frank01945 on Nostr: Thoughts for Nostr: Decentralized, Digital Economies & Democracies Our democracies ...

Thoughts for Nostr:

Decentralized, Digital Economies & Democracies

Our democracies and economies are being shattered by oligarchs who claim that democracy and freedom for all cannot work and we should trust only them. While good people struggle to reassemble their democracies, we need to design and start to implement replacements for our deeply flawed systems that allow oligarchs to buy politicians and judges.

Bitcoin, distributed, decentralized and secure, is an important economic step for humanity. NOSTR, also decentralized and integrated with Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, is a young, decentralized social network. Simple Proof offers truthful timestamped verification of data. Fedimint shows the potential of distributed networks of value, secured by the bitcoin network.

The Digital Democracy of Taiwan (TDD) shows that a pro-social, moderated democracy can garner widespread public participation and confidence. And the Tibetan government in exile is a model for a global system of support for the people of Tibet, in spite of the Chinese Communist Party.

From these examples, we can envision parallel systems of economic and political freedom and democracy, built upon the foundations of these and other technologies. AI will help.

Communities can be of any number, size and geographical location. From two friends, to many relatives, to neighborhoods, towns, cities, counties, craft and trade unions, universities, states, nations, beliefs, political views, and the world. Fedimint can accommodate them all.

Public / Private keys assure identity, while Zero Proof Knowledge protects identity.

Communities draw up their own charters / constitutions and appoint moderators (like Reddit) to keep discourse within community standards, while trusted members manage keys. All through encrypted communication (like Fedi and Nostr?).

Anti-social media by countries, bots, and actors trying to monetize discord and hatred, are countered by spotlights and humor (like TDD). Communities can choose to operate by direct voting or through representatives, with all information available to all. TDD’s system is optimized for consensus and mutual aid. TDD takes difficult issues, like abortion, and finds the parts that “both sides” agree with, like preventing unwanted pregnancies, leaving a remainder of disagreement and minimizing the dissonance.

In some ways, we are all alienated by current systems and rulers. We are all communities in exile from what is possible for humanity. There are people in the US calling for a “shadow cabinet”. Imagine a “shadow government” for all institutions, daring to invent and consider better ways to do things, with whistle blowers honored instead of demonized.

As Jeff Booth notes, productivity is growing so quickly that there will be more than enough for everybody. We add, there will only be enough if oligarchs don’t get to seize, hoard, squander it. We seek others, particularly those with the technical knowledge to see what is possible and how to start.