Will the YouTube Purge End Bitcoin Maximalism?
No. It won't, at least probably not (and sorry/not sorry for the clickbait title). But it will significantly decrease the viability of the "one coin to rule them all" ideology, and certainly has the capacity to shut down some of the strongest maximalist voices, or at least convert them into multi-coin sympathizers. Here's why.
YouTube and other legacy platforms are going after crypto hard
We've already seen numerous YouTube channels get taken down, from Tone Vays to BTC Sessions to demonetization affecting Naomi Brockwell and channel strikes against Ivan on Tech and others. One thing's for sure: the establishment doesn't like crypto. It could be that they view such new systems as risky and potentially fraudulent, or that they represent competition to the fiat processors already integrated into centralized platforms, which serve as gatekeepers and middlemen taking a nice cut. Or it could be something more totalitarian and sinister than even that. But either way, this won't be the last time we see crypto-focused content creators forced out of today's dominating platforms.
Edgy Bitcoin maximalist ethos keeps creators from playing it safe
The Bitcoiner of old could wax lyrical about the disruption that the technology represented to the dominant financial system, or gush about what a neat and useful tool it was. Now, one can only realistically focus on the former. The store-of-value approach means you have to keep talking about how the price will go up, and combine that with the "ain't scared of nobody" attitude prevalent in this field, and you have a recipe for constantly pushing the boundaries of what can be considered borderline scammy content. This means that we'll always see a Bitcoiner throwing a fit for being unjustly deplatformed now and again, even if the ratcheting of control doesn't progress any further. They just can't help themselves.
Almost all the decentralized platforms run on other networks
A large chunk, if not almost all, of censorship-resistant platforms run on some other kind of cryptocurrency. Whether this is integral to a decentralized framework like LBRY, or simply a censorship-resistant form of money to be used on the site like Flote, various crypto-tokens abound in use. Particularly since censorship hasn't reached wide-reaching and ridiculous levels yet, a new platform needs a way to entice users and content creators, making tokenized monetization an attractive tool to employ. This means that when Bitcoin maximalists get run out of town on legacy platforms, their next place of refuge probably necessitates them using other coins. Because of the attractive effects of monetization, most of the traffic will likely not go to simply censorship-free sites without this feature. Also, the changes are slim that Bitcoin will be used (particularly exclusively) for said monetization, both because of high transaction fees and times, and because of the "don't spend, hold" ethos embraced by many users. Either way, Bitcoin maximalists will need to partake in a world that runs on the antithesis of their viewpoint.
Growing censorship may force an "adapt or die" scenario
The tighter the censorship controls become, the more crypto content creators are forced to migrate to other platforms. Those who refuse to do so for ideological reasons will increasingly find themselves boxed out. Users will gravitate to whichever platform provides the most and best content they crave, and if Bitcoin maximalists aren't there, their viewpoints simply won't be represented. Eventually, maximalism must either become watered down by accepting the presence of some other coins, or lose out entirely. A difficult choice for sure.
Even if censorship stops, maximalists can't be the "boomers" left behind on lame platforms
This one cuts more to the center of what it means to be a Bitcoin maximalist, and its cultural attitude. As previously mentioned, in order to compete against a diverse field of technologically evolving competitors, Bitcoin must double down on being the most entrenched and valuable. The second element is cypherpunk culture. To become a Bitcoiner means you're bucking the system by hoarding a confiscation-resistant asset, which helps to take your mind off the years in between throwing away your life's savings and the investment breaking even. Because of the present lag in material utility compared to the rest of the field, it became necessary to sell the lifestyle of being cool, sexy, digital rebels. And nothing is more antithetical to that image than to stay away from platforms where the real rogues, who actually got censored and deplatformed for saying dangerous things about the powers that be, congregate. Even if maximalists want to stay exclusively on the old platforms, their potential audience and their whole general vibe will have gone elsewhere, and if they don't join them they'll just be a bunch of old-timers shouting about how cool and edgy they are just, like a group of aging friends wearing leather biker jackets out to the mailbox to get their pension checks.
The crypto purge is coming, and it will fail in silencing the ideologies it seeks to set back. Except one. Bitcoin maximalists won't survive the changing winds of online content intact.
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