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🔎 CBDC, Twitter rival and the body of a remote worker
Tarzan
July 07, 2023
Welcome to The Jungle: We are like a full pack of Zoo Biscuits - if you don’t like us, then you’re the weird one!
Here’s what Tarzan has for you today:
Crypto Chaos: The SA government are getting involved - eish!
Two Twits: Mark and Elon are still going at it!
Avoiding Anna: Anna, are you okay?!
Government wants to digitise the Rand - ag, please man!
One of the hottest topics over the past few years has been CRYPTO.
Getting you up to speed: Cryptocurrencies became a household name with the rise of Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a virtual currency that uses a decentralised ledger (called the blockchain) to transfer value from one digital wallet to another.
The key word is decentralised - meaning you don’t have to rely on a 3rd party (bank or government) to approve/allow the transfer of your own money.
Example: you have money you want to send to your pal, Willie, who stays in another country. Using bitcoin, you just need Willie’s wallet address - BadaBingBadaBoom - Willie will receive the bitcoin you have sent within a matter of minutes (at a small fee). This seems way better than asking your bank permission to send your own money overseas. The bank then needs to disclose with the SARB and SARS to get approval to send the money. Once you have approval, your bank will charge you fees to send the money to Willie’s bank who will charge him fees to receive the money - which all takes 2-5 days! Which option would you choose?!
Now that you are all caught up!
The SA government has decided to disregard what the citizens want - safe and cheap money transfer - and are rather looking to build what will help the government have more control!
Project Khoka 2, is an undertaking by the SARB - exploring blockchains and digital currency, resulting in the creation of a tokenized central bank money for interbank transactions and a stablecoin for commercial banks to buy SARB debentures. Basically, the SARB is on a learning journey to implement a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
Centralising something that was created to be decentralised - great thinking Mr Lesetja Kganyago! 🥴
In true South African fashion, we are following a trend before we are ready for it. The launch of a South African CBDC will be disguised as a better solution for the population by allowing open finance to thrive - instead, Tarzan foresees more ways for the government to take control, namely:
Freezing assets - with digital currency, the government is able to freeze your money easier and faster than ever
Programmable spending - With remote access to your transactions, the government will be able to control what you do and don’t spend your money on
Negative interest rates - government would be able to set negative interest rates, where people would lose money as compared to make money through positive interest rates
CBDC, in a sense, is not the same as what the majority of the market call ‘crypto’. Instead, it fights the crypto narrative and is a way for governments to remain in control with the facade of digital innovation.
Instead, what should be proposed is that all government officials are paid through a digital currency where each official’s wallet address is publicly known - then we will really see who are the corrupt and greedy!
Teasers for the office
Office teasers are here for Tarzan to help you stand out in the office or through virtual interaction with your colleagues - it’s a pleasure!
Apart from being a US president and never telling a lie, what else was Abraham Lincoln known for?
He was in the wrestling hall of fame! The 6'4" president had only one loss among his around 300 contests. He earned a reputation for this in New Salem, Illinois, as an elite fighter. Basically in today’s terms, a president that is also a champion in UFC! I’ve heard crazier!
Zuck is going for Elon’s throat!
If you missed it while living under your rock, Zuckerberg and Musk are being the fiercest keyboard warriors with threats of a cage fight. This was sparked by Meta announcing a Twitter competitor launch coming in the near future.
Here’s the low-down:
Elon has recently implemented updates to Twitter, making users of the platform quite disgruntled
This has created an opportunity for rival applications to be launched
The most significant threat being Threads - Meta’s microblogging app
Unlike other Twitter rivals, Threads allows users to leverage their existing followings on Instagram and Facebook, making it an appealing option
Based on the track record of Meta copying its competitors (eg. Reels from TikTok), something tells Tarzan that Twitter is going to take a big knock when Threads is up and running.
The app was made available yesterday, 6 July. 10 million users signed up in its first 7 hours. Here is how Threads compares to Twitter:
Anna, are you okay?! 😅
A UK furniture manufacturer has hired researchers to come up with a 3D model of the remote worker of the future, and it’s not pretty.
Anna (she has a name) was developed by a research team commissioned by Furniture At Work. The team has posted the results on social media and also in a blog on its website. Since their post in June 2023, they have subsequently taken it down - Tarzan thinks they were catching too much heat!
Don’t worry if you missed it, here’s what it said:
“Meet Anna, the remote worker of the future! With an arched back, claw-like hands, and dark, swollen eyes, she reveals how working from home can affect the body! Not everyone has the space or money for a professional desk setup at home, and this could mean hours spent every day with an arched back and neck strain. Years of working this way could throw your spine off balance and pull your torso in front of your hips, leading to a hunched-back appearance.”
Tarzan’s thought: This may be a stretch and definitely not the average person, but it is important to invest in yourself! Ergonomic furniture is worth it in the long run!
ICYMI
The robots are coming!! is ChatGPT friend or foe?
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New Springbok kits released - where the hell did blue come from?!
Meme of the day
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