for life and liberty

Bitcoin Is Not Quantum-Safe, And How We Can Fix It When Needed

"Given what is currently public knowledge, quantum computers are still far away; the most powerful quantum computer to date managed to use Shor’s algorithm to factor the number 21. However, we always need to have a plan of what we can do if Edward Snowden decides to leak out that the NSA has fully functional quantum computers hiding in a secret data center. We probably cannot handle such a sudden event, but we certainly can handle cases where we get even a month of advance warning. From there, we lick our wounds, pick up our losses and move on to enjoy some of the more wonderful things that quantum computing has to offer." Continue reading →

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Bitcoin Exchange Mt. Gox Still Grappling With Slowdown

"Mt. Gox has seen U.S.-dollar denominated trading volume fall, and has struggled to keep up with customer requests for their money. In June, it temporarily halted U.S. dollar-denominated withdrawals. In July, it announced that it had resumed withdrawals, but acknowledged it hasn’t been able to process them as fast as it would like. Several customers have contacted MoneyBeat describing the trouble they’ve experienced since in getting funds out of Mt. Gox. The company essentially said the problem lies not with itself, but with the financial system outside of virtual currencies. All of this has resulted in a less liquid market for bitcoin trading." Continue reading →

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Building Bitcoin into the Core Architecture of the Web

"At the Inside Bitcoins NYC conference, Manu Sporny shared his answer to accelerate growth and provided a vision of adding 2.4 billion people to the Bitcoin ecosystem within the next five years. Where might one find a market that large that can be on-boarded that quickly? To Sporny, the answer lies in the 2.4 billion people with access to the web and in the sheer global dominance of four popular web browsers: IE, Safari, Firefox and Chrome. The challenge that naturally follows is how to integrate Bitcoin into the browser. Sporny is tackling this challenge by pushing for new W3C standards for the browser that will allow for more simplified transactions over the web." Continue reading →

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Bank of England refuses comment on huge discrepancy in custodial gold reports

"The Bank of England refuses to explain what appears to be a huge discrepancy in its accounting of the gold it holds in custody, a difference of as much as 1,200 tonnes between the total reported in the bank's annual report in February and the total reported in a 'virtual tour' of the bank posted this month at the bank's Internet site. The discrepancy was noted by GoldMoney research director Alasdair Macleod last week during an interview with Max Keiser on the 'Keiser Report' program on the Russia Today television network." Continue reading →

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Swedish warning

"The hard data is in. Sweden's GDP fell by 0.1pc in the second quarter, astonishing everybody who relies on soft PMI confidence surveys. Year-on-year growth has been just 0.6pc, half the level expected, and Sweden is supposed to be a star performer in Europe. There are fundamental economic and mathematical reasons why Europe remains in dire trouble. Nominal GDP is contracting in a string of countries, causing debt dynamics to explode. As for Sweden, it had a housing boom and household debt bubble like the rest of us. The reality is that the Scandinavian pillar is not as strong as people think. There are no strong pillars in Europe." Continue reading →

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IMF finds $11 billion ‘black hole’ in Greece’s finances

"The International Monetary Fund warned the eurozone yesterday that it may be forced to write off a chunk of Greece’s debt after identifying an $11bn black hole in the finances of the recession-stricken country. In its regular update on the programme of financial austerity and structural change agreed to by Athens in return for financial help, the Washington-based IMF said weak growth and a sluggish pace of reform had opened up a funding gap in both 2014 and 2015." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIMF finds $11 billion ‘black hole’ in Greece’s finances

The Blindness of Modern Economists

"The economic establishment blames today's evils on free markets, a lack of government intervention, and banks for being reluctant to lend. It blames government deficits on cheats who don't pay their taxes. There are four horsemen of the global economic apocalypse, all interlinked: the overburdened economy; broken banks; expensive interventionist governments; and a developing welfare and pension crisis. As a politician aptly described to me when I interviewed him a few months ago in Brussels, trying to squeeze out economic growth under these conditions is like trying to fly a plane with concrete wings." Continue reading →

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The Pretense of Knowledge Is Alive & Well

"The Federal Reserve itself is a tool of the banks. It's a banking cartel. Trying to separate the banks from The Fed is an error. It's one big happy thieving family. Any (and all) government regulations that are put in place (or removed) are done for the benefit of the entire system. The best way to picture it is to think of a giant octopus. The head is The Federal Reserve and the sprawling arms are the banks. 'Regulations' and 'Deregulations' are just fodder for the masses out there to think that 'government is doing something'. To think that The Fed is some kind of 'regulator' is the same as thinking that the arsonist 'regulates' the fire." Continue reading →

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The Lady Who Votes Against Bernanke and Other Fed Members

"The Fed will continue its $85 billion bond buying program and the Fed says price inflation is below its 2% target, while the MIT Billion Prices Index shows price inflation around 2.5%, One FOMC voting member, Kansas City Fed President Esther George, continues to vote against current Fed policy. Why does she vote this way? George gives few speeches, but she did deliver a speech in June where she discussed her views. She is far from a hard money person, but her speech does contain some concern about the current massive additions to the monetary base." Continue reading →

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You Don’t Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows

"There appears to be a tendency for market observers to follow the same news stories. The result of this phenomenon is that entire sectors are ignored or understudied for long periods of time. When the attention shifts, large swings can occur as the mob draws similar conclusions and takes action. Here are two phrases to wrap up the point: The first is: 'Liquidity only matters when it’s the only thing that matters.' This is a comment from the 2007-08 crisis, when otherwise functioning firms disappeared overnight because funding became impossible to find. Think Bear Stearns or Lehman Bros. The second is: 'Borrowing is cheap until it isn’t.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingYou Don’t Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows