It's been an unusual last couple of weeks here at the Bent. It is unusual for us to focus on a single topic as consistently as we've focused on the omnibus bi-partisan infrastructure bill that is currently being voted on in the United States. However, I feel as if this moment calls for a bit of focus because it may prove to be a very critical juncture in Bitcoin's path to ultimate success. As we rounded out 2020 into 2021, I mentioned my belief that Bitcoin reached a cultural tipping point last year in the wake of Bitcoin being talked about more seriously by many respected institutional investors, pro athletes, and politicians. Like it or not, the masses look to these types for trendsetting. And like it or love it, several individuals in these circles helped bring legitimacy to Bitcoin in the eyes of many in 2020. Think Paul Tudor Jones, Russell Okung, and Senator Cynthia Lummis.

That was a great step for Bitcoin to take. Becoming more palatable to people who tend to look for confirming signals from individuals they admire is progress.

Bitcoin completed another kind of step over the last couple of weeks; it cemented itself as a force to be reckoned with in US politics. The inclusion of a provision that would create a considerable amount of uncertainty for particular players within the industry budding around Bitcoin became the main focus of a bi-partisan omnibus spending bill that many though would fly through the Senate and the House. The debate over the language included in the "crypto" provision delayed the vote multiple time. Ultimately, the bill made it through the Senate with the original language in tact. If it makes it through the House it will likely be signed into law by the Big Guy and "brokers", as defined by the vague language written into the provision, will be "required" to provide more information to the IRS. Whether or not that ends up happening is another question. We will begin to find out in 2023 when the market will be compelled to comply with that provision.

The question that lingers in your Uncle Marty's mind at the moment is, "How many will comply when compelled by a Federal government that is viewed as illegitimate?" At what point do people begin to realize that they are in the same spot the Founding Fathers of the United States Republic found themselves in right before their revolution?

If you've been following the developments surrounding the infrastructure bill, the efforts to get "appropriate language" included in the bill, and the bill passing the Senate as originally written because of an 84-year-old Senator from Alabama "mad" about not having enough money allocated to the War Machine and Bernie Sanders, you've come to realize how corrupt the system is. You've come to question whether or not the system even attempts to put a minimal amount of effort into pretending that they care about your input via the "democratic" voting process.The bill is so long and so filled with absolute trash written by a hodgepodge of lobbyists representing the interests behind the politicians voting on these laws that it is insulting to insinuate it is representative of the desires of the American voting class. For those who have not been very skeptical of the political class and have been swept up in the coverage of this particular provision, this could be an eye opening moment. The process isn't as fair as they were led to believe. In fact, it's not fair at all.

The individual doesn't have any representation at the Federal level. Lobbyists write the laws. The power structure is willing to sacrifice a golden goose in the womb for the sake of one on its death bed. Couldn't one make the argument that it is completely warranted to openly rebel by vocally opting out and campaigning for others to do the same? What is the best, most peaceful path forward?

I humbly suggest that individuals who want Bitcoin to succeed as quickly as possible shift their focus away from the federal government and toward individual states.

Final thought...

The WWE should have never bent the knee to the World Wildlife Fund. Very low T of them.