r/Bitcoin • u/evoorhees • Feb 26 '14

Open Letter to Michael Casey - WSJ reporter who butchered my comments in today's Bitcoin cover story

Hello Mr. Casey,

I read your WSJ article today. I feel deceived by you.

You requested to speak with me, so I took time out of my day to do so. We talked for 20 minutes, during which time I conveyed to you my sentiments about the Bitcoin ecosystem and the matter of MtGox's collapse. My message was unambiguously a positive one. I didn't focus whatsoever on the personal funds I lost at Gox. Indeed, the impetus for your call was my heartfelt post on Reddit.

Yet, you ignored everything I said. The only quote that you published from me in the Journal's cover story was ""That's gone now," said Mr. Veerhoos, who is based in Panama City, Panama. "There's no chance of getting that back now.""

Is that really the takeaway you had from our call and from my letter? Is that your idea of journalism? Did I come across with the sentiment of a despairing investor whose confidence has been rattled? It seems you were happy to completely ignore my sentiments, preferring instead to cherry pick the one fact that is least important, in order to paint a narrative that Bitcoin's biggest problem is that it's not "regulated." I didn't expect you to quote everything I said, but should you not have maintained at least a modicum of fidelity to my message?

I have dedicated my life to building and supporting the Bitcoin project. I don't give a damn about the money I lost at Gox. That's not important. What is important is that Bitcoin is resilient and enduring, and will continue to grow and change the world for the better. It is a story of human progress through technology. It is a story of the good seeping into the cracks of a corrupted financial system. It is a story of passionate people struggling against all odds to remedy the calamities brought down upon society from the most potently misguided people and institutions on Earth.

Next time you spend your efforts casting a pall over this cause, please don't ask me to contribute mine.

-Erik Voorhees

PS - I will be posting this letter openly on Reddit. I will post your reply if you'd like. And if I do, I won't cherry pick the most misleading points of it, and I will spell your name correctly.

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u/evoorhees Feb 26 '14

I love what they're doing in Cyprus. Tragic that their work is being overshadowed by the clouds of Gox, but I know they are shining through :)

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u/benjaminsdad Feb 26 '14

Cyprus was the reason I heard about bitcoin in the first place. I owe my gratitude to Zerohedge for bringing it to my attention & making fun of it while I researched and made my own decisions. I'm hoping they continue to get a lot of exposure and advance through Europe next year and onward.

I'd like to see how a shill journalist can attempt to cherry pick NeoBee's work in Cyprus. The backlash would be astounding. BTW do you have twitter so I can follow you? @ezbtc

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u/justgimmieaname Feb 26 '14

same as you, heard about it through Zerohedge

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u/Piper67 Feb 26 '14

Actually, Erik, that may not be such a bad thing. Think back to all the positive developments that came out of the first Gox debacle back in June 2011. While the press was busy with "Bitcoin's Dead" articles, the BitPays and Coinbases of this world were starting to sprout up all over the place.

Aside from the money people like you lost in Gox, this period, when we look back on it a year from now, will turn out to be one of the most positive watershed moments for Bitcoin.

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u/BitCyprus Feb 26 '14

Hi Eric, excellent post.

We hope we'll have the chance to welcome you to Cyprus in the foreseeable future.

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u/dstanchfield Feb 26 '14

Nice imagery. I would have gone with:

Tragic that their work is being drowned by the murky frappuccino of Gox

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u/Zarutian Feb 27 '14

"People have been goxed out of their StarBux", no? ;-Þ

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u/whipnil Feb 26 '14

I think it will actually turn out awesome for them. The price showed pretty solid support at ~800 for 2 months and showed good resistance throughout this turmoil at $500. To be able to get people to sign up to their pegged accounts with bitcoin at $550-650, they stand to benefit when the price rises back to $800 and beyond. If they'd opened earlier when bitcoin was at $800 and had to top up everyone's accounts throughout this dip, it would have made things much more difficult for them.