This is a very deep and complex topic, and could well need a series of articles to cover just the basics of what trust is, why it is important, and what are the different views and relations to the various aspects of life.
It could be the mother of all rabbit holes, and surely one that represents well what we do here in Shuken.
We could start with:
How did we get here?
Nothing happens by chance and we could get into a time machine to really understand what led us here, but a good starting point is this website where you can see what happened after, when US President Nixon announced that the US dollar would lose its “temporary” convertibility to gold… (WTF Happenned in 1971)
There are also multiple brilliant authors in the field of economics, philosophy or even politics, that have written excellent content about the current monetary system and the different ramifications and consequences, so we encourage you to go and DYR.
Unfortunately, it is not obvious for a lot of people that the current FIAT money/system is broken, let alone those who still believe that is just temporary or simply blame something or someone else for the current “chaos and uncertainty” we live in. Probably many still don’t understand well what is coming.
Money is the ultimate layer of trust between individuals and how they organize themselves to prosper in society. So if prosperity is in the hands of a few (cantillionaires), that leads to what we are all now living: mass surveillance and tyrannical nations on the rise in the name of fake protection and security.
Another key factor of trust is to evolve from existing KYC surveillance practices into something that fits the new decentralized era we are starting. We are firm believers that a system cannot be fixed with the very tools that are part of the problem and we envision that decentralized IDs will be everywhere and self-hosted by everyone, hence the importance of understanding what is a node beyond validating transactions into the bitcoin network…
CBDCS with Digital IDs vs Decentralized IDs is another critical part of the trust game that surely they will want to fool us all, in the name of “security and necessary control”.
So what is Sovereignty?
Being Sovereign is not about individualism, but a key enabler to regain back trust.
Our brand name, Shuken, was inspired by the Japanese word that means sovereignty.
It can have different meanings to different people, and in fact throughout history it has evolved its meaning based on the different ideologies of the time and the people trying to explain it. Derived from the Latin superanus through the French souveraineté, the term was originally understood to mean the equivalent of supreme power. The rise of the Sovereign Individual outside just the sovereign state, is explained very well by the authors of the book: “The Sovereign Individual: Mastering the Transition to the Information Age.”
It is indeed a must-read for those seeking to understand what true sovereignty means, but truly the definition is much broader than what is even written in that book. For us, Sovereignty is a movement, a way of life beyond just financial realms, so we invite you to start the Shuken journey with us!!
Why is Bitcoin and the Cyberpunk movement the hope we need?
Top economist F.A.Hayek in 1984 already described what the solution would be:
“I don’t believe we shall ever have a good money again before we take the thing out of the hands of government, that is, we can’t take it violently out of the hands of government, all we can do is by some sly roundabout way introduce something that they can’t stop.”
Bitcoin is a true revolution already envisioned by some, and the gift that the Cyberpunks gave us all as part of their legacy. All their work in the areas of open source movement, cryptography or even to the wonders of fixing the double spend problem (creating a new breakthrough in the use of energy) was to create a truly decentralized money that no one can fully stop.
Do not despair and do not forget that while trust may be broken, there are tons of good people and things out there.
Bitcoin cannot be uninvented and it is much more than an asset class, so it is time for the builders, the misfits, the dreamers, and everyone to make it happen. Hence, Shuken is making sure everyone can be as sovereign as they want while enabling access and usage to the bitcoin era, one node at a time.
If we can help everyone to achieve this, we’ll open up many possibilities and opportunities for the generations of tomorrow, and ultimately bring back the trust that will let us flourish again as a civilization.
In the meantime,
Be Shuken. Be Sovereign!
