UPDATE FROM DAY 1 OF THE TORNADO CASH TRIAL

I used to work at an independent record label. At the label, I wore many hats. I handled publicity, marketing, distribution, and graphic design (this was back toward the tail end of CDs being a thing). My boss basically allowed me to do my job the way I saw fit. He did offer one guiding rule, though: Find the champions for these bands out there. What he meant was just keep reaching out to people until you find those who want to support the bands on the label in some capacity and then build with them. It was simple, yet profound advice that I’ve applied to nearly everything I’ve worked on during the past 20 years. You don’t need to construct some grand plan or craft some soulless pitch or marketing angle. You just need to find others on the same wavelength as you and build with them in a way that’s mutually beneficial.

The world was never perfect, even when we were on hard money standards in the past. It’ll be up to you to do good things with your bitcoin if you want to see Bitcoin improve the world.

“It’s impt that people have control over their stores of value. There shouldn’t be a nation state between you & that store of value. If you’ve got bitcoin, that belongs to you. It’s impt that we codify that component as a part of this act.” Rep. Nick Begich (R-AL) on The Bitcoin Act

In today's status conference for the Tornado Cash case — the final one before trial begins — the judge made it clear that she plans to focus less on crypto mixing tech and more on what was in the developers' control. Here's my recap of the hearing:

Bitcoin Magazine

Takeaways From The Final Tornado Cash Status Conference Hearing

In a virtual hearing, the judge presiding over the Tornado Cash case didn't mince words as she highlighted what she plans to focus on as trial...

I (virtually) attended the final status conf. for the Tornado Cash case today. (I showed up for the in-person hearing, but it was changed to a virtual one.) Here’s what I learned from the final convo btw the judge, the prosecution, & the defense before trial starts on Monday:

Sometimes, I’m so excited about what I do for a living that I don’t want to go to sleep.

Does anyone out there subscribe to any cool tech- or start-up-focused newsletters?

I think this price action is giving me the bends.

Julian Fahrer, the founder of Bitcoin Laws, and I just broke down what happened this week in the world of Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related legislation. https://www.youtube.com/live/KBWsr96Bvp8?si=zBWWtq_t-vTTPYfs

“For us, having financial freedom is a way to fight back against the regime, and a cryptocurrency like bitcoin is a tool for our survival. It’s the money of the people, and it gives us hope.” Roya Mahboob, on women using #Bitcoin in #Afghanistan