El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment turns 5

This post offers hope, that there is a way to not succumb to the Universal Law of Stupidity.

It all started with a Beach called Bitcoin

It was early 2021, on noise.cash, that I became aware that there was a Bitcoin Beach in El Salvador. This started my fascination with El Salvador and their El Presidente Nayib Bukele

The quiet surf town of El Zonte, nicknamed "Bitcoin Beach" hosted events for the 2021 ISA Games, showcasing the local surf talent and the impact of Bitcoin on the community's economy.

• 2019, El Zonte became the unlikely birthplace of a financial experiment that would capture global attention
• 2021, bitcoin becomes legal tender, after it was adopted as such by the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador
• 2022, more Salvadorians had Bitcoin Lightning wallets than bank accounts.
• November 2022, El Salvador has a policy of buying one bitcoin per day 
• November 2022, the Bitcoin Office was created as a dedicated entity under the presidency to oversee Bitcoin-related affairs
• November 2022, “Bitcoin Willy Wonka” Max Kieser appointed senior Bitcoin advisor to El Salvador's El Presidente, Nayib Bukele
• 2025, bitcoin was rescinded as legal tender in El Salvador after pressure from the IMF
• 2025, record 4.1 million international visitors, accounting for 14% GDP
• 2026, El Presidente Nayib Bukele maintains over 90% approval ratings (Albo 38%, Trump 38.2%, Andy 14.8%, Javier 42.8%)
• 2026, homicide rate continues to fall (0.96 per 100,000)
• August 2026, El Salvador holds approximately 7,734 BTC in its national reserve

Democracy vs Aristocracy

While searching for more info on the 5th birthday, came across this tweet. Which qualified the post in the Stupidity blog instead of the Crypto blog where Nayib, Willy Wonka and Bitcoin Beach normally would reside.

”Plato was right about democracy

And the West doesn't want to learn the lesson

In The Republic, Plato laid out his political theory. He argued that the best form of government wasn't democracy at all... it was aristocracy

Not aristocracy in the sense of inherited titles and lazy nobles living off their ancestors

But rule by the most capable. The philosopher-kings. People who actually knew what they were doing and cared about the outcome

Plato saw democracy as inherently unstable. It eventually devolves into demagoguery, then tyranny. The masses vote for whoever promises them the most, not whoever is best equipped to lead

Sounds familiar? That's exactly what we're seeing right now

Now look at El Salvador 🇸🇻

Bukele took over a country that was literally the murder capital of the world. Gang violence everywhere. People couldn't walk down the street without fear

Democratic institutions had failed for decades. Corruption, incompetence, the same political families rotating power... basically what Plato predicted

What did Bukele do?

He ignored the "proper channels" and got shit done

- Arrested gang members en masse

- Built the largest prison in the Americas

- Didn't ask permission from international bodies or worry about what the UN thought

And the results speak for themselves

El Salvador went from one of the most dangerous countries on Earth to safer than most US cities. Tourism is booming. Investment is flowing in. People can actually live their lives

The population loves him. His approval ratings are through the roof

That's what happens when you have competent leadership that prioritizes results over process

Meanwhile in the West...

We get career politicians who've never built anything in their lives, making decisions based on focus groups and donor interests

Nothing gets done. Infrastructure crumbles. Crime rises. But hey, at least we followed the proper democratic procedures

Plato called this exact outcome 2,400 years ago

I'm not saying democracy has no value. But maybe the obsession with it as the only legitimate form of government makes zero sense

Sometimes you need a leader who can actually execute. Who puts the population's wellbeing above political theatre

The West could learn something from El Salvador

But they won't. Because admitting that would mean questioning our entire narrative  @hispanicnomad “

Plato

4th century BCE Greek philosopher of Classical Athens who is most commonly considered the foundational thinker of the Western philosophical tradition. An innovator of the literary dialogue and dialectic forms, Plato influenced all the major areas of theoretical philosophy and practical philosophy, and was the founder of the Academy, a philosophical school in Athens where Plato taught the collection of philosophical theories that would later become known as Platonism.

DISCLAIMER: I promise no AI was harmed in the researching, editing and publishing of this. But lots of CO2 was produced, doing my bit to make planet earth green.

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