6 ms·

Ross Ulbricht Gives Public Statement at Bitcoin 2021

6 points by zachterrell 5y ago

stevespang 5y ago
Graduate of Westlake High, Austin, Texas, then obtained B.S. in Physics, UT Dallas, then obtained Master's degree in in materials science and engineering from Penn State. Seems this guy would be a lot more useful to the community outside the prison system on parole at least rather than inside rotting away . . .
eschaton 5y ago
Has he show any remorse for ordering hits on people yet?
- rurban 5y ago
  Can be considered fake. https://news.bitcoin.com/silk-road-fake-murder-mystery-may-be-solved/ https://news.bitcoin.com/silk-road-fake-murder-mystery-may-b...
bognition 5y ago
Reading this Ross comes across as naive and claims he did not know SilkRoad would be used for drugs. This is a complete rewriting of the facts. Ross personally bootstrapped the marketplace by growing and selling magic mushrooms. I get that he is a bit of a celebrity And that he laid the ground work for the dark markets of the internet but let’s not forget that he knew exactly was he was doing. He wasn’t on some model path to change/save the world. He was a criminal that tried to get people killed.
- sibeliuss 5y ago
  Those "hits" were retracted in court and not included in filing. It's unfortunate that this is still being spread.
  - bdcravens 5y ago
    The hit charge was dropped, but only after he was sentenced with no opportunity for release. The veracity of the claim has never been proven nor disproven.
    - 0xy 5y ago
      If someone isn't charged and convicted of murder, they are innocent of murder. This is the core of modern justice systems, unless you are in favor of extrajudicial witch hunts based on the testimony of checks notes corrupt federal agents who were charged and convicted themselves.
      - bdcravens 5y ago
        I agree he wasn't convicted of murder, as the charges were dismissed with prejudice. (ignoring the fact that no one was killed, so it would have been conspiracy to commit ...) I however don't ignore the context under which the charges were dropped: any conviction would be merely ceremonial, as he already has multiple life sentences from which he will never be released.
  - dragonwriter 5y ago
    > Those "hits" were retracted in court and not included in filing. No, they were presented to the court in the drug trafficking trial, found to be true, and considered in sentencing, all of which was upheld on appeal. ---quote [0]--- At the sentencing hearing, the district court resolved several disputed issues of fact. For example, because Ulbricht contested his responsibility for the five commissioned murders for hire, the district court found by a preponderance of the evidence that Ulbricht did in fact commission the murders, believing that they would be carried out. The district court characterized the evidence of the murders for hire, which included Ulbricht's journal, chats with other Silk Road users, and the evidence showing that Ulbricht actually paid a total of $650,000 in Bitcoins for the killings, as “ample and unambiguous.” [...] The record was more than sufficient to support the district court's reliance on those attempted murders in sentencing Ulbricht to life in prison. The attempted murders for hire separate this case from that of an ordinary drug dealer, regardless of the quantity of drugs involved in the offense, and lend further support to the district court's finding that Ulbricht's conduct and character were exceptionally destructive. That he was able to distance himself from the actual violence he paid for by using a computer to order the killings is not mitigating. Indeed, the cruelty that he displayed in his casual and confident negotiations for the hits is unnerving. ---[end quote]--- [0] https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1862572.html https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1862572.html
- bdcravens 5y ago
  Silk Road had categories, like any e-commerce application, that weren't created by end users. The first category in the sidebar was literally "Drugs".
- 0xy 5y ago
  If we're going to get serious, Ross enabled unprecedented safety and transparency in drug markets. He probably directly saved many lives by redirecting drug addicts from street drugs that are often laced with fentanyl and other nasties to verifiable reviewed drugs by reputable vendors. Meanwhile, under the legal system you revere, the perpetrators of the opioid crisis who have killed hundreds of thousands of people are billionaires with their names on buildings.
- greyface- 5y ago
  > Ross [...] claims he did not know SilkRoad would be used for drugs The quote is: "I had no idea Silk Road would work, but now we all know it caught on. It was used to sell drugs, and now I’m in prison." He's saying he didn't know it would work. He isn't saying he didn't know it would be used to sell drugs.

6 points by zachterrell 5y ago

Graduate of Westlake High, Austin, Texas, then obtained B.S. in Physics, UT Dallas, then obtained Master's degree in in materials science and engineering from Penn State. Seems this guy would be a lot more useful to the community outside the prison system on parole at least rather than inside rotting away . . .

eschaton 5y ago

Has he show any remorse for ordering hits on people yet?

rurban 5y ago
Can be considered fake. https://news.bitcoin.com/silk-road-fake-murder-mystery-may-be-solved/ https://news.bitcoin.com/silk-road-fake-murder-mystery-may-b...

bognition 5y ago

Reading this Ross comes across as naive and claims he did not know SilkRoad would be used for drugs. This is a complete rewriting of the facts. Ross personally bootstrapped the marketplace by growing and selling magic mushrooms. I get that he is a bit of a celebrity And that he laid the ground work for the dark markets of the internet but let’s not forget that he knew exactly was he was doing. He wasn’t on some model path to change/save the world. He was a criminal that tried to get people killed.

sibeliuss 5y ago
Those "hits" were retracted in court and not included in filing. It's unfortunate that this is still being spread.
- bdcravens 5y ago
  The hit charge was dropped, but only after he was sentenced with no opportunity for release. The veracity of the claim has never been proven nor disproven.
  - 0xy 5y ago
    If someone isn't charged and convicted of murder, they are innocent of murder. This is the core of modern justice systems, unless you are in favor of extrajudicial witch hunts based on the testimony of checks notes corrupt federal agents who were charged and convicted themselves.
    - bdcravens 5y ago
      I agree he wasn't convicted of murder, as the charges were dismissed with prejudice. (ignoring the fact that no one was killed, so it would have been conspiracy to commit ...) I however don't ignore the context under which the charges were dropped: any conviction would be merely ceremonial, as he already has multiple life sentences from which he will never be released.
- dragonwriter 5y ago
  > Those "hits" were retracted in court and not included in filing. No, they were presented to the court in the drug trafficking trial, found to be true, and considered in sentencing, all of which was upheld on appeal. ---quote [0]--- At the sentencing hearing, the district court resolved several disputed issues of fact. For example, because Ulbricht contested his responsibility for the five commissioned murders for hire, the district court found by a preponderance of the evidence that Ulbricht did in fact commission the murders, believing that they would be carried out. The district court characterized the evidence of the murders for hire, which included Ulbricht's journal, chats with other Silk Road users, and the evidence showing that Ulbricht actually paid a total of $650,000 in Bitcoins for the killings, as “ample and unambiguous.” [...] The record was more than sufficient to support the district court's reliance on those attempted murders in sentencing Ulbricht to life in prison. The attempted murders for hire separate this case from that of an ordinary drug dealer, regardless of the quantity of drugs involved in the offense, and lend further support to the district court's finding that Ulbricht's conduct and character were exceptionally destructive. That he was able to distance himself from the actual violence he paid for by using a computer to order the killings is not mitigating. Indeed, the cruelty that he displayed in his casual and confident negotiations for the hits is unnerving. ---[end quote]--- [0] https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1862572.html https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1862572.html
bdcravens 5y ago
Silk Road had categories, like any e-commerce application, that weren't created by end users. The first category in the sidebar was literally "Drugs".
0xy 5y ago
If we're going to get serious, Ross enabled unprecedented safety and transparency in drug markets. He probably directly saved many lives by redirecting drug addicts from street drugs that are often laced with fentanyl and other nasties to verifiable reviewed drugs by reputable vendors. Meanwhile, under the legal system you revere, the perpetrators of the opioid crisis who have killed hundreds of thousands of people are billionaires with their names on buildings.
greyface- 5y ago
> Ross [...] claims he did not know SilkRoad would be used for drugs The quote is: "I had no idea Silk Road would work, but now we all know it caught on. It was used to sell drugs, and now I’m in prison." He's saying he didn't know it would work. He isn't saying he didn't know it would be used to sell drugs.