To Know, is to know All. To know All, one need know very little. But to know that very little, one must first know a great deal. Hans Christian Andersen’s brief story “The Princess and the Pea” tells us everything we need to know to be a successful Investor. No joke. Because it’s about being sensitive enough to spot the Lie, though it be buried beneath a mountain of comfy mattresses designed to make you sleep easy. Worth a ponder or two.

The princess and the pea (ENGLISH) - La princesse au petit pois (FRENCH)

Andersen ENGLISH: The princess and the pea. Once upon a time there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess, but she woul have to be a real prin...

This came to mind to me this evening during a conversation with my best friend, one of the most remarkable people I’ve ever known. And I’ve come to see this often in my own life in recent years: There’s an old parable about a poor farmer whose horse jumps its pen and runs away. A neighbor hears and says to him “well that’s unfortunate”. The farmer answers simply, “maybe yes, maybe no”. A couple days later the horse returns, followed by 4 other wild horses. The neighbor says “that was very fortunate!” “Maybe yes, maybe no,” the farmer replies. While trying to break-in the wild horses, the farmer’s son is bucked off and breaks his leg. “That was unfortunate.” “Maybe yes, maybe no.” A week later an army marches through town and conscripts all the able-bodied young men to fight in battle, except the son with the broken leg….

Under Fiat, non-insiders scour the news & markets trying to glean what iss happening behind the scenes, before it is gleaned by others. Now, they check the price of Bitcoin and know all there is to know. I personally always thought hyper-Bitcoinization would begin when Oil was priced in Bitcoin. I was wrong. It’s happening. Because Bitcoin is right now becoming recognized as the authentic Indicator, the autonomous Compass, for all things affecting all assets, known and unknown. Absent the nagging “paper-Bitcoin” issue, there are no Insiders anymore. This new aspect of Bitcoin, alone, will undermine Fiat. And all its minions worldwide. The Revolution has begun.

🛢️ 🛢️ 🛢️ WTI Crude holding firm at 58,415 sats/barrel during peak summer-driving months. August is always a lull for all things financial, so go find your fun, and come back after Labor Day! 🛢️ 🛢️ 🛢️

There will only ever be 21,000,000 - My Bitcoin.

I’m old enough to remember when Google was an internet winner, and they sent trucks out to map and photograph every square foot of American streets. And as an investment pro I thought “how can they ever monetize this info?” I would later learn they never paid for it in the first place. It was a contract from a 3-letter Agency. Still, Google Maps is pretty useful, on occasion, even if I paid for it in taxes.

Just commerce being transacted.

Another Bastille Day has come and gone. An event with global resonance that goes largely unrecognized. Because the importance of the French Revolution was not that it liberated the French People, but that it drove the wealthy and Powerful, throughout Europe, into hiding. Where they’ve remained ever since.

At this point, does any American believe that anything in the Epstein files would change the way we’re told American voted in the next election?

I love Nostr. Love all y’all here. I’m getting married this weekend, working hard on a house, and I can’t even tell you how crucial Bitcoin has been in making my Life better and my dreams come true. So many of you lifted me up on your shoulders, so many more inspire me or just amuse me. Not kidding. I’ve been fortunate to meet a few Bitcoiners I only knew online, and became more impressed with them in person. Appreciate you. Here’s a totally og kitten photo. Up for stealz, or just for the squealz.

The Tornado Cash trial is being held in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) Regional Court, which is…how do I say this…the central Court for major financial and legal issues, but also considered by many to be most corrupt, for-profit Court in the US. Prob’ly because it’s New York, and Money, and you know, history. But this also means trials are only brought there when the money’d interests outweigh the Defendents. For instance, the Celsius Bankruptcy is happening there. Thousands of independent clients are being told they have to return their Bitcoin/Crypto because they withdrew them prior to Celsius going Bankrupt. How is that a fair case? Tornado Cash is fucked. Just as those who thought they avoided the Celsius debacle. We don’t have Justice in America anymore. Haven’t for decades now. View quoted note →

I’m a long-time veteran of financial markets, worked at a top-10 Investment firm for over a decade, was adept with a Bloomberg terminal back in the ‘90’s when there was no other “fast news”, yadda yadda. I’ve mused here on Nostr about how long-term Volume and Price have disconnected very markedly since the months before the ETFs came into play - and how that, to my mind, is clear proof of the growth of a true “paper Bitcoin” market (i.e. not just buying directed toward Bitcoin Treasury Companies). And it seems this disconnect is being noticed now other places as well. Yet there’s another thing that I still can’t wrap my head around: Where are all the non-Wall Street buyers of Bitcoin? Bitcoin continues to flirt with, and print, all-time highs, yet the Bitcoin market predictably goes to sleep during European, Mid-Eastern and Asian trading hours. And weekends are so devoid of spot-trading you can spot each weekend by eye on a daily chart. Whatever Institutional trading has taken root here in America, it is not reflected in any way outside. Are ATHs going unnoticed, having no influence, outside of America? Or is paper-trading far, far more rampant in foreign markets? Are foreign companies, institutions and wealth funds NOT interested in accumulating spot-market Bitcoin? Bitcoin would seem to be in a bear market still, looked at from a global perspective. Except that Price shows more active buying than Selling. So where is the Volume? This is the strangest Bull Market I’ve ever witnessed. Especially in an asset that has experienced more Bull Markets than any in human history. What is happening in Bitcoin right now is without precedent. Just as the previous bull-market was ‘wonky’, this one is clearly a new trajectory. And that’s a good thing. I’ve said in the past that predictable cycles were not healthy in any asset, and to expect Bitcoin to break those. At any rate, I can say for certain that I will not be convinced this Bull-run is over until we see continued huge volume surges happening during global-exchange hours. And its likely when that happens, paper Bitcoin on American exchanges will become an exciting learning lesson for all who don’t understand Self-Custody.

Power has ever and always been about Owning control of a commodity or asset >at its point of origin<. Please, let this sink in. It is crucial, and indelible in human history. Bitcoin is your chance to claim your own tiny point of origin of a prime asset. Decades, centuries from now, Bitcoin “ownership” WILL become diluted, confusticated, ultra-sophisticated and otherwise raped of Self-Custody. The seemingly immortal “They” WILL unceasingly seek to take YOUR little control of Humanity’s most important asset. This will happen. None of us can stop the deluge. Our progeny will be far less stalwart. Everything you imagine you have now, the never-dying “THEY” will take away. Unless you embrace and espouse Self-Custody. Self-Custody is a tiny rampart to defend, and the only one. Always. We all can - solely by your individual intention - become a million tiny unassailable Castles. Simply by espousing Self-Custody for ourselves, and our children.

We’re in the part of the cycle where my ex-wife calls me for customer service because she can’t remember how to log-in to her cold wallet. View quoted note →

The Bantang Bioeconomy Experimental Zone, in Anhui, China. As seen from above. Quite fun, and in no way alarming.

Weekly Volume on spot Bitcoin, across all major exchanges, is a fraction of what it was a year and a half ago, even months before Blackrock launched its ETF. Down by 60%+. It’s beyond ridiculous at this point to believe this is all mythical “OGs” dumping off-exchange, in individual non-traceable & non-taxable transactions. Since Wall St adopted Bitcoin pre-2024, purported purchases have been stellar…even as real spot-buying has continually evaporated. Yet price has refused to retrace, preying upward, and for weeks now seemingly intransigent above near-ath’s above $100kUSD. Paper Bitcoin is undeniable. Only a handful of Bitcoin fools still argue against it -mostly fiat-inexperienced influencers. Volume has clearly and undeniably disconnected from Price. Thus it won’t be long before the sharks arrive to frenzy-feed. Sharks seeks blood in the water. It’s their raison d’être. And fundamental disconnects are blood in the water. Wall St thought their boat was big enough. They underestimated what they were hunting. And Trump’s “SBR” was just the Mayor of Amity Island.

100% Simple evidence for this is that BTC Weekly Volume across major exchanges has plunged by 70%+ in the past 7 mos (absent a notable “selloff bottom”). Volume includes both buying & selling, obv. Real BTC is not changing hands. View quoted note →

Pepe the Frog thing is like watching an old guy on a Harley. Just me?

I’m just going to re-iterate here on Nostr. Pushing toward weekly highs on declining volume is not bullish. DCA, but don’t FOMO.

Coinbase, Binance, et al are the same. Bitcoin volume is plummeting into this price-rise, on weekly charts. Something is awfully off. Now is not the time to fomo, fwiw, ngl, imho.