T.T. 21: Channeling Friction to Flow into Freedom
I'm FINALLY flying to El Salvador next week! But WTF took me so long???
The path of LEAST resistance is chosen for you.
The path of MAXIMUM resistance is no longer a path… it’s a cage.
Either way, you lose before you even get started.
In these crazy “clown world” times we’re all experiencing, I’ve been trying to really LIVE by some fundamental mindset shifts.
Here’s one of my most important guiding principles:
Minimize FRICTION to ACT on legitimately* smart choices
* by “legitimately” I mean in terms of both “low time preference” and resilience against the increasingly authoritarian ruling class agenda… all aligned with an optimally effective balance of risk-benefit tradeoffs
In some ways, I feel like I’m way ahead of the curve. The fact that I’m even thinking this way at all is — sadly — enough to set me apart from the N.P.C. masses who are sleep walking into CBDC slavery.
That being said…
I still have a LOT of room for improvement.
Seriously.
I detest false modesty. But I honestly do still have a LONG way to go.
Confession time:
I’m prone to procrastination.
It’s been almost FIVE MONTHS since I announced my decision to move to El Salvador.
But an actual plane ticket?
Didn’t buy it.
Not until TODAY.
I’m finally flying to Bitcoin Country next week!
It’s EXCITING!!!
But why the hell did I delay for so long???
FRICTION
“The force resisting relative motion”
Specifically four main “categories” of friction:
Social pressure
Inertia
Government bureaucracy
Monetary payment rails — “financial friction”
I’ve addressed the “social pressure” category in previous posts.
Same for the “inertia” category with my recent “habits” theme.
For now, those will suffice.
This post is already longer than usual for T.T. anyway.
My main focus here is the other two categories of relevant friction.
Government bureaucracy:
My bone-deep hatred of government isn’t ONLY because, philosophically, its “monopoly on violence” is inherently evil.
It isn’t JUST because the allure of power — centralized control over society’s “monopoly on violence” — inevitably attracts sociopathic corruption.
It isn’t even ENTIRELY because of how “our” ruling class establishment has screwed me over personally… how their insanely anti-scientific covid tyranny completely derailed the promising initial trajectory of my own early career.
It’s more than all of that.
More than mere morality and righteous rage…
That’s right.
It’s ALSO because I’m practically allergic to boring ol’ bureaucracy.
Paperwork?
Yuck.
Waiting in line… just to wait for some disinterested bureaucrat to redirect me to the “correct” other disinterested bureaucrat’s department… just to wait for the right forms to waste time filling out… just to wait several weeks — at best — for it all to be processed and approved? Or worse, to potentially find out that there are even MORE dumb hoops to jump through still???
*shudders*
I’d MUCH prefer a quick death instead, thank you very much!
But seriously.
El Salvador actually makes the “residency visa” process relatively straightforward.
Unlike more “developed” countries’ governments — which parasitically take “their” entrepreneurs for granted — this positively “developing” nation genuinely WANTS to attract more free market entrepreneurship!
But there’s still friction here on the U.S. end… specifically a criminal background check and “apostille” process through the federal State Department.
Screw. That.
I mean… admittedly, a couple months from now, yeah… I actually will have to come back and deal with all that bureaucratic hassle for full residency.
I have nothing to hide. I’ll pass through that process successfully when I’m ready to indulge it.
But for now? Nah.
That “barrier to entry” actually CAN wait.
I’m an international travel noob…
But it turns out that the “tourist visa” process is incredibly chill:
Hop on a plane
Bring my passport (yes, I actually have dealt with bureaucracy before… that’s why I despise it so viscerally)
Answer a couple of basic questions
Pay a small fee
Enjoy my visit for up to
90apparently 180 days
My aversion to “adulting” the boring authoritarian way — safely “going along to get…” nowhere — apparently doesn’t NEED to hold me back from simply diving right into the El Salvador experience!
Financial friction:
I’ll probably elaborate more on this in a future post… this one is already pretty long.
The short version though?
I’m a Bitcoiner.
I really, REALLY hate converting ANY of my Bitcoin back onto fiat payment rails.
After months of procrastinating… I finally sucked it up and did it anyway.
(Just enough for a one-way ticket and a bit of spending cash)
Final thoughts?
The extent of friction is often just fiction.
Literally extending the extent of friction in our minds beyond its actual reality.
I just blasted through some of that “head trash” today.
LET’S.
FUCKING.
GOOOOOOOOOOO!
“The revolution will not be centralized”
Lightning address:
JeThoreau@getalby.com
(For optional tips… NOT a functional email address, just FYI)
lightning:
LNURL1DP68GURN8GHJ7EM9W3SKCCNE9E3K7MF0WQHK5ET5DPHHYETPW5HX5UM0DCT6D6DU
npub1s3pkx56ynd4yqj7hx7c6j2h9djkfg63p92wqe9v8m67km5368a4qrgzxp3
We’re here, & it’s great. It’s also hot 🥵 But life is good. Message my hubby @menscoachtom or me @emilyml19 on Twitter if you’d like to meet up or have any q’s. See you soon!