I Wrote a Play About Crypto's Outlaws; the Sequel Had to Be About Power
The central question of Bitcoin is about self-sovereignty: Who owns your money, and, by extension, who owns your data?
A decade of reporting on cryptocurrency led the author to pen a play about crypto's outlaws, set to debut at New York's Kraine Theater in October 2024. The protagonist, Charlie Schwagg, mirrors the life of Bitcoin pioneer Charlie Shrem, who once served prison time for aiding unlicensed money transmission on the Silk Road. Charlie's mother and girlfriend become key figures in his story, each pushing him towards different paths: one towards escape and the other towards spirituality.
However, the real world intervened when Donald Trump pardoned Ulbricht, Hayes, and Hayes two weeks after the play's opening. This turned the play into a period piece, no longer depicting a developer's incarceration but rather the anti-establishment crypto movement aligning with power. The author found this shift perplexing, feeling the crypto drama no longer revolved around going to jail but about the movement embracing power.
The author then reflected on how crypto had always felt outsider-y, with conferences brimming with unconventional ideas. Crypto politics had been scattered across the political spectrum, from libertarians to socialists, with many crypto individuals avoiding political language altogether. Yet, in July 2024, when Donald Trump graced the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, crypto politics shifted into conventional territory.
The author could see and empathize with this turn of events, having witnessed the Biden administration's stringent regulations and arbitrary shutdowns of crypto companies.
In Nashville, the crypto movement found a friend in Trump, who lavished praise on the industry. However, the author recognized the price paid for this deal - thousands of crypto buyers lost their savings in Trump Coin, and other Trump ventures became vehicles for indirect influence. The author was astounded by the sight of crypto rebels, once built by Cypherpunks, cheering on Trump.
In the sequel, Charlie, released from prison on a pardon, returns to a changed world. His family and girlfriend welcome him back, now a crypto celebrity. Butch Pine, the newly appointed crypto czar in the White House, offers Charlie a job selling the administration's initiatives. Yet, Charlie must decide his future. Has the crypto revolution achieved its purpose, and for whom?
The coins no longer hold the same allure, but the ideas of self-sovereignty, ownership, and control over one's digital identity resonate as strongly as ever. The central question remains: who truly owns you in this digital age?
Written by urgent.news from Newsweek's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
