i think this is great news, this is basically the very reason bitcoins still do have any kind of chance to survival. because this is the only thing bitcoins are really useful for - the anonymous payments that would otherwise be impossible due to gov't interference.
if uses such as thie would become widespread due to bitcoins utility, the usage value would grow and so would hash rate which would reinforce the bitcoins.
however with great usage may come great danger as well. when gov't realizes they can no longer shutdown wikileaks contributions, they may as well spend a relatively little money to shut down bitcoin itself. but this would happen sooner or later anyway if bitcoin would gain any real impact so it's all the same.
i wonder how will they react though - by technical means (using some supercomp cluster plus simultaneous DDOS on several largest pools to pollute blockchain with mundane blocks) or just shutting down the exchanges since that's essentially where will people like JA collect all the donations they received.
Topic: Wikileak's Survival now Depends on Bitcoin (Read 2965 times)
BTW, The Young Turks just uploaded a segment about Wikileaks, but did not mention Bitcoin.
I went ahead and made the donation I was planning on, and stated so on the comments. Several other people have also mentioned Bitcoin in the comments and thumb'd up one another enough to get these comments on the top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5KkmcMonY4&noredirect=1
I went ahead and made the donation I was planning on, and stated so on the comments. Several other people have also mentioned Bitcoin in the comments and thumb'd up one another enough to get these comments on the top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5KkmcMonY4&noredirect=1
Goat, as a purely hypothetical situation (with parallels in reality elsewhere in the world), suppose you witnessed the Thai military rounding up Burmese refugees and exchanging them for cash on the Myanmar border. Suppose you then report the information to the press. Then suppose the reporter after exposing greater atrocities is imprisoned on Lese Majeste charges and refuses to name his sources. Now suppose WikiLeaks gets hold of many previously hidden documents. Under what principal and for what purpose should WikiLeaks dump your name to the public?
Of course this would never happen in Thailand. Long live the King!
Of course this would never happen in Thailand. Long live the King!
maybe people *should* stop calling it a currency. its really a distributed accounting ledger/system. no?
So is (at least 90% of) our fiat currency. Its less distributed, but good enough to fit your definition
cur·ren·cy (kûrn-s, kr-)
n. pl. cur·ren·cies
1. Money in any form when in actual use as a medium of exchange, especially circulating paper money.
2. Transmission from person to person as a medium of exchange; circulation:
Sounds like bitcoin to me. Perhaps more so than fiat currency since most of those transaction dont happen from person to person, but through what you call a "distributed accounting ledger" at the bank.
good old julian assange, well...............i'll give him only one credit, he knows how to protect himself.
I find it inspirational that a severe underdog can come up on top against the might of the corpgov system by employing some cleverness. So it seems at this point.
I'm sitting on some BTC with Wikileaks name on it in hopes that the price spikes a bit from the current levels, but I'll send it as soon as I feel that the noose is tightening around conversion systems so much that people as cagey as those at Wikileaks will have troubles.
It would be like saying:
why have bitcoin. People can just write what they owe each other in emails and email it back and forth. Much easier. Much cheaper.
Fundamentally thats what bitcoin is.why have bitcoin. People can just write what they owe each other in emails and email it back and forth. Much easier. Much cheaper.
It would be like saying:
why have bitcoin. People can just write what they owe each other in emails and email it back and forth. Much easier. Much cheaper.
why have bitcoin. People can just write what they owe each other in emails and email it back and forth. Much easier. Much cheaper.
Fundamentally thats what bitcoin is. Only the emails are public, and use a form of PGP. maybe people *should* stop calling it a currency. its really a distributed accounting ledger/system. no?
good old julian assange, well...............i'll give him only one credit, he knows how to protect himself.
Sorry I couldn't reply after starting this thread, for I was out of pocket. Had to go to Green Bay to see a man woman about a horse barn.
I just finished reading all the posts, finding them an interesting and informative read. At the moment, I have no comment(s) to post with the exception of this one, acting as a bump and, if merited, to continue further discussion.
I just finished reading all the posts, finding them an interesting and informative read. At the moment, I have no comment(s) to post with the exception of this one, acting as a bump and, if merited, to continue further discussion.
...
My payment never reached WL, and I never got it back. It happened two days before they were blacklisted by the payment processors. So I've got reason to be mad.
...
My payment never reached WL, and I never got it back. It happened two days before they were blacklisted by the payment processors. So I've got reason to be mad.
...
More than likely your $100 was diverted to a fund to support US Secret prisons that hopefully Jullian Assange will be in shortly.
The cool thing about that would be that I could finally see what is in the 'insurance.aes256' file. That could be a very nice x-mas present. Or it could be nothing. Maybe we'll find out one of these days.
I don't personally give a fuck if Julian Assange is the most famous man on earth, a 15 year old in a basement in Omaha playing with puppets, or the daughter of the sultan of Brunei. I sent $100 to Wikileaks last year a few days before their payments were shut down, and I did it on my personal visa debit card for no other reason than to make a statement: I can support whoever the hell I want, and I believe in transparency.
My payment never reached WL, and I never got it back. It happened two days before they were blacklisted by the payment processors. So I've got reason to be mad.
If you look at the direction that the world's going, you'll see a pattern similar to what led up to the fall of Rome, the Great Depression and the Banking Crisis: The consolidation of so much wealth and power into the hands of so few, who are (importantly) less and less accountable, and more and more inbred and complacent over time. The rich can keep gettin richer forever, but they can't stop their children from being squandering idiots. Extrapolate over a few generations and you have the built-in mechanism that keeps humanity from ever turning into a permanent 1984-style dictatorship: The incredible loss, inefficiency, lack of production, sloth, greed, self-destructive urges and nihilistic desires that come along with a spoiled rich child's sense of a right to a larger piece of the pie than his betters, the people who actually think and create to produce value.
I'm not dragging Bitcoin into this as a way to rectify the current slate of wrongs, but I'll say that at the moment it's a symbol of economic defiance, and a hair's breadth from true political defiance against the current power structure. I'm proud to support it as a merchant and an entrepreneur, and I see it as the necessary next step in our social evolution as a species.
Long story short, I'm gonna send my contribution again, in Bitcoin this time. And I'm gonna start sending regularly. Why? Because no one has the authority to tell anyone else how to spend their capital.
My payment never reached WL, and I never got it back. It happened two days before they were blacklisted by the payment processors. So I've got reason to be mad.
If you look at the direction that the world's going, you'll see a pattern similar to what led up to the fall of Rome, the Great Depression and the Banking Crisis: The consolidation of so much wealth and power into the hands of so few, who are (importantly) less and less accountable, and more and more inbred and complacent over time. The rich can keep gettin richer forever, but they can't stop their children from being squandering idiots. Extrapolate over a few generations and you have the built-in mechanism that keeps humanity from ever turning into a permanent 1984-style dictatorship: The incredible loss, inefficiency, lack of production, sloth, greed, self-destructive urges and nihilistic desires that come along with a spoiled rich child's sense of a right to a larger piece of the pie than his betters, the people who actually think and create to produce value.
I'm not dragging Bitcoin into this as a way to rectify the current slate of wrongs, but I'll say that at the moment it's a symbol of economic defiance, and a hair's breadth from true political defiance against the current power structure. I'm proud to support it as a merchant and an entrepreneur, and I see it as the necessary next step in our social evolution as a species.
Long story short, I'm gonna send my contribution again, in Bitcoin this time. And I'm gonna start sending regularly. Why? Because no one has the authority to tell anyone else how to spend their capital.
I think this is absolutely massive news! Everyone needs to spread the word and tell people about this, because it will help Bitcoin a lot.
I'm not that sure about Wikileaks but that doesn't matter. A lot of people support it and this could prove to be very good press for Bitcoin.
I do think that Wikileaks is a good thing overall so I'm donating a few coins as well. But more importantly, spread the word!
I'm not that sure about Wikileaks but that doesn't matter. A lot of people support it and this could prove to be very good press for Bitcoin.
I do think that Wikileaks is a good thing overall so I'm donating a few coins as well. But more importantly, spread the word!
Keep in mind, anyone that wants to donate to Wikileaks anonymously can request a one-time address from their IRC bot, so we only know that at LEAST 886 BTC has been donated (to 1HB5XMLmzFVj8ALj6mfBsbifRoD4miY36v).
Wikileaks are trying to remain as legal as possible since the identities of the key players are known. They do that by compromising: redacting some things, releasing info in a somewhat responsible manner in cooperation with old school media organisations. They NEED to remain as legal as possible, to survive.
Of course hacker groups can release info with no repercussions because of their anonymity... But I also don't see them providing a central and secure and trusted (and most importantly -well publicised-) point that a non hacker can go to to "leak" stuff. For the hacker groups to improve on Wikileaks they need to solve that. Create some central domains / contact points or some little peer to peer utility that becomes well known enough that any random person with little tech skills can submit stuff to. And that also cannot be shut down when they start taking the heat.
So both Wikileaks and hacker groups ways of working are totally different. Hackers break in, take stuff, dump. Requires great technical skill, sure, but provided they don't slip up there are minimal repercussions and little harm to their persons. On the other hand Wikileaks is trying to do this within a journalistic framework and within the law.
Both are valuable endeavours. Wikileaks, because it is just about responsible and careful enough that it can be quite well accepted by at least some of the normal population as something that should exist. Hacker groups, because they push the boundaries even further, though far more normal citizens would probably condemn their dumps as irresponsible or criminal.
Maybe the openness that the hacker groups aspire to is something nice for the future, but before we get there, Wikileaks is a good stepping stone along the way.
Of course hacker groups can release info with no repercussions because of their anonymity... But I also don't see them providing a central and secure and trusted (and most importantly -well publicised-) point that a non hacker can go to to "leak" stuff. For the hacker groups to improve on Wikileaks they need to solve that. Create some central domains / contact points or some little peer to peer utility that becomes well known enough that any random person with little tech skills can submit stuff to. And that also cannot be shut down when they start taking the heat.
So both Wikileaks and hacker groups ways of working are totally different. Hackers break in, take stuff, dump. Requires great technical skill, sure, but provided they don't slip up there are minimal repercussions and little harm to their persons. On the other hand Wikileaks is trying to do this within a journalistic framework and within the law.
Both are valuable endeavours. Wikileaks, because it is just about responsible and careful enough that it can be quite well accepted by at least some of the normal population as something that should exist. Hacker groups, because they push the boundaries even further, though far more normal citizens would probably condemn their dumps as irresponsible or criminal.
Maybe the openness that the hacker groups aspire to is something nice for the future, but before we get there, Wikileaks is a good stepping stone along the way.
Goat - your avatar photo is wrong fyi
Did you even read what I quoted? There was an assumption, I wanted us all to be equal.
You aren't equal. Some people will maliciously use information and others won't. Those who are willing to maliciously use it will be more powerful that those who don't. A stupid basis for a society and not one I would want to live in.Quote
What else do you want to know? Not that it is even related to what I posted.
Well seeing as you didn't answer any of the original questions. Nothing.
Nope, all data should be free. Once this happens people will act very very very different! I am willing and ready for all of my data to be out assuming everyone else has theirs out too. It would change the world!
Then go for it. Right here in this thread.
Name
Address
Phone Number
Employer
Salary
Incomes taxes paid
All credit card # (including expiration dates & CCV)
Mother maiden name (so people can get accounts in your name)
Value of all bank/stock/brokerage accounts, along with account numbers, and names of brokerage
I am thinking you aren't as ready as you think you are.
Nope, all data should be free. Once this happens people will act very very very different! I am willing and ready for all of my data to be out assuming everyone else has theirs out too. It would change the world!
What a great idea. Lets throw what little is left of our privacy under the bus. Why dont you lead by example. Care to start by publishing an ssh account so I can view all the information on your PC? Or just publish your wallet's private key? Gee maybe thats not such a good idea after all.
Oh while we're at it, lets publish launch codes of those nuclear missiles. Wouldnt hurt Im sure.
So, I am paying them to censor information if I make a denotation? Fuck that... Redact... lol not a service I am interested in....
You'd rather see the names and addresses of everyone mentioned in every leak are revealed publicly, so that for instance, DEA informants could more easily be assassinated by drug cartels? You might change your mind if one day someone leaks phone, bank, credit card or whatever records that happen to also contain your personal data.
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