Universal Basic Income - New Zealand Leads The World

What is Universal Basic Income (UBI)?

Universal Basic Income is the concept that every individual is entitled to and given a minimum income just for being alive or a member of a community. Such a guaranteed income gives every individual a feeling of self worth, gives them more life style choices and makes them less exploitable.

Is UBI neccessary?

Despite our perception that we live in a world of scarcity, in actuality we live in a world of abundance. Advances in knowledge and technology have brought us to the point where we can feed clothe and house every living individual on earth. Scarcity is intentionally introduced to benefit various power sectors.

We are now entering an age where all the dangerous, repetitive, cognitive and mundane jobs can be done better by Artificial Intelligence and robots.

Rather than limiting the number of working hours per person to share the available "productive work hours", we should broadly redefine what constitute useful work.

We can view UBI as rewarding "community centric work" and wages as rewarding "economic centric work".

Is this not communism or socialism?

This is capitalism starting with everyone having a minimum income rather than from zero. When everyone has money to spend capitalism thrives, and the worst aspect of capitalism, wealth inequality, is mitigated.

How can UBI be paid for ?

Our monetary system will be digital soon. With digital money, taxation (Value added tax) can be coded into every transaction. Money can also be easily coded for UBI distribution. There will be huge savings in the verification, collection and distribution of tax revenues, and elimination of corruption and unfairness within such a system.

As AI and robots displaces the dirty and mindless portions of "work" in our economy, UBI gives us the ability to pursue "work" that we value, treasure and appreciate individually and by our community.

Huge monopolies will form, but efficient monopolies will mean more and greater value creation for taxation, and the social impact of monopolies can be modulated with the right incentives.

One of the most interesting aspect of blockchain technology is token issuance for securing the blockchain. People and businesses compete to win these tokens and use them to transact even though they were never issued as legal tender by any government. This brings up the question as what constitutes money, but that is for another discussion.

For our discussion here, the fact that a token independent of any government can be accepted as money means that we have a "source of new money" that can be use for the purpose of UBI. Such a source will transcend government and borders. All it will require is a uniquely identifiable token wallet and general everyday use of these tokens worldwide.

Government support for UBI.

Some countries have experimented with various form of UBI however no country have instituted it as a principal pillar.

The state of Alaska however have instituted an annual dividend for every citizen finance from oil revenues.

New Zealand has a universal pension* of about $1000 USD a month for every citizen above the age of 65. This amount is not means tested and is opt in. We can argue that this is UBI for every citizen aged 65 and above financed from taxation. New Zealand has a 15% Value Added Tax on all goods and services with only financial transactions and exports zero rated.

Recently US presidential candidate Andrew Yang** have made UBI a central platform of his campaign. His proposal is to make $1000 USD a month payable to every citizen above the age of 18 finance in part from a value added tax on all goods and services at a rate of 10%. Except for the age of eligibility the system is very similar to the New Zealand's system.

Economic impact of UBI.

Most farm based small towns are capable of having a sustainable economy. Factory towns however are decimated when the factory closes and the monetary lifeblood of the community is shut off. This is now happening on a grand scale worldwide as the fourth industrial revolution*** takes hold. A UBI for every citizen will mean that financial lifeblood of communities become independent from the location of revenue generators. Mom and Pop businesses will generate jobs, employment and thrive. This will be a game and life changing phenomenon.



*    https://sorted.org.nz/guides/retirement/about-nz-super/
**   https://www.yang2020.com/
*** https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Fourth-Industrial-Revolution-2119734

Can Bitcoin Survive - Part 3

This bear market is a “forrest fire” raging through the crypto ecosystem. It is necessary for a healthy ecosystem to clear the deadwood and allow new more resilient shoots to sprout and grow. What is important is to take stock of your position understand the changes and identify which are the new and innovative unicorns. Do this without the baggage and drag and of emotional attachments to any pet projects. It is your money and your future.

You may have lost a good part of your investment, but it is relative. The ratio of your crypto worth is still the same. Re-evaluate your investment strategy and spot those unicorns that are sure to appear. They are usually the silent ones. Above all remember it is only money, and when one door closes another opens.

If you need empathy hope and direction, this video will help you reset your bearings.

After The Fire.

You will no doubt hear all the reasons why the bear market set in. Perhaps they all play a part but really going back to history and saying crypto have always drop 90% and then risen to new heights, therefore just hoddle, think again. History does not repeat. It Rhymes. The conditions of the future are different from the past.

A blockchain without a token is just another database. BTC is just another token. It may not survive or more likely remain in its’ premium position but blockchain technology will change, evolve and improve. Take a wide angle look at this space. Like transport technology, we needed the horse and buggy to develop the automobile and the formula one speedster. Take a critical unemotional look at your pet projects. This space moves faster than the internet age. Ten years is too long for a project to be still in its’ infancy. More likely the evolution have taken place and you have been left behind. 

Blockchain is an internet technology. If your project is not growing then it is dying. That is the unemotional unvarnished truth. Blockchain technology have moved from BTC to Ethereum to EOS. There is a whole new ecosystem built around EOS. This ecosystem is growing and gaining new users everyday.

Eos Knights – 3700 daily users and growing. You can earn real money (EOS) by mining and  crafting items. Businesses will set up to do this on an industrial scale because there is a real revenue stream here. Users spend an average of $6 a day on  Eos Knights compared to about 30 cents per month on the most popular online game today. The gaming industry have taken notice and are rushing to build and incorporate blockchain technology into their products. This is only possible today on the EOSIO platform.

BetDice, EosPoker and a host of other gambling dapps are launching on the EOS platform. Developing on the EOS blockchain bypasses the licencing, identity and fiat on/off ramp issues. They are designed to transition into Decentralised Autonomous Corporations and so be impossible to shut down. Currently, for the investor returns of 1% a day is the norm. This situation will not last. Price of tokens in the best of these DAC will rise to reflect a more normal rate of return.

EVA will disrupt the ride share industry because it gives most of the income and control back to the drivers and users. Everipedia will replace Wikipedia because a system will be in place to rank and value truth and facts. EDNA seeks to give back control of bio-metric information to the individual. Of course it is only logical that new versions of Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, Wechat will launch, moving away from push ad based systems where your private information is a commodity to these behemoth. A new email system will arise where unsolicited spam will be a thing of the past.

The most interesting aspect of the EOS blockchain is free transactions. Because of this it will be possible to introduce Universal Basic Income. The concept that every living person on this planet will have access to a basic income. We are moving into a new future where the concept of work, jobs and income will change. When we solve fusion power, which is looking promising, hunger will be a thing of the past. We will be able to synthesise our food and reshape our environment with abundance of free energy. Payments can be made instantly and for free to every account in the system. The only question is where this new wealth for distribution will come from. Dan Larimer proposes his concept of Universal Resource Income where the income from resource trading on the EOS blockchain is distributed. I have no doubt that something like this will be the future as the economy depends on people spending and discouraging uneconomic static wealth accumulation.

How will this bear market play out?

The IMF have advised governments to look into blockchain currencies. Venezuela have introduced the Petro, Iran have indicated that they want to develop a digital currency. The biggest hurdle that they will encounter if they use a private blockchain is recruiting an army of developers, security and a useable wallet.

The only viable solution is to develop on a public blockchain and that blockchain will be EOS. A government can effortlessly issue their national currency on the EOS blockchain. They will have full control over its’ issuance, be able to give their citizens full transparency over monetary and fiscal policies, security, free instant transactions and have many mobile wallets to choose from.

With Bancor these currencies, even if they are on sister chains and be moved effortlessly from one to the other effectively solving the problem of currency translation. Perhaps the concept of a stable coin is unnecessary. Value can just be moved and interchange from one to another through the Bancor network.

This brings us back to the existing bear market. How will it play out? Coins don’t die. Each will have its’ own band of converts and die hard users. The value of each will depend on utility and user base. EOS will probably become the most valuable token and most used blockchain. BTC may evolve to be a digital asset and a store of value. Money will remain the purview of governments and be used as the prime legal tender within their own boundaries with the assurance that if they abuse this privilege their citizens will simply switch to another token.

Finally, please beware. These are only my predictions and not facts. Critique the reasoning behind and do your own research. Good Luck.

If  you wish to tip me, you can do so with BSV.

Can Bitcoin Survive - Part 2

The Bitcoin Cash Hash War

At 10.30 Craig Wright reveals his motive. That he wants to crush Roger and Jihan totally. He wants them to sell everything hey have to support ABC. At 11.30 Craig reveals that he(SV) is selling BTC. Today BTC fell through 4000. There will be panic. Lots of people have and are going to lose more money holding BTC or any crypto for that matter as they are all pegged to BTC. There will be a rush for the exits.

Whether Craig is Satoshi or not is irrelevant. This guy can certainly act on his pronouncements. He claims Roger and Jihan has at most 1.5 million BCH and not much BTC. Perhaps his group is selling BTC probably accumulated at less than $100. $3000 is still very good profit so we can say he can sell right down to $0 and still be smiling. Jihan has an IPO coming up. If BTC tanks like it is now he can kiss that IPO goodbye.

Bitcoin ABC hash rate just tanked today. Could be a switch to BTC to minimise losses but SV is still mining on. So Craig’s claim that ABC miners will give up before he does bears up. If that hash rate does not return ABC is toast.

How will this end?

Craig’s motive seem to be to get the banks and corporations to use BSV. Possibly a top down approach with banks offering BSV accounts to all their customers. If the incentive to banks is also controlling BSV then it could work. The road will be long nevertheless which is why he mentioned 2026.

BTC will not survive this price drop. It means no further development in mining technology. Some miners will shut down to lower the difficulty towards economic price equilibrium, and fire up again if the price recovers. If the Chain Death Spiral sets in then it is curtains. Block time will go so long that the chain will be unusable.

Who will be the winner

EOS is a third generation blockchain. The first was BTC with smart money. The second was Ethereum with smart contracts. And Eos with Smart contracts at scale. BTC depended on speculative money coming in from the real world economy. Ethereum depended on real world money coming into IPOs. EOS however is able to tap into sustainable real world income streams.

Whether you approve of gambling or not the gambling dapps on EOS are the first sustainable economically viable activity on a blockchain. This is real. Gambling is a human activity like eating and sleeping and sex. The operative word is sustainable. My estimate is that 10,000 Eos or roughly 40,000 dollars is now flowing into the EOS ecosystem daily and will escalate exponentially. This is real money coming in and it is here to stay and grow the ecosystem. Not speculation.

Then you will have Dapps like EVA taping into the ride share market. Another revenue stream from the real world economy and there could be others on the horizon.

If I am right about this then we should see a decoupling of EOS from BTC. That is the price of EOS will no longer follow BTC going down. Lets lay back and see how this plays out in the next few days.

Can Bitcoin Survive

If bitcoin was going to be a reserve currency it would have by now.

From its’ peak of 20K in January of this year it has drop month after month and is poised to break below 4000 soon. If bitcoin was going to be a reserve currency and hit mainstream, used by everyone as money then it would have done so by now. At least the adoption would be on an upward slope.

The above graph clearly shows that adoption growth stopped in January and we have been on a downward trend ever since. In the world of the internet, if you are not growing then you are dying. That is the awful truth. Bitcoin is just too volatile to be used as money. For that we need a stable coin. As a reserve currency, there is just too much push back from central banks. They are unable to control the issuance of bitcoins and they certainly do not want to elevate Satoshi and all the early adopters to become the richest people in the world. Even richer than countries. No no most countries that have large holdings of gold will prefer that gold be the reserve currency. The problem is that real gold reserves are not held by countries like the UK, EU and USA. They play around with paper gold and so far they have managed to hold back the price of real gold. The new Shanghai gold exchange and the possibility of a gold backed Yuan may break this impasse. We shall see.

Is this the end of the road for Bitcoin?

Bitcoin weakness is also its’ perceived strength – mining. As the price tracked upwards and asic miners became more efficient, home miners were driven out of the market towards large scale industrial miners controlling a few mining pools. This huge waste of energy to secure the chain would be fine if there was not another way. As it is when the price starts tracking downwards, all marginal operators will have to shut operations. No miner can afford to mine at a loss for long. The last to holdout will be those with access to the cheapest electricity and even these will have to give up as bitcoin price track towards $3000.

With the sharp drop in difficulty, block time for BTC have started to lengthen. This drop in difficulty is caused both by the Bitcoin Cash wars as well as the drop in price. Bitcoin may yet get snared up in the dreaded “chain death spiral“. 11 more days to the next difficulty adjustment.

Proof of Work and Proof of Stake

If you really don’t need to spend millions of dollars in electricity to secure the chain then why should you? Proof of work proponents have always insisted that we have to and that proof of stake is inherently flawed as it favours those who hold the most coins.

The EOS chain is delegated proof of stake, and have been live since June. It has humm along effortlessly gathering adoption and users at measurable rate weekly. Refer to Blocktivity and Dapp Radar. Barely 6 months old and there is an increasing number of high volume dapps building on the chain. Proof of stake works. EOS works and continues to improve with every update and upgrade.

The way to become money is not to try to be money.

Money is what everyone accepts as money. Unlike Bitcoin and almost all other cryptos EOS does not try to become money. It is a platform for fast, secure and free transactions. Because of this central banks may issue their currency on the EOS mainnet or their own sister chain. Cross chain transactions will not be a problem when transacting across several national currencies. Being a platform token EOS will not be a stable coin.

A stable token will emerge and gain worldwide adoption to the extent that everything worldwide is priced in this stable unit. What this is will be is yet to be seen but it is likely that something will happen. Perhaps the Bancor algorithm could pave the way towards such a stable coin or an exchange unit.

If this is the future then Bitcoin will have no future. We shall see.

What Is EOS?

Just another crypto coin, Right?
This was what I thought when I first learned about EOS in January of this year. Now that the EOS mainchain is launched and I have been able to play around with the EOS ecosystem, what I discovered is totally mind blowing.

What is an EOS account?

When you open up your EOS wallet and look at your account, this is what you see.

The components in your account are CPU, Network and Ram! This is a computer!! Your account is describing the power and resources your computer has. The amount of CPU ( EOS staked), the amount of bandwidth or network (EOS staked) and amount of RAM available. The smallest "account computer" possible is 0.1 EOS of CPU, 0.1 EOS of Bandwidth and about 4 Kb of Ram. This represent the minimum share in the power of the main "EOS computer" run by the Block Producers. Like a computer the RAM is where all the critical data for instant access by the "EOS computer" is stored.

Think of the "EOS computer" as a computer in the cloud and all EOS accounts are just different size computers that can use the resources of this "computer in the cloud" depending on the amount of EOS staked. Sending tokens, broadcasting, buying ram, running Dapps, voting and much more.

This is very different from what we have been used to thus far. With Bitcoin when we send a transaction say sending 0.01 BTC to another account we pay a fee of hopefully 0.0001 BTC which goes to the miner and the recipient gets 0.0099 BTC. ( Ethereum works in much the same way.) In EOS if we send 0.1 EOS the recipient receives the full amount of 0.1 EOS. The transaction fee is paid by the network. For the user this is a "free" transaction. What stops the network from being spammed is that the amount of resources your " account computer" has only allows you to make a finite number of transactions within a 24 hour period after which the capacity of the "account computer" is depleted and will have to be "recharged", before it can be used again. This is an ingenious solution!

It cost a minimum of 0.2 EOS to open an account. We can see that if 1 EOS is worth say $1000 one day, it would cost $200 to open up an account! This will severely affect the number of users right? Wrong! You only need an EOS account if you want to use the EOS blockchain, hodling, holding voting and moving EOS tokens, running your Dapps. 

Remember that EOS is a computer, and as a developer of a Dapp (ono) you will need to stake a certain amount of EOS to have access to CPU, Bandwidth and Ram on the EOS computer for your users to make transactions. The more popular and successful your Dapp the more resources you will need. Your users will sign up to your Dapp and they will use the services you offer without the need to own any EOS tokens or open up an EOS account. You can even reward your users with your own native tokens (ONO). This runs separate from the EOS blockchain. If the project fails you simply sells your EOS back into the market! This is like putting up capital to start a business and if the business fails you simply resell the assets to recoup your capital. Now, this is a model for mass adoption!

Expect to see a hosts of Dapps similar to Facebook, Twitter, Telegram all running on the EOS platform. Their users can singup to use these applications and they do not need to hold any EOS tokens or have an EOS account.

To drive the point home. Remember the game of space invaders? 

You can run this program on your little Z80, Atari, Commodore or Apple computer. It uses the CPU, bandwidth and Ram resources on your little computer. Well you can run this program on your little "Eos Account" computer. All the moves will actually be recorded on the EOS blockchain in real time.

Unlike Bitcoin, transactions (moves) on the EOS blockchain are extremely fast. Send a token and by the time you refresh your page the transaction have already confirmed on the blockchain. This is so incredible that you can run Virtual Reality applications on the EOS blockchain. The mind really boggles on what this EOS computer is really capable of. Think decentralised stock exchanges, micro transactions and instant payment systems.

So what is EOS and where is EOS headed?

The inventor of EOS is Dan Larimer. Prior to EOS he has already cut his teeth on Bitshares ( a decentralised exchange ) and Steemit ( a decentralised social media platform). Steemit and Bitshares currently occupy the top two spots in number of transactions processed as tracked on Blocktivity. These two projects are running on their own blockchains. Since then, Dan Larimer has announced that he will soon release Steemit 2.0 and Bitshares 2.0 on the EOS blockchain! and on top of this he will also introduce a stable coin.

We don't know what Steemit 2.0 and Bitshares 2.0 will be like but we can be very sure that they will be huge improvements over their previous incarnations having learned from the experience. A stable coin too! like Tether? The basis of a stable coin is the asset backing ratio. Tether boast a 1:1 ratio with USD but they have difficulty proving this. BitUSD on Bitshares is said to have a 3:1 asset backing. How will this new stable coin be received?

This is what is so incredible about EOS. Everything is different and new, and yet, so far, it all works!  Even before any Dapp is launched on the platform there is already a marketplace for Ram and soon Account Names too. Only stands to reason that a market for renting EOS tokens will develop in the near future. My conclusion is that the EOS as a platform will dominate the crypto space, and EOS as a token will be worth very much more than it is now.

                                _____________________________________________

Proxy account for block producer voting - investingwad

EOS is a blockchain, a community and a society all in one. A society is only as good as the people who run the system and in EOS these are the block producers.

It is so refreshing to see that in EOS, the people we elect to rule over us actually have to be nice to us. We elect our block producers with our votes Daily. It is crucial that we counter the influence of whales who may be block producers themselves and who will vote in their own interest. 

We need to expressly know the objectives, motives and actions of these block producers.

Most users will not have the time or expertise to question, query and research these block producers and hold their feet to the fire, so to speak. They can however delegate their vote to proxies who share the same interest as them, to vote on their behalf.

I think that investingwad will vote with our interest at heart.

You can set your proxy with the Greymass wallet. Or from their Github account.

                                 _____________________________________________

A point to note.

The downside is that if EOS are lost, the resources they represents are also lost to the network and cannot be used by anybody else. In Bitcoin, when coins are lost, they have no effect on the performance of the platform. This is why EOS has a policy or proposal to "recover lost resources" after 3 years of inactivity. This is like saying that every EOS account has a temporary 3 year lease on the resources it controls and if they are never used then these resources can be reclaimed by the community. Contentious, but we can agree that these resources are precious and should not be lost to the community. There may be amendments to this policy as everything in EOS can be changed, if the community agrees by way of referendum.