In order to post this I need to 'put up' 100 sats.
Like I've commented elsewhere... if I don't think a post is "worth" 100 sats (around 7 cents US currently) then is it really worth posting?
If a post isn't worth at least 7 cents (a tiny sum if we're being honest) to the "poster"... is it really worth someone else's Time and Attention?
And If it's not worth 100 sats / 7 cents at current... can't we do better? If you don't believe your posts are worth 100 sats... are they worth 50? 30? 20? 0? 0... so they should be free? So someone else's time should be free too?
If someone's post isn't worth a penny to the poster... why should it be valuable to anyone else? Why should anyone care?
This is where, in my opinion, Stacker News excels and adds value to the internet where so many other sites fail. Through the micropayments on Lightning, through thermodynamic validation and friction, we add consequence to cyberspace, we filter Noise (which is ubiquitous on the internet) and greatly increase the 'signal-to-noise' ratio.
And through "making them pay" (Yes Darth) the experience, the quality, and the "customer satisfaction" of the user goes up, WAY UP relative to legacy internet. In this way, Bitcoin demonstrates more than just a store of value... it's a Medium of Exchange and a Validation of Truth.
...But it should be "free" you say. FREE to post! Because that's freedom! Free to read, "free" to engage FREE to capture because Bitcoin is about freedom!
- "Free" to capture another's attention?
- "Free" to request another Human being's time and energy?
- Freedom of storage?
- Freedom of bandwidth?
And does that mean a cup of coffee is free?
- And the raw materials?
- And labor? And electricity? And overhead? And the time of those involved is that unlimited too?
No.
Nothing in life is free. And no storage space (albeit 'low-cost') is truly 'free' either. And if all of the NOSTR posts, SOME (!) of which are AI generated/spam/scams/low quality/low engagement... ultimately take up storage on 'relays'... how is that economical? Who PAYS for all of this?
And WORSE:
In the traditional 'social media' space and at "Google" you are the product and the advertiser is the customer.
- Your data is being sold, to advertisers, for advertising... and the online "services" (cough cough) you use aren't free either... those are bought and paid for - selling you to the highest bidder, compromising your privacy, feeding you "information" (bullshit) all the while passing around paper money designed to inflate each and every year, printed ad nauseam by a centralized 3rd-party...
Is it any surprise then, that the internet is such a $hit-show???
We can and should do better.
Back to those 100 Sats.
Those "100 sats"... where do they come from? (And where do babies come from? ;)
- SHA-256 generates heat, a LOT of Heat, guessing extraordinarily large numbers with no way to cheat... and through Heat also Friction and thermodynamic consequence - consequence missing from Cyberspace.
A world of Consequence... can be a foundation for Better Cyberspace. And with it, Bitcoin is logically the Money and 'Capital' of Cyberspace. The Decentralized Friction, Heat, and Thermodynamic 'Truth-Teller' of Cyberspace.
- No Friction, No Heat, No Market, No Value, No Savings, No Truth, No Foundation. But with Bitcoin (and Lightning) this can be fixed.
Back to Stacker News.
In a world of Social Engagement, Posts, and endless commentary, how do we separate thermodynamic friction from zero-cost Slop? How do we really know someone cares enough about their posts... (and consequently the time of others) in Cyberspace? How do we increase the number of "humans" on the Internet... as opposed to mass-produced Bots?
The answer: Micropayments on lightning. Micropayments of thermodynamic friction, heat and consequence.
Make them pay...
...
But it gets better
It's cold, it's turning to winter, the leaves are all gone from the trees... and you fire up your "heater" to help warm your living room... except it's not a "heater" at all but a small Bitcoin miner (say around 4 TH). Through lightning payouts (for example at Braiins or Ocean) you receive 250+ sats a day (possibly more). The miner brings heat to your living area (think of a toaster on high settings) and with the 250 sats...
- You can easily thermodynamically validate your presence on the internet (pay to post ;)
- "Prove" each day that you're a Human (with just a few sats) through comments and interaction...
- Pay the "100 sats" to contribute to online forums... a few times a day at least if you like ;)
- And help secure the Bitcoin network through decentralized 'mining'... every little decentralized bit helps.
- Everyone wins, everyone benefits, everyone profits... and the network effects are overwhelming
But this could be just the beginning. Imagine an email app or service... where to email you someone has to pay you. For 10 sats... they can email you. And if the email is valid and good, in the reply you can return the 10 sats to them immediately.
Or click the "green button" (without replying) and send the 10 sats back because their email provided value.
BUT if it's a spammer... you keep the sats. Bye bye spammers.
- Or you could whitelist certain addresses from friends, family, or jobs... to always receive regardless of sats
The SAME sats you send to others at their email addresses... that you use to post online or comment.
- And verify you're not a bot.
- That you "heat" your living room with (depending on the size and placement of the miner of course).
- That you save in.
- And that you spend on other goods and services. TOR, VPN, Podcasts, Articles, Books... Games, online Content... any digital media (Social or otherwise).
It's logical that, in my opinion eventually, through the digitization of media and the revolution of AI, all of our lives will necessitate the management of energy through Cyberspace. Social media, messaging, email, text messages, website-verification, anti-DDoS, online interaction... all civilization is based on energy and the basic unit of friction and energy in Cyberspace is the sat. It's the logical foundation.
The basic unit of friction and energy in Cyberspace is the Sat...
In short, there are many questions about Bitcoin as a 'Medium of Exchange'...
- Why don't we already "buy our groceries" in Bitcoin?
- Where are all the "Bitcoin merchants?"
- Why don't we "spend" it (Bitcoin) more regularly?
But perhaps we have it framed incorrectly.
Bitcoin is already the "unit" of exchange on the internet... we just haven't recognized it yet.
But it's right under our noses.
In Short, Pay-to-Post, post frequently, post-often, and post well...
And don't forget to Tip your Witcher.
Pay-to-Post is here to Stay.
And it's only the Beginning.