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HN seems to actively work on a cognitive dissonance: on the one hand producing inspirational stories of entrepreneurs changing the world and on the other abando

by mihaic 4y ago

HN seems to actively work on a cognitive dissonance: on the one hand producing inspirational stories of entrepreneurs changing the world and on the other abandoning all hope that technology/market forces can be controlled in any way. I'm thinking now this is to justify away the collective guilt of bringing into the mainstream harmful products. It seems to come from the same origins as "crypto can't be regulated", "government can't to anything", "it's ok because it's legal" and it's always worrying me to not really see any sort of moral stance being taken anymore.

atemerev 4y ago
Well for me, crypto is highly moral and should be developed to prevent artificial trading restrictions and eliminate borders. There are many people who consider individual freedom to be of highest importance, and who are willing to develop any technology promoting it.
- mihaic 4y ago
  You seem to be thinking ideologically-driven, while I'm more goal-driven. Is absolute freedom the end-all purpose? Shouldn't I be allowed to murder my enemies, if I'm willing to risk the vengeance of their group? I know it's an absurd question, but my point is that the social negotiation for where regulation and limits should come into effect has been abandoned by many.
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    Absolute freedom is impossible in a world where people interact with and affect each other. Me having absolute freedom means that the freedom of others must be limited. The goal should be to maximize freedom for everyone. To accomplish this goal means that nobody can have absolute freedom.
- jevgeni 4y ago
  Most crypto is controlled by a few key players with even less oversight and accountability than the governments.
  - atemerev 4y ago
    The same for any other form of money.
    - ace32229 4y ago
      [dead]
    - jevgeni 4y ago
      No. Read up on central bank governance.
  - fsflover 4y ago
    "Controlled" in your sentence doesn't mean the same as the one for the ordinary money.
    - jevgeni 4y ago
      You're right, the difference is even more stark.
sneak 4y ago
"crypto can't be [effectively] regulated" is more observable fact than ideology.
- mihaic 4y ago
  Funny that you picked on this specific example on a broader point. Every time serious regulators have made a strong move, crypto markets and general population access to crypto products have actually been affected. I'm pretty sure if the US government would try to ban all crypto networks, most activity would stop, leaving only a few die-hard activists and some actual criminals.
Apofis 4y ago
The old: Encryption is evil because it is used to hide information... let's ban encryption. Breaking encryption is evil because it can be used to steal information... let's incriminate breaking encryption. Let's just get it over with... Technology is evil. Let's ban technology.
JohnFen 4y ago
HN is full of a wide variety of people who have a wide variety of different beliefs and worldviews, and that's what you're seeing. In my view, it's one of the things that makes HN great.

by mihaic 4y ago

atemerev 4y ago

Well for me, crypto is highly moral and should be developed to prevent artificial trading restrictions and eliminate borders. There are many people who consider individual freedom to be of highest importance, and who are willing to develop any technology promoting it.

mihaic 4y ago
You seem to be thinking ideologically-driven, while I'm more goal-driven. Is absolute freedom the end-all purpose? Shouldn't I be allowed to murder my enemies, if I'm willing to risk the vengeance of their group? I know it's an absurd question, but my point is that the social negotiation for where regulation and limits should come into effect has been abandoned by many.
- JohnFen 4y ago
  Absolute freedom is impossible in a world where people interact with and affect each other. Me having absolute freedom means that the freedom of others must be limited. The goal should be to maximize freedom for everyone. To accomplish this goal means that nobody can have absolute freedom.
jevgeni 4y ago
Most crypto is controlled by a few key players with even less oversight and accountability than the governments.
- atemerev 4y ago
  The same for any other form of money.
  - ace32229 4y ago
    [dead]
  - jevgeni 4y ago
    No. Read up on central bank governance.
- fsflover 4y ago
  "Controlled" in your sentence doesn't mean the same as the one for the ordinary money.
  - jevgeni 4y ago
    You're right, the difference is even more stark.

sneak 4y ago

"crypto can't be [effectively] regulated" is more observable fact than ideology.

mihaic 4y ago
Funny that you picked on this specific example on a broader point. Every time serious regulators have made a strong move, crypto markets and general population access to crypto products have actually been affected. I'm pretty sure if the US government would try to ban all crypto networks, most activity would stop, leaving only a few die-hard activists and some actual criminals.

Apofis 4y ago

The old: Encryption is evil because it is used to hide information... let's ban encryption. Breaking encryption is evil because it can be used to steal information... let's incriminate breaking encryption. Let's just get it over with... Technology is evil. Let's ban technology.

JohnFen 4y ago

HN is full of a wide variety of people who have a wide variety of different beliefs and worldviews, and that's what you're seeing. In my view, it's one of the things that makes HN great.