Abstract
Bitcoin (BTC) is often cited as Libertarian. However, the technology underpinning Bitcoin, blockchain, has properties that make it ideally suited to Socialist paradigms. Current literature supports the Libertarian viewpoint by focusing on the ability of Bitcoin to bypass central authority and provide anonymity; rarely is there an examination of blockchain technology’s capacity for decentralised transparency and auditability in support of a Socialist model. This paper conducts a review of the blockchain, Libertarianism, and Socialist philosophies. It then explores Socialist models of public ownership and looks at the unique cooperative properties of blockchain that make the technology ideal for supporting Socialist societies. In summary, this paper argues that blockchain technologies are not just a Libertarian tool, they also enhance Socialist forms of governance.
Highlights
Bitcoin (BTC) is referred to as cryptocurrency because it is a form of electronic cash that relies on cryptography
The first reference implementation of BTC was published online in early 2009 [18] and the first transaction of BTC, in block 170, took place on 12 January 2009. This first transaction was between Nakamoto and a developer specialising in cryptography, called Hal Finney, who lauded BTC and remarked that the underlying technology, the blockchain, included “some interesting features” [19]
The blockchain is an essential component of Bitcoin (BTC) because it is an immutable ledger of every BTC transaction that has ever taken place
Summary
Bitcoin (BTC) is referred to as cryptocurrency because it is a form of electronic cash that relies on cryptography. This paper gives an overview of BTC and blockchain technology It introduces Libertarian ideology before investigating how that applies to the blockchain. We discuss Socialist philosophy, and apply its ideas to blockchain technology This allows us to examine whether the core concepts behind BTC and blockchain are ideally suited to support the social and political philosophies discussed. This article uses the term State to refer to an organised political entity that forms a single system of government. In the UK, parliament is the legislative, elected body of Government, and: “Parliamentary sovereignty is a principle of the UK constitution. It makes Parliament the supreme legal authority in the UK, which can create or end any law” [11]. In this paper, the terms Sovereign, State and Government are synonyms that we use interchangeably
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