An older episode of Flirting with Bitcoin, from January 2025. Since then, we built NextBlock, a video social app without ads or an algorithm: https://nextblock.city Ian and Mandana respond to Trump's crypto executive order, Ross Ulbricht's pardon, the CBDC ban, and meme coins. Mandana talks about people she knows facing career uncertainty from federal government changes, and why Bitcoin could help them. Ian orange-pills a nine-year-old who asks better questions than most adults. "You don't need their permission to receive Bitcoin, to hold Bitcoin, and to watch your standard of living get better over time." 01:42 Trump Administration's Impact on Bitcoin 03:58 Ross Ulbricht's Pardon 18:01 Central Bank Digital Currencies 27:08 The Government's Role in Measuring Value 33:45 Bitcoin as a Solution for Financial Security 35:47 The Cognitive Dissonance of Fiat vs. Bitcoin 43:38 Bitcoin's Potential to Save Americans 45:09 Educating the Next Generation Subscribe to Flirting with Bitcoin: https://flirtingwithbitcoin.substack.com Where everything lives: the app and the podcast at https://nextblock.city · Mandana's book at https://theattentionprotocol.com · NextBlock at https://blog.joinnextblock.com