Talking BCH in the OC: Bitsonline Visits the Orange County Bitcoin Cash Meetup

Bitcoin Cash proponents continue to spread the word about their vision for cryptocurrency the way it’s always been done: in-person and one bar at a time. We paid a visit to one of the world’s newer BCH meetup groups as it kicks off in Orange County California, a reminder of the early days of Bitcoin meetups around the world.

OC BCH Meetup Starting From Scratch in a Tough Market

No-one said this was going to be easy — but BCH fan Roman D. has followed his passion for crypto and freedom around the world to Japan, and now wants to convert the locals at home. He and friend Mike Yamamoto recently founded the Orange County Bitcoin Cash Meetup group in the suburbs of Los Angeles, where Bitsonline went to chat with the curious participants.

One common thread among participants was a love of freedom, which they acknowledged Bitcoin represents but Bitcoin Cash presents more opportunities, given its focus on being a daily-use currency.

The OC, however, has very few establishments that accept any cryptocurrency at all, so Ramon and Mike have their work cut out. Despite that, the two are undaunted in their mission to spread the word — they came equipped with piles of BCH information brochures and stickers, and plan to canvass every business in the area one by one.

Libertarian Spirit

“I’ve been involved with different movements but this the only one that brought people with so many different views together,” said Ramon, who emigrated to Los Angeles from Russia as a child. Their common point was a desire for a monetary alternative to the current central banking regime, he said.

If that sounds familiar, almost cliched, it’s because it is — the Bitcoin Cash movement sees itself as the purists who follow Bitcoin’s original vision as a decentralized, peer-to-peer, electronic cash system.

Conversation rotated between that and what BCH offers that’s different, such as short confirmation times and all on-chain transactions. The crowd also tried out the CoinText service, which allow users to send quick BCH payments via SMS message.

There was also a fair amount of joking around the “holy war” that Bitcoin’s scaling and usage debate has become, particularly those with no argument other than to shout “Bcash” in the hope of provoking outrage.

To hear more about the meetup and what it represents, watch our interview above. We reported months earlier on the fledgling Tokyo Bitcoin Cash meetup as well — a larger group in a larger city with the big advantage of access to Tokyo’s transient and visitor blockchain community.

Are meetup groups still essential to educating the masses on BCH and other cryptocurrencies? Let’s hear your thoughts.


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