed that the author didn't mention Bitcoin in the 468 page paper. I guess we're still early.