Let's talk about a shocking event that went almost unnoticed by the masses. Imagine — regulators gathering not to shut down innovation, but to... think. Yes, it sounds like an oxymoron. But it happened. The SEC held a roundtable on DeFi. And you won't believe it, someone spoke the truth there.
Code is speech, not a crime
It turns out that code is not evil. It is speech. The First Amendment. The holy cow of American freedom. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce stated outright:
"Code is a protected form of expression!"
Seriously? So now, if you write a smart contract, you're not a hacker, not a criminal, but... a poet of the Web3 era? Apparently, yes.
Engineer ≠ Drug Lord
And here comes a sensation from SEC Chair Paul Atkins. I quote:
"Engineers should not be responsible for how others use their code."
It's like saying that a chef is not to blame if someone gets poisoned after eating his lasagna three weeks past the expiration date. Common sense? In American bureaucracy? What's next — the tax office will stop considering air as a taxable object?
Vorhees strikes back
And here comes Eric Vorhees — a man who looks like he was born in a DAO. And he says:
"Smart contracts are a step forward compared to human regulators."
Amen, Eric. While the regulator is printing 800 pages of instructions for form 17-B-Alpha, the smart contract has already processed 4000 transactions without a lunch break, an HR complaint, or 'searching for the meaning of life.' No bribes. No bureaucracy. Just code. Just decentralization. Just hardcore.
Decentralization ≠ Anarchy
It turns out that decentralization is not some crypto-anarchic swamp. It is, quoting the roundtable participants:
"Transparency, predictability, and user orientation."
Who would have thought! This is not Wall Street, where 'transparency' means 'we lost $2 trillion, but we won't say to whom.'
What was that all about?
The SEC, it seems, has decided for the first time to listen before tightening the screws. The roundtable was called 'Spring Sprint Toward Crypto Clarity.' So, a spring run toward clarity. What's next — a 'summer marathon toward common sense'? Let's pray.
