1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,200 Speaker 1: Hello everyone, and welcome to the latest episode from the 2 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:06,800 Speaker 1: midweek edition of the coin Bureau podcast. Every week, I 3 00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:09,600 Speaker 1: pick out two of my favorite videos from coin Bureau's 4 00:00:09,640 --> 00:00:12,959 Speaker 1: YouTube channel to present to you in podcast form. The 5 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:15,920 Speaker 1: audio you're about to hear is from those videos I've 6 00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:18,560 Speaker 1: chosen this week. Many of you have been in touch 7 00:00:18,640 --> 00:00:20,800 Speaker 1: to ask whether it's possible to listen to our videos 8 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:24,440 Speaker 1: in podcast format, and so your wish is my command. 9 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:28,360 Speaker 1: This week I've selected our videos on weather modification and 10 00:00:28,560 --> 00:00:32,840 Speaker 1: the White House's efforts to crack down on cryptocurrency. Now, 11 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 1: every so often we like to go a bit off 12 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: piece here at coin Bureau and look into something removed 13 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:40,880 Speaker 1: from crypto. It could be a scandal from the world 14 00:00:40,920 --> 00:00:44,640 Speaker 1: of traditional finance, or, as in today's case, some strange 15 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:47,440 Speaker 1: goings on that don't get nearly the amount of media 16 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:50,519 Speaker 1: coverage they should. Humans have been trying to control the 17 00:00:50,560 --> 00:00:54,040 Speaker 1: weather for millennia, but it wasn't until the twentieth century 18 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:56,800 Speaker 1: that we started getting any good at it. It's now 19 00:00:56,840 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 1: thought that many countries around the world are involved whether 20 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 1: modification schemes of some kind, both for benign and possibly 21 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:08,680 Speaker 1: nefarious purposes. What striking is that the technology which has 22 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:11,920 Speaker 1: been developed to make this possible is in many cases 23 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:16,320 Speaker 1: apparently extremely effective. In the first part of today's episode, 24 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:18,680 Speaker 1: I look at some of these technologies and tackle the 25 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:22,479 Speaker 1: question of why hardly anybody seems to be talking about this. 26 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:25,520 Speaker 1: Next up, a look at what's been going on with 27 00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:29,840 Speaker 1: regards to crypto at six Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, d C. 28 00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:33,640 Speaker 1: You might recall that President Biden issued an executive order 29 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:36,880 Speaker 1: about cryptocurrency all the way back in March, and the 30 00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:40,600 Speaker 1: deadline for US agencies to submit their responses to it 31 00:01:40,959 --> 00:01:44,920 Speaker 1: fell earlier this month. Shortly afterwards, the White House released 32 00:01:44,959 --> 00:01:48,800 Speaker 1: a summary of these responses as a quote comprehensive framework 33 00:01:48,920 --> 00:01:53,960 Speaker 1: for responsible development of Digital assets. This report has important 34 00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:58,440 Speaker 1: implications for cryptocurrency, which is why we've read and summarized 35 00:01:58,440 --> 00:02:00,520 Speaker 1: it for you. I hope you enjoy are listening to 36 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:03,080 Speaker 1: these two pieces, and I'll be back talking crypto with 37 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:06,080 Speaker 1: Mike very soon, so be sure to stay tuned, and 38 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:08,760 Speaker 1: if you want even more content from coin Bureau, be 39 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:11,880 Speaker 1: sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel and visit us 40 00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:35,840 Speaker 1: on social media too. Humans have been trying to control 41 00:02:35,919 --> 00:02:38,680 Speaker 1: the weather since the dawn of time, and to this day, 42 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:41,720 Speaker 1: it's generally believed to be something that we can't do 43 00:02:41,880 --> 00:02:45,760 Speaker 1: very well, if at all. Well, what have I told you? 44 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: That almost every major country is actively modifying the weather, 45 00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:56,040 Speaker 1: and that the effectiveness of such technologies has been increasing exponentially. 46 00:02:56,880 --> 00:03:00,040 Speaker 1: Being British, I can't possibly pass up an opportunity to 47 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:02,520 Speaker 1: talk about the weather. So today I'm going to give 48 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:05,800 Speaker 1: you a brief history of weather modification, go over the 49 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:10,359 Speaker 1: different methods and their effectiveness, and examine whether this technology 50 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:15,160 Speaker 1: is secretly being used for nefarious purposes. As I mentioned 51 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 1: in the introduction, humans have been trying to control the 52 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:22,040 Speaker 1: weather for thousands of years through all sorts of rituals. 53 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:25,440 Speaker 1: More often than not, these rituals were meant to try 54 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:28,720 Speaker 1: and appease a god, to cause rain, usually in response 55 00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:31,360 Speaker 1: to a drought, or to try and prevent a dry season. 56 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 1: This is actually the same reason why most governments continue 57 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: to try and manipulate the weather today, at least on paper. 58 00:03:39,040 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: More about that later now. Not surprisingly, none of the 59 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,200 Speaker 1: historic rain rituals were successful, and their perceived success was 60 00:03:47,280 --> 00:03:51,320 Speaker 1: only ever due to coincidence rather than any solid science. 61 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:55,160 Speaker 1: Then again, nobody can say for sure, because it's harder 62 00:03:55,200 --> 00:03:57,560 Speaker 1: to figure out what happened the further back you go. 63 00:03:58,360 --> 00:04:02,040 Speaker 1: What is well documented is that many militaries around the 64 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:05,560 Speaker 1: world started to notice that rain would fall after large 65 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:10,320 Speaker 1: battles involving lots of gunfire in the seventeen and eighteen hundreds. 66 00:04:11,000 --> 00:04:14,080 Speaker 1: This resulted in the United States and others trying to 67 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:17,120 Speaker 1: cause rain by shooting into the sky, but it's believed 68 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 1: that these experiments failed. We now know that air pollution 69 00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:25,039 Speaker 1: has the potential to seed clouds, and it's believed that 70 00:04:25,080 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 1: this is the main reason why there is now less 71 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:31,920 Speaker 1: snow and ice in mountainous areas. Clouds are seeded prematurely 72 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:35,440 Speaker 1: by car pollution, causing it to rain or snow before 73 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:39,320 Speaker 1: the clouds can reach the mountains. The more you know now, 74 00:04:39,400 --> 00:04:42,560 Speaker 1: it wasn't until the late eighteen hundreds that a German 75 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:47,200 Speaker 1: American inventor named Louis Gaffman proposed a scientific way of 76 00:04:47,240 --> 00:04:52,000 Speaker 1: creating rain, specifically by shooting liquid carbon dioxide into clouds. 77 00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:56,360 Speaker 1: It was around this time that so called rainmakers started 78 00:04:56,400 --> 00:05:00,400 Speaker 1: to emerge across the United States. Now, rainmakers were basically 79 00:05:00,440 --> 00:05:03,240 Speaker 1: traveling showman who would try and modify the weather using 80 00:05:03,279 --> 00:05:07,800 Speaker 1: a series of chemicals, among other things, Although most rainmakers 81 00:05:07,839 --> 00:05:09,880 Speaker 1: were not much better at making it rain than the 82 00:05:09,920 --> 00:05:13,160 Speaker 1: ancient ritualists, there was one man who seemed to have 83 00:05:13,279 --> 00:05:17,080 Speaker 1: a high success rate, and his name was Charles Hatfield. 84 00:05:18,080 --> 00:05:21,400 Speaker 1: Charles became famous in nine four when he caused it 85 00:05:21,440 --> 00:05:24,960 Speaker 1: to rain over Los Angeles using a series of towers 86 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: spraying chemicals into the sky. When he was asked about 87 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:32,599 Speaker 1: how he did it, Charles reportedly said, quote, I do 88 00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:35,480 Speaker 1: not make it rain. That would be an absurd claim. 89 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:40,280 Speaker 1: I simply attract clouds and they do the rest. This 90 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:43,560 Speaker 1: is why the city of San Diego contacted Charles at 91 00:05:43,600 --> 00:05:47,320 Speaker 1: the end off in the middle of a massive drought. 92 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:50,600 Speaker 1: Charles agreed to their request to make it rain and 93 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:53,680 Speaker 1: even said the city only had to pay him if 94 00:05:53,720 --> 00:05:57,400 Speaker 1: he succeeded, a deal too good for San Diego's officials 95 00:05:57,400 --> 00:06:02,400 Speaker 1: to pass up. Charles's confidence didn't disappoint because in January 96 00:06:02,560 --> 00:06:06,360 Speaker 1: nineteen sixteen, he made it rain so much that many 97 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:10,480 Speaker 1: parts of San Diego experience floods, something he achieved by 98 00:06:10,560 --> 00:06:14,240 Speaker 1: reportedly burning chemicals in a forest outside of the city. 99 00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:18,240 Speaker 1: Nineteen sixteen would go on to be the wettest year 100 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:23,800 Speaker 1: in the region's history. Now as amazing as Charles's rainmaking was, 101 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:27,840 Speaker 1: it was still more showmanship than science. It was hard 102 00:06:27,880 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: to prove that Charles's chemical shenanigans were the actual cause 103 00:06:31,960 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: of the rain, particularly in nineteen sixteen, when the rains 104 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:40,560 Speaker 1: continued long after his modification. This is why Charles's rainmaking 105 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:44,320 Speaker 1: is disputed to this day. This is also why the 106 00:06:44,480 --> 00:06:49,440 Speaker 1: history of weather modification is more often associated with Vincent Schaefer, 107 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:53,120 Speaker 1: an American scientist who's credited with the creation of cloud 108 00:06:53,200 --> 00:06:56,520 Speaker 1: seeding in nineteen forty six while he was working as 109 00:06:56,520 --> 00:07:00,839 Speaker 1: a researcher at General Electric. What's wild is that Vincent 110 00:07:00,920 --> 00:07:05,080 Speaker 1: reportedly discovered cloud seeding by accident. The story goes that 111 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,320 Speaker 1: he was working on another project related to ice formation 112 00:07:08,360 --> 00:07:11,800 Speaker 1: on aircraft when he breathed into a box where he 113 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:15,320 Speaker 1: had placed dry ice, causing ice crystals to form in 114 00:07:15,320 --> 00:07:21,080 Speaker 1: the air. Note that ice crystals form before rainfall. By 115 00:07:21,080 --> 00:07:24,040 Speaker 1: the end of ninety six, Vincent had developed a way 116 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:28,280 Speaker 1: to consistently seed clouds using aircraft to create both rain 117 00:07:28,560 --> 00:07:33,320 Speaker 1: and snow, and shortly afterwards he was contacted and contracted 118 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:37,360 Speaker 1: by the US military to continue his cloud seeding research. 119 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: Note that I'm leaving out some details here for the 120 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:45,720 Speaker 1: sake of time. Now. In seven, Vincent worked with the U. 121 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:50,440 Speaker 1: S Military on Project Serrus to weaken hurricanes using cloud seeding, 122 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:54,160 Speaker 1: and their first attempt took place in October that year. 123 00:07:54,680 --> 00:07:57,160 Speaker 1: Believe it or not, but the cloud seeding caused the 124 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:01,560 Speaker 1: hurricane to suddenly change direction, resulting in lots of damage 125 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:05,200 Speaker 1: in the state of Georgia. Naturally, the people of Georgia 126 00:08:05,320 --> 00:08:08,520 Speaker 1: were none too happy, and they filed a lawsuit, which 127 00:08:08,600 --> 00:08:12,560 Speaker 1: was dismissed after the defendants found examples of hurricanes suddenly 128 00:08:12,680 --> 00:08:16,160 Speaker 1: changing course in the past, specifically in nineteen o six, 129 00:08:16,440 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: around the time Charles Hatfield was active in his own 130 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:26,040 Speaker 1: weather experiments. Funny that, in all seriousness, it seems the 131 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:29,920 Speaker 1: same happened in the United Kingdom with Project Cumulus in 132 00:08:29,960 --> 00:08:33,640 Speaker 1: the nineteen fifties. Many believe that a massive flood in 133 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:37,320 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty two was caused by the British military's cloud 134 00:08:37,360 --> 00:08:41,520 Speaker 1: seeding operations, though this was also largely dismissed on the 135 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:46,320 Speaker 1: grounds that this region had flooded before. Now, the Georgia 136 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:50,560 Speaker 1: incident reportedly paused cloud seeding research in the United States 137 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:54,880 Speaker 1: for a decade. If true, this may be a tacit 138 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:58,200 Speaker 1: admission by the US government that Project Sirrus may in 139 00:08:58,280 --> 00:09:01,400 Speaker 1: fact have caused that horror came to change course in 140 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:05,880 Speaker 1: at the very least, it means they didn't know for sure, 141 00:09:06,080 --> 00:09:08,400 Speaker 1: or just didn't want to be judged in the court 142 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:12,600 Speaker 1: of public opinion. Maybe both at the same time. However, 143 00:09:12,679 --> 00:09:16,400 Speaker 1: it's equally likely that the US government continued to experiment 144 00:09:16,480 --> 00:09:19,280 Speaker 1: with cloud seeding in secret. And this is because of 145 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:23,280 Speaker 1: all the secret cloud seeding programs that were revealed shortly 146 00:09:23,360 --> 00:09:28,040 Speaker 1: afterwards by inquisitive journalists, such as Operation Popeye in the 147 00:09:28,120 --> 00:09:31,520 Speaker 1: nineteen sixties and seventies. Now, if you watched our video 148 00:09:31,600 --> 00:09:36,200 Speaker 1: about the mysterious food plant disruptions, you'll know Operation Popeye 149 00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:39,839 Speaker 1: involved creating severe storms over the Ho Chi Minh trail 150 00:09:40,160 --> 00:09:44,199 Speaker 1: used by the viet Cong during the Vietnam War. Operation 151 00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:47,920 Speaker 1: Popeye was halted in nineteen seventy two after an article 152 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:50,079 Speaker 1: in The New York Times blew the lid on it. 153 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:53,880 Speaker 1: What's odd is that the US military claimed that they 154 00:09:53,920 --> 00:09:58,360 Speaker 1: stopped the operation because their attempts at weather manipulation had failed. 155 00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:02,440 Speaker 1: This is despite the fact that the US and forty 156 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:07,400 Speaker 1: seven other countries signed the Environmental Modification Convention, a few 157 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:13,360 Speaker 1: years later prohibiting weather modification in warfare. Now, logically this 158 00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:17,920 Speaker 1: suggested that Operation Popeye was much more effective than the U. S. 159 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:21,840 Speaker 1: Military was letting on, and this efficacy was effectively proven 160 00:10:22,080 --> 00:10:26,119 Speaker 1: when countries such as Russia and China started actively modifying 161 00:10:26,280 --> 00:10:31,520 Speaker 1: their weather for domestic purposes in the nighties. Beijing modifying 162 00:10:31,559 --> 00:10:34,240 Speaker 1: the weather to keep the opening ceremony dry during the 163 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:37,360 Speaker 1: two thousand and eight Olympics is probably the most famous 164 00:10:37,360 --> 00:10:41,040 Speaker 1: example of weather modification in recent years, and there's really 165 00:10:41,280 --> 00:10:44,760 Speaker 1: no shortage of examples from all around the world. Check 166 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:48,640 Speaker 1: Wikipedia if you don't believe me. As of twenty seventeen, 167 00:10:48,920 --> 00:10:53,439 Speaker 1: there were over fifty countries actively engaging in weather modification 168 00:10:53,559 --> 00:10:58,240 Speaker 1: to quote disperse fog, enhanced rain and snowfall, and suppress hale, 169 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:03,720 Speaker 1: according to the World Meteorological Organization. Note that the sources 170 00:11:03,920 --> 00:11:07,480 Speaker 1: for everything in this video are in the description. Only 171 00:11:07,559 --> 00:11:12,600 Speaker 1: facts here, no fiction. Now, the prevalence of weather modification 172 00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:16,679 Speaker 1: begs the question of just how effective the process actually is. 173 00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:21,199 Speaker 1: The answer ultimately depends on which kind of weather modification 174 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:24,880 Speaker 1: method we're talking about. The most common method is, of course, 175 00:11:25,040 --> 00:11:28,920 Speaker 1: cloud seeding. There are actually many ways of seeding clouds, 176 00:11:28,920 --> 00:11:32,120 Speaker 1: but they all follow the same principle that Vincent Schaffer 177 00:11:32,200 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 1: discovered almost eighty years ago, and that's creating something in 178 00:11:36,080 --> 00:11:39,160 Speaker 1: the cloud for the ice and rain to form around. 179 00:11:40,280 --> 00:11:42,520 Speaker 1: This first way to see the cloud is to use 180 00:11:42,600 --> 00:11:46,880 Speaker 1: some kind of salt, including silver iodide, potassium iodide, dry 181 00:11:46,920 --> 00:11:51,440 Speaker 1: ice as Vincent did, and even standard table salt. Under 182 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:55,000 Speaker 1: the right conditions, spraying these salts into a cloud will 183 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:58,520 Speaker 1: cause ice to form around the salt, which then results 184 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:03,600 Speaker 1: in rain. This is the basic explanation. The second way 185 00:12:03,640 --> 00:12:06,240 Speaker 1: to see the cloud is to shoot it with lasers, 186 00:12:06,280 --> 00:12:10,360 Speaker 1: and yes, this is obviously my preferred method. This approach 187 00:12:10,400 --> 00:12:13,360 Speaker 1: to seeding clouds has been around since at least twenty ten, 188 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:16,360 Speaker 1: but there doesn't seem to be much public information about it. 189 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:19,040 Speaker 1: This might have something to do with the fact that 190 00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:24,600 Speaker 1: seeding clouds with lasers is apparently extremely effective. Case and Point. 191 00:12:24,800 --> 00:12:29,040 Speaker 1: In a news report about laser cloud seeding, the newscaster 192 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:33,360 Speaker 1: and guest explain that this technology could allow governments to 193 00:12:33,440 --> 00:12:35,640 Speaker 1: make it rain at the click of a button, and 194 00:12:35,800 --> 00:12:40,199 Speaker 1: even control the trajectory and intensity of storms. The link 195 00:12:40,320 --> 00:12:44,440 Speaker 1: will be in the description It's truly crazy stuff. Now, 196 00:12:44,440 --> 00:12:47,120 Speaker 1: the third way to see the cloud is similarly sci fi, 197 00:12:47,240 --> 00:12:51,480 Speaker 1: and that's to use electricity. Zapping clouds with electricity using 198 00:12:51,559 --> 00:12:55,760 Speaker 1: drones is actually how the United Arab Emirates creates artificial 199 00:12:55,880 --> 00:12:58,800 Speaker 1: rain and as far as I understand, it's a brand 200 00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:01,920 Speaker 1: new approach to clouds needing that was first tried last 201 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:07,200 Speaker 1: year in Dubai. The effectiveness of seeding clouds with electricity 202 00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:10,320 Speaker 1: is also unclear, but the fact it continues to be 203 00:13:10,480 --> 00:13:13,280 Speaker 1: used by the UA in lieu of the other available 204 00:13:13,320 --> 00:13:17,960 Speaker 1: approaches suggests that it's the most effective. For reference, the 205 00:13:18,040 --> 00:13:22,080 Speaker 1: UAE is extremely wealthy, meaning that every other approach is 206 00:13:22,120 --> 00:13:26,199 Speaker 1: in fact available to the country. That said, research by 207 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:30,440 Speaker 1: UA scientists suggests that standard cloud seeding, meaning with salts 208 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,600 Speaker 1: can quote enhanced rainfall by as much as thirty to 209 00:13:34,720 --> 00:13:37,920 Speaker 1: thirty five pent in a clear atmosphere and buy up 210 00:13:37,960 --> 00:13:42,000 Speaker 1: to ten to fifteen percent in a turbid atmosphere. Note 211 00:13:42,040 --> 00:13:45,280 Speaker 1: that these statistics are from way back in twenty fift 212 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:50,200 Speaker 1: what's reassuring is that these statistics are consistent with a 213 00:13:50,240 --> 00:13:53,960 Speaker 1: cloud seeding study by the University of Wyoming, which lasted 214 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 1: from two thousand and eight to two thousand and thirteen 215 00:13:56,880 --> 00:14:00,600 Speaker 1: and found that cloud seeding can increase precipitation buy up 216 00:14:00,640 --> 00:14:04,800 Speaker 1: to fifteen percent. Note that these statistics also apply to 217 00:14:04,960 --> 00:14:09,200 Speaker 1: salt based cloud seeding and are also arguably outdated. It's 218 00:14:09,240 --> 00:14:12,680 Speaker 1: also important to point out that the effectiveness of cloud 219 00:14:12,679 --> 00:14:18,200 Speaker 1: seeding almost always depends on pre existing weather conditions. For example, 220 00:14:18,559 --> 00:14:22,000 Speaker 1: cloud seeding is believed to work much better on clouds 221 00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:25,000 Speaker 1: that form over large bodies of water, such as oceans 222 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:29,960 Speaker 1: and seas. Conversely, the absence of clouds makes cloud seeding 223 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:35,440 Speaker 1: next to impossible, because well, there are no clouds to seed. Luckily, 224 00:14:35,640 --> 00:14:39,040 Speaker 1: for governments looking to modify the weather, however, there are 225 00:14:39,280 --> 00:14:43,120 Speaker 1: many ways to create clouds artificially. I'll leave a link 226 00:14:43,160 --> 00:14:45,680 Speaker 1: in the description to a video that shows you one 227 00:14:45,800 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 1: effective method. Now, if you're feeling overwhelmed by all these 228 00:14:49,680 --> 00:14:53,200 Speaker 1: weather modification revelations, you're in for a real treat, because 229 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:56,760 Speaker 1: cloud seeding isn't the only way that governments can modify 230 00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:59,640 Speaker 1: the weather. Some of you may have heard of the 231 00:14:59,720 --> 00:15:04,600 Speaker 1: U government's High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program or HARP 232 00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:08,920 Speaker 1: in Alaska, which lasted from to two thousand and fourteen. 233 00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 1: HARP was subsequently declassified and its facility was handed over 234 00:15:14,400 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 1: to the University of Alaska for academic use in two 235 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:21,160 Speaker 1: thousand and fifteen. If you've heard of HARP, it's because 236 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 1: it is famous for being the go to example given 237 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:27,560 Speaker 1: by conspiracy theorists who claim the government can control the 238 00:15:27,600 --> 00:15:33,160 Speaker 1: world's whether using harp's Ionospheric Research Instrument or I s I. 239 00:15:33,240 --> 00:15:36,080 Speaker 1: This mostly has to do with a bunch of patents 240 00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:40,360 Speaker 1: filed by physicist Bernard Eastland, which implied that harp's I 241 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:44,280 Speaker 1: see I could do everything from disrupting military communications to 242 00:15:44,400 --> 00:15:48,440 Speaker 1: influencing the moods of individuals around the world, a sort 243 00:15:48,480 --> 00:15:52,600 Speaker 1: of directed energy weapon, if you will. While the HARP 244 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:55,400 Speaker 1: facility in the United States were shuttered in two thousand 245 00:15:55,440 --> 00:15:59,200 Speaker 1: and fourteen, similar facilities continue to operate in other countries, 246 00:15:59,400 --> 00:16:04,000 Speaker 1: notably in Norway and Russia. Some have taken this as 247 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:08,400 Speaker 1: evidence that some of the claims in Bernard's patents were true. Now, 248 00:16:08,520 --> 00:16:11,600 Speaker 1: the science of HARP is outside the scope of this video, 249 00:16:11,720 --> 00:16:14,040 Speaker 1: but I'll leave a link to an excellent video about 250 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:18,120 Speaker 1: the experiment by Curious Droid. In the description, He's a 251 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:21,520 Speaker 1: fellow British YouTuber whose content helped with the creation of 252 00:16:21,600 --> 00:16:24,320 Speaker 1: this video, So be sure to send in my regards 253 00:16:24,360 --> 00:16:28,960 Speaker 1: and subscribe to his channel now. The next frontier for 254 00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:34,120 Speaker 1: weather modification is space, specifically using satellites to beam large 255 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:37,920 Speaker 1: amounts of energy into storms to make them stronger or weaker, 256 00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:40,680 Speaker 1: a job for Elon Musk, if ever there was one. 257 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:44,080 Speaker 1: Not like you'd have the time, though, Speaking of billionaires, 258 00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:47,440 Speaker 1: another outlandish way that we might soon modify the weather 259 00:16:47,640 --> 00:16:50,680 Speaker 1: is by spraying dust into the atmosphere to block out 260 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:54,080 Speaker 1: the sun. This brilliant idea was brought to you by 261 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:57,200 Speaker 1: none other than Bill Gates, who is currently funding a 262 00:16:57,240 --> 00:17:01,560 Speaker 1: company to do exactly that. There are also lots of 263 00:17:01,720 --> 00:17:05,360 Speaker 1: new weather modification methods that are taking a bottom up approach. 264 00:17:05,920 --> 00:17:09,080 Speaker 1: One example is pumping air into the lower waters of 265 00:17:09,160 --> 00:17:12,400 Speaker 1: seas and oceans to bring cold water up to the surface. 266 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:16,000 Speaker 1: The cool air this cold water creates can be used 267 00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:20,800 Speaker 1: to weaken or even eliminate hurricanes. Pumping air into lower 268 00:17:20,840 --> 00:17:23,760 Speaker 1: waters is already being done in countries like Norway to 269 00:17:23,800 --> 00:17:27,639 Speaker 1: bring up salty water and prevent freezing around hydroelectric power 270 00:17:27,680 --> 00:17:32,320 Speaker 1: plants so they can continue operating through the winter. Another 271 00:17:32,400 --> 00:17:35,480 Speaker 1: example of a novel bottom up approach is to spray 272 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:38,280 Speaker 1: salt water into the sky to reflect some of the 273 00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:42,240 Speaker 1: sun's light back into space. There are actually concerns though, 274 00:17:42,560 --> 00:17:45,160 Speaker 1: that this and other methods such as pumping air into 275 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:48,840 Speaker 1: lower waters, could actually cool the oceans too much and 276 00:17:48,920 --> 00:17:53,359 Speaker 1: cause other unwanted weather issues. In my opinion, the most 277 00:17:53,400 --> 00:17:57,640 Speaker 1: promising weather modification method was proposed in a twenty thirteen 278 00:17:57,680 --> 00:18:02,119 Speaker 1: TED talk by scientist Alan's Savery titled quote how to 279 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:06,200 Speaker 1: Green the World's deserts and Reverse Climate Change. It's quite 280 00:18:06,240 --> 00:18:09,879 Speaker 1: possibly one of the most amazing videos you will ever watch, 281 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:13,320 Speaker 1: and I'll leave a link in the description. In short, 282 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:16,719 Speaker 1: the world is slowly turning into a desert, and this 283 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:20,840 Speaker 1: trend will continue regardless of whether all the mainstream climate 284 00:18:20,840 --> 00:18:24,960 Speaker 1: action targets are met, namely eliminating emissions and fossil fuels 285 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:28,920 Speaker 1: of all kinds. Note that deserts create lots of heat, 286 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 1: which causes the kinds of extreme weather we've seen lately. 287 00:18:32,960 --> 00:18:36,720 Speaker 1: Alan's solution is so simple that it's almost stupid. This 288 00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:40,320 Speaker 1: is to guide animals to graze around the land without 289 00:18:40,440 --> 00:18:45,400 Speaker 1: interference the way they did historically. With this simple solution, 290 00:18:45,440 --> 00:18:48,719 Speaker 1: Alan has managed to turn literal deserts into green and 291 00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:55,480 Speaker 1: watery oases around the world. Just look at this comparison image. Now, 292 00:18:55,520 --> 00:18:59,480 Speaker 1: if that wasn't incredible enough, Alan thinks this solution could 293 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:03,480 Speaker 1: solve climate change in a matter of years while simultaneously 294 00:19:03,640 --> 00:19:08,560 Speaker 1: enriching developing countries through all the animal product production and exports. 295 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:13,399 Speaker 1: The availability of meat in developing countries would also significantly 296 00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:18,080 Speaker 1: improve nutrition as a cherry on top, all the emission reductions, 297 00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:21,359 Speaker 1: limits on energy use, and other such policies would not 298 00:19:21,520 --> 00:19:24,920 Speaker 1: be needed since all the additional greenery would absorb all 299 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:29,680 Speaker 1: the CEO two while simultaneously cooling the world. Seriously, watch 300 00:19:29,760 --> 00:19:32,159 Speaker 1: that video and share it with your friends and family 301 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:36,560 Speaker 1: while you're at it. Now, given all these facts, stats, 302 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:40,199 Speaker 1: and solutions, you might be wondering why weather modification is 303 00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:43,600 Speaker 1: seldom discussed in the context of climate change, or even 304 00:19:43,640 --> 00:19:47,399 Speaker 1: just extreme weather events like droughts, floods, and fires that 305 00:19:47,480 --> 00:19:50,840 Speaker 1: have recently been ravaging the planet. As far as I 306 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:54,440 Speaker 1: can tell, this is because governments admitting to widespread weather 307 00:19:54,560 --> 00:19:58,679 Speaker 1: modification is likely to raise more questions than answers, namely 308 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:02,840 Speaker 1: why governments aren't using this technology to combat climate change 309 00:20:02,960 --> 00:20:08,320 Speaker 1: or extreme weather events, especially revolutionary solutions like Alan's guided grazing. 310 00:20:09,400 --> 00:20:12,000 Speaker 1: To be clear, there have been some reports of countries 311 00:20:12,119 --> 00:20:16,399 Speaker 1: using weather modification methods to address whether extremes, such as China, 312 00:20:16,680 --> 00:20:19,520 Speaker 1: which tried to end its record breaking droughts with cloud 313 00:20:19,560 --> 00:20:23,200 Speaker 1: seeding over the summer. What doesn't make sense, however, is 314 00:20:23,240 --> 00:20:26,920 Speaker 1: that these countermeasures always seem to be less effective than 315 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:30,400 Speaker 1: the proactive ones. This is where a bit of science 316 00:20:30,400 --> 00:20:34,600 Speaker 1: based speculation comes in. As I mentioned earlier, forty eight 317 00:20:34,640 --> 00:20:38,760 Speaker 1: countries signed the Environmental Modification Convention in the nine seventies 318 00:20:38,960 --> 00:20:43,640 Speaker 1: to prevent the use of weather modification in warfare. As 319 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:47,880 Speaker 1: of two there are seventy eight countries which have joined 320 00:20:47,960 --> 00:20:52,400 Speaker 1: the convention. Even so, that doesn't guarantee that these countries 321 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:55,880 Speaker 1: aren't still using weather modification as a form of warfare. 322 00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,520 Speaker 1: It just may not be as avert as say, creating 323 00:20:59,560 --> 00:21:04,040 Speaker 1: abnorm William massive storms over Vietnam. Here's a great example 324 00:21:04,119 --> 00:21:06,560 Speaker 1: to illustrate what I mean that I also mentioned in 325 00:21:06,600 --> 00:21:11,159 Speaker 1: our food plant disruptions video. In the the Soviet Union 326 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:15,399 Speaker 1: used cloud seeding after the Chernobyl nuclear plant meltdown to 327 00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:20,359 Speaker 1: ensure that radioactive rain fell on Belarus instead of Moscow. Now, 328 00:21:20,680 --> 00:21:24,159 Speaker 1: riddle me this, did the Soviet Union use whether for 329 00:21:24,280 --> 00:21:29,200 Speaker 1: military purposes in this scenario? The answer is not that clear, 330 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:31,920 Speaker 1: and it would be hard to prove either way, because 331 00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:35,760 Speaker 1: the Soviet Union could claim the rainfalls natural, whereas Belarus 332 00:21:35,840 --> 00:21:38,760 Speaker 1: could claim it was not, assuming it even new at all. 333 00:21:40,000 --> 00:21:44,240 Speaker 1: This is simply because WHETHER modification can't always be detected, 334 00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:49,119 Speaker 1: especially with the newer types of technologies. Whether also isn't 335 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:52,800 Speaker 1: contained to a single country. It crosses borders and boundaries, 336 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:56,000 Speaker 1: and this means what happens within a country could easily 337 00:21:56,040 --> 00:21:59,680 Speaker 1: affect the country next door. This is why there is 338 00:21:59,680 --> 00:22:03,440 Speaker 1: a lot of speculation in India that China is stealing 339 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:06,639 Speaker 1: India's rain by causing it to reign prematurely on the 340 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:09,920 Speaker 1: Chinese side of the mountain range that divides both countries. 341 00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:14,440 Speaker 1: This wouldn't be surprising given that China is heavily testing 342 00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:19,040 Speaker 1: weather modification in this region, including in the Pool. Now. 343 00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:21,920 Speaker 1: You can sum up this speculation in a sentence from 344 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:27,560 Speaker 1: an article about China's weather modification by futurism. Quote, if 345 00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:31,240 Speaker 1: one country is able to control its own weather, it could, 346 00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:35,720 Speaker 1: in theory, do so elsewhere. In other words, countries might 347 00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:39,840 Speaker 1: be actively trying to manipulate each other's weather. Bringing up 348 00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:44,040 Speaker 1: this technology could shed light on questionable practices by domestic 349 00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:49,080 Speaker 1: and foreign governments, leading to very serious domestic and foreign conflicts. 350 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:53,400 Speaker 1: This ties into the very real possibility that governments are 351 00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:57,440 Speaker 1: manipulating their own weather to take more control of their 352 00:22:57,480 --> 00:23:01,639 Speaker 1: own citizens. After all, you can control the weather, you 353 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:04,359 Speaker 1: can control the food supply, and that's the kind of 354 00:23:04,359 --> 00:23:07,640 Speaker 1: power that the folks at the World Economic Forum are 355 00:23:07,760 --> 00:23:11,600 Speaker 1: explicitly seeking. More about that using the link in the 356 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:15,959 Speaker 1: description anecdotes aside, The fact of the matter is that 357 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:20,119 Speaker 1: governments have the technology to make extreme weather events better 358 00:23:20,440 --> 00:23:25,399 Speaker 1: or worse, or rarer or more frequent. This is terrifying 359 00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:28,919 Speaker 1: given how governments have been acting lately, and it's something 360 00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:33,840 Speaker 1: that must therefore be part of any environmental discussions. So 361 00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:37,000 Speaker 1: I'll leave you with this thought. Once upon a time, 362 00:23:37,280 --> 00:23:41,320 Speaker 1: humans engaged in rituals to appease the gods to influence 363 00:23:41,359 --> 00:23:45,360 Speaker 1: the weather. It looks like we're starting to see history repeat, 364 00:23:45,680 --> 00:23:50,440 Speaker 1: except it's other humans with powerful technologies playing god, demanding 365 00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:55,199 Speaker 1: compliance in exchange for better weather. This may not be 366 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:58,320 Speaker 1: the case today, but mark my words, at the rate 367 00:23:58,400 --> 00:24:02,520 Speaker 1: that whether modification technology is advancing, it will almost certainly 368 00:24:02,800 --> 00:24:06,080 Speaker 1: be the case tomorrow, and in some places it probably 369 00:24:06,240 --> 00:24:09,920 Speaker 1: is already be on the lookout and remember to question 370 00:24:09,960 --> 00:24:12,960 Speaker 1: the weather and don't just complain about it like US 371 00:24:12,960 --> 00:24:21,359 Speaker 1: Brits do. Back in March, US President Joe Biden signed 372 00:24:21,400 --> 00:24:26,040 Speaker 1: an executive Order about Cryptocurrency, which instructed all relevant government 373 00:24:26,080 --> 00:24:30,399 Speaker 1: agencies to produce reports about crypto and how to regulate it. 374 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:34,280 Speaker 1: The deadline for these reports was earlier this month, and 375 00:24:34,600 --> 00:24:37,399 Speaker 1: last week the White House put together a summary of 376 00:24:37,440 --> 00:24:42,000 Speaker 1: these reports, as well as their regulatory recommendations. Today, I'm 377 00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:45,160 Speaker 1: going to explain what the White House's Crypto Framework says 378 00:24:45,320 --> 00:24:48,600 Speaker 1: in simple terms and tell you exactly what it could 379 00:24:48,600 --> 00:24:52,000 Speaker 1: mean for the crypto market. The document I'll be discussing 380 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:56,359 Speaker 1: today is titled quote fact sheet. White House releases first 381 00:24:56,400 --> 00:25:01,439 Speaker 1: ever comprehensive Framework for Responsible Development of Digital Assets. It 382 00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:04,960 Speaker 1: was published on the sixteen September, and I'll leave a 383 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:09,000 Speaker 1: link to the full text in the description if you're interested. Now, 384 00:25:09,040 --> 00:25:13,000 Speaker 1: the White House's Crypto Framework begins with a juicy statistic, 385 00:25:13,160 --> 00:25:17,600 Speaker 1: and that's that around sixteen percent of Americans hold crypto 386 00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:21,800 Speaker 1: as part of their personal portfolios. This is a few 387 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:26,080 Speaker 1: percentage points shy of the of Americans who have ever 388 00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:30,639 Speaker 1: held crypto, according to research by NBC News. Respect to 389 00:25:30,760 --> 00:25:34,320 Speaker 1: the Hoddlers. The authors go on to explain that crypto 390 00:25:34,400 --> 00:25:37,800 Speaker 1: has the potential to quote reinforce US leadership in the 391 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:42,639 Speaker 1: global financial system. However, they caution that these potential benefits 392 00:25:42,880 --> 00:25:46,840 Speaker 1: come with risks and cite terrors collapse in May as 393 00:25:46,840 --> 00:25:51,480 Speaker 1: an example, without naming any names. What's odd is the 394 00:25:51,520 --> 00:25:55,879 Speaker 1: author's claim that terrorist collapse caused six hundred billion dollars 395 00:25:55,880 --> 00:25:58,880 Speaker 1: of damage to the crypto market in the months that followed. 396 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:03,360 Speaker 1: This is highly debatable, as there were other macro factors 397 00:26:03,400 --> 00:26:06,119 Speaker 1: that caused the crypto market to go lower, namely the 398 00:26:06,160 --> 00:26:10,280 Speaker 1: stock market, which was also crashing around that time. In 399 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:13,760 Speaker 1: any case, the authors touch on Biden's Executive Order about 400 00:26:13,760 --> 00:26:17,320 Speaker 1: cryptocurrency from back in March and explain that all the 401 00:26:17,359 --> 00:26:22,000 Speaker 1: relevant agencies have spent six months putting together their respective reports. 402 00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:26,639 Speaker 1: The result is a series of policy recommendations related to 403 00:26:26,880 --> 00:26:31,360 Speaker 1: six areas of focus in the Executive Order. These are 404 00:26:31,600 --> 00:26:38,160 Speaker 1: quote consumer and investor protection, promoting financial stability, countering illicit finance, 405 00:26:38,680 --> 00:26:42,760 Speaker 1: US leadership in the global financial system, financial inclusion, and 406 00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:48,040 Speaker 1: responsible innovation. The authors revealed that a total of nine 407 00:26:48,080 --> 00:26:51,520 Speaker 1: reports were provided to the White House by US agencies. 408 00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:54,479 Speaker 1: We summarized one of them last weekend, and you can 409 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:57,560 Speaker 1: find out what crazy things that report said using the 410 00:26:57,600 --> 00:27:01,400 Speaker 1: link in the description. Now, the authors also revealed that 411 00:27:01,480 --> 00:27:05,840 Speaker 1: these nine reports quote reflect the input and expertise of 412 00:27:05,960 --> 00:27:12,480 Speaker 1: diverse stakeholders across government, industry, academia, and civil society. Obviously, 413 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:15,480 Speaker 1: there are a lot of loaded terms here, and it 414 00:27:15,640 --> 00:27:19,560 Speaker 1: certainly begs the question of exactly which personnel they consulted. 415 00:27:20,560 --> 00:27:24,320 Speaker 1: What's particularly questionable is that these reports focus on quote, 416 00:27:24,600 --> 00:27:29,880 Speaker 1: helping cutting edge US firms find footholds in global markets. Now, 417 00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:32,640 Speaker 1: I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but crypto 418 00:27:32,760 --> 00:27:37,600 Speaker 1: isn't about private companies establishing global dominance. It's about competition 419 00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:43,640 Speaker 1: between decentralized developers. Naturally. The authors also single out crypto 420 00:27:43,760 --> 00:27:46,919 Speaker 1: mining as an area of concern and call for quote 421 00:27:47,119 --> 00:27:51,960 Speaker 1: common sense efficiency standards. I reckon what counts as common 422 00:27:52,000 --> 00:27:55,560 Speaker 1: sense depends on who you ask, and as the saying goes, 423 00:27:55,840 --> 00:28:00,800 Speaker 1: common sense is not that common If that isn't spooky enough, 424 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:04,280 Speaker 1: the authors say. The reports call on the Federal Reserve 425 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:07,960 Speaker 1: and the Treasury Department to accelerate the development of a 426 00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:13,120 Speaker 1: central bank digital currency or CBDC. They even call for 427 00:28:13,200 --> 00:28:16,320 Speaker 1: the creation of a quote inter Agency working group to 428 00:28:16,440 --> 00:28:20,720 Speaker 1: develop a digital dollar. This is more significant than you think, 429 00:28:20,760 --> 00:28:24,320 Speaker 1: because it suggests that the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department 430 00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:28,800 Speaker 1: could eventually become one and the same. In fact, some 431 00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:32,320 Speaker 1: would say this is inevitable given the trend towards hyper 432 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:38,120 Speaker 1: centralization in the financial system. Spooky stuff, indeed. Now, the 433 00:28:38,280 --> 00:28:41,240 Speaker 1: rest of the Crypto Framework gives a summary of the 434 00:28:41,280 --> 00:28:45,040 Speaker 1: policy recommendations for the six areas of focus I mentioned earlier. 435 00:28:45,640 --> 00:28:48,400 Speaker 1: You'll recall I hope that one of these is quote 436 00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:52,200 Speaker 1: consumer and investor protection, which has been used to justify 437 00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:56,120 Speaker 1: all kinds of things in recent years. In this case, 438 00:28:56,280 --> 00:29:00,560 Speaker 1: the authors go straight for the jugular quote digital assets 439 00:29:00,600 --> 00:29:06,400 Speaker 1: pose meaningful risks for consumers, investors, and businesses. Not surprisingly, 440 00:29:06,480 --> 00:29:09,800 Speaker 1: there is absolutely no mention of the rewards that come 441 00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:14,440 Speaker 1: with greater risks, nor the benefits of cryptocurrency. Instead, the 442 00:29:14,520 --> 00:29:18,680 Speaker 1: author's focus on the negatives, including cryptos volatility and the 443 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:23,880 Speaker 1: lack of transparency around cryptocurrency. Interestingly, they cite a study 444 00:29:23,960 --> 00:29:27,160 Speaker 1: by the Wall Street Journal from eighteen which found that 445 00:29:27,240 --> 00:29:31,240 Speaker 1: a quarter of cryptocurrency I c o s had transparency issues. 446 00:29:31,760 --> 00:29:35,880 Speaker 1: That's actually not as bad as I thought. In all, seriousness. 447 00:29:36,080 --> 00:29:38,760 Speaker 1: The authors take it one step too far when they 448 00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:42,960 Speaker 1: claim that quote outright, fraud scams and theft in digital 449 00:29:42,960 --> 00:29:47,360 Speaker 1: asset markets are on the rise. According to FBI statistics, 450 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:51,040 Speaker 1: reported monetary losses from digital assets scams were nearly six 451 00:29:51,880 --> 00:29:56,520 Speaker 1: higher in one than the year before. Now, there seems 452 00:29:56,560 --> 00:29:59,080 Speaker 1: to be some sleight of hand going on here, because 453 00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:03,080 Speaker 1: crypto price is were much higher in one than they 454 00:30:03,080 --> 00:30:06,880 Speaker 1: were in As such, it's to be expected that the 455 00:30:06,920 --> 00:30:10,040 Speaker 1: monetary losses from crypto scams would be much higher in 456 00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:14,040 Speaker 1: Fiat terms while staying the same in terms of frequency. 457 00:30:14,280 --> 00:30:19,520 Speaker 1: Very sneaky indeed. Unfortunately, the real facts and stats are 458 00:30:19,600 --> 00:30:22,360 Speaker 1: not of much concern to the authors, and they reveal 459 00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:26,280 Speaker 1: the steps the current administration will take to address consumer 460 00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:31,480 Speaker 1: and investor protection in cryptocurrency. First, it will instruct the 461 00:30:31,640 --> 00:30:35,840 Speaker 1: Securities and Exchange Commission or SEC and the Commodities Futures 462 00:30:35,840 --> 00:30:41,080 Speaker 1: Trading Commission or CFTC to quote aggressively pursue investigations and 463 00:30:41,280 --> 00:30:46,200 Speaker 1: enforcement actions against crypto projects and companies. Looks like the 464 00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:49,960 Speaker 1: SEC is ahead of the curve on that one. Second, 465 00:30:50,120 --> 00:30:54,440 Speaker 1: it will instruct the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or CFPB 466 00:30:54,760 --> 00:30:59,640 Speaker 1: and Federal Trade Commission or FTC to quote, monitor consumer 467 00:30:59,640 --> 00:31:04,320 Speaker 1: complaints and to enforce against unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices. 468 00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:08,720 Speaker 1: If the CFPB sounds familiar, that's because it's one of 469 00:31:08,760 --> 00:31:11,600 Speaker 1: the many organizations that were created as part of the 470 00:31:11,720 --> 00:31:15,840 Speaker 1: Dodd Frank Act in twenty For reference, the Dodd Frank 471 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:19,160 Speaker 1: Act was put together by Michael Barr in the aftermath 472 00:31:19,280 --> 00:31:22,520 Speaker 1: of the two thousand and eight financial crisis. As it 473 00:31:22,680 --> 00:31:25,800 Speaker 1: so happens, Michael Barr is the current Vice Chair for 474 00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:30,600 Speaker 1: Supervision at the FED. This is significant because this position 475 00:31:30,760 --> 00:31:34,520 Speaker 1: was also created by the Dodd Frank Act. More about 476 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:37,600 Speaker 1: that and what it means for the crypto market using 477 00:31:37,640 --> 00:31:41,960 Speaker 1: the link in the description. Now, the third step the 478 00:31:42,040 --> 00:31:45,720 Speaker 1: current administration will take to protect consumers and investors will 479 00:31:45,760 --> 00:31:49,800 Speaker 1: be to instruct various agencies to quote address current and 480 00:31:50,040 --> 00:31:54,800 Speaker 1: emergent risks in cryptocurrency. I couldn't help, but notice that 481 00:31:54,840 --> 00:31:58,840 Speaker 1: the authors don't clarify what kinds of risks the administration 482 00:31:59,040 --> 00:32:03,600 Speaker 1: is concerned about. Finally, the current administration will instruct the 483 00:32:03,680 --> 00:32:08,920 Speaker 1: Financial Literacy Education Commission or FLECK to quote help consumers 484 00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:12,840 Speaker 1: understand the risks involved. Call me crazy, but I don't 485 00:32:12,880 --> 00:32:16,440 Speaker 1: think they'll be talking very much about the benefits of crypto. 486 00:32:16,600 --> 00:32:19,880 Speaker 1: It also reminds me of the International Monetary Fund or 487 00:32:20,000 --> 00:32:23,920 Speaker 1: i MFS campaign to educate about that is, promote c 488 00:32:24,120 --> 00:32:27,080 Speaker 1: b d c s and educate about a k A 489 00:32:27,280 --> 00:32:31,840 Speaker 1: discredit cryptocurrency in countries around the world. What would we 490 00:32:31,920 --> 00:32:37,520 Speaker 1: do without these unaccountable international organizations, eh Now. The second 491 00:32:37,520 --> 00:32:41,720 Speaker 1: set of crypto policy recommendations relates to financial conclusion, and 492 00:32:41,840 --> 00:32:46,200 Speaker 1: this is where the authors drop some more juicy statistics. Quote, 493 00:32:46,920 --> 00:32:51,240 Speaker 1: roughly seven million Americans have no bank account another twenty 494 00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:55,320 Speaker 1: four million rely on costly non bank services. As a 495 00:32:55,400 --> 00:32:58,400 Speaker 1: random fact, I first heard this statistic when listening to 496 00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:02,440 Speaker 1: the testimony of Cryptoca see CEOs earlier this year, which 497 00:33:02,480 --> 00:33:05,600 Speaker 1: we also summarized by the Way. Believe it or not, 498 00:33:05,880 --> 00:33:10,080 Speaker 1: but around five percent of Americans are unbanked and another 499 00:33:10,200 --> 00:33:14,320 Speaker 1: fourteen percent are underbanked, meaning they use non bank services 500 00:33:14,440 --> 00:33:19,000 Speaker 1: for finance. Rather than leaning into these efficient non bank 501 00:33:19,080 --> 00:33:22,480 Speaker 1: services provided by the private sector. The author's focus on 502 00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:27,360 Speaker 1: the fed's upcoming fed NOW Fast Payment service as the solution. 503 00:33:28,360 --> 00:33:32,560 Speaker 1: Note that fast payment services are a precursor to CBDCs. 504 00:33:32,640 --> 00:33:35,760 Speaker 1: According to the Bank for International Settlements or b I 505 00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:39,760 Speaker 1: s NOW to the author's credit. They do admit that 506 00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:44,520 Speaker 1: some cryptocurrencies can make financial services more accessible, but also 507 00:33:44,640 --> 00:33:47,200 Speaker 1: note that there's still lots of work to be done 508 00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:50,520 Speaker 1: on that front. This is a valid point, but it 509 00:33:50,640 --> 00:33:54,280 Speaker 1: again begs the question of which cryptocurrencies the authors are 510 00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:59,520 Speaker 1: referring to, probably stable coins. Regardless, the current administration is 511 00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:03,040 Speaker 1: clearly dead set on the fed now payment service. This 512 00:34:03,280 --> 00:34:06,760 Speaker 1: is because it's the first step to addressing financial inclusion, 513 00:34:06,880 --> 00:34:10,480 Speaker 1: which will be to quote encourage the adoption of the 514 00:34:10,560 --> 00:34:14,200 Speaker 1: fed now service in the U S economy. What's particularly 515 00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:18,240 Speaker 1: scary is that this step includes using fed now payments 516 00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:22,840 Speaker 1: quote in the context of distribution of disaster, emergency or 517 00:34:22,960 --> 00:34:28,359 Speaker 1: other government to consumer payments. Note that taxation and emergency 518 00:34:28,400 --> 00:34:32,160 Speaker 1: relief is how governments around the world will likely achieve 519 00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:36,680 Speaker 1: the adoption of CBDCs, and because there can't be any 520 00:34:36,760 --> 00:34:40,560 Speaker 1: competition to the CBDCs, the second step the administration will 521 00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:44,080 Speaker 1: take is to instruct regulators to crack down on non 522 00:34:44,200 --> 00:34:49,840 Speaker 1: banking entities. This presumably includes cryptocurrency exchanges, as many of 523 00:34:49,920 --> 00:34:54,719 Speaker 1: them offer services similar to banks. In addition, the administration 524 00:34:54,760 --> 00:34:59,640 Speaker 1: will quote align global payments practices, regulations, and supervision protocols. 525 00:35:00,640 --> 00:35:03,680 Speaker 1: This means that there will be no escape from these 526 00:35:03,760 --> 00:35:08,120 Speaker 1: dystopian systems once they're implemented, or at least that's the idea. 527 00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:12,239 Speaker 1: To ensure that these dystopian systems are adopted at all, 528 00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:16,920 Speaker 1: the administration will instruct the National Science Foundation or NSF. 529 00:35:17,440 --> 00:35:20,440 Speaker 1: Plenty of acronyms in today's video, aren't there to research 530 00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:26,040 Speaker 1: quote behavioral economics in the context of fast payments basically 531 00:35:26,400 --> 00:35:29,400 Speaker 1: figure out how you can convince Americans to adopt the 532 00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:33,040 Speaker 1: fed's dystopian technology. As a fun fact, the b i 533 00:35:33,320 --> 00:35:36,440 Speaker 1: S estimates that between four and twelve percent of people 534 00:35:36,560 --> 00:35:41,480 Speaker 1: will voluntarily adopt CBDCs in developed countries. The question then 535 00:35:41,719 --> 00:35:45,720 Speaker 1: is how they'll convince those who will not voluntarily adopt CBDCs. 536 00:35:46,200 --> 00:35:49,600 Speaker 1: Knowing governments, the answer will probably involve a lot of 537 00:35:49,719 --> 00:35:55,400 Speaker 1: force and financial censorship. Anyways. The third set of crypto 538 00:35:55,440 --> 00:36:00,760 Speaker 1: policy recommendations relates to financial stability. Here, the authors highlight 539 00:36:00,840 --> 00:36:03,920 Speaker 1: the fact that the crypto market and the existing financial 540 00:36:04,000 --> 00:36:09,440 Speaker 1: system are becoming more intertwined. They specify that stable coins 541 00:36:09,640 --> 00:36:13,239 Speaker 1: is where most of these connections are. On that note, 542 00:36:13,320 --> 00:36:17,640 Speaker 1: I should explain why regulators aren't so concerned about stable coins. 543 00:36:18,160 --> 00:36:21,160 Speaker 1: In short, it's because most stable coins are backed by 544 00:36:21,400 --> 00:36:25,160 Speaker 1: US government debt. If stable coins become too big and 545 00:36:25,200 --> 00:36:27,880 Speaker 1: there is a run on their stable coin issuer, they 546 00:36:27,960 --> 00:36:31,520 Speaker 1: could dump these treasuries assets on the open market. This 547 00:36:31,719 --> 00:36:34,240 Speaker 1: is why it's a bit silly to use the collapse 548 00:36:34,320 --> 00:36:37,239 Speaker 1: of Terror's US T stable coin as an example of 549 00:36:37,360 --> 00:36:40,800 Speaker 1: how much damage crypto could do to the existing financial system. 550 00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:44,480 Speaker 1: I suppose the authors don't want to reveal that centralized 551 00:36:44,520 --> 00:36:48,200 Speaker 1: stable coins are a way of subsidizing US government spending. 552 00:36:49,160 --> 00:36:52,800 Speaker 1: What the authors do reveal is that the Financial Stability 553 00:36:52,920 --> 00:36:56,200 Speaker 1: Oversight Council or f SOCK, will be publishing a report 554 00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:59,800 Speaker 1: about the risk crypto pose it's to financial stability in October. 555 00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:03,279 Speaker 1: This report will be more significant than you think, and 556 00:37:03,440 --> 00:37:08,160 Speaker 1: that's for two reasons. First, the FSOCK was also created 557 00:37:08,239 --> 00:37:11,080 Speaker 1: by the Dodd Frank Act. If you watched our aforementioned 558 00:37:11,160 --> 00:37:14,480 Speaker 1: video about Michael Barr, it really looks like he's eager 559 00:37:14,560 --> 00:37:17,759 Speaker 1: to use his powers and the powers of these agencies 560 00:37:17,960 --> 00:37:21,040 Speaker 1: to crack down on crypto when the next financial crisis 561 00:37:21,280 --> 00:37:24,719 Speaker 1: comes around. This ties into the second reason why the 562 00:37:24,840 --> 00:37:27,880 Speaker 1: fsck's upcoming report is so important, and that's because it 563 00:37:27,920 --> 00:37:30,879 Speaker 1: will be released around the time the crypto market will 564 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:34,600 Speaker 1: likely be seeing its bear market lows. This would make 565 00:37:34,640 --> 00:37:37,520 Speaker 1: it the perfect time for Michael and co. To exercise 566 00:37:37,560 --> 00:37:41,400 Speaker 1: their powers. More about that in the description now. The 567 00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:44,279 Speaker 1: authors go on to reference the stable Coin Report put 568 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:47,879 Speaker 1: together by the President's Working Group on Financial Markets last 569 00:37:47,960 --> 00:37:51,640 Speaker 1: year as a place for policymakers to start. We actually 570 00:37:51,640 --> 00:37:54,879 Speaker 1: summarize that report too, and I recommend checking that video 571 00:37:54,960 --> 00:37:58,880 Speaker 1: out sooner rather than later. Link is also in the description. 572 00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:04,239 Speaker 1: Funnily enough, the current administration only identifies two steps it 573 00:38:04,360 --> 00:38:07,200 Speaker 1: is planning to take to address the financial stability risks 574 00:38:07,280 --> 00:38:12,560 Speaker 1: supposedly posed by cryptocurrency. The first is quote, the Treasury 575 00:38:12,640 --> 00:38:16,239 Speaker 1: will work with financial institutions to bolster their capacity to 576 00:38:16,400 --> 00:38:22,400 Speaker 1: identify and mitigate cyber vulnerabilities. The second step is similarly strange, 577 00:38:22,480 --> 00:38:27,080 Speaker 1: and that's to quote, identify, track, and analyze emerging strategic 578 00:38:27,239 --> 00:38:32,120 Speaker 1: risks in cryptocurrencies. The fact that the authors couldn't identify 579 00:38:32,280 --> 00:38:36,279 Speaker 1: any concrete financial stability risks caused by cryptocurrencies in these 580 00:38:36,320 --> 00:38:40,160 Speaker 1: two steps suggests that there aren't any, at least not 581 00:38:40,440 --> 00:38:45,480 Speaker 1: yet now. The fourth set of crypto policy recommendations relate 582 00:38:45,560 --> 00:38:51,280 Speaker 1: to advancing quote responsible innovation. The authors start with another statistic, 583 00:38:51,360 --> 00:38:53,920 Speaker 1: and that's that around half of the most valuable tech 584 00:38:54,000 --> 00:38:56,760 Speaker 1: companies in the world are based in the United States. 585 00:38:57,560 --> 00:38:59,920 Speaker 1: This might have something to do with all the back 586 00:39:00,120 --> 00:39:03,360 Speaker 1: door deals these tech companies have with U S intelligence agencies, 587 00:39:03,840 --> 00:39:08,560 Speaker 1: but hey, let's not go there. Ironically, the authors underscore 588 00:39:08,680 --> 00:39:12,600 Speaker 1: the US government's role in facilitating technological innovation in the 589 00:39:12,680 --> 00:39:16,840 Speaker 1: private sector. If you're wondering just how innovative the government 590 00:39:16,920 --> 00:39:20,319 Speaker 1: can be, check out our recent video about whether modification 591 00:39:20,520 --> 00:39:24,319 Speaker 1: link will be in the description of course, now fact 592 00:39:24,360 --> 00:39:27,880 Speaker 1: short conspiracies aside, the authors jump straight to the steps 593 00:39:27,960 --> 00:39:31,240 Speaker 1: that the administration will take to preserve the peculiar dynamic 594 00:39:31,360 --> 00:39:35,200 Speaker 1: between the public and private sectors. The first step will 595 00:39:35,239 --> 00:39:38,840 Speaker 1: be to instruct the Office of Science and Technology Policy 596 00:39:39,000 --> 00:39:42,440 Speaker 1: or o s t P to quote develop a digital 597 00:39:42,520 --> 00:39:47,279 Speaker 1: assets research and development agenda. If you watched our aforementioned 598 00:39:47,400 --> 00:39:50,400 Speaker 1: video about one of the White House's reports, you'll know 599 00:39:50,760 --> 00:39:56,239 Speaker 1: that the os TP isn't all that scientific. Meanwhile, the 600 00:39:56,320 --> 00:40:01,480 Speaker 1: aforementioned NSF will quote back social science and education research 601 00:40:01,640 --> 00:40:06,080 Speaker 1: that develops methods of informing, educating, and training diverse groups 602 00:40:06,160 --> 00:40:10,960 Speaker 1: of stakeholders. Sounds good on the surface, but there always 603 00:40:11,000 --> 00:40:14,000 Speaker 1: seems to be something bad lurking down below with these 604 00:40:14,040 --> 00:40:18,040 Speaker 1: crypto initiatives. Now, the second step will be to instruct 605 00:40:18,160 --> 00:40:22,440 Speaker 1: the Treasury Department and other financial regulators to quote provide 606 00:40:22,560 --> 00:40:27,480 Speaker 1: innovative u S firms developing new financial technologies with regulatory guidance, 607 00:40:27,719 --> 00:40:32,560 Speaker 1: best practices, sharing, and technical assistance. This could actually be 608 00:40:32,760 --> 00:40:36,280 Speaker 1: a very good thing if done right, because institutional investors 609 00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:39,320 Speaker 1: have been itching for the regulatory clarity they need to 610 00:40:39,480 --> 00:40:44,520 Speaker 1: invest in cryptocurrency. The regulatory uncertainty caused by ethereums transition 611 00:40:44,640 --> 00:40:47,480 Speaker 1: to proof of steak is particularly concerning to both retail 612 00:40:47,600 --> 00:40:51,880 Speaker 1: and institutions alike. The third step will be to instruct 613 00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:57,200 Speaker 1: various environmental regulators to you guessed it, quote track digital 614 00:40:57,280 --> 00:41:02,240 Speaker 1: assets environmental impacts, develop performance standards as appropriate, and provide 615 00:41:02,320 --> 00:41:06,160 Speaker 1: local authorities with the tools, resources, and expertise to mitigate 616 00:41:06,360 --> 00:41:11,440 Speaker 1: environmental harms. The author's add that quote, opportunities exist to 617 00:41:11,520 --> 00:41:14,920 Speaker 1: align the development of digital assets with transitioning to a 618 00:41:15,080 --> 00:41:20,439 Speaker 1: net zero emissions economy and improving environmental justice. This makes 619 00:41:20,520 --> 00:41:23,160 Speaker 1: me wonder if they really will ban proof of work 620 00:41:23,320 --> 00:41:28,480 Speaker 1: and whether they'll use some unscientific justification to do so. Now, 621 00:41:28,560 --> 00:41:31,520 Speaker 1: the fourth and final step is interesting as it involves 622 00:41:31,640 --> 00:41:37,560 Speaker 1: quote establishing a standing forum to convene federal agencies, industry, academics, 623 00:41:37,640 --> 00:41:41,480 Speaker 1: and civil society to exchange knowledge and ideas that could 624 00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:48,120 Speaker 1: inform federal regulation standards, coordinating activities, technical assistance, and research support. 625 00:41:48,960 --> 00:41:51,680 Speaker 1: If the getting of all hands on deck to address 626 00:41:51,680 --> 00:41:55,040 Speaker 1: cryptocurrency is not a sign that the government are threatened 627 00:41:55,040 --> 00:41:59,200 Speaker 1: by crypto adoption, I don't know what is any who. 628 00:41:59,719 --> 00:42:03,040 Speaker 1: The fifth set of crypto policy recommendations relate to the 629 00:42:03,120 --> 00:42:05,840 Speaker 1: status of the United States as a leader of the 630 00:42:05,880 --> 00:42:08,880 Speaker 1: status quo of global finance, as well as the country's 631 00:42:09,040 --> 00:42:14,240 Speaker 1: financial competitiveness. Incredibly, the author's commenced by saying the quiet 632 00:42:14,320 --> 00:42:18,719 Speaker 1: part out loud. Quote. Today, global standard setting bodies are 633 00:42:18,840 --> 00:42:24,320 Speaker 1: establishing policies, guidance, and regulatory recommendations for digital assets. The 634 00:42:24,440 --> 00:42:27,719 Speaker 1: United States is working actively with its partners to set 635 00:42:27,760 --> 00:42:32,040 Speaker 1: out these policies in line with our goals. In other words, 636 00:42:32,400 --> 00:42:36,680 Speaker 1: unelected international organizations such as the Financial Action Task Force 637 00:42:36,840 --> 00:42:40,200 Speaker 1: or fat F ACT in accordance with the interests of 638 00:42:40,400 --> 00:42:43,800 Speaker 1: the United States. What's even more telling is that the 639 00:42:43,880 --> 00:42:47,360 Speaker 1: authors explained that the United States has a quote valuable 640 00:42:47,400 --> 00:42:52,319 Speaker 1: opportunity to partner with countries still developing their digital asset ecosystems. 641 00:42:52,640 --> 00:42:55,719 Speaker 1: In other words, the US is positioned to ensure that 642 00:42:55,880 --> 00:43:00,640 Speaker 1: its dominance of the global financial system continues. To ensure 643 00:43:00,800 --> 00:43:05,280 Speaker 1: all of the above, the administration will take the following steps. First, 644 00:43:05,440 --> 00:43:08,680 Speaker 1: it will leverage the power of international organizations like the 645 00:43:08,760 --> 00:43:12,839 Speaker 1: fat F to ensure quote US values find their way 646 00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:17,480 Speaker 1: into cryptocurrency. Note this is code for financial control and 647 00:43:17,680 --> 00:43:22,799 Speaker 1: financial surveillance, not freedom and liberty. Second, the Administration will 648 00:43:22,840 --> 00:43:27,040 Speaker 1: instruct various government agencies to partner with similar government agencies 649 00:43:27,080 --> 00:43:30,400 Speaker 1: around the world. Oddly enough, this step does not include 650 00:43:30,440 --> 00:43:33,680 Speaker 1: any mention of cryptocurrency, so maybe it's just a way 651 00:43:33,719 --> 00:43:38,160 Speaker 1: of sneaking in some more global governance stuff. Third, the 652 00:43:38,239 --> 00:43:43,080 Speaker 1: Administration will help developing countries develop their digital asset infrastructure. 653 00:43:43,680 --> 00:43:45,960 Speaker 1: If the i m f's help is anything to go by, 654 00:43:46,160 --> 00:43:50,760 Speaker 1: this aid will come with lots of strings attached. Fourth, 655 00:43:51,040 --> 00:43:55,280 Speaker 1: the Administration will quote help cutting edge US financial technology 656 00:43:55,360 --> 00:43:59,000 Speaker 1: and digital asset firms find a foothold in global markets 657 00:43:59,120 --> 00:44:03,400 Speaker 1: for their products. This step also doesn't mention crypto, but 658 00:44:03,600 --> 00:44:06,480 Speaker 1: I have a feeling this is a reference to regulated 659 00:44:06,520 --> 00:44:10,399 Speaker 1: stable coin issuers like Circle. If you missed the memo. 660 00:44:10,640 --> 00:44:14,600 Speaker 1: Circle has started releasing stable coins for other fiat currencies, 661 00:44:14,840 --> 00:44:18,200 Speaker 1: notably the euro. I reckon it would be in the 662 00:44:18,320 --> 00:44:21,480 Speaker 1: interest of the United States for Circle to provide its 663 00:44:21,520 --> 00:44:25,960 Speaker 1: digital currency infrastructure two countries in Europe. It's certainly in 664 00:44:26,040 --> 00:44:29,480 Speaker 1: the interests of black Rock, which backs Circle. More about 665 00:44:29,520 --> 00:44:34,320 Speaker 1: black Rock in the description anyhow, The sixth set of 666 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,760 Speaker 1: policy recommendations relate to the favorite topic of anti crypto critics, 667 00:44:39,040 --> 00:44:43,600 Speaker 1: and that's illicit activity in cryptocurrency. The authors begin by 668 00:44:43,680 --> 00:44:46,760 Speaker 1: revealing that the United States has been the entity pushing 669 00:44:46,840 --> 00:44:50,040 Speaker 1: for k y C around the world. The authors then 670 00:44:50,120 --> 00:44:55,120 Speaker 1: say something extremely concerning, and that's quote, while our efforts 671 00:44:55,280 --> 00:44:59,120 Speaker 1: have strengthened the US financial system, digital assets, some of 672 00:44:59,200 --> 00:45:01,840 Speaker 1: which are sud mus and can be transferred without a 673 00:45:01,960 --> 00:45:06,759 Speaker 1: financial intermediary, have been exploited by bad actors. If you 674 00:45:06,800 --> 00:45:10,320 Speaker 1: don't understand why this is so concerning, consider that every 675 00:45:10,600 --> 00:45:15,719 Speaker 1: single cryptocurrency is pseudonymous, and that every single cryptocurrency can 676 00:45:15,840 --> 00:45:20,160 Speaker 1: be transferred without a financial intermediary. They're not talking about 677 00:45:20,200 --> 00:45:25,280 Speaker 1: privacy coins here, They're talking about all cryptos. This rhetoric 678 00:45:25,440 --> 00:45:28,480 Speaker 1: is consistent with the fat f's endgame of killing crypto 679 00:45:28,600 --> 00:45:32,320 Speaker 1: by labeling any crypto transaction or activity that doesn't involve 680 00:45:32,400 --> 00:45:37,000 Speaker 1: a regulated intermediary as high risk, and over time, the 681 00:45:37,120 --> 00:45:40,520 Speaker 1: fat F will pressure countries to cease providing services to 682 00:45:40,719 --> 00:45:46,040 Speaker 1: individuals and institutions who are high risk. As expected, the 683 00:45:46,160 --> 00:45:49,160 Speaker 1: authors go on to give examples of crypto being used 684 00:45:49,280 --> 00:45:52,480 Speaker 1: by bad actors for illicit purposes, and I couldn't help 685 00:45:52,560 --> 00:45:56,880 Speaker 1: but notice that they didn't provide any statistics as concrete evidence. 686 00:45:57,640 --> 00:46:01,799 Speaker 1: That's probably because they know that only zero point one 687 00:46:02,800 --> 00:46:08,080 Speaker 1: of all crypto transactions are related to illicit activity. For context, 688 00:46:08,400 --> 00:46:12,719 Speaker 1: between two and five percent of all THEAT transactions are 689 00:46:13,000 --> 00:46:17,360 Speaker 1: related to illicit activity. This is despite all the extensive 690 00:46:17,480 --> 00:46:20,120 Speaker 1: k y C and a m L that's been enforced 691 00:46:20,200 --> 00:46:23,319 Speaker 1: around the world by the fat F. As a matter 692 00:46:23,360 --> 00:46:26,000 Speaker 1: of fact, it seems that the fat f's so called 693 00:46:26,239 --> 00:46:30,920 Speaker 1: recommendations have done next to nothing to reduce illicit finance 694 00:46:31,040 --> 00:46:34,320 Speaker 1: over the last thirty years. All they've done is create 695 00:46:34,400 --> 00:46:39,160 Speaker 1: a multibillion dollar industry of compliance companies and justified lots 696 00:46:39,280 --> 00:46:43,600 Speaker 1: of government overreach. More about all that in the description now, 697 00:46:44,000 --> 00:46:46,960 Speaker 1: when it comes to the steps the current US administration 698 00:46:47,000 --> 00:46:51,280 Speaker 1: will take to combat illicit activity in cryptocurrency. The first 699 00:46:51,400 --> 00:46:54,560 Speaker 1: will be to call on US politicians to expand the 700 00:46:54,719 --> 00:46:59,319 Speaker 1: Bank Secrecy Act to all of crypto. The authors explicitly 701 00:46:59,400 --> 00:47:02,920 Speaker 1: stayed that this coverage will include Defy and n f 702 00:47:03,040 --> 00:47:06,960 Speaker 1: t s. This means that every crypto transaction worth more 703 00:47:07,040 --> 00:47:09,520 Speaker 1: than ten thousand U S dollars would have to be 704 00:47:09,640 --> 00:47:13,879 Speaker 1: reported to the authorities, including peer to peer crypto transactions, 705 00:47:14,000 --> 00:47:16,680 Speaker 1: which will recall the authorities want to get rid of 706 00:47:17,680 --> 00:47:21,040 Speaker 1: case and point. The administration will also push politicians to 707 00:47:21,160 --> 00:47:25,520 Speaker 1: quote raise the penalties for unlicensed money transmitting, which presumably 708 00:47:25,600 --> 00:47:29,960 Speaker 1: means going after Defy protocols and possibly even crypto wallets. 709 00:47:30,760 --> 00:47:34,120 Speaker 1: It will also push politicians to let the Department of 710 00:47:34,239 --> 00:47:39,399 Speaker 1: Justice quote prosecute digital asset crimes in any jurisdiction where 711 00:47:39,440 --> 00:47:42,719 Speaker 1: a victim of those crimes is found. To my understanding, 712 00:47:42,880 --> 00:47:46,280 Speaker 1: this means the U. S Government could go after crypto 713 00:47:46,400 --> 00:47:51,560 Speaker 1: crimes anywhere in the world now. The second step the 714 00:47:51,600 --> 00:47:54,640 Speaker 1: administration will take is to instruct the Treasury Department to 715 00:47:54,719 --> 00:47:58,400 Speaker 1: publish two reports about the illicit finance risks of Defy 716 00:47:58,520 --> 00:48:01,320 Speaker 1: and n f T s. These reports will be released 717 00:48:01,520 --> 00:48:05,000 Speaker 1: by the end of February and by July next year, respectively. 718 00:48:05,680 --> 00:48:09,239 Speaker 1: Will be sure to cover those when they come out. Now. 719 00:48:09,320 --> 00:48:11,479 Speaker 1: The third step the administration will take is to quote 720 00:48:11,560 --> 00:48:15,440 Speaker 1: continue to expose and disrupt illicit actors and address the 721 00:48:15,520 --> 00:48:18,880 Speaker 1: abuse of digital assets. The details of this step suggest 722 00:48:19,040 --> 00:48:22,560 Speaker 1: we will see more sanctions against crypto projects and protocols 723 00:48:22,800 --> 00:48:26,680 Speaker 1: like Tornado Cash. The fourth step the administration will take 724 00:48:26,840 --> 00:48:29,120 Speaker 1: is to work with the private sector to make sure 725 00:48:29,239 --> 00:48:33,880 Speaker 1: it understands the illicit financing risks of cryptocurrency. I suspect 726 00:48:34,040 --> 00:48:37,959 Speaker 1: this will include labeling certain crypto activities as high risk, 727 00:48:38,360 --> 00:48:41,720 Speaker 1: as per the fat f's game plan. I also couldn't 728 00:48:41,760 --> 00:48:45,359 Speaker 1: help but notice that the authors revealed that quote the CFPB, 729 00:48:45,719 --> 00:48:50,680 Speaker 1: an independent agency, also voluntarily provided information to the Administration 730 00:48:50,960 --> 00:48:55,279 Speaker 1: as too risks arising from digital assets. This is suspicious, 731 00:48:55,520 --> 00:48:58,719 Speaker 1: as you'll recall that the CFPB was created by the 732 00:48:58,800 --> 00:49:01,359 Speaker 1: Dodd Frank Act, which was written by an individual who 733 00:49:01,400 --> 00:49:10,239 Speaker 1: seems to be out to kill cryptocurrency. Watch out now. 734 00:49:10,640 --> 00:49:14,080 Speaker 1: The final part of the White House's crypto policy recommendations 735 00:49:14,239 --> 00:49:18,600 Speaker 1: relate to a digital dollar CBDC. It seems that this 736 00:49:19,000 --> 00:49:22,520 Speaker 1: was snuck in as well, since it wasn't exactly emphasized 737 00:49:22,600 --> 00:49:25,759 Speaker 1: at the beginning. Of the fact sheet. The authors start 738 00:49:25,880 --> 00:49:28,799 Speaker 1: by talking about all the benefits that are digital dollar 739 00:49:28,840 --> 00:49:31,680 Speaker 1: would bring benefits that could just as easily be achieved 740 00:49:31,840 --> 00:49:36,440 Speaker 1: by an existing non bank entity or cryptocurrency. These include 741 00:49:36,600 --> 00:49:40,360 Speaker 1: financial inclusion, cross border payments, you know, the usual talking points. 742 00:49:41,280 --> 00:49:44,000 Speaker 1: It's towards the end of the first paragraph where the 743 00:49:44,040 --> 00:49:47,719 Speaker 1: authors reveal the real reason why the US government wants 744 00:49:47,800 --> 00:49:50,919 Speaker 1: a digital dollar, and that's because it could quote help 745 00:49:51,040 --> 00:49:56,040 Speaker 1: preserve US global financial leadership and support the effectiveness of sanctions, 746 00:49:57,080 --> 00:50:00,680 Speaker 1: as the recent sanctions against Russia's central bank shown. However, 747 00:50:01,120 --> 00:50:05,920 Speaker 1: these two goals seem to be mutually exclusive. No same 748 00:50:06,040 --> 00:50:08,920 Speaker 1: country would adopt a digital dollar if it meant the 749 00:50:09,080 --> 00:50:12,200 Speaker 1: US government could effectively turn off its economy at the 750 00:50:12,280 --> 00:50:15,680 Speaker 1: flick of a switch. This degree of power would be 751 00:50:15,760 --> 00:50:19,400 Speaker 1: possible if the us D maintains its reserve currency status 752 00:50:19,520 --> 00:50:22,279 Speaker 1: in a digital form. Hence why the two goals are 753 00:50:22,480 --> 00:50:26,239 Speaker 1: mutually exclusive. Either the us D remains neutral to be 754 00:50:26,320 --> 00:50:29,520 Speaker 1: the world's reserve currency, or it is weaponized at the 755 00:50:29,640 --> 00:50:33,800 Speaker 1: expense of this status. The more you know now, the 756 00:50:33,920 --> 00:50:38,719 Speaker 1: authors reveal that quote, the Administration has developed policy objectives 757 00:50:38,840 --> 00:50:42,720 Speaker 1: for a US CBDC system which reflect the federal government's 758 00:50:42,760 --> 00:50:47,680 Speaker 1: priorities for a potential US CBDC. Put differently, the ball 759 00:50:47,920 --> 00:50:51,640 Speaker 1: is already rolling towards the creation of a digital dollar. 760 00:50:52,360 --> 00:50:55,680 Speaker 1: The authors reiterate that the Treasury Department will work hand 761 00:50:55,719 --> 00:50:59,120 Speaker 1: in hand with the Federal Reserve to develop a digital dollar, 762 00:50:59,239 --> 00:51:03,400 Speaker 1: again for shadowing the possibility of these two entities merging 763 00:51:03,840 --> 00:51:07,719 Speaker 1: as many have predicted. And of course, there was no 764 00:51:07,920 --> 00:51:11,560 Speaker 1: mention of all the down sides of a CBDC. If 765 00:51:11,640 --> 00:51:14,680 Speaker 1: you've watched any of our videos about CBDCs, you'll know 766 00:51:14,960 --> 00:51:17,799 Speaker 1: that they will give governments the power to decide how 767 00:51:17,960 --> 00:51:21,359 Speaker 1: you spend, where you spend, and what you spend your 768 00:51:21,400 --> 00:51:25,680 Speaker 1: money on, and even how much you can save. That's 769 00:51:25,920 --> 00:51:30,680 Speaker 1: just on the individual level. At the economic level, CBDCs 770 00:51:30,760 --> 00:51:34,120 Speaker 1: will make borrowing extremely expensive due to their effects on 771 00:51:34,280 --> 00:51:38,600 Speaker 1: bank lending and profitability. Good luck getting a mortgage. It 772 00:51:38,640 --> 00:51:42,759 Speaker 1: will also mean that the stock market itself will be manipulated. 773 00:51:43,120 --> 00:51:46,320 Speaker 1: Think Robin Hood blocking trades during the game Stop Saga, 774 00:51:46,760 --> 00:51:51,560 Speaker 1: but on steroids. So this brings me to the big question, 775 00:51:51,719 --> 00:51:55,239 Speaker 1: and that's what the White House's crypto framework means. For 776 00:51:55,640 --> 00:52:00,160 Speaker 1: the crypto market to be blunt. It's not good, it's 777 00:52:00,160 --> 00:52:04,680 Speaker 1: clear that the current administration wants to crush cryptocurrency. If 778 00:52:04,719 --> 00:52:07,520 Speaker 1: you've seen any of our summaries of crypto related testimonies, 779 00:52:07,680 --> 00:52:11,960 Speaker 1: this should not come as a surprise. Logically, then it 780 00:52:12,120 --> 00:52:15,600 Speaker 1: means that the success of the crypto policy recommendations laid 781 00:52:15,640 --> 00:52:19,560 Speaker 1: out in the framework ultimately depends on what happens during 782 00:52:19,680 --> 00:52:23,439 Speaker 1: the next election cycles in the United States. It looks 783 00:52:23,520 --> 00:52:27,120 Speaker 1: like pro crypto politicians will gain ground in the upcoming 784 00:52:27,200 --> 00:52:30,359 Speaker 1: mid terms, but at this point it's anyone's guest as 785 00:52:30,400 --> 00:52:33,520 Speaker 1: to what the outcome of the four election will be. 786 00:52:34,719 --> 00:52:37,600 Speaker 1: That's going to be the more significant election, since it's 787 00:52:37,640 --> 00:52:40,600 Speaker 1: around the time the next crypto bull run should come. 788 00:52:41,160 --> 00:52:45,520 Speaker 1: Take note. If pro crypto politicians do gain ground in 789 00:52:45,600 --> 00:52:48,480 Speaker 1: the upcoming midterms, then I reckon most of these anti 790 00:52:48,520 --> 00:52:52,520 Speaker 1: crypto policies will never be pursued. Then again, so many 791 00:52:52,600 --> 00:52:55,840 Speaker 1: of them are being undertaken by unelected officials that have 792 00:52:55,960 --> 00:53:01,120 Speaker 1: been appointed by anti crypto politicians, so it's uncertain. One 793 00:53:01,200 --> 00:53:04,200 Speaker 1: thing is for sure, however, and that's that a wave 794 00:53:04,440 --> 00:53:08,000 Speaker 1: of regulation is coming to the crypto industry. Some of 795 00:53:08,080 --> 00:53:11,399 Speaker 1: it will be reasonable, and we could see large institutional 796 00:53:11,480 --> 00:53:15,360 Speaker 1: inflows as a result. It's the unreasonable regulation that we 797 00:53:15,520 --> 00:53:18,719 Speaker 1: must be on the lookout for. This includes labeling of 798 00:53:18,840 --> 00:53:21,960 Speaker 1: all crypto related activities as high risk as a way 799 00:53:22,040 --> 00:53:25,759 Speaker 1: of choking off and eventually killing the industry. Given that 800 00:53:25,840 --> 00:53:30,000 Speaker 1: the United States is behind the international organizations engaging in 801 00:53:30,120 --> 00:53:33,920 Speaker 1: this kind of guerrilla regulation, American voters might be the 802 00:53:34,040 --> 00:53:37,440 Speaker 1: ones who decide what comes next for crypto at the 803 00:53:37,600 --> 00:53:40,759 Speaker 1: end of the day. As such, I strongly suggest that 804 00:53:40,880 --> 00:53:45,200 Speaker 1: any American viewers inform themselves about pro crypto candidates in 805 00:53:45,360 --> 00:53:49,360 Speaker 1: their areas. You'll notice that pro crypto politicians sit on 806 00:53:49,600 --> 00:53:51,879 Speaker 1: both sides of the aisle, so you should be able 807 00:53:51,920 --> 00:53:55,280 Speaker 1: to find one you can support, regardless of your political stripes. 808 00:53:55,880 --> 00:53:58,879 Speaker 1: I'll leave a link to coin bases crypto politician tool 809 00:53:59,000 --> 00:54:01,759 Speaker 1: in the description you need it, and I'll leave you 810 00:54:02,080 --> 00:54:05,920 Speaker 1: with this thought. The crypto world is counting on you 811 00:54:06,400 --> 00:54:11,280 Speaker 1: to make sure financial freedom continues. Financial freedom is required 812 00:54:11,520 --> 00:54:16,560 Speaker 1: for everything else. Last I checked, freedom is an American value, 813 00:54:16,960 --> 00:54:20,440 Speaker 1: so let's see it ring. Thank you so much for 814 00:54:20,520 --> 00:54:23,320 Speaker 1: listening to the Coin Bureau podcast. If you'd like to 815 00:54:23,400 --> 00:54:26,960 Speaker 1: learn more about cryptocurrency, you can visit our YouTube channel 816 00:54:27,040 --> 00:54:30,160 Speaker 1: at YouTube dot com forward slash coin Bureau. You can 817 00:54:30,239 --> 00:54:32,719 Speaker 1: also go to coin bureau dot com for loads more 818 00:54:32,760 --> 00:54:35,400 Speaker 1: information about all things crypto. You can follow me on 819 00:54:35,520 --> 00:54:38,680 Speaker 1: Twitter at at coin bureau or one word, and I'm 820 00:54:38,719 --> 00:54:41,359 Speaker 1: also active on TikTok and Instagram too