Securing Digital Rights for Communities (Game Theory and Governance of Scalable Blockchains for Use in Digital Network States)
Chapter 24. Future Implications
How power is decentralised via tokenised, self-sovereign Network States in the future
Introduction
The future implications of systems being built that broadly follow the guidelines outlined in this book are detailed below. Decentralised communities and Network States that can be created by following the guidelines in this book secure Digital Rights for all and have profound implications for the future of humanity and its ability to secure its freedom in the digital and then, with the adoption and implementation of Network States, the real world.
24.1 Social Media Account Not Owned by Silicon Valley Companies, Digital Self-Sovereignty and Guaranteed Free Speech
Accounts on the immutable base layer cannot be deleted or suspended. As long as the network runs, these accounts and their followers remain intact. This gives individuals true ownership over their identities and speech, reducing the risk of being de-platformed. People can express themselves more freely, knowing their accounts will not disappear due to centralised decisions.
When the social accounts of community members exist on the base layer of such Web3 technology as outlined in this book, Web2 social media companies like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google and others no longer control the keys to your account. They exist outside of the Web2 social platform's control. Social platforms become Layer 2 system that allow the Layer 1 accounts to log into them. In this way, the social media platforms cannot confiscate, manipulate or delete your social account any longer. Your social account exists on a neutral Layer 1 which has its own economy and self funding mechanisms, which is controlled by the community, not private companies. The same is true for your followers lists and the communities that you build; they all exist on Layer 1 and therefore cannot be deleted by any individual entity or Web2 tech company.
Content is served from the Layer 1 because the social platforms all tap into the same content database on Layer 1. This combined with the sovereignty of your social account now means that free speech and the right to express ideas within a community is already guaranteed for all people online who posses such Web3, DPoS social accounts, without the influence of a company or intermediary.
This also means that wherever you login with your Web3 Social account, you take your followers lists, account history, reputation, community, merits and achievements with you to each Web3 enabled platform you use.
24.2 No Longer Possible to Manipulate History
In addition to protecting speech, such networks preserve all interactions and historical events on-chain. Attempts to erase or rewrite the record are virtually impossible once multiple nodes independently store the information.
A key outcome of these decentralised systems is that history stored on-chain cannot be changed or erased. Once data is published, the record stays intact as long as the network operates. This makes it difficult for any authority to revise past events and ensures a permanent record of social, economic, and governance actions and data. Once existing Wikis and Encyclopedias begin using such technology to document present affairs, History will be preserved, protected by the community's super majority, elected consensus.
24.3 Impossible to Shut Down
By design, these networks are highly resilient. When governance and infrastructure are distributed among many participants with no central authority, there is no single point of failure. Even if an outside party tries to take over or attack the network, the original community can fork away and move to a new chain, leaving the attacker alone on the old chain. Ironically, attempted takeovers often enrich the original community, as hostile actors must buy large amounts of tokens on the open market.
24.4 Money Attacks Can Strengthen Communities
If a hostile entity purchases a significant share of tokens to dominate the network, they raise the token price in the process. Original holders can sell at higher values or fork to create a new chain, leaving the attacker with worthless tokens on the old fork. In this way, an economic attack can backfire, making the community wealthier, more united and more motivated, while the attacker ends up holding depreciated assets.
24.5 Holding Abusive Oligarchs to Account
These protocols also allow communities, a new, novel and tested way to deal with abusive large holders who fail to reinvest in the community or who harm the network. If a single individual accumulates an excessive share and exploits users, the community can collectively decide to fork, granting the abusive oligarch zero balance on the new chain. This mechanism avoids traditional violent revolutions by enabling digital secession from exploitative stakeholders.
24.6 Network State Communities and Governments
Over time, many believe governments will begin recognizing these decentralised, online "Network States." Some may cooperate, some will oppose and others may launch competing versions. Either way, communities that run their own economies, distribute governance rights, and store data on censorship-resistant chains could become akin to self-sovereign states, operating largely on voluntary participation rather than imposed authority.
24.7 Rebalancing of Power
Currently, a handful of national governments hold tremendous monetary power through fiat issuance. Soon, hundreds or even thousands of decentralised digital communities may issue their own currencies, manage their own governance, and command real economic influence. This diffusion of power could reshape global politics and economics.
24.8 Fee-less DeFi
In most existing DeFi (Decentralised Finance) systems, each transaction incurs gas or network fees. On high-traffic chains, these fees can be prohibitively expensive. By contrast, fee-less models allow users to stake tokens based on them possessing resource credits instead of paying a gas token for every transaction. This creates more inclusive finance where people can trade, lend, or provide liquidity without constant fees. Systems such as Honeycomb and VSC (Built on Layer 2 systems on The Hive Blockchain, for further information and definitions of these two systems see Annex I – Glossary of Terms and Acronyms) are already developing fee-less DeFi and Smart Contract capabilities.
See the following links for further information on these systems:
Honeycomb Layer 2 Smart Contracts: https://www.hivehoneycomb.com/
VSC Layer 2 Smart Contracts: https://vsc.eco/
24.9 Competition with Traditional Models
Fee-based chains may struggle to serve a global user base for everyday transactions. As fee-less alternatives mature, they could challenge established DeFi ecosystems by significantly reducing barriers to entry and increasing user adoption.
Conclusion
Emerging blockchain architectures, where communities store data, govern themselves, and issue tokens signal major shifts in how people will organize in future. They enable:
- Immutable Records: History and accounts cannot be altered or de-platformed.
- Social Account Self-Sovereignty Accounts are owned outside of Silicon Valley Web2 company control.
- Free Speech Text communication is stored publicly on a neutral consensus based Layer 1 which is almost impossible to shut down or modify without a community super majority fork for anomalous situations.
- Autonomous Communities: Groups can run their own decentralised infrastructure and economies without being shut down or regulated by centralised entities.
- Resistance to Takeovers: Hostile actors enrich original participants but rarely succeed in capturing the network.
- Evolving Global Order: Network States may coexist with or challenge traditional governments and financial systems. In some cases they will demonstrate how they can improve existing governmental system and provide them with renewed legitimacy.
- Fee-less Finance: Decentralised finance without high transaction costs can boost accessibility and everyday utility.
In short, these technologies are poised to disrupt power structures, incentivize more equitable governance models, and grant greater self-sovereignty to digitally native communities. The economic, political, and social implications are vast and still unfolding.