Wed, Jan 7, 2026 · 7:00 PM CST
## Book Club Series: The Blocksize War (Austin Software Cooperatives) Part 3We’re kicking off a multi‑part reading group on The Blocksize War —a narrative of the 2015–2017 fight over Bitcoin’s blocksize and the deeper question of who gets to change rules in a decentralized system . We’ll use the story as a springboard to explore protocol governance, incentives, credible commitment, soft‑ vs hard‑fork dynamics, user coordination (UASF), and “exit vs. voice” —with applied takeaways for cooperative organizations.Focus: governance lessons, not price or trading.
Who governs a system with no boss? Nodes, miners, devs, exchanges, users—and what “consensus” really means.Mechanism design & change control: Soft forks vs. hard forks, signaling, activation thresholds, the role of credible exit.Power and legitimacy: Why “coalitions” (e.g., NYA) aren’t the same as consensus; why simple rules beat back‑room deals.Operational tradeoffs: Throughput vs. decentralization; client diversity; backward compatibility.Co‑op parallels: Consent‑based changes, transparency rituals, and how to avoid “Fiat” control returning through process complexity.
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Session 1 — Wed, Nov 5, 2025 Origins & Fault Lines (2009–2015) : Throughput vs. decentralization; early “big‑block” proposals; why blocksize became a governance lever.Session 2 — Wed, Dec 3, 2025 2016: The Great Schism : SegWit design goals, miner signaling, exchanges, and “agreements” vs. actual consensus.Session 3 — Wed, Jan 7, 2026 2017: UASF to Resolution : BIP‑level coordination, user activation, SegWit2x’s collapse, and the BCH split—lessons on credible commitment and collective action.Session 4 — Wed, Feb 4, 2026 Aftermath & Lessons for Co‑ops : What decentralized governance got right and wrong; translating principles into cooperative bylaws, comp, and decision rights.
***change management without a traditional hierarchy .
Get a copy of The Blocksize War
Session 1 reading: Preface + early chapters on scaling debates and blocksize proposals.Bring 1–2 questions you want answered about decentralized change control (e.g., “How do we prevent a tiny group from pushing risky changes?”).
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When: First Wednesday of the month starting Nov 5, 2025 , 7:00–8:15 PM Central (CT) Where: Zoom (link sent to RSVPs day‑of) or in‑person if announcedCode of conduct: Be civil; critique ideas, not people. No investment advice.
***large‑scale, boss‑less coordination under pressure . It shows how clear rules, credible user action, and transparent signaling can beat power plays—insight you can apply to bylaws, compensation changes, product governance, and member rights in your cooperative.RSVP to save your seat. Questions you want covered? Drop them in the event comments so we can prioritize them.
