Andrew raised a good question on Twitter, Should bitcoiners wear bitcoin clothes?
The poll answers were:
- No: It’s cringe
- No: It’s bad opsec (Operation security, meaning you give away your status as a bitcoin hodler and that might put you in someone’s crosshairs, like wearing expensive jewelry all over.)
- Yes: It’s cool
- Yes: Evangelism
The answers were varied. Susiebdds said: “Who cares what other people do? I love wearing bitcoin clothes and it almost always starts conversations about bitcoin when I’m out and about.” Which is one way to think about it. Evangelism, basically.
Dergigi has a thing to say about Opsec Swag, meaning clothes that only people in the know would recognize. Other people would just see a random t-shirt like the many brands that are out there. It’s a good compromise.
And BTC_Arrow has a more granular approach: “I like to now, we are all Satoshi’s marketing division after all. That will stop when the shit truly hits the economic fan. Not going to walk around with a target painted on my back.”
Which actually makes a lot of sense depending on where you live.
And of course there’s the crowd option from TheLongFade: “Wearing bitcoin at meetups is reasonable”
And here’s a more extreme nightmare scenario: “Should you add a target on your T-Shirt? The year is 2042. Bitcoin price = infinity fiat. 1 BTC= 1BTC. People find old photos of you on the internet wearing a Bitcoin shirt hodl, self custody, flexing your cold card. Next day on the news: “Bitcoin OG was turned inside out!”“
So, what is the right answer? Well, it depends. The risk is there. Like TheBTCkrab said, you never know what might happen in the future. And what about gold or diamonds? Should a woman fear wearing them in case of becoming a target? Expensive jewelry is relatively easy to rob and makes you a target as well. The problem with bitcoin is that there’s no way to retrieve it once stolen. It might take more technical expertise but once you’re robbed, it’s gone forever, unless the thieves have a change of heart.
Also, diamonds and gold are relatively stable in price. Bitcoin, as we’ve seen, can swing a thousand times in any direction. Your little stack might one day be worth millions and you might regret having so many photos around with you openly carrying bitcoin.
Then again, we are the Bitcoin evangelists and nothing will happen if we don’t all put in the effort to change the world. It’s almost like Proof of Work.
So, where can you shop for bitcoin swag and clothes?
Here’s a small list of stores:
