ben_dewaal / ₿𝔢𝔫 🦢⚡️🏴🌹 is on Nostr

#Bitcoin / VP Engineering @SwanBitcoin, Father, Polymath, Linguist, Technologist, Neuropharmacologist, Philosopher, Humanist, Libertarian Socialist/Anarchist.

Last Notes

2024-08-09 21:06:39

I hate how any condemnation is terrorism by Israel gets called "anti-semitic" and any condemnation of terrorism by Muslim people gets called "Islamophobia".
As it happens, I think all religion is pretty stupid, but that doesn't mean I dislike people because of their religion. People are free to hold stupid beliefs without me disliking them for it. I dislike people for their actions, not their beliefs. And MANY terrorist actions are done for entirely secular reasons. The religion of the person might get used as an excuse, but the underlying reasons for the action really have nothing to do with it. I don't believe for a second that if Israel had some other random state religion instead of Judaism, that their behaviour would be significantly different in their treatment of Palestinian people; and equally, if Palestine were had any other random religion as the majority instead of Islam, I don't think their response to Israel would be significantly different either.
I get that there's a lot of religious history involved and it certainly shapes a lot of the narrative, but I really don't think it's significantly more than narrative. Similar narratives could and would have been formed regardless.
This also applies to racial/social/cultural tensions throughout the world. It often boils down to "us and them" tribalism, with little regard for what the tribes are, only that they're "different to us", and can be stirred up for any number of other unrelated reasons, be it money, land, access to resources, or just as a way to rally political support for people who want to gain and hold on to power.

2024-08-07 08:18:42

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"Culture" is just shorthand for talking about the common sets of behaviours between groups of people. You can make it as small or as large as you like.
Humanity at the broadest scale has a "culture" that can broadly be defined by examples like "pleasure is preferable to suffering", "we take care of our children", and so on. But you can also go the other way and take it down to the individual level. No two individuals have completely identical beliefs (or even consistent with themselves sometimes!). So ALL interactions between people could involve some level of "multiculturalism", purely depending on where you choose to draw the lines.
Even at the less extreme ends of the scale, is it "multiculturalism" when a West Berliner and an East Berliner come together? How about a Berliner and a Münchner? What about a Münchner and a Parisian? Or a Parisian and a New Yorker? Or a New Yorker and a Hong Konger? Or a Hong Konger and a Mbabaner? etc etc.
The entire concept of it being problematic for cultures to mix is fundamentally an anti-human position, and is generally just an excuse for racism or other kinds of xenophobia.

2023-11-05 05:22:34

After an early morning cross border drive, now at Prague airport with SamTheBTCKid. First layover is in London, then Miami, then down to El Salvador.
Hoping to see a lot of familiar faces at Adopting Bitcoin as well as meeting some new ones.
See you there soon!

2023-08-18 21:31:35

She really is incredible. I don’t deserve such an amazing daughter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rOlmQ5Jy3s

2023-07-28 05:49:45

My daughter Sam’s keynote from BTC Prague is up!
If you weren’t in Prague or missed it for some other reason, now’s the time to catch up on it.
https://youtu.be/yLYQq1ohKlg
(All zaps on this note will be passed on to Sam directly since she’s not on nostr yet)

2023-07-24 13:56:10

Finally installed a nostr client on my laptop, so I'll probably start using it more now. I read social media a lot on my phone, but actually replying and having discussions usually happens on a device with a physical keyboard.

2023-07-11 08:32:11

https://nostrcheck.me/media/public/nostrcheck.me_8353063080837960621689064318.webp

2023-06-19 07:13:42

It is with some sadness that I must announce that as of the end of last week, I am no longer at Swan.
For those of you still reaching out in DMs regarding open positions, I am no longer the person you want to talk to. Please try Yan Pritzker or Cory Klippsten instead.
Despite my departure, I do still count Swan among the companies in this space with the highest levels of excellence. Having hired over half of the engineering team personally, I can say that I count all of them as the best colleagues I've ever worked with.
I know some may be curious why this happened. I don’t believe it serves anyone to go into details, so I’ll just say that my skills, experience, and management style no longer align with how they want engineering to be run. I disagree with but accept/respect their opinion on this.
I am currently in talks with an early stage startup regarding a very interesting project that I hope to be able to join, so I don't think it's going to be long before I can announce something there assuming we can come to an arrangement that suits both sides.
That said, I am available right now and open to other discussion/offers.
If anyone is looking for a senior engineering/product lead (e.g. CTO/CPO or senior VP) with a wealth of experience in team growth, system architecture, and long term strategic thinking, please do reach out.
I'm especially interested in any projects focused on real world Bitcoin adoption and/or education, with a long-term, large-scale vision that I can help shape correctly and help the company/project avoid the pitfalls of massive technical debt that so many projects fall in to.
I'm not interested in simply being a "middle man" between engineers and non-engineers. I can do this 'translation' very well and am happy to do it as a part of the job, but I have much more to offer than that.
The ability to exercise my creativity is very important to me.
I'm also not who you want if you want someone to write code for a web/mobile app. My professional coding experience was largely in realtime control over large hardware devices (office printers) and low-level image processing algorithm work; not "apps". It was also 10 yrs ago.
Where I bring a lot of value to engineering work specifically is in shaping engineering teams to get more achieved, with better architecture, in less time, and with less people than more naive managers can do.
I've grown teams in companies ranging from multinationals to startups.
This, combined with a keen understanding of product design and the intersection between product market needs and engineering capabilities positions me as *the* person that you need if you've got an idea and money to do it but not the real world knowledge of how to make it happen.
I can of course provide CV/resumé and references if requested, but I also think my reputation in the Bitcoin space should at least get my foot in the door with any company that needs someone with my skill set and experience.
My DMs are open for anyone who wants to reach out either with an interesting opportunity or just to chat.
As above, I'm a little sad and disappointed to be leaving Swan at this stage (especially that amazing team I built) but I'm also excited for what the future may hold.

2023-06-12 13:11:33

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Paid.

2023-06-10 04:26:53

When my daughter Sam woke up yesterday, she had 300 Twitter followers.
This morning, she’s just passed 700. She’s not on Nostr yet, but we’ll make that happen soon.
Thanks to everyone for supporting and encouraging her. She rocked the stage, but beyond that, the positive praise she’s received from everyone has been incredible. 🧡🥹 https://nostr.build/i/e455d49a3cc11f835d3f1cd4bd61681678bd921c65c1b3452bcb3b195c160074.jpg

2023-06-09 17:44:56

I’m the proudest father in the world right now. My daughter Sam absolutely *ROCKED* the stage at BTC Prague. https://nostr.build/i/e455d49a3cc11f835d3f1cd4bd61681678bd921c65c1b3452bcb3b195c160074.jpg

2023-01-04 19:58:51

👋🌍