The Streisand Effect: Hiding in Plain Sight
Attempting to hide something that is oddly-specific is likely to result in increased curiosity as to why it's being hidden in the first place.
In 2003 singer Barbra Streisand attempted to sue a photographer for violation of privacy after he posted an aerial photo online, as part of a coastline erosion study, which happened to include her Malibu residence.
Prior to the lawsuit the image had been downloaded just six times. In the month following the lawsuit, and given the elevated level of interest it generated, the image had been viewed over 400,000 times.
Cruel Intentions
When a government attempts to hide the true market rate for its fiat currency, it's often because it will tell a different story than the official narrative.
When a government appeals to its citizens to sell any foreign currency (usually $USD) for local currency as a patriot duty, it's often to buy time on the road to default.
When a government warns citizens not to buy insurance (bitcoin) against a potential collapse in value of local currency, it's because every citizen's cash savings account is needed to help soften the impact.
“If there is an escape, that escape will be used." -Christine Lagarde (ECB President) on Bitcoin
Ultimately, there is no such thing as an official exchange rate. No one, not even an omnipotent government, can stop the independent decisions of millions of individuals as to what they determine fair value through their spending decisions.
Even by attempting to control or censor the free flow of market information in order to adjust upwards the level public confidence in a fiat currency is short lived against economic realities imposed by a deeply interconnected world of trade and commerce.
We now have a universal instrument, immune to government threat or action, that acts as a mirror for the market value of fit currencies in real-time.
"Bitcoin is the irrepressible barometer of asset hyperinflation triggered by central bank recklessness." -Robert Breedlove
A Hard Pill To Swallow
I used to think the most effective method to orange-pill someone was to help them understand monetary history, communication networks and the process of innovation.
While this is no doubt useful (and essential for long-term conviction), I now realize any effort ultimately pales in comparison to a government or central bank simply directing their citizens against buying Bitcoin.
Though, I'll keep at it, grateful for the extra curiosity generated by the guardians of fiat.
Further Reading
Bitcoin Reveals Exchange Rate Manipulation and Detects Capital Controls
Bitcoin can approximate unofficial exchange rates which can be used to detect capital controls..
