In high school, I had an English teacher, Mr. McDougal. He was burnt out on public school teaching and at a point in his career where he couldn't be fired. In addition, he always smelled of cigarettes, which, paired with his overweight stature, indicated he probably didn't put much effort into taking care of his health.

Mr. McDougal was authentic. He didn't give a shit and wasn't afraid to act like himself. And he was brilliant. I haven't met a tremendous amount of authentic people in my life. You know the type. They are genuine, sincere, and comfortable in their skin. Mr. McDougal expressed himself honestly, and I liked that.

One of the most memorable lessons I learned in high school happened in Mr. McDougal's English class. The class was divided into multiple groups. He passed out some paper copies to each group with words written on them. I don't remember the gist of the words, but each group was told to share how we interpreted them.

After convening in our groups and discussing the text, each team shared with the class how we interpreted the words and what they meant. Strangely, each team had a very different comprehension of the text.

After every team shared, Mr. McDougal explained that we all had read the same text. Then he showed us that each team received the text, but each group's text was formatted differently. For example, one group had copies written like a poem. Another group had it as an essay. Another group had it written like a news story. I don't remember all the formats, but we verified the text on each copy was identical.

You may have had similar experiences when looking at pictures or paintings in different frames. The content of the art or photograph is identical, but its feeling and meaning can be interpreted differently just by wrapping it in a different frame. Or, sometimes, you will paint your house or a room, and the same place feels completely different.

I follow a lot of crypto news. I prefer it to social media and have strong beliefs about crypto's role in our digital future. Unfortunately, there's been a lot of negative crypto news (deservedly) lately, and it's getting a lot of clicks because the negative stories keep coming.

Last week on CNBC's Squawk Box, Jamie Dimon made negative statements about crypto. If you aren't aware, Jamie Dimon is the CEO of JPMorgan, America's largest and most valuable bank.

Here is what Jamie said:

“Crypto is a complete sideshow…you guys spend too much time on it, and I’ve made my views perfectly clear. Crypto tokens are like pet rocks, and people are hyping this stuff up…That doesn’t mean blockchain isn’t real. That doesn’t mean smart contracts won’t be real or Web 3.0.”-Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan (America’s largest bank)

If you aren't aware, Mr. Dimon has a history of badmouthing Bitcoin and crypto. But, after reading the comments, I feel like this guy either doesn't know what he's talking about, or he's purposely trying to gaslight us.

What is gaslighting?

I like the definition that chat.openai.com uses for gaslighting:

Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation in which a person or group causes another person to doubt their own perception of reality. This is typically done through a series of lies, contradictions, and misleading statements that are designed to confuse and undermine the other person’s beliefs, perceptions, and sense of self. The goal of gaslighting is to make the victim question their own sanity and to make them more susceptible to the manipulator’s control. It is a harmful and abusive tactic that can have serious psychological effects on the victim.-chat.openai.com

So, is Jamie Dimon guilty of gaslighting the public?

If we re-read Dimon's statement, it appears that he contradicts himself. At first, he compares crypto to pet rocks, a funny gimmick famous last century. However, with this attack, he's insinuating that crypto is make-believe and people who fall for it are suckers like people who paid money for rocks labeled "pet rocks."

Later, he says that blockchain is real, smart contracts are real, and Web 3.0 is real. Last I checked, crypto operates on the blockchain, uses smart contracts, and is paving the groundwork for Web 3.0.

Crypto invented smart contracts and has proven a use case for the blockchain. It sounds like he says, "Thin women with fit bodies, clear skin, and symmetrical faces aren't beautiful. However, exercising, eating good foods, and abstaining from overeating will make a woman beautiful."

More Contradictions

In July 2021, JPMorgan became the first US bank to offer its clients the ability to invest in crypto. You can read about it here. JPMorgan clients aren't able to buy crypto, but they could buy crypto investment funds, "The funds JPMorgan has approved include Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust, Bitcoin Cash Trust, Ethereum Trust, and Ethereum Classic vehicles, as well as Osprey Funds' Bitcoin Trust, the person said."

If JPMorgan's CEO thinks crypto is pet rocks, why would he be the first bank to offer its clients the ability to buy pet rocks? I would better understand if all competing banks provided the option, but his bank was the first to offer it to its clients.

JPMorgan promoted inferior products to its clients

By not allowing customers to buy real crypto assets and invest their funds in Grayscale, JPMorgan did a gigantic disservice to its clients. Today, all of the Grayscale Trusts and the Osprey Funds' Bitcoin Trust trade at a tremendous discount to the net asset value of their crypto holdings.

Further, they offered clients the ability to buy lower-tier crypto asset funds like Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum Classic. This lack of due diligence and promotion of an inferior investment vehicle (trusts rather than crypto assets) should be recognized.

The effect of Jamie Dimon's gaslighting

On the one hand, Dimon's bank is comfortable promoting and offering synthetic crypto instruments to its clients. They were the first bank to do this. But, on the other hand, the CEO is saying that crypto is all smoke and mirrors.

This lack of authenticity is driving more and more ordinary people to crypto. Should we trust and believe in these institutions that contradict their core beliefs to make more money? Or are their views fluid and change depending on the asset's current narrative?

Regardless, playing both sides has negative implications for the crypto asset class. For example, the public trusts Jamie Dimon more than crypto representatives. This is understandable, as crypto representatives in the news have largely been bad people. But saying something is terrible and then telling the description of the asset is good is mental manipulation.

Is Dimon ignorant or conniving?

Jamie Dimon is a billionaire CEO of the largest bank in the US. He's got to be a pretty sharp man to keep this position for over a decade. Under his leadership, JPMorgan has faced a record $1 billion in fines for market manipulation. There are also theories that JPMorgan was complicit with Ponzi mastermind Bernie Madoff because he held billions of dollars at JPMorgan.

Further, we already know the opaque relationship between banks and the government. The banks have a license to do what they please, with the most significant penalty being a fine that impacts shareholders.

Key Takeaways

Mr. McDougal's lesson taught me how easy it is to twist human perception. Unfortunately, he also taught me that it's hard to be authentic and often not very rewarding. I think Jamie Dimon is not being authentic and is twisting the public's perception to make us question if crypto is even worth looking into.

Unfortunately, his voice is significantly louder than mine. And perhaps, he is much more intelligent, and there is some big gap in my logic that I am missing. So I urge you to question the context in which people discuss the crypto asset class. And I'm not just referring to the negative biases. Instead, I encourage you to learn more about crypto, think deeply, and decide if it's an investment class you are interested in.

This article isn't financial advice, and I am not a financial advisor. It is strictly my opinion. Crypto assets involve tremendous risks. I am someone who wants to maintain and grow my wealth so that I can provide a good livelihood for my family and myself. So do your research before making any investments.