Where the panel landed
The panel broadly agreed that Ethereum Classic proved the Ethereum hard fork had not cleanly resolved the DAO crisis, with Theo Goodman, Gabriel Divay, and Tone Vays all treating immutability as the core issue. Gabriel and Tone were skeptical of Steem’s structure and white paper, while Theo gave a more technical account of its strange incentive system before also warning that exchange demand was what kept the machine moving. On Roger Ver and bigger blocks, the panel was respectful of Ver personally but largely opposed his technical campaign, arguing that Ethereum’s fork drama made Bitcoin hard forks look even riskier.
What they were watching
The panel watched Ethereum Classic rise from around $0.90 to $2.70 before settling near $1.66, while Genesis Trading reportedly facilitated over-the-counter Ethereum Classic trades in $25,000 blocks. Steem fell from around $4 to around $2, and Thomas reported earning about $250 nominally from a Steem post while only managing to withdraw around $75. Bitcoin itself was described as flat, which Gabriel framed as quiet ecosystem growth rather than failure.
Ethereum Classic Schism
The panel discussed Ethereum and Ethereum Classic through Francis Coppola’s church-schism analogy. Theo compared Vitalik and Slock.it to a kind of papal authority, while Gabriel argued that Ethereum Classic might attract people who cared more about immutability than social bailout logic.
Replay Attacks And Exchange Risk
Gabriel explained that replay attacks were a known hard-fork risk and criticized exchanges and Ethereum supporters for acting as though the non-fork chain would have no value. Thomas noted that some exchanges credited users with Ethereum Classic while others dismissed it or may have mishandled customer balances.
Ethereum Classic Market
Barry Silbert buying Ethereum Classic and Genesis Trading facilitating OTC trades gave the market a new legitimacy signal. Tone criticized Silbert’s public announcement as potentially market-moving, while Gabriel saw the chain as a serious long-term challenge to the forked Ethereum.
Steem Ponzi Debate
Steem returned as a major controversy after its price fell and its withdrawal mechanics drew scrutiny. Gabriel called its white paper opaque and likely scammy, Tone compared it to Paycoin and oneCoin-style structures, and Theo described its layered mining, vesting, and voting system as complex but dependent on exchange buyers.
Florida Says Bitcoin Is Not Money
The panel discussed a Florida judge ruling that Bitcoin was not money under state money-transmission law. Tone liked the ruling and argued the case looked like reverse money laundering, since agents were allegedly trying to turn clean cash into traceable Bitcoin rather than the other way around.
Local Bitcoins Safety
A Florida robbery involving $28,000 in Bitcoin became a warning about peer-to-peer trading. Tone, Thomas, and Theo all emphasized public places, bank lobbies, and better operational security for large in-person trades.
Roger Ver And Bigger Blocks
The panel treated Roger Ver respectfully but disagreed with his block-size campaign. Theo argued that changing one number can produce unexpected system consequences, Gabriel questioned Ver’s technical authority on the issue, and Tone said Ver had nearly convinced him with fee examples but that technical workarounds likely existed.
Bitcoin Fork Conservatism
Ethereum’s hard fork served as the cautionary backdrop for Bitcoin’s block-size debate. The panel argued that previous Bitcoin forks were technical emergency fixes with near-total consensus, while a contentious block-size fork could create two Bitcoins and replay Ethereum’s problems at higher stakes.
It's a historical moment, ladies and gentlemen.— Theo Goodman
They tried fork and it didn't work.— Theo Goodman
Ethereum classic may actually have some principles— Tone Vays
It screams total bullshit.— Gabriel Divay
I have no reason to ever care about Ethereum.— Tone Vays
I will trust them on doing it the right way and doing it the safe way— Tone Vays
Story of the Week
Ethereum Classic Refuses To Disappear
The dominant story was Ethereum Classic, because it transformed the DAO hard fork from a one-time rescue into an unresolved split over principle. Theo compared the fork to a church schism and argued that the non-fork chain had become the place for people who rejected reassignment of coins. Gabriel emphasized that replay attacks and exchange confusion had been known risks, not surprises, while Tone argued that the split confirmed warnings Bitcoin developers had been making about hard forks for years. The episode treated Ethereum Classic less as an altcoin launch than as the bill arriving after the bailout.
It's a historical moment, ladies and gentlemen.— Theo Goodman