Johnston’s Law “Everything that can be decentralized, will be decentralized”.

Decentralizing Information

Human has been on a march toward using an ever great number of decentralized systems. One classic example is the production, storing and distributing of information, seen here centralized in the Great Library of Alexandria.

Which had all of its knowledge later destroyed in a fire.

The printing press has a immensely positive effect of decentralizing the production, storage and distribution of information.

After the printing press information and knowledge become far more abundant to the point where individuals and universities could have the luxury of a personal library of books from around the world.

Decentralization of Trade, Economic Decisions and Production of Goods

We can also look at the history of economic activity. Through out most of human history and especially under monarchies the king had the power to direct economic activities and even sell permanent monopolies where a single provider had the legal right to produce a commodity, good or service.

This system of central planning proved ineffective and in 1624 the “Statute of Monopolies” was passed by the parliament of England which removed the power of the king to sell or issue general or permanent monopolies, creating a system of patents which once issued only lasted 14 years and had to be on novel inventions.

This shift away from central planning of economic activities is widely credited for being a key factor the United Kingdom leading the industrial revolution in the 1800's.

Creating a space for freedom of economic decisions at the individual level lead to an explosion of growth in economic development in the following centuries.

The resulting prosperity of this economic decentralization has been witnessed by the majority of the human population.

Decentralizing Monetary Policy

So while knowledge and many economic decisions have been decentralized in the past centuries, one of the most fundamental price signals, (that is the interest rate), remains the province of a large central institution. And when the central bank picks the wrong interest rate and cause mal-investment and perverse market signals, then bubbles and deeper recessions are the result.

Bitcoin represents the technological means to change our monetary system from one of centrally planned interest rates to one where the market determines questions of inflation, the number of monetary units, and the currency that people choose to accept.

In addition the bitcoin blockchain carries with it the seed for decentralizing markets, contacts, titles, and law. Thus accelerating the rate at which our society can remove trusted intermediaries, middle men, and the corruption that comes with centralization of power.

Conclusion

The Result of Johnston’s Law

“In the future, nearly all of human knowledge and economic activity will be done through decentralized systems”.