While it may seem hard to realize now, we are at the beginning of the the technology that can provide fundamental changes to so man aspects of society.
Everything from a more transparent and efficient method for individuals to send and receive value independent of centralized institutions, to enabling more transparency the actions of companies and governments, could be made possible through the utilization of blockchain technology. While many still correlate blockchain technology to the underlying technology of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the power of the underlying blockchain technology is likely more important and powerful than a specific cryptocurrency or project could ever be. Blockchain technology could give individuals access to a greater level of personal freedoms and rights than ever before, and could give governments and other institutions lower power over individuals than they have ever had before. While in North America and much of Europe the governments may oppress their citizens rights and abilities, but there are other regions where governments hold control over every aspect of their citizens lives. There has never been a more realistic revolution than that of a digital revolution, and blockchain technology may just make this type of revolution a reality.
The idea of a digital revolution has been around since the early 1990's, but there has never been a piece of underlying technology that has allowed for these types of solutions to be implemented effectively. Instead of having to try to work with corrupt governments and institutions, blockchain technology presents solutions that completely eliminate the need for a centralized mediator or institution that has been needed up until now. While the adoption and beginning of the big changes are likely still a few years away, it is a very good feeling to realize the true powers of freedom that these technologies hold. While of course we all want the projects that we have vested interests in to succeed, the amount of benefits that the adoption of any blockchain platform would have on the world are so much greater than any amount of loss of potential profits. While investing in projects in hopes of the tokens achieving long term value is at the core of the cryptocurrency market, the ability to enhance freedoms and opportunities for more individuals than ever before is m ore important and powerful than any level of return on investment in my opinion. Blockchain projects present a solution where both profitability and enhancing individuals levels of freedom and opportunities can coincide.
Whether a platform solves a single use-case or whether the platform is a smart contract platform that can run a wide range of applications, individuals would still receive serious benefits and advantages.
Whether we are discussing a provably fair wagering that makes wagering safer and more transparent for users, or the upcoming EOS platform may be able to efficiently run and support a wide range of diverse applications, individuals are gaining huge advantages over the existing centralized services offering these platforms. Both platforms are completely transparent and readable/view-able by anyone, and ultimately leave the power over platform decisions to the stakeholders and users of the platform. Individuals who utilize traditional current online gambling platforms are running the risk of the site being closed, cheating, hacks, and other potential methods in which they loose their funds, but even if they have a seamless experience they are still having to put faith in the operators of the site to act honorably and fairly. The Peerplays platform makes all votes, decisions, and actions by every account, including block producers, public and open to criticism. If a witness is found to be acting dishonorably the stakeholders who elected the witness have the power to remove the stakeholder from being active in a very short period of time.
This was just one example of how blockchain technology can not only increase the efficiency of the existing centralized platforms, but they can also enable a level of transparency that has never been seen before. The use of censoring access to the internet is a major problem in many countries around the world, and blockchain technology can enhance and make the existing anonymity tools more accessible and powerful than ever before. People have never had the ability to provide solutions that make the need for government interference in any context on the platform absolutely eliminated, such as the internationally binding "constitution" that will accompany the upcoming EOS platform. This "Constitution" will state explicitly how all disputes will be handles and the process by which that will happen, and will negate the ability for any outside arbitration, mediation, or court proceedings for all platform disputes. While this may not seem exciting, it could be the very beginning of allowing individuals and users to 'govern' themselves more effectively and efficiently than 'government' structures seen throughout society.
Could blockchain technology remove the need for other functions traditionally handled by governments and institutions?
Functions traditionally handled by government institutions such as registration of land and property could be made so much more efficient than ever before, and could solve a serious problem for many individuals in 'under-developed' countries. While the ;and registration process is wildly inefficient in the US, in many countries in the under-developed world it is nearly impossible for many individuals to even have a chance to register their land. Many countries have stolen land from rightful landowners simply because they wanted to and they knew there would be no recourse, but through the use of blockchain technology situations like this could be made known to all if they happened. The idea of a blockchain based international land ownership registry isn't new, but it has yet to gain any major success. One of the main reasons I believe that many use cases of blockchain technology haven't been adopted in under-developed countries is the fact that access to the internet remains low, but as internet access continues to increase rapidly increase in these regions blockchain technology will have a better chance for adoption than ever.
Instead of an individual getting their land stolen from a government that controls the private land ownership registry, imagine if the individual was able to prove ownership of the land and register it on a decentralized land ownership database. If a government attempted to steal or take their land, they could report the incident and all individuals around the globe could have the ability to see the governments actions. While a land registry is just one example of how blockchain could enhance freedoms for individuals around the globe, this level of transparency could force oppressive governments to act knowing that their actions have the ability to be seen by all. The situation in Venezuela is tragic, and the government has repeatedly crashed the nations currency over the past several decades prior to the most recent situation. Blockchain technology could give individuals living in regions where they don't trust the currency a reliable and efficient method for storing and sending value, without having to worry about their governments actions having an effect on their money. This has been one of the biggest factors that has attracted so many individuals to Bitcoin, and the concept will likely become even more efficient and available in the future. There has never been a single piece of technology that has held the same amount of power as that of blockchain technology, and it could truly lead to a global revolution of enhancing and ensuring personal freedoms and transparency.
I really hope that you enjoyed this post, and I urge you to leave any questions, input, ect. in the comments below! Thanks for reading and the support!