The botched attempt to upgrade the Bitcoin network via SegWit2x is settling quickly. However, some in the Bitcoin community are bent on making its crusaders feel the heat.
They took to Charlie Shrem's Twitter page to vent their displeasure as he apologizes for supporting the upgrade. The SegWit2x upgrade was abruptly called off yesterday, about a week before its proposed launch, due to lack of consensus.
Mea culpa
Shrem tweeted:
I will be among the first to admit I was wrong. When I was told #SegWit2x I thought there would be consensus in everyones best interest, but over time learnt this wasnt the case. In the long term, I hope you all can see my (and most of our) intentions were good. I <3 #Bitcoin
— Charlie Shrem (@CharlieShrem) November 9, 2017
For many, his words didn't have the intended effect. Several commenters showed disdain for Shrem because of his support of the software upgrade. Vake @vakeraj notes it would have been better if Shrem had realized this long ago, rather than wasting countless hours of developer time.
It would've been nice if you had figured that out months ago, instead of wasting countless hours of developer time.
— Vake (@vakeraj) November 9, 2017
Another respondent, Hunter Shields @huntershieldz, claims it would be hard to trust Shrem in the future, asserting that he'd lied about consensus. The tweet says: "You didn't follow the BIP process of SCIENCE/CONSENSUS. You almost rushed a HARD FORK costing billions of OTHER people's money. And wasted time/energy/money of others the past six months. Someone lied about consensus."
how can we trust people like you if you lied about consensus? you didn't follow the BIP process of SCIENCE/CONSENSUS. you almost rushed a HARD FORK costing billions of OTHER people's money. and wasted time/energy/money of others the past 6 months. someone lied about consensus
— Hunter Shields (@huntershieldz) November 9, 2017
Others reference his previous roles in the community and credit his ability to come out and make a public apology.
ARD @ar_d2012 tweets: "Charlie I watched documentaries about you when I was learning about Bitcoin. I made my girlfriend watch. You were a hero for me. If I see you I WANT to take a picture with you.. But I was devastated to know you supported #segwit2x."
Charlie I watched documentaries about you when i was learning about bitcoin. I made my girlfriend watch. You were a hero for me. If i see you I WANT to take a picture with you.. But I was devastated to know you supported #segwit2x
— ARD (@ar_d2012) November 9, 2017
Others like Chris Ani @Christianani1 and 1X Gonzo @gonzoucab praise Shrem's "good heart" what he has done for Bitcoin. A. Hannan Ismail @A_Hannan_Ismail simply states: "You're a good man."
Charlie I have always knows you have a good heart. You can't be against bitcoin ...you are indeed a leader.. love you all you do 4 btc
— Chris Ani (@Christianani1) November 9, 2017
We know what you did. and we love you.
— 1X Gonzo (@gonzoucab) November 9, 2017
You're a good man.
— A. Hannan Ismail (@A_Hannan_Ismail) November 9, 2017
A Bitcoin entrepreneur and advocate, Shrem is a founding member of Bitcoin Foundation. He was made the business development director for Jaxx, a multi-platform cryptocurrency wallet, in May.
Shrem's hope in his apology that his intentions - as well as that of others - would be seen in the long term as good, as this was also questioned. Two respondents refer him to the saying that "the way to hell is paved with good intentions."
There have also been calls for crypto users to push for signers of the New York Agreement such as BitPay, BitGo, Coinbase and Gemini to start using SegWit.