Bitcoin is often discussed as an investment or hedge against inflation. Author Adam Livingston says its real importance goes much deeper. He argues that Bitcoin could limit wars by cutting off the hidden financing tool governments rely on.
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Livingston believes that if the world ran on Bitcoin, governments would no longer be able to print fiat money endlessly to fund wars. Instead, they would have to raise taxes openly, making the true cost of conflict clear to citizens.
Bitcoin Removes Fiat’s Power to Fund Wars
Livingston pointed to the 20th century as the clearest example. Both world wars happened as central banks gained power and governments abandoned the gold standard. That shift gave leaders the ability to create money at will, fueling conflicts that taxpayers might not have supported if the costs were obvious.
“Monetary power is political power. When a government can conjure currency with a few keystrokes, it acquires the means to project violence far beyond what citizens would ever approve of if the bill arrived as a direct tax,” Livingston said. “In other words, fiat money is the silent partner of every modern war.”
He also cited earlier cases. China’s Song dynasty collapsed under paper money, and France’s revolutionary government debased its assignat currency to fund wars, sparking hyperinflation.
Sound Money Promotes Saving and Stability
Supporters of Bitcoin often say sound money changes how societies function. Inflationary currencies constantly lose value, which encourages people and governments to spend quickly rather than save or invest for the future.
Saifedean Ammous, author of The Bitcoin Standard, explains that paper currencies rob value every time new money is issued. This hidden tax distorts family life, weakens savings, and slows innovation.
Bitcoin’s fixed supply has the opposite effect. It rewards saving and planning for the long term. Advocates believe that under a Bitcoin system, technology, social progress, and even art would thrive in ways fiat money prevents.
Fixing Money Could Change the World
Livingston says the moral case is simple. Sound money forces accountability. Governments would have to be honest about the costs of war, bailouts, or big spending plans. Citizens would see the true price through direct taxation rather than inflation hidden in the currency.
Supporters compare Bitcoin to the printing press, which broke centralized control of information centuries ago. They believe Bitcoin could now break centralized control of money, reducing war by removing fiat’s ability to finance it in secret.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is sitting at $113,248.49.
