Be Good to Each Other: A Call to Action for the Bitcoin Community

In a time marked by deepening divisions and increasing political toxicity, the phrase “Be good to each other” might sound like a simple platitude.

In a time marked by deepening divisions and increasing political toxicity, the phrase “Be good to each other” might sound like a simple platitude. Still, I believe it is a radical act of defiance against the forces tearing our society apart. Since 2016, I’ve ended my podcasts with this phrase, not because it’s easy, but because it’s essential. The more I observe the world around us—whether in the context of global politics or the ongoing Bitcoin Civil War—the more I see the need for this fundamental principle to guide our actions.

Rudyard Lynch, a social commentator speaking recently on the Danny Jones podcast, articulated a sobering truth: all the ingredients for an American Civil War are already present. We are merely waiting for a catalyst.

Lynch’s analysis was compelling not just for his grasp of the historical parallels, but for his focus on the cultural decay that comes from a lack of consensus. Today, nearly every issue—social, political, or even personal—comes loaded with implications that place someone into a broader, often toxic, political narrative. In such an environment, building meaningful consensus or trust becomes impossible. This toxicity is the breeding ground for conflict, not cooperation.

The cascade effect of radicalism

Lynch also noted a crucial dynamic that is often overlooked: the very people who ignite the flames of revolution or civil unrest are rarely the ones who benefit in the end. As conflicts escalate, factions radicalize, and moderates are forced to pick sides or be sidelined. However, once the dust settles, it is often the most radical elements—those who lack the skills to build a sustainable coalition—who are swept away. This dynamic isn’t confined to political revolutions; it plays out in every sphere of life, including the Bitcoin community.

I’ve been in the trenches of the Bitcoin Civil War long enough to witness this firsthand.

While I’m not above trolling my opponents, the overwhelming focus of my work has been on leading by example for the betterment of the broader culture. I’ve often signed off with “be good to each other” because I want to remind people that even though we may disagree, I do not want to see people marginalized, dehumanized, or harmed due to our technical disagreements.

I believe this sentiment is starting to bear fruit.

Today, Bitcoin newcomers are arriving who have little to no context on the extreme toxicity of the past. Instead, they see Bitcoin for what it truly could be at scale—a tool for maximizing the efficiency and velocity of commerce, not just a zero-sum game of ideological dominance or “number go up.”

That toxic faction still exists, but I’m extremely encouraged to see entrants from the last three or four years discover Bitcoin and immediately start gravitating toward the need for using it to its full potential—much like the BSV community saw in the 2015-2018 era.

The Bitcoin Civil War: A study in microcosm

The Bitcoin Civil War is a microcosm of the larger cultural conflict. On one side, we have the small blockers who have spent years defending the status quo of BTC, focusing on limited block sizes, ideological purity, and the perpetual need to run a node on their mother’s boyfriend’s computers. On the other, big blockers like myself have been advocating for a vision of Bitcoin that scales massively to handle global commerce and data integrity. But here’s where things are getting interesting: the radicals who dominated the conversation for so long are beginning to run out of steam. They’re retiring from the fray, and more hopeful, coalition-building moderates are stepping in to fill the void.

We are seeing signs of this shift even among our fiercest opponents. While big blockers focus on projects like Teranode, which aims to create a scalable, high-throughput Bitcoin network, and 1Sat Ordinal tokens, which explore novel use cases for micropayments and digital assets, small blockers are revisiting old ideas like the return of OP_CAT and other long-neglected scripts and creating things like Fractal Bitcoin because they want to live in a world where bitcoin is some kind of a monetized, distributed supercomputer too. They are also soliciting big blockers for expertise, recognizing that the future of Bitcoin may lie in a nomadic, centrist culture where Bitcoiners of all stripes can work together across BTC and BSV.

We are ecstatic to introduce the GOAT of OP_CAT Xiaohui Liu as one of our advisors

Xiaohui Liu is an absolute legend and is widely regarded as the leading professional in OP_CAT. Xiaohui will provide top expert guidance on how we utilize OP_CAT in our platform!@scryptplatform pic.twitter.com/I4HxJqHe8m

— Satspumpfun (@Satspumpfun) August 31, 2024

The most bullish part is that instead of hiding or shunning. They are