Just yesterday, crypto influencer Benjamin Cowen, with his one million-plus followers, was demanding a Bitcoin correction to the mid-$90,000s. He’s trying to use some historical precedent and the bull market support band as his reason/excuse. Okay, fine. The real gut punch is his prediction of a forthcoming “brutal capitulation event” for altcoins. Many are panicking. I'm not. In fact, this is exactly why I believe this will be the best thing to happen to crypto in years.

Is A Crypto Spring Cleaning Coming?

Let’s get real though, the altcoin market is a huge hellhole swamp. A cesspool of shitcoins, meme coins and just plain scams. Projects created based on nothing but hype and dreams, luring in unsuspecting investors with the dream of getting rich overnight. It’s a long way from the original dream of a decentralized, trustless financial order, to be sure. It's more like a digital casino.

Cowen’s prediction, if it were to come true, would not be a disaster. It's a much-needed cleansing. A cleansing fire that will burn away the deadwood, and in its place, leave only the truly valuable, innovative projects. Consider it a digital version of a forest fire, creating room for new growth. We know it’s painful, and yes it is painful, but the pain is absolutely necessary for the long-term health of the ecosystem. This ALT/BTC bloodbath Cowen speaks of? Let it happen. Let the market sort things out.

This isn't about government intervention. It’s not about bailing out failing projects or protecting investors from their own bad choices. It's about individual responsibility. It’s a much better approach — having you do the research, understanding what the risks are, choosing to accept the consequences of your actions. That’s the literal definition of a free market.

The genius of a free market is its merciless quality control. It rewards innovation and punishes incompetence. It drives projects to ensure that they actually deliver what they promised, or they risk falling into irrelevancy. As cruel as that all sounds, it is the most efficient and effective system we have for distributing limited resources and spurring innovation and improvement.

Free Markets Demand Accountability

Look at the history of technology. For how many dot-com companies that crashed and burned in the early 2000s. A lot. From the ashes rose the giants we know today: Amazon, Google, and others. The same thing will happen in crypto. Only the strong shall survive, because the weak will fall.

The ALT/BTC pairs getting hammered? Good. That’s a good thing – it means the market is finally coming to its senses and recognizing that the vast majority of these altcoins are completely, fundamentally worthless. They provide no actual value, no technological innovation, and no long-term financial plan. In reality, they’re none of those things—they’re just vaporware dressed up in fancy marketing.

We have to do what Cowen would say we need to do and rip the band-aid off. Let the market correct. Let the prices crash. Let the speculators get burned. It’s a process that is counterintuitive and often painful, but it’s the only way to create a genuinely more resilient and sustainable crypto ecosystem.

The foolish knee-jerk reaction to every shot of market volatility is to immediately demand more regulation. That's the last thing we need. Interventions by government will only oppress innovation and serve as a shield for the incumbents. It will raise barriers to entry and it will make it more difficult for new, disruptive projects to develop.

  • Before the "brutal capitulation event"

    • Speculative frenzy
    • Projects built on hype

  • After the "brutal capitulation event"

    • Market correction
    • Projects built on innovation

Reject The Siren Song of Regulation

Regulation is the very opposite of the libertarian dream. It’s a better-know-best, top-down approach that assumes the federal government should make decisions for all Americans. Government doesn't know best. New government is slow, bureaucratic, and still often captured by special interests.

A wealth-protecting outrage at market losses conveniently overlooks the thousands of percent gained that many crypto investors have already cashed out.

Instead of regulation, we need decentralization. What we want is a self-regulated ecosystem in which people are empowered to make their own decisions and face the outcomes. We have to equip people to conduct their own inquiry, evaluate the potential harms, and arrive at their own conclusions.

This isn't a call for anarchy. It's a call for responsibility. It’s a plea for a more grown-up, responsible, engaged crypto world. Together, let’s build that libertarian future! In this open future, people are empowered to easily manage their assets on their own terms and participate in a genuinely global, peer-to-peer economy.

To those fearful of radical change, Cowen’s warning may seem like unalloyed doom and gloom. To me, it sounds like opportunity. The chance to purify the market, flush out the bad actors, and forge a new, more robust, more durable crypto world. The chance to really lean into personal responsibility as an alternative and let go of the regulatory siren call. The chance to fully achieve our dream of a libertarian financial utopia. Let the purge begin. Let the rebuild commence.

Cowen's warning might sound like doom and gloom to some. But to me, it sounds like opportunity. The opportunity to cleanse the market, weed out the weak, and build a stronger, more resilient crypto ecosystem. The opportunity to embrace individual responsibility and reject the siren song of regulation. The opportunity to finally realize the libertarian vision of a truly free and decentralized financial system. Let the purge begin. Let the rebuild commence.