700 THE ADVOCATE
VOL. 80 PART 5 SEPTEMBER 2022
able to go to the ruins of Rozafa Castle to make cheeky Tik Tok videos which
might go viral? Basmir, wouldn’t you like to feel the sun on your skin while
you scroll through social media on your phone? Drenica, wouldn’t you like
to be able to rejoin the community and once again experience the dignity
of working—sorry, just a tickle in my throat—the dignity of working at the
local iPhone factory so you can afford a virtual reality headset? Actually, if
Blockchain for Bloodfeuds doesn’t work out, I have another pilot program
which gives virtual reality headsets to orphans in Myanmar—maybe I’ll
expand it to adults in northern Albania. Either way, you’re getting a VR
headset, Drenica—that’s a promise. That’s progress!
“Do we use blockchain this way in America? No, not yet—can you believe
it? We have a strong centralized state which acts as a third party in disputes.
And then the lawyers get involved and it all becomes a quagmire of ‘privacy
rights’, ‘procedural fairness’ and ‘some Latin phrase’. And then they’re
always prattling on about the rule of law, antitrust and Ronald Dworkin—
it’s exhausting.
“There is some good news, though. We’re working hard to create a technological
system of governance and finance that functions beyond the traditional
structures. We’re building the machinery of freedom. Our goal is to
eventually have a parallel system to the government which runs entirely on
the blockchain and operates based on the principles of distributed power
and computation. The rule of law will become the rule of code—it’s
inevitable.
“The pace of change is still glacial, though. We’re drowning in rules and
laws and regulations, most of which only serve to slow the tech industry
down. And the regulators don’t understand the technology, which places an
even greater burden on our ability to create the future. We need a place
where we can innovate and create without the burdensome regulations and
laws hindering the indus—you know what? I just had another brilliant idea.
Being here has inspired me—I want to do more than just bring you
Blockchain for Bloodfeuds. I want to turn Shkodra into the new San Francisco.
Northern Albania could be the new Silicon Valley, and Albania can be
the new California! This is the place we’ve been searching for. Finally, an
escape from the tentacles of centralized authority, finally a—
“The story about the genie who will grant you any three wishes if you’ll
just unshackle him first? No, I’ve never heard that story. Is that an Albanian
folktale? Anyway, you guys are lucky—you can implement the technological
solutions right away and leapfrog the clunky legacy systems we have to
deal with. You don’t have to be held back by centralized power and constant
sermons about the importance of institutional trust. I keep tweeting that