What We Read Today 07 March 2014

Econintersect: Every day our editors collect the most interesting things they find from around the internet and present a summary “reading list” which will include very brief summaries of why each item has gotten our attention. Suggestions from readers for “reading list” items are gratefully reviewed, although sometimes space limits the number included.

• The Face Behind Bitcoin (Leah McGrath Goodman, Newsweek) Hat tip to John O’Donnell. According to this article Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of bitcoin, is a 65-year old grandfather from California. He supposedly has left hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoins untouched and retreated to the family home in the San Gabriel foothills. Read the result of a 2-month search by Newsweek that apparently found what no one else has. See also the later article next.

• UPDATE 2-Man called Bitcoin’s father denies ties, leads LA car chase (Aron Ranen and Brandon Lowrey, Reuters) The 65-year old Satoshi Nakamoto in Temple Cuty, CA, denies being the inventor of the bitcoin. The Bitcoin Foundation says there is no evidence to tie this man to bitcoin.

• Crimea sets referendum on joining Russia (Carol Morello and Anthony Faiola, The Washington Post) The parliament of Crimea unanimously passed a resolution today (06 March) which authorized the transfer of Ukraine from Ukraine to Russia, subject to a public referendum which they scheduled for 16 March. This will presumably preempt a vote on increased autonomy for Crimea scheduled for 30 March. The Washington Post offered the following characterizations:

The regional parliament, now led by Sergei Aksyonov – a businessman and politician known around Kiev as the “Goblin” because of his alleged ties to organized crime, vowed to nationalize Ukrainian state industries and begin setting up government ministries separate from Ukraine, which it joined in 1954 when the nation was still a satellite of the Soviet Union.

“This is our response to the disorder and lawlessness in Kiev,” Sergei Shuvainikov, a member of the Crimean legislature, said Thursday. “We will decide our future ourselves.”

• US and allies punish Russia over Ukraine (Geoff Dyer, Financial Times) Visa bans and asset freezes, aimed at individuals, are about all that has happened so far.

• Obama calls Putin, proposes solution to Ukraine dispute (David Jackson, USA Today) The president spent another hour on the phone today (06 March) with Russian president Putin is an attempt to get a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine crisis. Below is a video of President Obama’s statement to the press today in which he described the nature of sanctions being imposed until the dispute is resolved. A CNN report gives further details.

• CNN Told to Stop Broadcasting from Hotel in Crimea (CNN Video) The American media outlet, CNN, that is probably giving the best exposure to the Russian perspectives is being told to stop broadcasting from Crimea.

Today there are 15 more articles discussed ‘Behind the Wall’.

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