The New Future of Visiting the Past: Blockchain, Communication, and the Age of Immutability

in #blog3 years ago (edited)


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I was going down memory lane, looking through many of my old comments, articles, and conversations, when I began to realize another important accident of the blockchain and the internet in general:

Your past is rapidly becoming something that you can visit.

It's nothing new that you can see your comments, pictures, and writings from long ago. If you did that right now, I'm sure you'd get lost down a rabbit hole from which you would not return for hours.

But blockchains are different.

Why?

Because unlike other platforms from the past, you cannot delete your history from a blockchain. It remains there, immutably, forever.

This means that instead of a squeaky clean version of your history, like you have no doubt curated on other platforms, your true essence is plain for all to see on a blockchain. Your triumphs and successes are seen in the proper context of your faults and foibles, your errors and mistakes.

There's something beautiful about that.

In an age of information those with the resources to penetrate the privacy barriers of others have all the power.


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But as large institutions are drawn into interacting with blockchains, they are put in a position with crucial differences from interacting with conventional forms of currency and book keeping.

Sooner or later, everything they do that involved a blockchain will be exposed for all to see, and our society will finally be one where private individuals have a more equal footing with large institutions, corporations, and the government. The footing won't be equal, but it'll be closer than it is, today.

I, for one, look forward to this future. And am happy that this proto-societal community that we're building on Hive is getting closer to a society that works for nearly everyone.

For me, it was never just about the money. If that were the case I'd have quit long ago. This experiment was always worth being a part of, and I'm grateful that my descendants will likely be able to come over and take a gander at what their ancestor was up to at this amazing juncture in history.

Yeah, it was never really just about the money. However, I have faith in this platform, and I believe that will come also.

If it does, when it does, all will be able to see that I made it the honest way.