Fast and steady

I'm not sure that is really a valid concern. They can't realistically seize bitcoins or destroy them as you could store them on your computer, out of their reach (that is, unless they raid your home and steal your computer where you are storing your wallet). Edit: from what I understand, you could also just write some sort of key down on a piece of paper as well? Since I haven't actually bought any bitcoins or installed the software, I'm not 100% clear on that.

I'm not an investor in bitcoin myself, although I do find it very interesting and in many ways hope it succeeds. This call was interesting to me because I've had some of the same concerns about bitcoin as the caller. I think Stef's arguments made logical sense to me, although I'm still not completely convinced. One concern that I have that I don't think was addressed (if it was, I missed it) is that the Government doesn't necessarily have to *ban* bitcoin, they could instead try and scare people off of it by manipulating the market in the same ways that many people are sure that they manipulate the gold market. Okay, okay, total conspiracy theory - but I don't think it's totally out of the realm of possibility. Will it happen? Will they be successful? I don't know. Then again, if it is revealed that the Government is doing this, it has the potential to backfire on them just as much as banning it might. As far as banning it goes, I think Stef made a good point in that the Government banning things in the past (alcohol, drugs, etc) has achieved exactly the opposite effect and that this may be a good indication that the banning of bitcoin would result in the same happening. I was about to argue that the Government could manipulate people into believing that bitcoin was only used by bad people to launder money (I use that as an example because they are already using that sort of argument) and use that as an excuse to ban it. However, I just remembered that they did the same for alcohol and drugs as well. The premise behind prohibition was that alcohol was being used by evil exploiters to keep the poor (mostly Irish) class down. The excuse for the War on Drugs was likely much the same, "drugs are bad, mmmkay?" and yet the value of drugs and alcohol went through the roof in response. I suppose one argument that Stef seemed to overlook is that it turned ordinary citizens who continued to make/use drugs & alcohol into criminals (at least as far as society was concerned), and the same would happen to bitcoin investors if the Government did ban bitcoin. So if I was a bitcoin investor, sure, the value of my bitcoin would go up... but I'd need to be able to sell that bitcoin in order to realize that increase in value which puts me in a potentially precarious position, not wanting to end up in a rape cage. Since bitcoin is virtual currency that can theoretically be traded anonymously online, this might prove to not be an issue, but then again, with what has come out about the NSA's spying tactics, the fact that they have bribed and/or injected double agents into various hardware and software companies to compromise crypto PRNGs in order to make it easier for the NSA to exploit modern cryptography, I'm a bit concerned about what I *don't* know about what they are capable of. My other remaining concern is the speculatory nature of the bitcoin market right now. I think this will eventually settle and when that happens, this will no longer be as big of a concern (it'll be no more a concern than any other market eventually, I imagine), so I'm kind of waiting to see what happens.

This is the type of thing I like to listen to for inspiration in the background while I'm hacking away optimizing code at work

I'm no expert on parenting nor am I an expert in any field that is qualified to dispense advice on this stuff, so feel free to take my thoughts with the tiniest grain of salt. Have you tried talking to J to ask her why she lies? Presumably she has felt mistreated by her mother and it sounds like things were pretty bad for her and her sister for most of her 13 years of life. I suspect that J isn't going to be quick to reveal how she truly feels based on the "I don't know" and "I don't care" tactics you've mentioned she uses. It will probably take a lot of prodding to get her to say what's on her mind, assuming you'll ever be able to get her to say it. She's probably afraid of the consequences of making it public. You haven't really said much about K's behavior (past or present), but could it be that J is simply modelling her mother's past behavior? Whether or not that's the case, she's clearly upset at her mother (and you might just be guilty by association or lack of prior involvement - "it's me against grownups becaue grownups have never been there for me when I needed them most"). I'm sure you realize that she's acting out because it's her way of expressing the hurt that has been inflicted upon her by K's past behavior. "Ruling with an iron fist" is fairly vague, but it gives me the impression that there was probably spanking, screaming, yelling, perhaps other forms of abuse such as neglect. Unrealistic expectations of her children, perhaps? It's obvious that she's angry about something. When someone says "I don't care", in my experience, it's not that they don't care, it's that they feel that no one else has cared about them or their feelings in the past and it hurt them. This makes me suspect feelings of neglect are not unreasonable to assume. Whatever you do, it's probably going to be paramount that you are always honest with J and never lie to her. Ideally you'd also get K on board with that and let J know that K's past behavior was also unacceptable. Perhaps get J's feedback on how her mother can make it up to her. J probably feels like you guys are ganging up on her and punishing her unfairly, seeing that her mother is essentially getting away with (mostly likely) pretty egregious past offenses. It will probably take time to earn J's trust, especially if K has a history of lying to her daughters or abusing them physically, emotionally, etc. Even if in the 4 months you've been around you and K have both been 100% honest with her, it's probably just not long enough for her to feel that she can trust you or her mother. 13 years of hurt and mistrust won't go away in 4 months. It may take years to prove to her that this new parenting style isn't just a fad... that things won't go back to the way they had been in a few months. You'll probably also need to keep soliciting her to give you feedback on how she feels. It will probably feel like you are talking to a wall for a while, but she needs to know you care.

Greetings! Allow myself to introduce... myself. Obviously Ragnar Danneskjold is not my real name, nor am I a pirate. I've opted to use a fictional name because I have to exist in a world and a profession where I am surrounded by people who are intolerant of other people who's views do not match their own. I don't like hiding my identity, but for now I feel it is necessary. Through much of my life, any of my ideas that were counter to the mainstream way of thinking were instantly attacked and I was always told or made to feel that I was selfish or stupid by those around me. I've even been called brainwashed. I've been told that I must hate poor people, sick people, old people, the "unfortunate", and on and on. I've been told that I am a terrible person. I'd never met anyone or even read a book that seemed to see things even remotely close to the way I saw things. No one around me ever asked the questions that I had been wanting to ask but was afraid to, knowing that I'd be made to feel like I was a bad person. For example, I remember in history class in grade school where my history teacher ridiculed me in front of the entire class for daring to question something. Wanting to fit in, I suppressed my true self, stuffed it in a deep dark prison and threw away the key. After reading Atlas Shrugged, though, it resurfaced my feeling that the world around me didn't make any logical sense and I was again driven to find answers which eventually led me to Stef's YouTube channel, voluntarism, anarcho-capitalism, and the persuit of self-knowledge. At the time, I was in my third year of therapy for some severe social anxiety that made me physically ill just going out to dinner or a movie with my friends (it was even worse if I didn't know everyone). Therapy helped me get to a point where I could go out again and overcome the anxiety enough to go out (and even manage to have a good time), but it's still there... lurking. I'm going to pause in my introduction because I've just had a bit of a revelation that I think may be important enough to share (especially since I know that there are other freedomainradio members with severe anxiety out there who may get some value from this): It never occured to me before, but it seems rather obvious to me now as I'm writing this introduction, that a big part of my social anxiety is very likely due to having to suppress my true self all this time. I probably never put 2 and 2 together until now because I didn't really have anyone to share my true self with before. In my day-to-day life, I still have to hide my true feelings from those around me because I know they will not understand and may even attack me for having them. I suppose that brings me one step closer to self-knowledge. It also emphasises the fact that I need to find and surround myself with a different group of people. People who actually *are* tolerant. People that I can openly share my ideas with. ... And now back to your regular scheduled introduction ... Anarcho-Capitalism, as much as it does interest my inner geek, is really only a side-persuit for me. There are probably 2 things that attract me most to freedomainradio. 1. Stef's ideas on non-violent parenting. I hope to some day become a dad and when I do, I never ever want to spank, yell or scream at my children nor do I want a wife who will. I think that another major source of my anxiety is likely tied to the fact that I was hit as a child (although, thankfully it stopped by the time I was 8) and screamed at (sadly, this never stopped until I was in high school). Having listened to a number of the call-in shows starting this winter, nothing could illustrate just how important these ideas are to me than the mistreatment of so many of the people who call in. I don't want my future children to have to call in to Stef's show to get the attention, understanding, emotional support, and kindness that they need and so rightfully deserve. It honestly breaks my heart that so many callers were so badly abused. Which brings me to #2... 2. Stef's capacity for empathy. His willingness to spend 3 hours on skype talking to people (what? 2 or 3 times per week?) makes it clear to me that he cares. Really cares. I don't know of anyone else out there willing to devote so much time to helping other people sort out their problems or giving them the attention and support that they need. It makes me want to be a better person, myself. So thank you, Stef.