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Hoskinson: Cardano will replace Bitcoin as number one by end of 2020’s – Crypto News Flash

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

The CEO of Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK), the company behind Cardano, Charles Hoskinson, has announced in a recent Ask me Anything (AMA) on YouTube that Cardano will replace Bitcoin as the number one cryptocurrency by the end of 2020. However, he did not commit himself to a specific the metric by which he wants to judge success (market capitalization, number of users, transaction volume, etc.).

In order to achieve market leadership, Hoskinson says that the major parties in the Cardano ecosystem (IOHK, Emurgo and the Cardano Foundation) will focus on commercializing the project. As CNF reported, the Cardano Foundation recently announced a collaboration with McCann Dublin. Together with the advertising agency, which has also worked with Microsoft and LinkedIn, a gigantic marketing campaign is planned for 2020. Hoskinson said:

This year in particular we really gonna start hitting the commercials hard. I have announced to my company that we are on a Cardano first strategy. [] We gonna get very aggressive about the commercialization of the technology as Shelley turns on and as Goguen turns on.

Hoskinson goes on to describe how Cardano aims to reach over 1 billion users over the decade and aims to become a true social operating system:

We are particularly interested in investing resources at IOHK and our partners ar EMURGO and the Cardano Foundation are investing a lot of time to make sure we fully understand. And as we finish 2020 and go through the decade, this is something that we are continuously researching, and the better we get, the better the feedback loop, the faster we can grow and get to those billions of users and become a true social operating system that benefits everyone in the world.

According to Hoskinson, these three things are crucial to displacing Bitcoin and becoming the number one cryptocurrency: Commercialization, incentives and technology. At the same time, he also showed his appreciation for Bitcoin, stating that the oldest cryptocurrency will always be valuable. He further stated that Bitcoin is now accepted by governments worldwide. Accordingly, Bitcoin is a gateway to smooth the acceptance of Cardano.

Hoskinson further noted that Cardano is a commercial project. Accordingly, all parties involved are interested in the network growing and being used by many people.

Commercialization, technology and incentives are the three things which need to be line for us to achieve that number one spot. [] We build Cardano not as a academic project. Its a comercial product so we want to see it grow.

He attributed Bitcoins growth to the mining incentive system. Accordingly, staking is a key success factor for Cardano:

In terms of incentives we look at Tokenomics []. The reason why Bitcoin were so succesful was that [] Satoshi created an incentive for mining. [] So with the launch of the testnet we are learning a lot about the business of stakepools and we are learning a lot about maintaning a cryptocurrency and creating stability there. We have already over 500 stakepools registered.

A focus in 2020 will be on cooperation to create new use cases for Cardano.

One thing we gonna be focused on a lot this year is collaboration and to learn from other people, work with other people. Whether that will be through standard groups like Hyperledger or W3C or that will be through direct relations to other cryptocurrency projects. For example, Horizen I felt we always had a good relationship with. But there are many more.

You can watch the complete AMA session below.

Last Updated on 5 January, 2020

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Hoskinson: Cardano will replace Bitcoin as number one by end of 2020's - Crypto News Flash

Forget the Bitcoin price! Id invest 5k to help me make a million like this – Yahoo Finance UK

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Bitcoin became increasingly popular in 2019. The value of the cryptocurrency rose substantially during the year, although it has since retreated.

As such, investors might be thinking of taking advantage of this recent price decline to add the currency to their portfolios. However, the Bitcoin price could fail to offer better returns than the stock market. Many FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 stocks have better growth prospects and income credentials.

Therefore,investing 5,000 in the stock market could be a better means of making a million.

At the time of writing, Bitcoins price has fallen to around 5,000. This might look cheap compared to its trading history, but weve no way of knowing whether the current price represents good value for money.

Thats because the Bitcoin price doesnt trade on fundamentals. The price is entirely dependent on sentiment its only worth as much as other investors are willing to pay.

Its much easier to ascertain the value of FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 stocks. Unlike Bitcoin, the constituents of these indexes produce tangible cash flows. We can use these figures to create an underling fundamental value for each stock.

Therefore, its easy to figure out whether or not these assets offer value at current prices. Lower valuations can provide the opportunity to buy high-quality businesses at discount prices. Such a margin of safety can help investors achieve market-beating returns over the long term.

Focusing on companies that have solid balance sheets with favourable growth outlooks and robust cash flows is likely to produce better returns over the long term than speculating on an asset without any underlying fundamental value.

As the Bitcoin price has languished over the past 12 months, FTSE 250 investors have seen the value of their portfolios rise substantially. The index gained nearly 29%in 2019, including dividends.

According to my calculations, over the past two decades, the index has produced an average annual return for investors in the region of 11%. At this rate, it would be relatively straightforward to make a million with an initial investment of 5,000, and subsequent monthly contributions.

An initial investment equivalent to the current Bitcoin price,coupled with monthly contributions of 300, would grow to be worth just under 1m after 30 years at an average annual rate of return of 11%.

While 2020 could be a volatile year for the FTSE 250, the fact the index has produced such impressive returns over the past two decades should reassure investors that, over the long term, the stock market is an attractive place to invest your cash.

Considering all of the above, now might be the time to focus your efforts on the stock market rather than Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency price might look attractive after recent declines but, from a long-term perspective, stocks and shares seem to offer a better risk/reward ratio.

Ronnie Moas and Vinny Lingham Come to Blows Over $20K Bitcoin Bet – Cointelegraph

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Two well-known Bitcoin (BTC) figures have resorted to a painfully public Twitter exchange to settle an argument over a $20,000 unpaid bet.

The heated debate, which is ongoing, revolves around a pledge which investor Ronnie Moas made in 2018.

If Bitcoin was not worth $28,000 by the end of last year, Moas said he would donate the lump sum to FreeRoss.org, the charity working to free jailed former Silk Road owner, Ross Ulbricht. The bet was made with Vinny Lingham, CEO of blockchain identity startup Civic.

With BTC/USD trailing at $7,200 on Jan. 1, 2020, Lingham asked Moas to confirm he had made the payment as promised. Moas then surprised by saying he would no longer honor his commitment.

The tone swiftly became unfriendly, with Moas describing Lingham as a f*cking bastard and demanding he explain the near-total drop in the price of Civics native cryptocurrency, CVC.

I will keep my word and distribute $20,000 in 2020 to organizations highlighted at my website, he replied, explaining he would instead divide up the FreeRoss funds between up to five charities of his choosing. In an ironic twist, Moas advised Lingham:

Read my last three posts ... and the ones preceding from the last 24 hours you f*cking jackass ... stop making a fool out of yourself in a public forum.

Moas claimed he had more than a dozen reasons not to send money to FreeRoss.

Responses predictably sided with Lingham, as Moas had nonetheless reneged on the original terms of the wager.

As the argument gained traction, other Bitcoin figures, including What Bitcoin Did podcast host Peter McCormack, began pledging to replace the lost funds out of their own pocket. FreeRoss then thanked McCormack and his fellow participants, who each pledged $1,000, for their donations.

Further efforts continue to take place on the Bitcointalk forum, where users are selling collectible items.

They include an altered Venezuelan bolivar note, emblazoned with the heading Banco de Bitcoin and an image of Charlie Shrem in sunglasses. Shrem, who is now free, was also implicated in the highly controversial takedown of Silk Road by United States authorities.

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Ronnie Moas and Vinny Lingham Come to Blows Over $20K Bitcoin Bet - Cointelegraph

Opinion: Bitcoins price will go up if everyone does this one thing – Decrypt

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Bitcoin has one flaw: it is too transparent. Thats what Matt Odell, advisor to bitcoin payments company Bottle Pay and prominent bitcoiner, claimed yesterday, in a podcast hosted by Ministry of Nodes co-founder Stephan Livera.

Every problem has a solution, though. In this case, it means accepting the transparency of the Bitcoin blockchain and adapting to it by protecting your own financial privacy. If enough people do this, Odell argued, it could do wonders for the Bitcoin ecosystemand, potentially, its price.

I think Bitcoin becomes more valuable, becomes more resilient and robust long term if individual users practice financial privacy because that is the single biggest vulnerability that Bitcoin has today, he said.

One way of achieving financial privacy is by using mixing services. Mixing is a process where you anonymously swap bitcoin with some other anonymous person, making it harder for anyone trying to keep a birds eye view of the money shifting over the blockchain. But it's not without controversy.

The podcast focused on the relative merits and drawbacks of using mixing services to hide the transaction history of some bitcoin. While they do make it harder for blockchain analytics companies to track what's going on, if you use a mixing service you could be swapping your coins for stolen bitcoin, or bitcoin that had been used to fund a terrorist attack.

The issue had been raised by Trace Mayer, known for leading the proof of keys movementencouraging everyone to take their bitcoin off custodial walletswho had pointed out the downsides of using mixing services in recent interviews.

Odell defended mixing services, arguing they are akin to virtual private networks (VPNs), where individuals swap IP addresses to mask where they are accessing the Internet. Because these projects are to protect the average user, they have to protect all users, he argued. Theres no way to know whats a good user and a bad user. Because as soon as youre able to delineate whats a good user and a bad user, then you have centralization.

While Odell acknowledged that mixing services currently have low volumes, making them less effective, he said this proves people need to use them more frequently. In particular, he said that anyone using centralized exchanges would benefit from using them to counteract the amount of data the exchange is collecting about them.

However, exchanges are legally required to perform know-your-customer protocols on their users, and this can include using blockchain analytics companies to survey their users. Were everyone to start mixing their coins, it could lead to a crackdown by exchanges. Odell said, I think [Mayer] is right in that a lot of these exchanges will start blocking transactions with CoinJoin history. CoinJoin being a popular mixing service.

This could have wider implications for those wishing to look after their own bitcoin, Odell argued. If they say CoinJoin is illegal and youre trying to withdraw from, lets say CashApp, and you withdraw from CashApp, you go through the five hops and then it goes to CoinJoin, are they going to block your account for that? he asked, adding that if they do, that amounts to completely banning self custody.

Despite the drawbacks and a potential clash of heads in the future, Odell maintained that mixing services are key to protecting financial privacy when using Bitcoin. Financial privacy, he said, is the only thing separating ourselves from dystopian governments with the power to financially enslave us.

I look at the world today and I look at all my peers that are using Venmo and PayPal, all these credit cards, all these centralized payment processors and theyre basically exposing their whole lives not only to these companies but also to the governments that theyre affiliated with, he said. If you have an authoritarian come in, theyre going to use that against you.

Time to get those mixers running.

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Opinion: Bitcoins price will go up if everyone does this one thing - Decrypt

Bitcoin, Ethereum are most profitable investments of the decade – Decrypt

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

As the decade draws to a close, it's time to look at the investments that were the most successful. And, unsurprisingly, cryptocurrencies top the list of the most profitable investments of the decade.

Up first, is Bitcoin. The first cryptocurrency, built by an anonymous programmer known as Satoshi Nakamoto, it led to the creation of many Bitcoin forksalternative versions running on similar codeand thousands of altcoins, either using the same code or trying out new features. But, if you got in early, you had the chance to make a quick buck.

Since the first bitcoin was available for trading, its price has accelerated 62,500 percent. Outshining many traditional stocks, it even spawned an entire culture built around prices "mooning" and the promise of lovingly labelled "lambos." Due to the extreme rise, many critics have called it a Ponzi Scheme and say that its price pumps are bubbles that keep popping. But despite the criticism, an entire industry has been built around Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, leading many countries around the world to start adoption blockchain technology.

Much of the promise of blockchain technology can be seen with Ethereum. It offers features known as smart contracts, which allow for the creation of decentralized apps. These have interesting applications, particularly in the world of finance.

The price of Ethereum has shot up too. Even though the price has dropped heavily since its all-time high in January 2018, the price of Ethereum is still up by 17,900 percent. One ETH is currently worth $132.

However, some traditional stocks have not been far off. Netflix had a strong performance this decade, rising 4,280 percent. It's not too surprising given how ubiquitous it now is. Even new films are now launching on Netflix instead of heading to the cinema. But it's epic rise has led to an increase in the number of competitor video streaming companies. Will it be able to fend off the competition going into 2020?

Along with the rise of Netflix, and watching TV at home in general, another company did particularly well. Domino's Pizza saw an increase in share price of 3,000 percent. Who knew pizza and TV were a winning combination?

In line with the trend of not needing to go outside, Amazon grew considerably in the last decade, rising 1,250 percent. It's worth noting that not only does Amazon ship products to your door but it also offers a TV streaming service. What's next, Amazon pizza?

Those doing yoga, trying to work off the 1,000 calorie pizzas, helped to boost the price of Lululemon shares, a retailer known for creating activewear and clothes for "most other sweaty pursuits." They rose by 1,300 percent.

On a different track, healthcare company Abiomed saw a 2,000 percent rise in the last decade. It creates medical devices, such as artificial hearts.

Shotly behind Amazon is NVIDIA, known for creating computer chips. Interestingly, it pulled in $1.95 billion in revenue from its crypto mining business. But it wasn't without controversy. In September, critics accused it of surreptitiously influencing the development of an upgrade to the Ethereum network. But nothing was ever proved.

Other profitable investments of the decade were payments processors, including Mastercard and VISA, up 1,100 percent and 760 percent respectively. Google shares rose by 350 percent and Apple shares went up by 840 percent.

Bitcoin, Ethereum are most profitable investments of the decade - Decrypt

From crypto currency to chocolate, where to spend your Bitcoin – ZDNet

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

I have made a few dollars in BitcoinSV since I started paying to post on blockchain-based apps like Twetch. I have been investigating whether paying to post will shape the future of the social internet. But where can you spend your hard-earned Bitcoin?

With a lot of help from Twitter users @Street5Wall, $DiegoSV, and @BsvDevs, I have found a few places -- from the hundreds of online and physical stores where I can spend my virtual cryptocurrency and turn it into tangible goods. Here is a selection of vendors around the world where you can spend your cryptocurrency.

Adelline is a Korean cosmetics company that sells a range of beauty products and will ship internationally.

Las Vegas, NV-based Shiny Leaf produces skin and hair care products and a range of bath and body products. BitcoinSV is accepted amongst its other payment options.

AGRsicurezza is a business consultant, focusing on health and safety at work, training, and project management services. It accepts BitconSV payments.

Fivebucks is a global marketplace where vendors will design anything from logos to business cards and websites for an agreed fee. You can register your hand cash wallet $ID and transfer the cash over using Bitcoin.

North Greece-based Lord is an online fashion website that sells underwear to individuals and trade. It will accept a wide range of cryptocurrencies.

To invest in cryptocurrencies, the app Abraenables you to buy ad sell currencies, fund your cryptocurrency from your credit card account, or withdraw currencies to an external wallet.

Italia Clickis an international food distributor that embraces technologies such as Bitcoin and uses them to accept payments. In November, it added crypto to its payment options and will accept payment in several different cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin SV, Etherium, and Ripple. I can vouch for the deliciousness of the chocolate!

Crete-based 35North sells extra virgin olive oil from where the 35th parallel north crosses the mountains of Crete. Although its Twitter account states that FIAT and crypto payments are accepted, the online shop only offers the choice to pay by card or PayPal. You will need to make a special request for your crypto to be accepted via the online store.

Hot Hogs BBQ is a food truck in New Hampshire, which gets enthusiastic reviews from customers and won WMUR Best Barbecue in NH 2019. It accepts Bitcoin, dash, BitcoinSV, and Bitcoin cash for your BBQ, but hold fire before hot-footing it over to New Hampshire. Hot Hogs is now closed until the spring.

The Lucky Hot Dog is a food truck in Chicago serving dogs, burgers, beef, and chicken. Payment by Bitcoin, card, or cash.

The Yarron Valley Bottleshop in Australia accepts Bitcoin, amongst other payment methods for drinks. You do need to buy your alcohol in-store instead of online.

RPGStash offers MMORPG services and tradable video game items for Runescape, Fortnite, Tibia, Diablo 2, etc. It accepts Bitcoin as payment.

GamerAll offers skins, keys, and services for games such as Rust, Dota 2, Team Fortress 2, Escape from Tarkov, and others. It also sells console and game titles and has over 100 ways to pay, including Bitcoin.

Medical device provider, Premier Medical Inc., has an enthusiastic president who supports Bitcoin payments for its medical products.

UK-based Performance Ticket Printers will print customized tickets for your event or membership organization and will accept cryptocurrency.

GPS Tracker Shop offers vehicle trackers and fleet tracker solutions for business, law enforcement surveillance, and family safety. It accepts BitcoinSV on its online store.

HostingSSi is a provider of web hosting, domains, VPNs, Streaming, and SSL Certificate focused on Venezuela and Latin America. It accepts Bitcoin and Litecoin payments, amongst others.

The Living Room of Satoshi is a crypto payments gateway in Australia that enables you to pay bills.

Lithuania-based Greitai is an online travel site, part of the Otravo group offering online airline tickets, hotels, and car rental searches. It offers cheap flights to England, Ireland, USA, Spain, Italy, France, etc.

There is a graphical map of vendors around the globe who accept Bitcoin and are marked with pushpins on the OnChain BSV/Maps site and the Satoshi Maps site. If you know of any vendors who accept Bitcoin SV, you can add your own marker to the map.

The Cryptwerk website has a list of services and vendors who accept Bitcoin across a range of offerings.

Agora has a marketplace selling Bitcoin related items, amongst others. ClassifiedSV is a Craiglist-like site allowing trading for goods and services using BitcoinSV.

There are many more outlets, and the list is growing daily. Which is your favorite Bitcoin vendor that we should know about?

inn

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From crypto currency to chocolate, where to spend your Bitcoin - ZDNet

2010s In Bitcoin: The Year 2017 – Forbes

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Im reviewing the 2010s in Bitcoin. This is the story about 2017 in Bitcoin. Read about 2016here.

The price of Bitcoin reached in December 2017 nearly $20,000 per bitcoin. The bitcoin price traded between $930 and $978 on December 29, 2016, and surpassed $1,000 on New Years Day 2017, then $5,000 in October, and $10,000 in November.

On the news front, the year didnt start out so hot for Bitcoin. The Peoples Bank of China met in January with major bitcoin exchanges and advised them to adhere to the relevant laws and regulations.

Bitcoin saw a drop in trading volume due to new trading fees implemented by Chinese exchanges Huobi, OKCoin, and BTCC. OKCoin and Huobi would soon thereafter halt withdrawals for an entire month, in order to undergo an upgrade.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejected in March the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust, an exchange-traded fund, for which the twins had first filed in 2013. Bitcoin immediately sold off, with the price falling 18%, from almost $1,300 to $1,060.

"[T]he Commission is disapproving this proposed rule change because it does not find the proposal to be consistent with Section 6(b)(5) of the Exchange Act, which requires, among other things, that the rules of a national securities exchange be designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices and to protect investors and the public interest,the SEC stated.

Organizer David Bailey concludes Bitcoin Conference 2019.

The agency said a Bitcoin ETF would need "surveillance-sharing agreements with significant markets for trading the underlying commodity or derivatives on that commodity. And second, those markets must be regulated."

The twins didnt sweat it. "We remain optimistic and committed to bringing COIN [the proposed ticker] to market, and look forward to continuing to work with the SEC staff, Tyler Winklevoss, chief financial officer of Digital Asset Services, stated. We began this journey almost four years ago, and are determined to see it through. We agree with the SEC that regulation and oversight are important to the health of any marketplace and the safety of all investors."

Just days after the ruling, the Bitcoin price had climbed back to its pre-ETF decision price.Then, between May and September, the Bitcoin price rocketed. Bitcoin set a new all-time high after all-time high before a brief correction.

At the end of May, Bitcoin increased to more than $2,000 for the first time ever, and weeks later it broke through $3,000.But, one day after Bitcoin surpassed $3,000, the price fell $300 in one hour.

The Bitcoin price eclipsed $5,000 the first week of September, but fell below $3,400 on September 14. One day later, the price fell below $3,000.

Amid the price increase, JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon said in September that Bitcoin is a fraud.

Its worse than tulip bulbs, Dimon said at CNBC-Institutional Investor Delivering Alpha. It wont end well. Someone is going to get killed.

He added: Its just not a real thing, eventually it will be closed.

By mid-October, the price of Bitcoin had yet again surpassed $5,000. In November and December, the price went even more parabolic. Bitcoin hit nearly $18,000 on December 15, which was a more than 1,700 percent increase since the start of the year and an 80% increase in December alone.

Between December 16-17, the price of Bitcoin increased 5% in 24 hours to it's all-time high of $19,783.06, a 1,824% increase since Jan. 1.

One of the biggest market corrections Bitcoin has seen to date followed, as the price fell below $11,000. The Bitcoin price swiftly increased yet again to more than $16,000, but, by Dec. 28, had fallen to about $13,500. It ended the year 2017 at just above $14,000.

Thats 2017 in Bitcoin. Coming soon: 2018.

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2010s In Bitcoin: The Year 2017 - Forbes

These Are the Bitcoin Stories You Loved in 2019 – Bitcoin News

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

2019 was a crazy year for cryptocurrency enthusiasts and a number of interesting events happened throughout the last 12 months. Its hard to keep track of the day-to-day activities taking place within the cryptosphere and there may be a few incidents some of our readers missed. At news.Bitcoin.com we took the opportunity to scan our most popular articles from 2019 in order to create a year-end list to share with our readers.

Also Read: A List of Self-Proclaimed Bitcoin Inventors and Satoshi Clues Debunked in 2019

Bitcoin.coms writers are entrenched in the cryptosphere and every day our writing team is on the hunt for cryptocurrency-related news. During the last 365 days, a number of our writers have published news stories seven days a week to keep our readers informed. Theres been a number of developments in 2019, as the community is dealing with digital asset regulations, crypto exchange hacks, central banks practicing monetary easing, and people claiming to be Satoshi Nakamoto. The following is a look at news.Bitcoin.coms most popular crypto articles in 2019 by order of the highest-trafficked content.

In September, news.Bitcoin.coms Kevin Helms reported on the Reserve Bank of Indias regulatory guidelines imposed, which limited bank customers withdrawals from 137 financial institutions. Customers from these bank branches were only allowed to withdraw 1,000 rupees (approximately $14) per account for six months.

After the news spread, a number of Indias citizens revolted and the government had to send police assistance to a few different banks located in Mumbai. The report highlighted how the current banking system, no matter what country you live in, continues to grow untrustworthy.

Across 2019, a great number of central banks and countries participated in practicing monetary easing. However, one specific economy, that has been considered the foundation of Europe, has been showing signs of financial failure. In August, Lubomir Tassev explained that the German economy is facing an economic crisis that could cause a domino effect throughout the EU.

2019 statistics had shown that Germanys strong industrial economy saw significant declines in production. [Germany] is now seeing a significant decline in production by 2.7% year-on-year in January and 1.9% in April compared to the previous month, Tassev detailed. Then in May, factory orders declined 2.2% from a month ago and registered an 8.6% annual drop, the biggest in a decade. The following month the country invoked a five-year rent freeze in Berlin.

In May, the cryptocurrency community found another suspect who might be the infamous creator of Bitcoin. Kai Sedgwick reported on how the name Paul Le Roux found its way into the cryptosphere last spring. During the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit, Document 187 had shown an unredacted name and Wiki link which belongs to the criminal mastermind Paul Le Roux.

The document led people to believe that Le Roux was smart enough to create Bitcoin and the coincidental timing of his arrest was around the same time Nakamoto left the community. Speculators really started wondering if Le Roux was Nakamoto when an anon from 4chans /biz/ messageboard insisted that Bitcoin was a project of a evil genius Paul Solotshi Calder Le Roux.

Satoshi Nakamoto was a popular topic in 2019, and a few of news.Bitcoin.coms highest-trafficked articles are written about this legendary character. The day before Halloween, news.Bitcoin.com published a story about the fascinating clues left behind by Bitcoins notorious creator.

The editorial discusses Satoshis planning, theories as to why Nakamoto left the community, and conspiracy theories like the idea that Bitcoin was created by the CIA. Satoshi left behind a bunch of clues and said some interesting statements back when the monicker spoke on bitcointalk.org and the cryptography mailing list.

All year long Indian cryptocurrency enthusiasts have been waiting on the final word in regard to digital currency regulations in India. News about the regulatory situation started coming to life in the spring and in March, Indias government told the supreme court that the crypto regulations being drafted were near completion.

Attorney Jaideep Reddy of Nishith Desai, a lawyer behind a writ petition opposing the crypto banking ban by the Reserve Bank of India, told news.Bitcoin.com at the time: The matter was heard for a very short period of time The matter started with the counsel for the Union of India stating that its committee is in the final stages of deliberations and that the matter should be heard after that.

During the first week of August, it was discovered that the giant retail corporation Walmart patented plans for a stablecoin backed by USD. The news followed Facebooks announcement to launch a coin called Libra. Walmarts attempt also followed the time when the company attempted to start its own banking services back in 2006.

At the time, politicians and financial incumbents opposed Walmart joining the banking industry and the firm got so much pushback it decided to quit the banking attempt. However, with a Walmart Coin, the company could skip all the banking charter laws and offer customers a different kind of savings incentive through cryptocurrency dividends.

News about cryptocurrency laws in India was of great interest to news.Bitcoin.com readers in 2019. On July 26, headlines detailed that an Indian official who led the committee which had created the crypto ban bill resigned.

Former Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg decided to apply for voluntary retirement after receiving flak from the Indian cryptocurrency community. Supporters of friendlier digital asset laws in India, called the drafted bill flawed and after a few controversial tweets about crypto, he left his post. Moreover, a few days prior, members of the Indian government told the public that digital currencies were not banned.

In the first month of 2019, news.Bitcoin.coms Lubomir Tassev wrote a review about eight different crypto debit cards people can use around the world. The editorial discussed cards issued by firms like Wirex, Bitpay, Revolut, Cryptopay, and Fuzex.

The report explained the negatives and the positive benefits to a loadable cryptocurrency card. In addition to detailed information about existing crypto cards on the market, Tassev also wrote about the upcoming card companies that planned to launch in 2019. The editorial highlights how the use of crypto debit cards significantly expands the usability of digital coins in the world.

There were a hell of a lot more popular stories last year and the eight mentioned above just scratch the surface when it comes to news.Bitcoin.coms 2019 archive. Other reader favorites in our library this year included subjects like a possible Deutsche Bank collapse, how Citi, Deutsche, and HSBC laid off thousands of employees, the Indian supreme courts struggles with drafting regulations, and the Philippines seeing 10 government approved exchanges.

There were plenty of Satoshi Nakamoto stories and unique editorials involving the mysterious creator of Bitcoin. The news about the U.S. tax agency telling the public they planned on sending 10,000 letters to American cryptocurrency owners shocked our readers. 2019 also saw the downfall of the biggest multi-level-marketing (MLM) crypto scam of all time when the so-called Bitcoin Killer Onecoin crumbled.

What do you think about the eight most popular news.Bitcoin.com articles from 2019? Let us know what you think about the subjects and articles in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any ideas, concepts, content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Fair Use.

Did you know you can verify any unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction with our Bitcoin Block Explorer tool? Simply complete a Bitcoin address search to view it on the blockchain. Plus, visit our Bitcoin Charts to see whats happening in the industry.

Jamie Redman is a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open source code, and decentralized applications. Redman has written thousands of articles for news.Bitcoin.com about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

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These Are the Bitcoin Stories You Loved in 2019 - Bitcoin News

BTC’s Hashrate Touches 120 Exahash, But the Price Has Not Followed – Bitcoin News

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

On January 1, the BTC network hashrate touched an all-time high at close to 120 exahash per second (EH/s). Despite the crypto market lull and lower BTC prices, the 2020 milestone happened just before the blockchains 11th anniversary. BTCs curious jump in hashrate has the cryptosphere wondering whether or not the price truly follows hashpower.

Also Read: Market Update: Crypto Traders Search for Bullish and Bearish Trends

One of the crypto communitys favorite topics is hash power, which is a cryptocurrency mining rigs processing speed. The overall hashrate is the combined hash power used to mine cryptocurrencies like BCH, BTC, and a slew of other coins. The hashrate that analytical websites track is typically measured in calculated hashes per second. Data sites use terminology like terahash (1,000,000,000,000 hashes per second), petahash (one quadrillion hashes per second), and exahash, which equals one quintillion hashes per second.

For some perspective, most single-unit machines produce a number of terahash per second. Bigger facilities filled with mining rigs and collaborative pools produce petahash, and the entire network of single miners, giant facilities, and pools combined yield a number of exahash. Miners on the BTC network did not process one exahash until the last week of January 2016. At the time, the milestone was considered a noteworthy spike in overall hashrate. On January 1, 2020, the BTC network hashrate touch 119 EH/s surpassing the chains previous all-time high of 100 EH/s.

Similar to now, in 2016 BTC prices were low, at $380 per coin when the network crossed one exahash. Following the jump in hash power, the price did follow, and very slowly crept from $380 per BTC to $700 per coin in June of that year. Following the month of June, BTCs hashrate climbed above two EH/s but BTC prices remained stagnant fluctuating between $600-$775 per coin. At the end of November 2016, the price per BTC started climbing higher and the value continued to spike in the spring of 2017. From the spring months of 2017 all the way until December 2017, both BTCs fiat value and hashrate skyrocketed. In April 2017, the overall BTC network hashrate was around 4 EH/s and by the years end, it was hovering around 15 EH/s. Now, despite the price dropping from close to $20k per BTC all the way to the $3,500 range, the hashrate jumped to 56 EH/s in September 2018 without dropping much in between.

In September 2018, with a hashrate around 56 EH/s, the price per BTC was similar to todays market prices at $6,500 per coin. From September to December 2018, the BTC network lost a significant amount of hashrate as it plummeted to 31 EH/s. Of course, the price in December 2018 was between $3,200 to $4,000 per BTC. Bitcoin prices didnt start to recover until the end of March 2019, but from December 2018 until the spring months of 2019, BTCs hashrate regained the hash power it held in September 2018 at around 56 EH/s. The overall hashrate has doubled since then, touching a milestone of 100 EH/s in November 2019. The price per BTC has also followed suit up until it touched the 100 EH/s all-time high. Since then, BTCs fiat value has hovered around the $6,500 to $7,500 region.

There is always a lot of talk that the price follows hashrate and historically this has been true. However, statistics show that the hash power typically gets a decent lead before the prices start kicking into gear. This means that it could take some time for the price to follow the climbing hashrate.

If historical patterns remain consistent with future patterns, it could mean a few more months before the price comes around. People should also keep in mind that past price and hashrate patterns do not necessarily reflect what will happen in the future.

What do you think about the BTC network hashrate coming close to 120 EH/s on January 1, 2020? Do you agree that the price will follow BTCs hashrate? Or do you think that patterns like price and hash do not matter? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Always remember that only those in possession of the private keys are in control of the money. Cryptocurrency prices referenced in this article were recorded at different times using historical fiat prices and todays global exchange rate for BTC at 3:00 p.m. EST on January 2, 2020.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Twitter, Fair Use, Blockchain.com, markets.bitcoin.com, and Wiki Commons.

Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH, and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com.

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BTC's Hashrate Touches 120 Exahash, But the Price Has Not Followed - Bitcoin News

Bitcoin Price Yearly Candle Shows Failed Rally, Longest Wick on Record – newsBTC

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Todays mid-week daily close in Bitcoin price charts carries significantly more weight than usual, as New Years Eve marks the last day of the calendar year, and the crypto assets yearly candle close.

If the leading crypto asset by market cap closes today at current prices around $7,250, the yearly candle will close with the largest wick on record, clearly showing the failed parabolic rally that occurred around mid-year 2019.

Bitcoin price charts can be viewed across multiple timeframes, with the most significant being given to the largest and longest timeframes.

Crypto traders and analysts often pay particularly close attention to daily, weekly, or monthly price charts in order to get a better grasp on the market and the trend underway.

Related Reading | Past Performance Shows Bitcoin Historic High Could Serve As True Bear Market Bottom

And while yearly price charts arent as oft used as the other, longer timeframes, they can be helpful in looking at the bigger overall picture.

One crypto analyst has shared a yearly Bitcoin price chart on Twitter and invited others from the community to do what they do best and speculate on what the yearly candle close means for the crypto asset, and what is expected for the following years close.

The candle itself while green does show a failed rally in the form of a massive wick that stopped at prior yearly resistance. The wick is also the largest ever recorded in Bitcoin price on yearly candles, as even 2017s peak has a $6,000 range from wick peak to candle body close, whereas this years reaches from the current price of $7,250 all the way to $14,000 representing a $6,750 long wick.

Analysts responding to the thread suggest that because this years candle is closing at under 50% of 2017s candle, 2020s yearly close is expected to be red.

For 2020 to close red, Bitcoin price would need to end next year lower than whatever the price closes at when the clock strikes 7PM ET tonight. Another year of sideways or downtrend would likely be too much for many crypto investors who have been holding through two full years of a bear market already.

Others, however, say that the next years candle will close green, filling out the wick of 2019 with continued price action until Bitcoin eventually sets a new high.

Related Reading | Heres What $100 in Bitcoin Would Have Made Next To The Decades Best Investments

While many crypto investors are already thinking about 2020, Bitcoin price still needs to close the daily candle tonight to put 2019 in the history books for good, and set its sights on a new year or trading.

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Bitcoin Price Yearly Candle Shows Failed Rally, Longest Wick on Record - newsBTC

How Bitcoin Adoption Will Help India Achieve Its $5 Trillion… – Bitcoin Magazine

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

India has been one of the most notable emerging economies in the world in the last few decades. It currently stands at seventh place with a nominal GDP of $2.72 trillion and it is expected to overtake the United Kingdom in years to come. Indias PM Narendra Modi envisioned a dream of making India a $5 trillion economy by 2024. But achieving that dream for a country with a population of 1.3 billion might be a challenge if the current economic performance is to be considered. Indeed, bitcoin adoption in India could be the key to its economic future.

If Indias GDP is to reach $5 trillion by 2025, its minimum annual growth rate will need to be greater than 10.8 percent every year. Indias current GDP growth has fallen sharply from 8 percent last year to 5 percent in the second quarter of 2019. Manufacturing growth in India slumped to a 15-month low in August due to lower sales growth, resulting in factories being forced to shut down production.

Another reason for slowing economic growth is Indias rising unemployment rate, which was 8.5 percent in October, its highest in the last three years. Foreign portfolio investors were net sellers of Indian stocks during the July-September quarter, withdrawing over $3.2 billion from Indian capital markets. The Indian central governments fiscal deficit is projected to widen to about 3.7 percent in FY20, contrary to the plan of keeping it under 3.3 percent.

With all these lower-than-expected results, the Indian government has been taking a series of measures to boost the economy from the supply-side by pushing public capital expenditures, lowering the corporate tax from 35 percent to 25 percent. Indias central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cut its interest rate five times since the start of 2019 to boost spending.

Back in 1991, India adopted economic liberalization which helped to expand its economy and its role in private investment. Due to this radical reform, India achieved the status of a developing country but failed to adopt similar reforms which would have propelled it toward becoming fully developed. What the Indian government could do is adopt measures to stir the economy in an upward direction and also focus on opening the doors to supplement growth. Right now, India has a chance to live up to this potential by adopting another radical monetary innovation: Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is the worlds most powerful monetary innovation, with an idea to democratize exchange/store of value without any control from a single authority. Eleven years after its birth, it has been the best-performing asset class and, importantly, is on its way from being merely collectible to achieving the status of digital gold in years to come. Recently, Bitcoins hash rate just hit an all-time high of 111 EH/s, restoring confidence in its network despite the price dump. Every day (or, more precisely, every 10 minutes) as Bitcoins network becomes stronger than before, it will absorb more monetary value in proportion.

Whats important is that the rise in bitcoins monetary value will have a significant impact on Indias fiat currencies. Countries with the weakest monetary policies and currencies are most at risk of economic failure at the outset. Once they begin to fall, a domino effect of all fiat currencies which adopted the wrong monetary policy and engaged in excessive money printing will follow. This threat to fiat currencies is a large part of the reason why governments all around the world are hesitant toward directly adopting bitcoin. But governments should view bitcoin not as a threat but as an opportunity.

Long before bitcoin, gold was considered a robust store of value. In 1944, 44 countries signed onto the Bretton Woods system, agreeing to peg their currencies to the U.S. dollar (which was, itself, declared to be backed by gold). Due to this structure and overall confidence in its economy, the USA achieved the status of superpower in decades to come. The same sort of robust growth could be achieved by India through bitcoin adoption.

First, India can open the roads for everyone to directly invest in bitcoin legally through banking channels. As it has done with gold, the Indian central bank can continue accumulating bitcoin as the countrys reserves. Due to bitcoins fixed supply of 21 million, accumulating earlier than other countries will have a significant advantage in years to come. These bitcoin reserves will be beneficial for carrying out public capital expenditures and aiding the private sector through serial reforms.

Whenever a new investment opportunity knocks on a countrys doors, it has the potential to have an entire ecosystem built up around it. Same is true for bitcoin. It will give rise to new entrepreneurs, new start-ups, new businesses, new innovations, new products and services, new consumers, and altogether new markets. It happened with the internet and smartphones.

It is happening with other technologies like AI and IoT. It is happening with blockchain technology and Bitcoin in some countries like Singapore, Germany, and Switzerland. Hence, it makes eminent sense to let bitcoin flourish in a regulated environment around the world. This philosophy may run contrary to the rebellious roots of some Bitcoin enthusiasts who strive to challenge the current financial system. But lets be practical here. If bitcoin has to reach a population of 1.3 billion people like India, it will only happen through appreciation, acceptance and minor adjustments.

Coming to a common Indian individual, giving them access to invest in bitcoin through regulated channels will help increase their purchasing power. Currently, per capita income is just over $2,000 which is significantly lower than in other developed countries. Also, average retail investors are not allowed to have access to open global high performing markets, secluding them to limited options in Indias equities and commodities markets.

If the Indian government classifies bitcoin as a good/commodity/currency, a population of 1.3 billion will get access to store their wealth in the hardest money resulting in an increase in overall per capita income over time. More importantly, providing access to the hardest money will help maintain a base level of demand during critical times like recession or economic slowdown. Even today, 190 million people in India are unbanked, with the help of bitcoin these people can have access to money management like savings and transacting.

Bitcoins on-chain growth will give rise to multiple Bitcoin companies on second/third-layer solutions. With open Indian Bitcoin regulations, it will create many significant Bitcoin innovations and also create a plethora of Bitcoin-related jobs in technological engineering, marketing, etc.

India can take a proactive approach toward bitcoin by first accepting the innovation and later recognizing it. This will help India achieve the status of a $5 trillion economy, or maybe beyond.

In conclusion, it is fair to say, very soon, that bitcoin will help India be more visible and we can become the powerhouse that we have the potential to be. Coupled with our aim to integrate financial inclusivity, we will be unstoppable, as far as booming economies go.

This is an op ed by Sumit Gupta. Views expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Bitcoin Magazine or BTC Inc.

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How Bitcoin Adoption Will Help India Achieve Its $5 Trillion... - Bitcoin Magazine

This Scary Fractal Suggests Bitcoin Price Is On Its Way to $3,000 – newsBTC

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Over the past few weeks, Bitcoin (BTC) has been consolidating in the range around $7,000, seemingly stuck in between a rock and a hard place. Indeed, the cryptocurrency has many times bounced in the mid-$6,000s, where there is macro support, and has been rejected multiple times in the resistance band around the high-$7,000s.

According to an eerily accurate fractal pointed out by a cryptocurrency trader, Bitcoin will need to break higher soon, or else a strong drop towards the $3,000 range may soon take place.

Cryptocurrency trader Mr. Chief recently posted the below tweet, noting that Bitcoins price action since the start of 2019 is eerily reminiscent of the chart of the stock of AMD from 1991-1992. Both charts, he pointed out, saw a strong rally higher, a parabolic peak, a consolidation defined by a descending triangle, a fake breakout above the hypotenuse, and an inverse head and shoulders a classical bottoming pattern.

In the case of AMD, its price broke below the inverse head and shoulders pattern, plunging by 50% in the weeks that followed.

The fate of Bitcoins inverse head and shoulders pattern is currently undecided. But if it follows AMD, the price of the cryptocurrency will collapse towards $3,000 in a rapid amount of time, likely creating an extended bear market phase that will ruin bulls.

The fractals directionality lines up with the on-chain data which suggests that Bitcoin investors have yet to complete a historical trend seen in any full-fledged bear market.

Per previous reports from NewsBTC, the SOPR (Spent Output Profit Ratio) indicator an indication of the average Bitcoin holders profitability suggests Bitcoin has not yet seen a capitulation event for the current cycle, implying that the crypto market could see one strong dip before a return to a bullish phase.

Bears may be in control of the narrative due to Bitcoins performance over the past few months, but a growing sentiment is that BTC upward breakout is imminent.

Su Zhu, the chief executive officer of forex and crypto fund Three Arrows Capital,recently remarkedon Twitter that he believes Bitcoins price outlooking heading into 2020 is looking rather bullish. The prominent commentator specifically cited his analysis of the BTC/USDT trading pairs and their premiums to BTC/USD markets and the overall price action, which shows there are clear signs of accumulation and money flow back into risk.

And also, analysts like Velvet and Financial Survivalism have suggested BTC is currently in a textbook Wyckoff Accumulation pattern. Per the pattern, Bitcoin is in its final shakeout lower, evidenced by the drop to the $6,800s.

So should this textbook technical analysis pattern play out exactly as the studies of Richard Wyckoff, a noted technician, says, BTC is likely to break $9,000 and maybe $10,000 by the end of January.

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This Scary Fractal Suggests Bitcoin Price Is On Its Way to $3,000 - newsBTC

Make Trump face the consequences of his lies – Brookings Register

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Having seen very little evidence that Republicans were challenging Trump, I emailed my three congresspeople in February 2019 that my No. 1 concern regarding Trump was for the millions of people (some of them my friends) when they are forced to see that they were wrong to believe Trumps many lies and all they heard on Trumps favorite news network.

Everyone knows the crushing pain of admitting to the betrayal of someone theyve staunchly defended.Its hard. Its much easier to hang on to the investment of hope, but at some point continued defense is counterproductive; it diminishes your confidence and the faith others have in you.It would be best to seek out the truth and learn better ways to evaluate.I invited them to start by applying the golden rule. Its simple really. Its a call for empathy; to put yourself in the other persons shoes. The golden rule isnt do to others before they can do it to you.

Trump lies often and recordings prove it. He believes lying has always worked for him. It appears Trump doesnt factor in consequences; perhaps hes seldom had to suffer them. So many loyal appointees have been abandoned when they detracted from his own reputation. He knows he can throw out a catchphrase and repeat it ad infinitum and his people will accept it as truth.

The bully calling you stupid every day doesnt make it true; him telling his Mom that he didnt do it, doesnt make that true. If your best friend assured you that he had your back, would you still defend him when he lost all your money, made fun of your kid or compromised your wife? Do you want your children to learn that its okay to lie if it gets you what you want? How do you argue for truth if you support Trump? Will any defendant in court be able to win by yelling Hoax! Witchhunt!? When history looks at Trump and documents all his transgressions, will you be proud?

It was my hope that my three congresspeople would step up and recognize the consequences of their support for Trump.In October 2019 I mentioned my secondary concern.

Their support since day one has emboldened Trump to wield presidential power without fear of consequences. One need only to look at the increasingly crazy diversions he threw out when embarrassing acts turned up. I suspected that as he saw the end of power approaching he would order outrageous things to happen and no one would be able to stop him. I believe the deal with Turkey was the first of those things. In one call with Erdogan he betrayed the Kurds, rewarded Russia, Turkey, Syria and Iran, abandoned our diplomats and confirmed to all our allies that the U.S. can no longer be trusted and has no standing on the world stage. People died, families were displaced.

Sure, they werent Americans, but they were people who had been led to believe America supported them just as people all over the world had been assured for decades. There was outrage but no one acted, so, golly, there must be a lot more people around who get money from America and dont give anything back. Whos next? Maybe Ukraine? Congress didnt notice that they werent sent their funds. Wow, Putin really hates Ukraine. Maybe this can be finessed. What next? Pick a fight with Canada, pull troops out of South Korea? So many options and no one willing to stop Trump.

Impeachment was inevitable. Republicans, by ensuring that the Senate does not approve the impeachment, are confirming to Trump that he is a dictator much like Putin, Xi and Kim, when in reality all his actions indicate that he is really Putins puppet. I regret their inability to step off of this path, but it is not too late to redeem themselves.

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Make Trump face the consequences of his lies - Brookings Register

In 2020, Our Bitterly Divided America Needs to Recommit to the Golden Rule | Opinion – Newsweek

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

As we move full speed into the election of 2020, we can feel the pull toward division, domination and revenge in our politics. We write this as two veterans of America's culture wars who fear that this round of battle could lead us toward violence.

As political activists we both know something about trying to bridge the divisions in politics. In 1998, Joan Blades, watched our nation polarize over the impeachment of the President. She co-founded MoveOn.org as a bipartisan effort to move the nation toward healing and away from division. Earlier that same decade, Rich Tafel, a minister living in Massachusetts saw the increasing brutality of a culture war between the far left and religious right. He jumped in to bridge the divide by launching Log Cabin Republicans in 1993.

More than two decades later, we have joined forces as a Democrat and Republican to bridge the divide again. Rich is now a pastor and leads the American Project at Pepperdine School of Public policy that seeks to find healthy path for the conservative movement. Joan has co-founded an open source, scalable, left-right dialogue model called Living Room Conversations that is being used in faith communities, schools, libraries, by video and yes, in living rooms, to connect people across the country.

Today we are working to fight the pull toward division and hatred by looking to a core teaching of all the major faiths. "Do unto others as you would want them to do unto you."

This past November, the National Institute for Civil Discourse organized a Sunday dedicated to bringing the Golden Rule into our political life. Churches across the country preached on the ways houses of faith could lead in bridging the divide in our nation by employing compassion, curiosity and forgiveness.

Simply reminding ourselves that in our political life we should treat others as we would want to be treated is a great start.

Last month, leaders from across the political spectrum gathered for a virtual "Living Room Conversation" to go beyond partisan affiliation and get to the deeper teachings in all of our traditions. People of faith are not only called to love one another. They are also reminded that we are all created in God's image. Faith communities have a unique ability to provide a sanctuary for all voices to be heard.

The hateful rhetoric and disrespect so prevalent in our politics may tempt us to opt out and give up, but people of faith, rooted in practices that see the divine in all humanity, can help lead our country to a healing and respectful place in this moment when we need it most. Politics is causing more and more Americans to perceive people on the other side as the enemy...and as less intelligent, less kind, less human. Extreme political polarization has been used as a tool to justify unthinkable atrocities throughout history. We must own our responsibility for our division and change our course. Faith communities are showing leadership in this change by asking communities to see the divinity in everyone.

Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and Fr. John Crossin reflect, "Meeting with someone who is made in the image of God should produce a feeling of profound respect, and an expectation that we might grow from the encounter, even if we begin in disagreement. Since we are all children of God, the common good involves mutual respect. Respect, not agreement, is the key."

This is not the first time our country has faced internal challenges. We have come through serious divisions before this moment, and we can do it again. The key is to call on the better angels of our nature to help guide usto remember our common humanity as we meet this emergency with care for each other and for our country. The words of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, written from the Birmingham jail almost 60 years ago, are addressed to us in this hour: "We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."

What George Washington called the Great Experiment has been a beacon of hope for two centuries. As members of the oldest modern democracy in the world, we need to do better. The good news is that long tradition guides usteaching us to treat others as we would like to be treated.

Joan Blades is a Co-founder of MoveOn and Living Room Conversations. Reverend Richard L. Tafel is Minister at Church of the Holy City & Founder of Log Cabin Republicans.

The views expressed in this article are the author's own.

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In 2020, Our Bitterly Divided America Needs to Recommit to the Golden Rule | Opinion - Newsweek

John C. Morgan: Making and keeping New Year’s resolutions – The Mercury

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Every year around this time I make resolutions for the next year, and every year when I check back, I find I have failed to keep most of them, especially the ones which would require the most effort.

In checking my resolutions for 2019, no wonder I didn't do well. I vowed to lose twenty pounds, go to the gym at least every other day, finish a few manuscripts, and tune out the thousands of fake tweets from politicians. I didn't keep a single vow.

But this year I decided to stick to a single promise: Keep it simple. It will get complex all by itself. I'm beginning with a pledge I made last year to unpack what the title of this column implies how best to live (what the philosopher Socrates defined as the goal of ethics) and keep it simple and practical.

Here are a few practical lessons for how to live ethically.

Treat others as you wish to be treated.

This is the gold standard (or Golden Rule as it is sometimes called) for ethical behavior. I have found it in many cultures and periods of history in different words but with the same meaning. The basic idea is to be compassionate with yourself and others because this is the glue that keeps us whole and healthy.

Don't project onto others your own weaknesses.

Most of us project onto others what we most fear in ourselves. Hence, someone who finds fault with others usually cannot accept the faults in themselves. The best way to handle such persons is to ignore them.

Follow the rules you should have learned in childhood: Don't lie, cheat, bully, or make others miserable.

When children do so, they are sent to their rooms or must sit in the corner. Perhaps we should apply the same tactics to adults when they lie, cheat, bully or make others miserable. We'd need a lot of chairs in corners to do so.

Accept responsibility for your own mistakes and don't blame others.

Those who blame others for their own errors never learn how to grow. They get stuck and stay in an infantile stage, often angry, seldom accepting themselves, lost in negative emotions.

Assess others not only by what they say but more importantly by how they act.

If a person claims to be honest but constantly lies, then you have a clear picture of who they are.

And here's a general rule for taking stock of a person. Ask yourself the most basic ethical question: if you had a child, would you want him or her to grow to be like the person you are assessing? It will tell you all you need to know about how to live. And go another step: Are you the kind of person you would want a role model for children?

I am making a copy of these vows and keeping them in my wallet to look over from time to time to see how I am doing.

John C. Morgan is a columnist and teacher of ethics. He can be reached at everydayethics@yahoo.com

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John C. Morgan: Making and keeping New Year's resolutions - The Mercury

KHS to honor Martin Luther King Jr. this month – State-Journal.com

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

The Kentucky Historical Society will have a celebration to honor Martin Luther King Jr. later this month.

King, who was born on Jan. 15, 1929, was a renowned civil rights leader during the 20th century.

Kentucky students, community leaders, government officials and citizens are invited to the celebration, which will be at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History on Wednesday, Jan. 15 from 6 to 8 p.m. The Kentucky Historical Society has held similar events in the past.

The theme of this years event, according to a Facebook post from the historical society, is about asking all to to consider the Golden Rule as a moral underpinning to Kings civil rights and justice work. How was that principle deployed then, in Kings mission, and where should we and our society deploy this viewpoint now?

Admission is free, but seating is limited. Earlier in the day, the Kentucky History Center and Museums will have hands-on activities, a community art project, special performances and a volunteer fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Contact 502-564-1792 or khseducation@ky.gov for more information.

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KHS to honor Martin Luther King Jr. this month - State-Journal.com

RTW: Peace and joy to all in our communities – Olean Times Herald

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

The holiday season has passed and the days are beginning to grow longer. Shorter days and long dark nights have always weighed heavily on the human race. And as the days began to lengthen and our early ancestors realized the world was not coming to an end, they celebrated.

Those celebrations evolved over time into Yule, Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa, to name a few. It is no strange coincidence that during a period of darkness we celebrate, and that those celebrations all have strong elements of light to them.

As a Freemason, darkness weighs heavily upon me. Not the darkness of short days or snowstorms, but the darkness of ignorance, selfishness, prejudice and hatred. That is why I and my brother Masons seek light again, not the light of long days and sunshine, but the light of knowledge through education, the light of civility, the light of charity and the light of your faith, however you believe.

When we have learned to accept the fact that we are all children of the same father and that the golden rule is central to every religion of the world, then we may learn that others of different religions (or no religion), of different races or nationalities or gender, are worthy of our respect and love.

And when we have learned and put into practice the 110 rules of civility that brother George Washington put down on paper more than 250 years ago, then the light of Freemasonry is no longer an external light that shines upon us, but is instead an internal light that shines from us.

This is the time of year when we need to get off social media and stop spreading hate, dissension, incivility and prejudice. Instead, feed the poor; cloth the needy; pass the hat for the less fortunate; visit the sick and shut-ins; call on old friends; spend time with family; repair old divisions in your personal life.

Celebrate the faith of your own acceptance but remember to respect other faiths.

There is a saying that the Shriners have: No man stands as tall as one who stoops to help a child.

Aside from my wife and family, the greatest gift ever given me was in the low light of three burning candles: my membership in the greatest fraternal organization the world has ever known, the brotherhood of Freemasonry. Without that light, I would never have known or be associated with so many fine men the world over, while through my membership in other Masonic Orders, such as the Order of the Amaranth, I have also come to know so many outstanding men and women throughout the world.

They have become my friends, mentors, examples and extended family in whom I put my complete trust and faith.

So when I said Merry Christmas to anyone during the holiday season, I was not espousing any religion, but rather my wish for you was a season filled with the basic tenets of Freemasonry, friendship and brotherly love. And may the profound blessings of your chosen deity be showered upon you and your family.

With acknowledgement to the Reverend Brother David Ritchie of the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin, peace and joy to all.

(Bruce E. Kenney lives in Olean.)

Naperville prayer event envisions ‘world where everyone belongs’ – Chicago Daily Herald

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

A long-standing prayer event in Naperville will stress a vision of unity against racism during its 2020 World Peace Day Interfaith Prayer Service.

The service, based on the theme "2020 Vision: Seeking a World Where Everyone Belongs," is set for 2:30 to 4 p.m. Sunday at Wentz Hall on the campus of North Central College, 171 E. Chicago Ave.

As organizers prayed over how to focus the event, Tom Cordaro, justice and outreach minister at Naperville's St. Margaret Mary Parish, said they kept coming back to the hurt that lingers from two racially charged episodes last fall.

In October, a multiracial group of 18 children and adults was asked to switch seats at Buffalo Wild Wings in Naperville because staff members told them two white customers did not want to sit next to black people. In November, a student at Naperville Central High School posted an image of a black classmate with the heading "Slave for Sale (NAPERVILLE)."

"The evil of racism is still alive and still in the hearts and minds of people," Cordaro said.

So organizers with an interfaith group of religious leaders invited someone who has been working against hate and racism for years to be the service's keynote speaker. Regina Brent, founder and president of Unity Partnership, will give a 25-minute speech about the theme of belonging.

"That came pretty easy to me," said Brent, of Aurora, whose Unity Partnership nonprofit works to build relationships between police and minority communities, engage youth and conduct outreach.

"We have to speak in general to all faiths through love, understanding, through the golden rule, through generosity, through patience and kindness," she said. "And let the audience know that we must lean on one another for strength, for healing and to bring about joy."

Brent, a member of DuPage African Methodist Episcopal Church in Lisle, said she has attended the World Peace Day prayer service in the past and praised its efforts to teach that "everybody is a child of God."

Before Brent speaks, representatives of several faith communities will offer brief prayers, many of which will come in the form of songs.

For one example, singers from the grass-roots group United for Peace will perform a peace song in Hindi, "Saath Chale Hum," which means "Let's Walk Together."

To conclude the free event, there will be what Cordaro described as a "communal affirmation of commitment to community and compassion."

In English first, then in languages including Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi and Punjab, the crowd together will say, "Everyone is welcome."

A reception will follow with food, coffee, conversations about faith communities and information about getting counted in the 2020 census.

Naperville prayer event envisions 'world where everyone belongs' - Chicago Daily Herald

The luxury agent who wants all his listings to win Academy Awards – Inman

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

Celebrate Agent Appreciation Month and #ThankAnAgent with Inman this January. To discover more and see how to get involved, click here.

Inman Diaries is a weekly feature tracking the daily activities of Americas leading agents in their own words over the course of a seven-day week.

This week, Billy Nash draws new clients, closes in on a $10 million deal and gets nominated for a major award in Palm Beach County, Florida.

4:30 a.m. Perfectly quiet and the best time of day to think about my week ahead. Jotting down the most important to dos list for the day and the week. Posting my daily message on social media of something relative to my Nash Luxury brand both on Facebook and Instagram. I typically post early in the morning as my ideas are fresh.

6:45 a.m. Sunrise and off for a four-mile walk.

Billy Nash, founder of Nash Luxury | Courtesy Billy Nash

10 a.m. Showed one of my listings to an awesome young couple who recognized me from the television show I hosted, Selling Mega Mansions. The property is beautiful but I think the celebrity card helped! Lol! Showing went well. Real buyers.

2 p.m. Buyers from this morning are back at our listing asking to see again. Perfect sign of a real buyer. Even though the second request came with little notice, I made it happen as Im sensing a deal and always give it 150% for my clients.

5 p.m. Received an offer from todays showing and will present in the morning. Its always better in my opinion not to present offers at night. Having a good clear head in the morning is my golden rule with clients. We will most likely counter but its GAME ON! I love this business and the action. Weve only had the property listed for three days but when properties are priced correctly, they dont last long on the market.

9 a.m. Just presented the offer we received last night to my client and now delivering a counter offer to buyer.

11 a.m. After negotiating on speaker phone from my car, multiple best and worst case scenarios, both sides have come to an agreement and we have a deal!

3 p.m. Big photography session tomorrow for our newest spectacular luxury listing. Will price around $4 million. Calling my marketing team to make sure everyone is ready to rock and roll in the morning.

6 p.m. Dinner with my family and detaching from business for the next two hours. Going to try to put the phone down but its difficult when you have so many balls in the air.

6 a.m. Reviewing my drone photography plan and video shoot for a spectacular new listing. I absolutely love sunrise photos in South Florida.

7 a.m. Just arrived for sunrise at my new listing. I have my directors hat on as I feel like a Hollywood producer on days like this. I want all my listings to win Academy Awards and not look like some miserable low budget film that nobody wants to see. I see a ton of those. Not me.

12 p.m. Just finished up photography and video shoot for new listing. Coming back for sunset shots as one of the signature photos for my brands listings are sunsets. Love for digital, print and social media ads.

6 p.m. Amazing Sunset! Its a wrap and this listing will look amazing. I want all my clients to be proud of their property and the way Nash Luxury presents to buyers around the world.

10 a.m. WOW! I just found out that I was nominated for 2020 top realtor in Palm Beach County by the Palm Beach Post. Thats 2,383 Square Miles! Working hard and building one of the most recognized luxury real estate brands in under four years makes me proud.

Billy Nash

1 p.m. Made offer on property that was listed just below $10 Million. People think this business is easy but weve been trying to get a deal done for months. Our first offer was turned down a few months ago. I emphasized to my clients, the buyers, to be patient and this will come back to us. It did and now were negotiating.

7:30 p.m. Agent representing sellers just called and our offer was accepted! Woooo Hooo! what a way to finish the day. Hard to sleep on big deal days as the excitement and adrenaline gets pumping. Now we have to focus efforts in to getting the deal to the finish line and closed. Its not just getting an offer accepted, its seeing them through to closing. So much happens after you put a deal under contract. Very important to balance the process for both buyer and seller.

5 a.m. Just got up after a tough night of sleep. Big deals coming at night always affect my sleep pattern. Totally exhausted but I have a busy day lined up. Showing some spectacular waterfront mansions all day with a new client who flew in from New York City.

10 a.m. Picking up my client now from his private jet in Boca Raton. I lined up some amazing properties both on and off-market. Having relationships with top producers around the country and especially in South Florida adds tremendous value to my process. I get the edge on off-market opportunities.

7 p.m. Long day showing properties, yet also making sure the deal we inked yesterday is going smooth. We juggle so many things all day long. Im ready for a few days off doing nothing. But they are rare during the winters in South Florida. Its our busiest time of the year as 90 percent of the country is freezing its ass off and wants to buy in Florida! Not complaining and staying focused. Time for a glass of Pinot Noir with my wife and chill.

8 a.m. Just got back all the photos and the video from my photographer from the other day. They came out awesome. Weather is so critical when filming so Ill cancel shooting if weather sucks. I see photos sometime from competitors that look depressing. My golden rule is that if you wouldnt hang the photo in your family room to admire dont take the photos.

Billy Nash

You need lots of pride when you sell luxury real estate. Being proud of what your delivering to the market place is critical. Every new luxury listing will live and breathe in its own unique way. Its my job to get them there. Pumped to put this gem on the market for $3.4 million in a few days.

10 a.m. In my office reviewing the past five days and also planning next week.

12 p.m. Teeing off soon with my son and playing 18 holes of golf. I always promise myself I wont bring my phone but it always seems to sneak its way into my golf cart. Damn!

8 a.m. Got a text from another major CEO from the Northeast who wants to see a few properties next week in the $5 million to $8 million price range. Hes 100-percent qualified and ready to rock and roll. This makes my job fun. He knew I wasnt an annoying door knocker when we met nine months ago. First impression is so important. Ive only been reaching out to him with relevant information for the last nine months. Booooom! Im very patient and considerate and the results are his loyalty when its time to buy something big!

11 a.m. Im heading to the store to get my ingredients to make what, in my opinion, is the best meatballs and sauce in the world. Lol! I love to cook on Sundays for family and friends.

9 p.m. Going to bed! Long week wrapping up with a ton of activity. Ready to do it all over again in the morning and kicking off another big week. Thinking how fortunate I am to have loyal clients, a great wife and family that love me and of course living in South Florida aint so bad!

The founder of Nash Luxury at Illustrated Properties at The Keyes Company, the largest privately held brokerage in Florida, Billy Nash ranks among the top 1 percent of luxury Realtors nationwide. Nash boasts top luxury sales throughout south Florida from Jupiter to Key Biscayne while also serving as host of Selling Mega Mansions on the AWE Network. Hes a member of Christies Masters Circle, Concierge Auctions Agent Advisory Board and Luxury Portfolios PRIX.

Inman Diaries is a weekly feature tracking the day-to-day activities of Americas leading real estate agents and brokers. To submit a diary, please send requests to Diary@Inman.com.

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The luxury agent who wants all his listings to win Academy Awards - Inman

Religious People Think Democrats Will Strip Our Rights Because It’s True – The Federalist

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Danzig

White evangelicals fear atheists and Democrats would strip away their rights. Why? asks a recent op-ed in the Washington Post. The op-ed author, Paul A. Djupe, a professor at Denison University and scholar with the Public Religion Research Institute, offered two completely out-of-touch reasons.

The first is because thats what theyre hearing, quite explicitly, from conservative media, religious elites, partisan commentators and some politicians, including the president. The second is an inverted golden rule, meaning white evangelical Protestants express low levels of tolerance for atheists, which leads them to expect intolerance from atheists in return.

Its not about projection or an authoritarian impulse. Religious conservaties worry atheists and Democrats will strip their rights because they have repeatedly witnessed attempts, typically by Democrats, to strip them of their religious liberties.

Examples of Democrats attempts to gut religious liberties abound. Perhaps the most high-profile example was the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) federal mandate in 2011, as part of the Affordable Care Act, mandating that certain employers provide all FDA-approved contraceptives, including abortifacients, in their health insurance plans. The narrow religious exemption did not include religious nonprofits such as the Little Sisters of the Poor, a Catholic order of nuns that manages homes for the elderly poor across America, nor businesses such as Hobby Lobby.

A district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled against the Little Sisters of the Poor, and it was only in 2016 before the U.S. Supreme Court that the liberties of the religious order were secured. Hobby Lobby won in a separate 2014 case.

This is hardly the only recent example. Over the last decade and a half, a number of jurisdictions, including the state of New York, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., have targeted Christian adoption agencies that refuse to place children with same-sex or unmarried couples. Many of these adoption agencies have since closed.

The pro-choice organization NARAL, a prominent supporter of Democratic candidates, opposes conscience laws that allow medical practitioners to exempt themselves from activities that violate their religious beliefs, such as abortion or euthanasia.

Several Democratic presidential candidates have declared their support for legislation that would prohibit employers including Christian schools or organizations from maintaining rules about their employees sexual behavior. When the media reported that Vice President Mike Pences wife Karen had taken a position at an evangelical Virginia school that prohibits employees and students from homosexual behavior, left-leaning secular media ruthlessly attacked her. A cake baker in suburban Denver, despite the U.S. Supreme Court upholding his religious liberty in 2018, is still facing harassment by the state of Colorado.

Federal law still prohibits employers discriminating based on a persons religious beliefs or affiliation, but conservative Christians can read between the lines. If city, county, and state governments are willing to target people for their bigoted beliefs, and if left-leaning judges seem increasingly willing to rule against religious liberty, its hard to imagine governments will be objective, neutral arbiters in their hiring practices toward religious conservatives.

Much the same can be said regarding many of our nations education institutions. If a university either explicitly promotes or willfully ignores leftist activism that seeks to silence opposing viewpoints such as Middlebury Colleges treatment of Polish academic, politician, and devout Catholic Ryszard Legutko its fair to assume such institutions will not be hiring anyone who reminds them of Legutko. Wed be foolish to think this doesnt also apply to woke companies.

Djupes research polled a cross-section of American society, more than 2,500 people, which included a variety of religious and political beliefs. Respondents were asked whether certain selected groups should be permitted to exercise various liberties, such as giving speeches in the community, teaching in public schools, or running for public office.

As evidence of tolerance among atheists and Democrats, Djupe and fellow researcher and political scientist Ryan Burge discovered that 65 percent of atheists and 53 percent of Democrats who named Christian fundamentalists their least-liked group were willing to allow them to engage in three or more of these activities. This, Djupe notes, is a higher proportion with tolerance than the overall sample and a higher proportion than white evangelicals. Ergo, Djupe and Burge conclude evangelicals fear atheists and Democrats not because these groups intend to restrict their rights, but because religious conservatives aim to do this to their political enemies.

Perhaps, though, restrictions on conservative Christians giving speeches, teaching in public schools, or running for public office are not theoretical. Across the United States over the last generation, real-life people of faith have suffered the infringement of their religious freedom. Whether or not those doing the infringing are atheists is unclear, but they are almost always on the political left.

This is why white evangelicals are afraid Democrats will attack their religious liberty because they already have been for years.It also largely explains why this same demographic remains electorally wedded to Republicans, including President Donald Trump.

Notice that in almost all the above examples, it has been the judicial branch slowing the tide of anti-religious liberty initiatives. This has been the case even when activist judges at one level are overruled by more conservative judges at a higher level of the court system.

Trump is appointing right-leaning federal judges at rapid rates. Thus far, he has appointed 50 judges to circuit court benches, double what President Barack Obama had achieved at this point in his first term. Judges, many religious conservatives wager, may be one of the most effective means of safeguarding religious liberty.

None of this is news. Conservatives, and certainly religious conservatives, have been talking for generations about the need for a conservative judiciary to prevent attacks on Americas most treasured freedoms. That liberal mainstream media and secular academia are allied in deflecting attention from this truth in favor of research aimed at maligning religious conservatives demonstrates how out of touch they remain. Who says they learned something after the 2016 presidential election?

Casey Chalk is a columnist for The American Conservative, Crisis Magazine, and The New Oxford Review. He has a bachelors in history and masters in teaching from the University of Virginia, and masters in theology from Christendom College.

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Religious People Think Democrats Will Strip Our Rights Because It's True - The Federalist

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