With the crypto markets still in the doldrums everyone’s on edge. Comments and jokes which wouldn’t have drawn a second glance back in December are snowballing into serious issues. The latest controversy on “crypto Twitter”, the supposed “bullying” of angel investor Naval Ravikant, is still running, three days after the triggering incident.
Over the weekend Riccardo “FluffyPony” Spagni and “WhalePanda” were accused of bullying Naval Ravikant after they contributed to the #lookatmeimnaval hashtag, satirising Ravikant’s inspirational and philosophical tweets.
Charlie Lee today leapt to the defence of Spagni and WhalePanda, fellow members of the “Magical Crypto Friends” group. In Lee’s view some of the tweets were “hilarious” and were not bullying. Lee said that he thought Naval would “take it as a joke that it was” and there was no organized campaign, only “people… trying to be funny.” He urged that everyone “move on now as a community.”
Making the point that everyone was ripe for mockery, Lee tweeted out a series of #lookatmeIm jokes about his Magical Crypto Friends, including, “One does not truly appreciate life until one owns a $800k watch,” referencing the controversy over Spagni’s collection of “fine timepieces.”
One does not truly appreciate life until one owns a $800k watch. #LookAtMeImFluffyPony
— Charlie Lee [LTC⚡] (@SatoshiLite) 16 July 2018
Ravikant responded to Lee that he didn’t “mind the ribbing” but objected to the “malicious intent from the instigator,” who, he claims, “has had a long time vendetta” against him.
I don’t mind the ribbing Charlie, it was the malicious intent from the instigator who has had a long time vendetta (see https://t.co/dQHunDZ24f) and some of the nastier tweets.
Jokes are welcome. But I’m not swayed by “Hold still while we hit you.”
— Naval (@naval) 16 July 2018
The instigator in question is John Carvalho, @BitcoinErrorLog on Twitter. His original tweet suggested that “freedom ends where the bullet begins.” It is the violence of this language which seems to have particularly upset Ravikant.
Freedom ends where the bullet begins. #LookAtMeImNaval
— John Carvalho (@BitcoinErrorLog) 13 July 2018
According to Ravikant it was Carvalho’s intention to create “an angry mob” and that he “deliberately uses coded violent words.”
Carvalho launched this meme as a way of creating an angry mob. He has been attacking me for a long time. He deliberately uses coded violent words. See:https://t.co/VCnROSsDNs
You bet I’m going to defend myself.
The rest of them ribbing is fine – that’s flattery.
— Naval (@naval) 16 July 2018
As to the subsequent ribbing from some of crypto Twitter’s biggest hitters? Well, “that’s flattery.”
