William Shatner has gone where a great many have boldly gone before and said that Craig Wright has offered “zero proof” of being Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. Shatner engaged, wisely or otherwise, with die hard Wright fans on Twitter, deconstructing their arguments that Wright doesn’t have to sign the Genesis block to have his claims proven, stating instead that doing so is the easiest and simplest way to “hush all the detractors.”
“Why Can’t He Prove It?”
Shatner initially got into the debate about Wright following a tweet from a user asking if “the fake Satoshi” had attended a conference Shatner himself had recently attended. After being initially stumped, Shatner appeared to have some knowledge of Wright’s claims, and immediately cut to the chase when a Wright devotee made the usual spurious claim:
Why can’t he prove it? ??♂From what I’ve read is that some mysterious bonded courier would deliver the keys (which honestly is a scene right out of Back to the Future.) If he is, he should be able to prove it. This is like the modern day search for Anastasia. https://t.co/2cykzwFhNU
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 10, 2020
Talk then moved to keys, with some crossover between the keys to the Tulip Trust that Craig Wright was expecting (then not expecting) from a “bonded courier” last month and the keys that Wright allegedly used to show Gavin Andresen that he was Bitcoin’s creator way back in 2016. Shatner said that “signing the block would prove he (Wright) has the keys”, which brought forth a whole host of hilarious arguments defending Wright’s inability to complete this relatively straightforward task:
Somebody on your level ought to know without proof. Actions speak many many times louder than words in this instance Bill my old mukka…. have a look into it you’ll see. Wright 20/30 years ahead. Wright is Nakamoto no doubt. p.s. patents.
— The Bitcoin Tramp AKA Nicky Nu (@TheBitcoinTramp) February 10, 2020
Craig Wright proves he is Satoshi by exposing he has more knowledge/truth about Bitcoin than anyone on the planet. Knowone is entitled to see his bank accounts.
— $BITMECHA (@bitmecha) February 10, 2020
He is proving it in court. According to Sale of Good Act, being in possession of a good doesn’t translate to ownership. You could be in possession of the key to my Lamborghini but that doesn’t mean that you own it. He can prove to the court by providing evidence other than keys.
— $DJIBRIL (@djibrilww) February 10, 2020
That’s right, the Sale of Goods act. You know Wright’s defenders are getting desperate when they’re trying to get him off the hook using consumer law.
Wright Court Out
Wright’s backers then tried to claim that everything was going to be proved in court, with Calvin Ayre claiming that “having keys is not proof like what he is doing in court.” These people seem to forget that Wright has already been eviscerated in court during the Dave Kleiman case for, among other things, taking “directly conflicting factual positions”, offering “altered” and “fraudulent” documents in his defense, giving “perjurious testimony”, and obstructing a judicial proceeding. These do not sound like the actions of an innocent man trying to prove something.
The arguments then got even stranger, and a little meta, with some asking why Wright would risk his reputation by trying to prove he was Satoshi…even though that is exactly what his reputation is based on. Thankfully, Shatner wasn’t falling for this one:
Ask yourself why would someone claim to be Satoshi and offer zero proof? Either put up or shut up, right????♂ https://t.co/9wwBhnpcM5
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 11, 2020
In the end, Shatner offered to come to the CoinGeek London conference at which Wright is speaking if Wright signed the Genesis block while there. This elicited the following angry reaction which highlights the mentality of many Wright/BSV supporters who blindly follow him and the project:
? Someone’s a little testy today…?? https://t.co/VPBdIswWAY
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 11, 2020
It’s safe to say that Shatner left the evening’s entertainment with no more respect for Wright and his fans than he had before it began, and likely a lot less.
