Best 101 Bitcoin Facts [Infografic]

zerohedge.com / by Tyler Durden / Mar 31, 2017 5:57 PM

Authored by Alice Salles via TheAntiMedia.org,

If you’re one of the countless Americans who was distraught to learn of the revelations made by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, the mere idea that there might be yet another agency out there – perhaps just as powerful and much more intrusive –  should give you goosebumps.

Foreign Policy reports that the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, or NGA, is an obscure spy agency former President Barack Obama had a hard time wrapping his mind around back in 2009. But as the president grew fond of drone warfare, finding a way to launch wars without having to go through Congress for the proper authorization, the NGA also became more relevant. Now, President Donald Trump is expected to further explore the multibillion-dollar surveillance network.

Like the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the National Security Agency (NSA), the NGA is an intelligence agency, but it also serves as a combat support institution that functions under the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).

With headquarters bigger than the CIA’s, the building cost $1.4 billion to be completed in 2011. In 2016, the NGA bought an extra 99 acres in St. Louis, building additional structures that cost taxpayers an extra $1.75 billion.

Enjoying the extra budget Obama threw at them, the NGA became one of the most obscure intelligence agencies precisely because it relies on the work of drones.

As a body of government that has only one task — to analyze images and videos captured by drones in the Middle East — the NGA is mighty powerful. So why haven’t we heard of it before?

The Shadow Agency That Sees It All

Prior to Trump’s inauguration, the NGA only targeted the Middle East or whatever spy satellites orbiting the globe captured. As far as most of us knew, the agency refrained from pointing its ultra-high-resolution cameras toward the United States. That alone may be why the NGA has been able to stay out of scandals for the most part.

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The post More Dangerous Than The NSA? The Massive Spy Agency You Haven’t Heard Of appeared first on Silver For The People.

Chinese bitcoin miners are deliberately shutting down operations due to worries over future regulatory pressure.

Chinese Abandoning ‘Legal’ Mining

As the traders begin withdrawing BTC under new laws, mining farms in the country’s Szechuan province are concerned a lack of rules for them might lead to repercussions.

“bitcoin regulation that the central bank conducted mainly focused on financing and leveraging trading among platforms,” Zhang Jun, a senior analyst at Tai Cloud Research Institute, told YiCai Global.

Mining online involves routine digital programming. It’s not illegal.

Such comments have been insufficient to quell fears among miners themselves, it appears, with an “insider” telling the publication that shutting down shop means they miss out on a golden opportunity.

High Prices Mean Big Losses

Szechuan’s hydroelectric power is some of the cheapest in the world, while the high price of bitcoin and associated fees mean it is more profitable than ever to mine bitcoin on a major scale.

“The southwestern region has abundant hydropower resources,” the source said, “so electricity costs about half the price during the wet season. It’s hard to imagine why any mine would want to relocate now.”

“The price is so high at the moment,” a local mine manager added.

Shutting down costs mine owners hundreds of thousands of yuan every day.

Chinese trading activity has added several hundred dollars to the average price of a bitcoin in the last 24 hours.

As traders flock to take advantage of newly enshrined exchange rules, it is clear that those left out of authorities’ latest deal are fearing the worst.

The Grass Is Not Greener

A local authority spokesman could only offer confirmation that “bitcoin mines are not introduced by the government” and that “mining is carried out by companies of their own accord.”

Yet the situation in China is a further shake-up of the mining landscape. Other locations where electricity is cheap but conditions harsh include South America, where several instances of criminal repercussions for miners have surfaced this year.

Venezuelan and most recently Bolivian police have arrested parties known to have mined bitcoin on charges ranging from draining the national grid to propagating “pyramid schemes.”

No further information has yet been received from Chinese lawmakers with regard to the practice.

What do you think about the problems faced by Chinese miners? Let us know in the comments below!

Images courtesy of

The post Chinese Bitcoin Miners are Closing Shop in Fear of Future Clampdown appeared first on Bitcoinist.com.