# Bitcoin & the Bigger Shovel - Channel: [THE JACK MALLERS SHOW](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3ol9RQbQHqle_Uly6w9LfA) - Published: 2026-04-14 - Source video: [Watch on YouTube](https://youtube.com/watch?v=579ICwLanUI) - Read on ReadTube: https://www.read.tube/p/videos/579ICwLanUI - Language: Original (source language) ## Summary **Bitcoin and the Looming Liquidity Crisis** In this episode, the host discusses the ongoing global conflict centered on the Strait of Hormuz, emphasizing that the inability to keep energy supply lines open signifies a failure of the current petrodollar system. He argues that governments are increasingly reliant on currency debasement and war to sustain their power, positioning Bitcoin as the necessary, neutral alternative for a decentralized monetary future. Supporting this, he highlights a shift in geopolitical alliances and market behaviors, where rising oil prices and government instability further justify his case for a transition to hard, non-sovereign assets like Bitcoin. This episode centers on macroeconomics, the geopolitical risks surrounding energy markets, and Bitcoin's role as an inevitable, non-sovereign monetary alternative. - Market reality: The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, creating a supply shock for global energy markets. Financial markets are currently underestimating the long-term inflationary consequences of this disruption. - Fiat failure: US dollar hegemony is under stress because the U.S. is no longer productive enough to maintain its status, leading to massive deficits and a reliance on debt-funded government spending. - Bitcoin vs. Gold: While gold serves as a store of value for nation-states, Bitcoin is superior because it functions as both an asset and a decentralized, censorship-resistant monetary network that allows for global settlement without intermediaries. - Economic outlook: We are in a cycle of stagflation where central banks must choose between printing money into an oil shock or raising rates into an AI-driven deflationary crisis. Bitcoin is the only neutral path forward as governments increasingly resort to currency debasement. - Taxation and production: Taxation functions as theft that sidelines the private sector's most productive builders. El Salvador’s model of minimal taxation and regulation successfully attracts innovation by allowing producers to build the infrastructure society actually needs. ## Article ## Bitcoin & the Bigger Shovel Welcome back to episode 113 of *The Jack Mallers Show*. We are currently sitting at a Bitcoin price of $73,300, with a market cap of $1.47 trillion. We are approximately 41.9% off our all-time high of $126,160, reached 189 days ago. This week’s show title is "Bitcoin and the Bigger Shovel." I’m keeping things relatively brief today to focus on the macro environment, as I want to steer clear of the political "yapping" that often clogs up the discourse. My goal is to talk about Bitcoin, economics, and how we can build a base of capital to secure our futures in a world where governments and central banks are actively working against us. --- ### Chapter 1: The Ceasefire and the Energy Leverage Markets are information, and right now, the primary information we are processing is the geopolitical situation in the Middle East. President Trump recently announced a "ceasefire," but the terms—which included Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, acceptance of their uranium enrichment program, and the withdrawal of U.S. forces—essentially signaled a loss for the United States. At the end of the day, people are dying, which is tragic, but from a macro perspective, the real issue is the Strait of Hormuz. Twenty percent of global oil supply passes through that bottleneck. Everything in our economy is a derivative of energy—food, fertilizer, travel, and logistics. Whether the U.S. military can enforce the "Petrodollar" or if we are shifting toward a "Petro-Yuan" or a "Petro-Bitcoin" system is the core conflict. If the U.S. cannot secure the transit of energy, the Petrodollar can no longer be unilaterally enforced. We are seeing a shift where nation-states no longer trust each other, leading to a move toward non-sovereign monetary instruments. #### The "Rules" Don't Apply We’ve seen recent headlines about traders betting $950 million on oil price drops just hours before ceasefire announcements. When you see this level of insider trading alongside a government that is clearly struggling to manage its own financial house, it becomes evident that the "rules" of the system are disintegrating. We are entering a trustless, lawless era. If you still trust that our money should be governed by a group of politicians, I don't know what to tell you. This is why I am building toward a world governed by natural laws and proof-of-work money. --- ### Chapter 2: The Dollar and the Rare Earth Reality The United States is currently trying to force a reshoring of industry, but we are still fundamentally reliant on China for rare earth minerals and manufacturing capabilities. Trump’s trip to China underscores our lack of leverage. For the U.S. to truly unwind from globalization, the dollar must get weaker, and U.S. assets must reprice. When the dollar is the world reserve currency, it is artificially strong. Once that status slips, the demand for the dollar falls, and the excess liquidity we’ve built up in our stock and real estate markets will have to find a new home in neutral, scarce, hard assets like Bitcoin and gold. --- ### Chapter 3: Why Bitcoin Beats Gold There is a lot of talk about gold, but we have to be honest: Bitcoin is a superior monetary technology. * **The Monetary Network:** Gold is a monetary asset, but it lacks a native monetary network. To use gold at scale, you have to deposit it with a bank or a government, which eventually leads to them seizing it—as they did in 1971. * **The Technology:** Bitcoin is both a monetary asset and a monetary network. It achieves transaction finality over the internet without intermediaries. It is "teleporting" value. * **The Market Cap:** Bitcoin is currently too small to be the world reserve currency (it’s hovering around the 10th largest company in the world). However, it is growing. As the world realizes that you cannot print an 18-year-old and you cannot print oil, they will seek assets that cannot be debased. --- ### Chapter 4: The Credit Crisis and Deflation We are seeing signs of a brewing credit crisis. Office buildings are selling for 90% off, and we are seeing a rise in delinquencies among consumers. Arthur Hayes put it perfectly: **"Deflation in what you want, inflation in what you need."** The artificial nature of our current financial system creates a trap for central planners. If they print money to save the banks, they ignite inflation. If they raise rates to fight inflation, they accelerate the deflationary collapse of the labor market. There is no good way out for the fiat system. The only way out is Bitcoin. --- ### Taxes: The Ultimate Theft Finally, I have to address taxes. Philosophically, taxes are theft, but the most underrated harm they cause is that they siphon resources away from the private sector—the actual builders—and hand them to an incompetent public sector. Look at El Salvador. They aren’t over-regulating or over-taxing, and as a result, they are attracting actual value-creators like Google and Tether to build real infrastructure. They don't need a massive state apparatus because they aren't siphoning wealth from their producers. Here in the U.S., we tax our greatest contributors and funnel that money into a government that loses $2 trillion a year. --- ### Stay Humble and Stack Sats I’m not a trader, and I’m not a doctor, but I have a clear view on what works: 1. **Be productive.** 2. **Stay cautious with your lifestyle and debt.** 3. **Stay humble and stack sats.** We are living through unpredictable times. Whether Bitcoin rallies to $100k or touches $50k in a broader market rout, my strategy remains the same. I am building with Strike and 21, and I am consistently increasing my exposure to the hardest money ever invented. *Keep building, keep stacking, and stay humble.*