Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim is an avid Bitcoin supporter who does his best to convince the city council and its residents to share in what he believes about Bitcoin.
Ses efforts have begun to show results.
The date of the 11th December 2024 is set to be a Saturday. Vancouver City Council greenlit a motion Mayor Sim is ready to make Vancouver more Bitcoin friendly.
The city’s staff is directed to investigate the idea of Vancouver creating a bitcoin strategic reserve and accepting city taxes in bitcoin.
We discussed Bitcoin and the deeper philosophical ideas of Mayor Sim in our conversation.
The discussion also included his personal journey into the Bitcoin rabbit hole, and how Bitcoin could bring hope for financial stability to Vancouver citizens at a time when they are all struggling financially.
Vancouver City Council passed your resolution to make Vancouver more Bitcoin friendly.
If you were to use a magical wand, how would you like Vancouver’s Bitcoin adoption level to be?
Here’s a warning. This is my personal opinion. They’ve been asked to investigate by a very talented team in the City of Vancouver. The team is not under my control. “You have to do this and that.”
In an ideal world, we would add money to a reserve. Second, people should be allowed to use bitcoins without incurring capital gains taxes and accept bitcoin payments. Not only in Canada but also the U.S.A. and many other jurisdictions haven’t caught on to tax regulation, so you’re charged capital gains taxes every time bitcoin is transacted.
Thirdly, we need to start a conversation about Bitcoin and bust myths that it is harmful for the environment. All of this is nonsense right? Bitcoin will actually help save the planet.
It also provides an unalterable record, and adds a transparency that we have never experienced in human history. It would be wonderful to have that integrated into our systems.
Natalie Brunell asked you to speak about the process that involves educating others about bitcoin. You mentioned that. “shower them with love and then you hit them with facts.” Could you please give me an example?
Bitcoin is a controversial currency, particularly because of its perceived impact on the environment. The narrative is that Bitcoin is bad for the planet, but people are like: “Well, wait a second…”
If you want to be an environmentalist and force people to take action that is not in their best interest, then nothing will happen. Whereas if you incentivize them — if you build in a reward system — it’s amazing.
We know a few things. We flare natural gas, a waste product of oil production. If we capture it and use it to mine Bitcoin, this is good for the planet. Capturing methane from underground is also a good idea.
Bitcoin miners are a good way to get the job done. This is a positive outcome for the planet.
Bitcoin is also associated with a false narrative, that it’s a bad thing. That’s garbage, right? Cash cannot be traced. Bitcoin is an unalterable record that allows you to see all transactions since the dawn of time. You can even catch drivers at on-ramps.
We need to challenge some narratives that contradict reality.
According to my experience, teaching someone is easy, but unlearning what you’ve taught them can be a challenge. We are currently helping to undo the learning.
Bitcoin is the most important invention of human history, according to you. What do you think about that statement?
Our money is broken. It can’t be used to store the energy of future generations. This cycle of rinse and repeat is a constant. Ray Dalio wrote a book. World Order ChangingHe talks about the rise of the Dutch Empire, the fall of Britain, and the rise, or as he calls it, the fall, of the U.S. Empire. The money is broken, if you’re in agreement with Dalio.
There has never been a currency reserve that lasted. The past is repeated. Bitcoin is changing all this. We all know that you cannot manipulate or mess with Bitcoin. It’s a game-changer and when we finally get onto the bitcoin standard — I think it’s a matter of when, not if — it’s going to change how humans interact with each other and how nation states evolve.
The Bitcoin Standard or Layered Money are two books you mentioned. Jeff Booth has also been a good friend to you. Did you have a Bitcoin lightbulb after all of the reading and talking to Jeff?
My son Mitchell told me the exact opposite when he came to speak with me. “Dad, I want to buy bitcoin.” Then I thought, “You touch that shit, and I’m going to punch you in the throat.” I was not going to make that mistake.
Jeff and I began to talk about it. After reading a ton about it and attending a couple conferences, I decided to start looking into it. It was a similar journey to many others. I started out against it, but then I became a convert.
It’s hard to pinpoint a specific moment. “Wow, there you go” Then I turned around and went the opposite way. Although I don’t remember, my $500 bitcoin purchase was made on November 14th 2020. My delay was due to the fact that I had to get used to the app I used to buy the bitcoin. It was all clunky — just a pain in the butt.
The day I purchased it, I was thinking, “I remember this because I can’t forget that.” “Did I miss out?” It was selling for about seven to eight thousand dollars the previous month. It was like: “Did I miss it?” Jeff said, “No, you’re still super early; we’re all still super early.”
Vancouver housing is expensive. Bitcoin can fix it?
Yes. Here’s an example. The studio we rent is in Whistler. We bought the property for 17.2 bitcoins. It was four years ago. The property has increased in value by 36% when measured in dollars. However, when expressed as bitcoins, its price is down by 85%. As of right now, the property costs about 3.3 bitcoins.
I am not giving any investment advice. This is just a hypothetical, but if it happens as I think it might. In the near future you may be able buy a Vancouver house with one bitcoin. That would mean that you could buy it for US$106,000, or CA$150,000, if you purchased a bitcoin now.
I’m not telling people to take out a loan to buy bitcoin — very far from it. Go seek financial advice. If you think bitcoin will appreciate in value, then you could buy a CA$150,000 house by purchasing a bitcoin today.
Have you ever considered that the opposite might be true, and perhaps by embracing Bitcoin, people in Vancouver will want to reelect you? You’ve said that embracing Bitcoin might lead to the reverse, where the Vancouver people want you re-elected.
That’s not my main concern. No, I don’t want to be either a prime minister or a premier. Even though I am in this position, I don’t consider myself a politician. I take it very seriously, I value it and I honor. The goal of being popular was not the objective. Never was it my goal to win a second term. It was my goal to do the right thing for the City of Vancouver’s future.
So I could not ignore it any longer because I believe this will set the city’s course for the next 100 years. Am I right? It’s not certain, but I have a good feeling and truly believe it.
I think voters, residents — it doesn’t matter what side of the political spectrum you sit on — are sick of politicians who do stuff just to get re-elected. It’s important that people do what they think is right. And I feel this is correct. Even if it means we won’t be reelected, I am proud to say that. “You know what? We stuck to our values and we did what’s right.” It’s great if it happens. It’s possible that it will work out.
It seems like a progressive city like Vancouver — the first city in Canada to have a Bitcoin ATM — should be in favor of Bitcoin. Nevertheless, the former mayor of the city tried to prohibit Bitcoin ATMs. Did the Vancouver community react to the mayor’s decision?
Since I wasn’t paying attention at the time I can’t comment. It’s not something I can comment on. We have politicians that will base their policy decisions on virtue signals rather than data. Our administration is data-driven and cares about the prosperity of our future city.
I think the distinction here is we choose to have the most impact — we’re more concerned about the steak than the sizzle. We’re open to hearing any data-backed arguments that show this is not a good idea. Although we may be wrong, I’m confident that no data has been used to challenge our Bitcoin-related stance.
Bitcoin can sometimes be difficult to operate technically. Do you have any concerns about Bitcoin’s technical challenges if, for example, Bitcoin were to become legal tender in Vancouver in the future, or even if it was just more widely adopted? Will the Vancouver City Government ever educate its residents on Bitcoin?
We don’t provide education as one of our core services, and I can’t imagine us going into the rabbit hole. It’s up to the experts.
The industry can make Bitcoin easier to use and more people will join the movement. You can tell it is coming, because many people are working on the project right now.
It’s not that I’m an expert but I do see how seamless this will be in the future. People won’t even think twice about paying for a candy bar at Walgreens with Bitcoin. The plumbing will be done without the customers knowing. It’s a revolution for the world.
You have done several interviews about this subject. Do you have anything you would like to say or discuss that the media has not asked?
It’s not only for Vancouver, but I would like to call on everyone. The call is to every city, state, jurisdiction and canton on Earth.
The challenge is to educate people, and this can still be difficult. Media commentators have said that we are doing this to show our good intentions, but we don’t know if we will succeed. It’s not true.
Bitcoin advocates must start telling the truth about why Bitcoin is an excellent financial asset. In the last 16-year period, it has been the world’s best performing financial asset. We’re traders and we don’t care about volatility if you aren’t looking to trade day-to-day.
It is not me who needs to begin spreading that story, it’s the whole community. Let our elected representatives know because, until we provide them with the data they need and let them know that this is what they want, they will not do anything.
This is what we do because it’s something that we truly believe in. It’s important to us that we get in front of the game. To build a city that will last for 100 years we are willing to risk political risks. We need your help. If your audience could help us promote this narrative to our province government, and also in other jurisdictions as well, then that would be fantastic.
Vancouver could become pro-Bitcoin if more people get on board and learn how Bitcoin can relieve some financial strain.
Yes.
If she sees the video, she will punch me. She was scared of an iPhone about 13 years ago. She did not understand technology. This was just a mental problem.
It was then that she joined the crowd, since all of her friends had iPhones. You’d think it was ridiculous to say that iPhones used to be feared by people.
Bitcoin – a source of hope for the future? Absolutely.
This is why I return to Vancouver. Vancouver has the same problems as anyone else. Although people struggle to afford groceries or a home, the City of Vancouver has a budget.
We must hire firefighters, police officers and engineers. In addition, our currency depreciates and we cannot increase taxes to keep pace. Bitcoin offers us hope that we won’t have to reduce services.
It will also help to manage this city over the next 100 years. When people start adopting Bitcoin, I believe they’ll have more hope because they realize that their purchasing power will increase.
“This article is not financial advice.”
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Source: bitcoinmagazine.com
