Point 1 : #bitcoin-assets is the forum.

ninjashogunⁱ So what I was thinking is that this isn't a real 'forum' (in that most IRC channels are basically just trolls etc) and that I would just escalate to another form of contact (skype etc) and be in touch while it gets rolled out.
mircea_popescu No, this is the real forum. When the SEC wanted to talk to me I forced them to come here..
ninjashogun You're kidding right?
mircea_popescu I'm dead serious. This is the forum.

Note that the knowledge of this fact does not give you blanket license to speak there. See the rules and regulations, spend at least six months reading the logs, and generally follow the behaviour expected of childrenⁱⁱ in civilised societies.ⁱⁱⁱ

Point #2, ancient and oft repeated :

TALKING ABOUT BITCOIN, EVEN IF IN A GROUP, DOES NOT MAKE YOU PART OF BITCOIN.

This specifically includes all groups of foreigners to our esteemed Republic, and equally so : whether it be irrelevant derps such as Tom Carper^iv or such as The Bitcoin Wife^v, it's all the same.

Bitcoin is not here for you to opine about it. Bitcoin is here to profoundly and oft times painfully change your life. Whether you agree or not, whether you give permission or not, whether you think it "acceptable" or "called for" or whatever else. Nobody asked you, nobody intends to ask you.

The available stategies open before you are quite the same as the raped woman has historically encountered : either learn to love your rapist and make him an excellent wife - or else die, beaten black and blue.

You are the raped woman. Get used to it, because this Bitcock ain't gonna suck itself.

Point #3. We keep track, and we know where you live. It isn't a matter of Bitcoin "being anonymous" or not. It's a matter of you not being anonymous. Not now, not ever.

You may think you're at liberty to write any idiocy, to emit any stupidity, to engage in any activity. This delusion of yours is both unwelcome and dangerous (for you). Whatever you think shields you now and hope will in the future shield you from the consequences of your actions - be it self-allocated "immunity" in the manner the various Nazi officials told each other that they won't ever prosecute themselves for anything they do ; be it a misunderstanding of the freedom of the press^vi ; be it the Caliban nature of youth^vii - will probably not behave in the way you expect. This is why you're encouraged to only speak once you understand enough of the forum and of reality : to protect you. From yourself, historically your biggest enemy.

You will in the future need a job, just like you need a job today. You will need friends in the future, just like you need friends today. You will need many plurious things you need today without even knowing about it. Careful what you say about Bitcoin and careful what you do. We sure as all hell keep track and there is no force on earth which may wash your public record any more than it can wash the blockchain. It's forever, Bitcoin plays for keeps, and this may well end up costing you.

1. The whole story of this guy's interaction with the forum is interesting, so take the time to read it. Seems to me like it will make the blueprint for many future such interactions.

   Most of the lesson is contained in my text excusing him :

   ninjashogun listen, you're really misbehaving here, albeit perhaps unintentionally. The correct approach is to lurk and read the logs for about half a year. Then you'll be in a position to meaningfully engage th dragons here. I get that this doesn't help you any in the sense of getting you to do what you want to do right now, and while that is unfortunate, it's nevertheless what it is.

   and his parting words :

   guys I've received some suggestions to "lurk" and "read logs" here, which I wouldn't really have time to do. It was nice meeting you all though and I may be back as the project progresses. Overall I don't think I will be spending a ton of time building WoT, advisors, etc - as I have real-world references for the moment that I would expect anyone to consult.

   His mistake, of course, is to imagine this self-proclaimed "real world" is worth two shits. We, of course, are in the business of reducing it to cinders, much in the manner that very real world reduced feudalism to nothing. I'm sure cca 1400 some knight somewhere went "I care not for building a good reputation with the Hansa, for my lords know me". Arguably that approach wasn't the most effective or desirable for him and especially for his children. Unarguably, Internet time flows a lot faster than medieval time.
   [↩]

2. The behaviour expected of children is active submission. That is, you are not to make assertions, of any kind. We are not interested in your needs as a person, and you aren't a person in any sense, as far as we're concerned. Go make assertions to your mother, girlfriend or absent these pet.

   You are to ask questions, and of the sort that denotes an active and well oiled intellectual life inside your head. A good primer of how such a thing is accomplished, albeit written from a CS rather than Finance perspective is Eric Raymond's How To Ask Questions The Smart Way.

   Notably, Freenode has the following turd floating in its Channel Guidelines :

   Don't be elitist. Today's newbies are tomorrow's experts. A support channel is a place where people with knowledge lead by example. Is the example you want to set that technical knowledge is a hierarchy of control, or that people with knowledge have an inherent social advantage over people who don't? Please think before referring people to links such as this one, which combine suggestions for making support requests with a casual attitude of superiority over the newbie. Helping other people takes patience. It's better not to answer a question than to use the opportunity to emphasize the limitations of the person you're trying to help.

   This is singled out in order to specify that it is exactly wrong and entirely broken a perspective. Bitcoin is elitist by nature - in fact the only reason Bitcoin even exists in the first place is to force any human endeavour aimed at limiting elitism outside of the realm of possibility. This includes welfare, and the US Congress, with its bizarre notions of "equality" among people, and Hollywood, which apparently can't fucking make a movie these days that's not "affirmative" of some unimportant bullshit out of business. If you have a problem digesting these points and mentally aligning yourself with Bitcoin, find a better hobby, something that closer suits your mental impactions. Trading Magic the Gathering cards, for instance. [↩]

3. The United States are not currently, nor have they been generally speaking throughout their history a civilised society. The historical problem is both obvious and outside of our current interest, but the current problem is aptly explained by the classics :

   That was a test which the spectators could apply for themselves; the whole audience, instead of being mute, became vociferous, and a theatrocracy took the place of an aristocracy. Could the judges have been free, there would have been no great harm done; a musical democracy would have been well enough--but conceit has been our ruin. Everybody knows everything, and is ready to say anything; the age of reverence is gone, and the age of irreverence and licentiousness has succeeded. 'Most true.' And with this freedom comes disobedience to rulers, parents, elders,--in the latter days to the law also; the end returns to the beginning, and the old Titanic nature reappears--men have no regard for the Gods or for oaths; and the evils of the human race seem as if they would never cease. Whither are we running away? Once more we must pull up the argument with bit and curb, lest, as the proverb says, we should fall off our ass.

   [↩]

4. He's the guy derping about

   “My staff is working closely with relevant federal agencies to determine what lessons can be learned from this failure to help ensure this does not happen here in the United States.

   “As any industry matures it will face growing pains and there will be individuals who believe they can use the fog of uncertainty to cover up their follies. When it comes to policy, it is the responsibility of the federal government to steer the boat, not row the boat. Our Committee will continue to work closely with relevant U.S. government entities to steer the boat away from nefarious actors - and it’s up to legitimate, law abiding industry partners to row the boat into law abiding waters.”

   [↩]

5. She's the chick derping about
   
   [↩]
6. The press is free to publish sense, not nonsense. [↩]
7. As I explained before : the problem Bitcoin presents for teenagers is marked indeed.

   Factually, both as a function of normal development of the human brain right around puberty as well as a result of quite common societal pressures, teenagers and especially teenager males engage in deceitful behaviour. This is in part in order to "try on" the roles of adulthood, in part to continue their play (which obviously means training) in more advanced (ie, meta) fields. Just like the 9yo wishes to jump up and down trees so as to train his fine motor control, just so the 15 yo wishes to pretend like he's an executive or whatever.

   Bitcoin currently knows of no such thing : you've made a claim, it's been proven wrong, you're fucked. Permanently.

   This is a serious problem, and incidentally the reason why you are well advised to never deal with either minors or entities which refuse to disclose their identity : in strictly following such policy you help carve a little space for humanity in this unforgiving, Borg mathematic reality of the coin ; and I suspect it would be good for you and for me and for all of us. Insulate children from the harm they do not themselves know or recognize, and in so doing be a responsible part of the world. Don't be one of the idiots fawning over Bitcoinica because it tickles your nonsensical expectations of "you can do anything"-ism when a 17 yo kid throws himself in the active volcano "for fun". Instead, think that by staying away from nonsense you become less likely to be slain by nonsense in the future.

   Also, the difficulty of doing even this little bit, as clearly useful as it may be, and as necessary and welcome, may help you understand why Point #2 above reads as it reads. [↩]