Jordan Peterson, a well-known Canadian psychologist and political commentator, believes that Bitcoin is the only “viable” monetary alternative in a future where central bank digital currency (CBDC) dominates. He spoke with tech expert Brian Roemmele about artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies, emphasizing how Bitcoin can protect the world from its tyrannical excesses.
Using Bitcoin for Communication
In an interview published on Monday, Roemmele predicted that blockchain, specifically Bitcoin, would be integrated into a popular payment system because of “the way it was made.” Peterson added that Bitcoin is the “only alternative I can see to a centralized bank digital currency,” which he believes will be forced upon us in the future.
“Bitcoin is decentralized,” Peterson explained. “It cannot be controlled by a bureaucracy.”
As Peterson described how Bitcoin could be used for “wealth storage” and as currency, Roemmele suggested that it could also be used for “communication.”
“Almost an unlimited amount of data is encrypted within a blockchain,” Roemmele said. “You can actually store information that you want to decentralize and keep indefinitely.”
Unlike traditional bank transfers, Bitcoin transactions logged on the public blockchain for over an hour cannot be reversed. This feature of Bitcoin has become popular for retaining NFTs through the Ordinals Protocol, which embeds image data directly into the public blockchain.
Peterson’s Blockchain Idea
Peterson expressed interest in using Bitcoin as a form of “permanent, incorruptible information storage” to create a “blockchain corpus of general knowledge questions” for IQ testing and prevent manipulation of cognitive ability measurements.
“You could derive random samples of general ability tests that would be 100% robust reliable and valid,” he said. “Just as Bitcoin stops fiat currency producers from inflating the currency.”
Peterson has previously praised Bitcoin as a way of fighting tyrannical control imposed by CBDCs. He also regards it as a hedge against inflation, having bought some in November 2021 as an inflation shield, although the asset has not performed well since then.
