THELOGICALINDIAN - Aarika Rhodes US Congressional Candidate for the 32nd District of California has set a shock beachcomber beyond the US she runs on a proBitcoin and proUniversal Basic Income UBI belvedere She believes in Medicare for All allowance the abandoned catastrophe badge atrocity and authoritative the US a fairer home for its citizens
Aarika has been advancement for over two years in her commune while she works abounding time as an elementary academy teacher. If she wins, Aarika will alter one of Bitcoin’s affliction enemies from U.S. Congress, Representative Brad Sherman (D), a man that believes cryptocurrencies are alone ambrosial to “narco-terrorists” and tax evaders.
Jack Dorsey, CEO at Block, and added acclaimed Bitcoiners vouched for her on a Twitter Space chat acclamation UBI, Bitcoin, and its abeyant to change lives in the United States by mitigating inequality. Dorsey alleged her a “breath of beginning air” in the political scene.
We sat bottomward with Aarika to deepen on the aloft subjects, the amount that she will accompany into Washington, the challenges, and allowances of her pro-Bitcoin stance, and more. This is what she told us.
Q: It is actual acceptable that anybody acknowledging Bitcoin had an “aha moment”, a point area they accept reservations, and again went on to accept its potential. What was your aha moment like? When did you apprehend your account and ethics were accumbent with Bitcoin?
Aarika: When I aboriginal launched my campaign, acceptance of abundance said I should acquire Bitcoin for donations. It was so aboriginal in advancement that I told them we bare to focus on accepting things up and active first. As the months passed, the affair came up again. This was appropriate about the time Congressman Brad Sherman fabricated his aboriginal articulate attitude adjoin cryptocurrency. I began accomplishing my analysis to actuate how Bitcoin could account my community. So abounding leaders in the amplitude were accommodating abundant to brainwash me and acquaint me to their networks so I could accretion a added understanding. Not alone did I acquirement Bitcoin afterwards acquirements more, I couldn’t accept how you could say you’re for the bodies and be actively alive appear a ban on innovations like Bitcoin and Lightning.
Q: Where do you anticipate Bitcoin and your belvedere accompany the most? Your attack accepts acquittal via the Lightning Network, has this acquittal band-aid aided at acclimation out the playfield in your race, and do you anticipate it can do so for others?
Aarika: First of all, I adulation the Lightning Network. This technology has fabricated us applicable in our efforts to bound a 20 year incumbent. If it wasn’t for Bitcoin and the Lightning Network, a grassroots attack like ours wouldn’t accept fabricated it this far with the bulk of banknote on duke at this date in the race, abnormally as a full-time elementary academy teacher! Fees accept a cogent appulse on how abundant of a donation we can keep. Grassroots campaigns like ours depend on every penny to accept a adventitious at winning.
Q: What do you anticipate is the accompaniment of the institutions in the U.S. at the moment? Do you anticipate there is a alternation amid it and the access in Bitcoin acceptance as a way to “opt-out” of the system?
Aarika: There are a few means to attending at this. The aboriginal is that the absolute cyberbanking arrangement is advised to accumulate bodies impoverished. The fees abandoned accomplish it absurd for abounding citizens to get their active aloft water. The additional is that bodies appetite to accept advance options. Traditionally, we’ve been encouraged to get into the banal market. To do this, however, you accept to acquirement a minimum bulk to alike get in the game. Bitcoin can be purchased at any bulk which makes it a added democratized way to accretion banking independence. Something that generally goes disregarded by incumbents like Congressman Brad Sherman is that Bitcoin incentivizes holders to access their banking articulacy by authoritative accumulation and advance cornerstones of the platform. Americans will abide to go area they feel valued, seen, and assisted.
Q: “No Kingdom can advance itself by force alone”, James Baldwin wrote a while back, as he talked about the way bodies in ability created a arrangement about their own assurance and their own profit. He said that a nation abiding by the able at the amount of the anemic is the blueprint of a nation in decline; do you anticipate this blueprint is intact? What will you do and how can others change the cachet quo? Does Bitcoin accept any role in this scenario?
Aarika: Mr. Baldwin was a ablaze alone who saw our systems of inequality, bigotry and abuse clearly. I will agenda that it is additionally Baldwin who begin political leader’s “brutal antipathy for the poor” unspeakable. I absitively to run in 2024 afterwards seeing the furnishings of the communicable on our students, teachers, and parents. It affronted issues that were already present in our apprenticeship arrangement and aural our amusing anatomy back it comes to abutment for parents in the workplace. I was additionally moved, as so abounding were, by the borough insurgence in acknowledgment to the barbarous murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. The blueprint is complete but weakened. Back adopted into Congress, I appetite to sit on the Apprenticeship and Labor Committee. It is acute that we ameliorate our apprenticeship system. I accept I’m actively accomplishing the adamantine assignment as a abecedary every day and I achievement to aggrandize my assignment in apprenticeship back in Congress. While this is one breadth to highlight for the purposes of this interview, it’s meant to appearance how we can be confused to appoint in the dismantling of systems meant to abuse us by starting with area we are and who is already in our absolute apple of influence. As you dig deeper, you will be apparent to added accomplished solutions that can enhance the assignment you’re doing. And that’s area innovations like Bitcoin appear in. All acceptable account charge to be on the table to break the systemic issues in our country.
Q: And in that sense, how do you anticipate Bitcoin can be acclimated to abate some of the best analytical issues in America, and how does UBI appear into the picture? The closing is controversial, as some accept its appliance could accomplish citizens added abased on the State. Is there a bucking amid Bitcoin and UBI?
Aarika: I accept there is a antagonism amid Bitcoin and UBI. I’m not adage there’s a absolute band-aid to ally the two. I’m aloof allurement that we accede all acceptable account afore shutting bottomward the achievability if we do, in fact, appetite added bodies to acquaintance banking freedom. I’m suggesting that we booty a attending at our absolute government abutment programs and acquisition the ones with the best banking waste. Our attack has done the analysis and careless spending in the government through aid programs isn’t uncommon. We could again backpack those assets into a UBI anatomy area anybody receives $500 a month. Data shows that this is abundant to be of cogent aid to Americans to use at their discretion, but not abundant to incentivize unemployment. I would like to analyze the options of accepting this acquittal delivered in Bitcoin, abnormally to the abandoned (65% of whom accept corpuscle phones and could account from this set up), and our advance adolescence who age out of the system, generally after the able affidavit or abutment to attainable acceptable coffer accounts. For both parties, it’s safe, secure, and accessible. Again, I apperceive I get a lot of advance aback actuality because it’s not absolutely fleshed out but what I achievement happens is that we all assignment calm to accede what’s accessible if we assignment together.
Q: Do you anticipate Bitcoin can become a apparatus to boost U.S. citizens, a average to actualize all-around campaigns, such as the one that supports your race, via the Lightning Network, army fundings, and alpha programs with aid from bodies about the apple with a absolute appulse in the U.S?
Aarika: I apperceive Bitcoin is a apparatus to boost our association members. In fact, I accept one advance who pulled herself out of abjection because of Bitcoin because they invested early, and a woman on our attack who is a adept and purchased Bitcoin which enabled her to balk activity aback into poverty. There is no acumen to anticipate that we couldn’t action added aid to those who are unbanked or kept out of the banking arrangement through the Lightning Network.
Q: When we anticipate about government, we anticipate about control, we anticipate about regulations. How do you anticipate you, as a Congresswoman, will be able to accomplish a aberration and accord to the abutment of Bitcoin-based abundance programs?
Aarika: I anticipate it should be acclaimed that I accept no absorption in acclimation Bitcoin. It should additionally be acclaimed that I intend to serve on the Congressional Blockchain Conclave back elected. This conclave is one of the best bi-partisan caucuses in Congress, as it should be! I would like to assignment with assembly beyond the alley to appear up with artistic and avant-garde solutions for the American bodies and this board is able-bodied positioned to advance that charge.
Q: Do you anticipate the “American Dream” is asleep or that it could be adapted by convalescent the foundations that sustain the country, abnormally the banking system? In what will you assignment on to accomplish the U.S. added equal, what opportunities will you try to facilitate for the boilerplate citizen?
Aarika: I anticipate it depends on what you accede to be the American Dream. In the advertiser’s faculty of 2 cars, one home, and 2.5 children, yes. I accept the American Dream is asleep to the majority of Americans. If we’re talking about the aspirations of a country of the people, for the people, by the bodies in following of equality, liberty, and amends for all, that’s the American Dream I’m motivated to create. While I allocution about my action issues on my website in detail, I’ll agenda actuality that I accept advance affliction reform, apprenticeship reform, and acknowledging the abandoned are issues different to my commune that would additionally serve the greater American population. All three of these issues are circuitous and wrought with nuance. I would accommodate bent amends ameliorate in that class of complication as well. But these issues are key to all Americans experiencing dignity. They’re additionally key to analytic greater issues after as these are the basis of so abounding issues afflictive our communities. I’m aflame to break problems, not aloof allocution about them. I’m not abashed to go to the antecedent back others are agreeable blockage at the surface. The American Dream seems absurd to a lot of Americans because added than bisected of our citizens are active paycheck to paycheck. It’s adamantine to dream back you’re in adaptation mode.
Q: Finally, there is a lot of ability in a bill that it’s not controlled by axial banks or any distinct entity, but citizens additionally charge to accept an alive role. Unlike the bequest banking system, Bitcoin demands bodies to booty ascendancy of their wealth, to break active, but generally they are extemporaneous to do so. As an drillmaster and a abeyant affiliate of the U.S. Congress, how do you plan to abutment apprenticeship and banking literacy? Do you anticipate bigger banking apprenticeship could advice onboard added bodies into Bitcoin?
Aarika: There is no catechism banking articulacy would animate a bigger compassionate of Bitcoin. It would additionally accredit bodies to accomplish accomplished decisions about their affairs in general. It’s an abuse to our accouchement and our association to alum acceptance who don’t accept credit, savings, taxes, and fees. Banking articulacy is a non-negotiable. Not alone do I accept it will serve our communities well, I additionally accept it enables bodies to accomplish decisions that are appropriate for them based on their different affairs and needs.
