pull down to refresh
99 sats \ 1 reply \ @JoeNakamoto OP 20 Dec \ parent \ on: AMA with Joe Nakamoto: Bitcoin Journalist, MC & Amateur Shitcoin Troll AMA
i don't want to do daily news because it just doesn't really interest me—what i am doing now is behind the scenes podcasts. These podcasts help form the documentaries i make.
Also it's really fun talking about bitcoin with smart people for an hour—who knew, right!
So yeah, more podcasts in 2025. And they will almost exclusively be in person!
I haven't seen the BIP framed as using BTC for bitcoin like now and just ₿ as the symbol for satoshi yet. I couldn't actually get behind that.
i agree with his BIP but i like my idea better (bitcoiners are the worst, aren't they!)
Either way i think satoshis / sats haven't stuck, and they won't stick 🤷♂️
duuude rash vests are called rash vests for a reason!
You say close to europe, so i'd go, and this is in order of busy-ness:
Ericeira, Portugal — a go-to surf spot but v busy espesh in summer.
Taghazout / Tamraght , Morocco – easy right handers.
Fuerteventura, canary islands - more empty
as a beginner, you want empty waves away from people to build your confidence.
And you don't need the best waves in the world because who cares, you won't be sending an air off it!
Also, this is probs frowned upon but wave pools can help but there are a waste of time until you do 5 or 6 sessions in the sea. They can help you get used to the sensation of wanting to stand up even though you are falling over + you get filmed so it's easy to see where you're going wrong.
I like the one in bristol. Haven't tried the one in switzerlnd — it's v v spenny!
you mentioned you don't feel you were 'where you want to be' (who does feel like they've made it lol) what would your ultimate vision for you and the channel be in a few years? more reach and subs, more projects? the joe nakomoto btc only language school in el sav? if
Great question, thanks!
I am impatient and I demand a lot of myself.
I know my content is improving, slowly, incremently, but making watchable real world bicoin stories is bloody hard. That's why the likes of Cointelegraph and CoinDesk and even Bitcoin Magazine don't do it.
I misjudged the appetite or market for low production, real world bitcoin stories and underestimated how hard it would be to venture out, solo.
I have also learned that a lot of people on youtube watch passively, so they might chuck on a podcast in the background while cleaning, for example. Or a commentator or a talk show or music channel.
Even the documentary channels that are animated / talking head explainers don't require a huge amount of active watching.
A lot of my content requires active watching, and i am strugglign to find those viewers. I thought i could cater to that market on youtube this year, and i haven't grown as much as i would have liked–i had a goal of 10k subs and i have way way missed it.
The metrics are one way for me to understand if i'm doing a good job.
Which leads to the ultimate vision.
It's the same as many other bitcoiners, i imagine—help people understand bitcoin and ya know, acquire some bitcoin along the way!
However, for me I'm also investigating all the memes and sayings we have. Don't trust, verify the "bank the unbanked" idea, or see for myself if bitcoin really is a hedge for people in South Africa.
For example, Alex Gladstein's book Check Your Financial Privilege sent me to Cuba and back to Senegal. I had to see for myself, and report on it, if Bitcoin was actually being used and how.
I'm going off tangent but i like the bitcoin school idea although not in ES. I like the seasons.
I love teaching and i see what i do as being a sort of offshot of teaching. I also love performing and being on stage—just entertaining people generallly—so maybe i explore teaching at a later stage.
for now, it's Joe Nakamoto content and investigations as much as possible :)
phwooar big questions. let me try.
Bitcoiners tend to overestimate the general public's intelligence level. I mean I guess this is not exclusive to bitcoiners, it also applies to anyone trying to get a new public good adopted.
I mean, remember how retarded people were/are during covid? Wearing a mask on a beach, alone. Or wearing a mask in a car on a commute to work.
so that's what we're dealing with.
We need to dumb down certain things and get a bit more normie friendly. It sounds arrogant to say it like this but bitcoin is full of geniuses (Geniii?) and many are "on the spectrum". You guys forgot how damn smart you are 🤣
- "The public sees Bitcoin as a scam because they’re uninformed." This has some truth but much of the skepticism stems from legitimate concerns about volatility, usability, or associations with speculation. The public doens't know enough but have been put off by wht they do know, which is the perception of bitcoin, not the actual thing itself.
Public
- Most don’t understand Bitcoin is THE tool for financial empowerment / hedge against failing systems because mainstream narratives focus on its volatility or use in illicit activities. The fuckers.
- Bitcoin is too complicated. Hmm. It can be if you want it to be.
- That a satoshi is the tiniest amount of a bitcoin. fuck that. BIP 176 ftw :D
Can i cop out and say they're equally important?
i'm not St Peter at the pearly gates 🤣
for the record, i would get a kick out of onboarding both. And they'd both make for pretty great content.
However, the NY CEO would get way more views
Many criticize Bitcoin for its energy consumption. How would you explain the reality behind Bitcoin mining’s environmental impact?
I try to let my stories do the talking. My Mum still thinks this way so i try to tell these stories as if i'm talking to my mum.
I show them my videos like Off Grid Steve, the Bitcoin Farmer and one I'm working on right now about Bitocin mining in East Africa.
Then, I show them my heater in my office which mines bitcoin.
Then if they're still listening i show them how to send sats on ln and they realise oh that can't have used much energy.
Kid by a country mile!
i recently tried to onboard a 90 year old man (video coming january 2025) and i couldn't do it on the spot. He had no computer and barely could use a phone.
not nice question. so i guess first up is amazonian tribes or the Sentinelese. Like uncontacted tribes. ALthogh i guess they might never adopt bitcoin?
Then i guess it's places with extremely low literacy rates. If you can't read it's very hard to bitcoin. That's why cash has faces on.
I actually really want devs and smart people to address this. We need to make bitcoin wayy easier to use and understand because we assume a certain literacy level.
then i guess it'd be the intentional laggards, so North Korea? Assuming their regime is still going.
Then maybe the amish? Would the amish be anti bitcoin? lol idk this is a fun thought experiment tho
Where would you recommend an overworked bitcoiner go on vacation in February, assuming they wanted to stay in the western hemisphere and be beachside?
Oh love this.
So it's Curaçao. But please don't tell anyone that I said that because I'm working on two videos all about how Curaçao is an undiscovered, hidden bitcoin gem.
There are loads of awesome bitcoiners there who are super welcoming + lots of merchants. Check btcmap.org and zoom in on curaçao then compare it to any other island.
The reef there is ONE OF THE BEST IN THE WORLD and you can swim to it from the shore. It's magical.
Beaches are outrageously nice. I live by a beach in Europe that's very nice and Curaçao is 10x.
It's quite a developed island (compared to say central america) and most people speak english very well. I know expats there that don't bother with dutch or spanish or papiamentu (local dialect)
Very very safe. I saw way too many rolexes.
As a second option, costa rica or el salvador but the caribbean is the caribbean man.
Bitcoin is 100k, you can relax :)
Yeah man, it's weird.
On one hand, I’ve been doing this for years, yet I still feel like I’m not quite where I want to be. I’m my own worst critic when it comes to setting goals and standards.
On the other hand, it feels like everyone’s a journalist these days. Almost all of us have cameras, basic literacy, and the tools to share information directly from the source. To truly stand out as a journalist now, you have to srsly rise above that baseline.
Tbh no. Not yet at least.
Every time I do it, my conclusion is "fuck me we're early."
I meet countless people who have never ever ever ever heard the word bitcoin. They can't bloody pronounce it!
We often overlook or fail to realize just how vastly different each person’s reality can be.
Which country or community has impressed you the most with its Bitcoin adoption story?
So many. They're all so unique. Usually it's the self-sacrifice and humility that gets me.
In the Andes, a community started using bitcoin, and as the price went up last year they started donating bitcoin to a local school. No one asked them to, they just did it.
In Dakar, Senegal, Nourou had to leave the country due to a tricky situation. He feared for his family's safety. However, he kept working and supporting from Paris. Now the government has changed he has announced another Dakar conference and is helping with meetups, flying in regularly.
Then in Cuba, of course, they're using freedom tech in a communist state. Such bravery.
Thank you!
haha i have actually had nightmares about my Cuba visit. Nothing i would type online.
YES, the cuban bitcoiners are legends. I have actually managed to get them to come speak at Plan B El Salvador.
The plan is to do a video: "Cuba's Bitcoin Revolution 2 years on" where they explain to me what's going on with btc in cuba now. With Catrya and Forte.
AFAIK Their meetups are spreading, more and more people are getting pilled.
However, the first meetup location has shut down idk why and i haven't heard from that owner for a while. However, as you see in the video, the owner was very based. HE sold sex toys and all sorts of contraband so it might not be bitcoin that forced the shop's closure.
Plus, there's a shitcoin project that has Cake wallet funding in Cuba. That kinda sucks. I'm really not a fan of shitcoins.
What's something you believe about bitcoin that few bitcoiners agree with you on?
I'm pro BIP 176 and i don't think a lot of people agree. Sats/Satoshis are mega confusing for noobies and i find it tiresome. I like this : 2.2 BTC and ₿ 89,000
- That custodial lightning wallets are not a sin, especially for total noobies.
- it's ok to be vegetarian and vegan (i was for 6 years, sorry not sorry)
- Trad stuff is kinda regarded :D
What's the most surprising thing you've learned traveling and talking to bitcoiners?
That we are both the best thing and the absolute worst thing for bitcoin.
We have a joke in surfing—the worst part about surfing is other surfers! It feels like that in bitcoin sometimes.
That said, bitcoiners have changed my life and shown me immense humanity and kindness. V grateful for bitcoiners.
Many believe Bitcoin is primarily used for illicit activities. How do you counter this outdated narrative?
If my age: ask them how they last bought weed or party drugs. Was it bitcoin or cash? Laugh about it, show them how to accept bitcoin, move on.
If older, tell them that bitcoin is a big ledger like papyrus sheets held together. It's not a good tool for doing naughty things. If you want to do illicit things, use HSBC like the pro's. we laugh show them how to accept bitcoin, move on.