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Today, the Foundation’s Board released the EF Mandate. This document, which was first intended for EF members, reaffirms the promise of Ethereum, and the role of EF within this ecosystem.

In the mandate, the EF seems to have forgotten about the sandboxing power of Ethereum. Yes, CROPS(*) properties are critical, and cannot be displaced. Self-sovereign coordination is the core product and would not be the same without CROPS. *CROPS: Censorship Resistance, Open-source (and free as in freedom), Privacy, Security. That said, the mandate slips up when reading between the lines: - While it is good to conserve and protect values by prioritizing association, it is bad when the means of association itself gets captured. - It is bad to expect behavioral alignment, you've got to prove values with work. - It is bad to expect people to fund CROPS out of thin air, you've got to create opportunity. These bad expectations are "leftist-coded", and repeatedly seep into what should be non-political cypherpunk work. I made the mistake of going along with these hopes too much before, it is naive. Survival requires continuous growth and competition of ideas: *local compromises in CROPS are required to enable that, unfortunately*. It's milady-theater to pretend none have to be made in the real world. Yes, nobody likes compromises. But rather than saying "copy milady CROPS or you're too corpo", the EF should embrace Sandboxing in their manifest more. A good sandbox is the best form of CROPS: - it creates composability - it creates optionality - it creates competition all between the many different ideas the market has. Sandbox properties like these improve capitalism, and make it less dependent on (dare I say completely independent of) a traditional state. And with growth of a large enough economy you can neutrally fund the CROPS development of the sandbox. Dapps, defi, tokens, and L2s are all examples of sandbox-users that helped fund the success of the World Computer. The better the sandbox, the more composability + optionality + competition, and thus the shorter the "legs" in the "path", and thus the more likely a viable intermediary-free path can exist without subsidy. The EF should focus on the CROPS properties of the sandbox first and foremost, on the CROPS properties of app dev-tools second, and never demand CROPS of apps through other means. De-totalization is wonderful when achieved with true self-sovereignty, but bad when subjectively achieved with social pressure or worse. Statecraft is not the right means for CROPS, this is where a "network state" is dangerous. The EF can create World Computer balance by supporting it as a sandbox platform with CROPS interfaces and tools, not by being a movement for CROPS alignment in an enshrined garden. Also, in the mandate PDF, while the art and language-style in isolation are great, applying them to the manifest is cultist. And the "source seppuku license" is too try-hard edgy, just bad taste. And CTRL+F search shows not a single mention of "sandbox" or "composability"/"composition" or even "EVM", but only nods to a bland computational substrate, missing the sandboxing point, kind of disappointing. TLDR: CROPS through a sandbox perspective, not through apps, then the market is structured better and can maintain CROPS growth.

If you, like me, enjoy listening to deep thoughts in deep and wise Morgan Freeman-like voices, then for you here is the EF Mandate document as an audiobook:

The outbreak of war between the United States, Israel, and Iran carries grave consequences for international peace and security. At this decisive moment, every measure is being taken to ensure the security of our national territory, our citizens, and our interests in the Middle East. France also stands ready to deploy the necessary resources to protect its closest partners, should they request it. The ongoing escalation is dangerous for all. It must stop. The Iranian regime must understand that it now has no other option but to engage in good faith in negotiations to end its nuclear and ballistic programs, as well as its regional destabilization activities. This is absolutely necessary for the security of all in the Middle East. The Iranian people must also be able to freely build their future. The massacres committed by the Islamic regime disqualify it and demand that the voice be returned to the people. The sooner, the better. Faithful to its principles and aware of its international responsibilities, France is calling for an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council. I am in close contact with our European partners and friends in the Middle East.

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