Why Canadians NEED Bitcoin
The Canadian Government is planning to freeze the financial assets of the protestors and block financial aid from sites like GoFundMe. They can't do anything about Bitcoin though.
Canada is currently experiencing the worst protests it has had in years.
The countries truckers, who are opposed to vaccine passports and want an end to vaccine mandates, have travelled to the Canadian capital Ottawa in protest. There are thousands of trucks hogging the streets which have bought the capital to a standstill.
Follow the Money
The Canadian government were not prepared for the level of organisation and coordination shown by the protestors but quickly mobilised to fight the protestors finances.
A GoFundMe fundraiser for the protesters reached $10m and had distributed $1m before it was taken down (police cited ‘terrorist concerns’). Originally GoFundMe had suggested they would distribute the funds to more worthwhile charities. This caused a bit of an uproar and they have since agreed to return the money to the donors.
Another fundraising website, GiveSendGo was hacked and briefly taken offline in an apparent attempt to stop $8.6m raised for the Freedom Trucker Convoy from being distributed. The hack also doxxed 10,000 individual donators who have been attacked online by government supporting activists.
The Canadian Government has since invoked the Emergencies Act which gives the Government loads of new toys to fight the protestors with. The one that interests us is Banks can now freeze the assets of individuals without court order…
Protestors and Supporters of the Freedom Convoy found themselves facing a situation that Bitcoiners have known about for years, that their finances are under the complete control of an increasingly authoritarian government.
Bitcoin is outside of the realms of government to regulate or control. Governments can control the gates to traditional finance using the centralised exchanges but once you take personal custody of your Bitcoin they have no control over it. Bitcoin supporters quickly raised 21 Bitcoin to support the Freedom Convoy.
Bitcoin is still not being used for day to day transaction in any meaningful way so supporters and volunteers have had to get creative in the ways that they distribute the Bitcoin donations by paying off credit card debts and distributing pre purchased gift cards.
Should Bitcoin successfully finance the protest then we may see the state control of the financial sector start to reverse.
This Exact Same Story Played Out In Nigeria In 2021
In July we wrote about how cryptocurrencies were being used in Nigeria to circumvent the governments oppressive tactics (You can read about it here).
The people of Nigeria are more accustomed to government financial mismanagement and oppression than the Canadians and have embraced the crypto industry much more full heartedly. Recent reports suggest 32% of Nigerians own or use cryptocurrencies.
The ease at which the people circumvented their governments sanctions shocked the Nigerian ruling elite who have had no choice but to end the bully boy tactics and negotiate with its citizens.
What will happen with Justin Trudeau?
It’s hard to say at this stage. At the Wealth Gap we are not a fan of authoritarian regimes and even in his own words he seems to be heading in that direction.
Until Next Time
The Wealth Gap