Advertise on podcast: Letters from a Contrarian

Recorded on September 8, 2026 in Da Nang, Vietnam.

Recorded on April 14, 2026 in Forest City, Malaysia.

Recorded on July 21, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal.

Recorded on November 28, 2024 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Recorded on January 30, 2025 in Medellin, Colombia.

Thanks to Jana for coming onto the podcast!   To get started buying your first bitcoin, solana, and ethereum, sign up for Newton today: https://web.newton.co/r/NY371Z  Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds  Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/  YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mW...  Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Thanks to James for coming onto the podcast! You can find him (and his thoughts) on the following platforms: https://twitter.com/provisionalidea provisionalideas.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds  Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Thanks to Frank Hepworth for coming onto Letters from a Contrarian! To get started buying your first bitcoin, solana, and ethereum, sign up for Newton today! https://web.newton.co/r/NY371Z Topics Discussed: etherscan.io The Block Explorer Terra Luna The Anchor Protocol (to make 20% interest): https://www.anchorprotocol.com NDAX, Newton, Coinbase, Shakepay. Contact Frank: On Twitter: https://twitter.com/frank_hex Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Thanks to Mackenzie Putici for coming onto Letters from a Contrarian! The *iconic* Bored Ape Yacht Club: https://opensea.io/collection/boredapeyachtclub Solana Platforms like OpenSea on which you can trade NFTs: Digital Eyes: https://digitaleyes.market Solanart: https://solanart.io Solana Wallets: https://phantom.app https://www.sollet.io https://flarewallet.io To get started buying your first bitcoin, solana, and ethereum, sign up for Newton today! https://web.newton.co/r/NY371Z Other Topics Discussed: Impermanent loss Uniswap and Sushiswap for yield farming ethereum. Places to yield farm using Solana: radium, orca, tulip, solflare, francium. For crypto loans, check out AAVE and Celsius. Justin Blau using the blockchain to publish music. https://twitter.com/3LAU Helium as discussed by Steve Paolasini on S.3.E.1: https://eugenefernandes.com/2021/11/01/steve-paolasini-jumping-down-the-crypto-rabbit-hole/ The Bitcoin Standard by Saifedean Ammous: https://amzn.to/3dViga7 Contact Mackenzie: On Twitter: https://twitter.com/macmac_x On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travelingsomm/?hl=en For Virtual Wine Tours: https://newworldwinetours.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Full disclosure, I happen to work at Digifox, and Nicholas is my boss. But as a 23 year old who's responsible for the salaries of ~2 dozen people and a Praxis graduate, Nicholas is an extremely impressive guy. In this episode, we discussed his background and origins, the rise and potential of crypto as an asset class, the failures and inefficiencies of the banking system, and renewable energy. Enjoy! Thanks for listening! Follow me on socials to get updates on new episodes. Twitter: twitter.com/eugenefds Instagram: instagram.com/fernandeseugene/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw Website: eugenefernandes.com

IJ and I met over twitter! We covered a lot of ground in this episode, including discussions about Canadian identity (or lack thereof), the potential that blockchain and crypto has, how he got started creating his NFT collection of philosopher kings, and how we'll build cities in the future. Also, the video doesn't show my face for the first hour or so because I forgot to unpin IJ's screen on zoom.    Thanks for listening! Follow me on socials to get updates on new episodes.    Twitter: twitter.com/eugenefds  Instagram: instagram.com/fernandeseugene/  YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw  Website: eugenefernandes.com

Steve Paolasini joins us once again to talk about his journey into crypto and all of its possibilities!

In Season 2 of Letters from a Contrarian, I sought to understand what went wrong with Canada's pandemic response, and what a more ethical, constitutional, and tolerable response would've looked like. I summarize my two answers to these questions based on the conversations I had with my guests in Season 2 in this episode. I also go through why crypto, web3, and decentralization is the best way to preserve liberal values without the use of naked power.

Bruce Pardy is a law professor at Queen's University.  References for Pardy's claim that you're just as likely to catch COVID-19 if you've been vaccinated than if you haven't: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s0730-mmwr-covid-19.html https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7031e2.htm?s_ci https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/07/30/1022867219/cdc-study-provincetown-delta-vaccinated-breakthrough-mask-guidance?t=1628295537352 https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.24.21262415v1 https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/british-study-shows-covid-19-vaccine-efficacy-wanes-under-delta-2021-08-18/

D. Jared Brown is a litigator and Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario. References: Section 3 of Manitoba’s Public Health Act:  “If the exercise of a power under this Act restricts rights or freedoms, the restriction must be no greater than is reasonably necessary, in the circumstances, to respond to a health hazard, a communicable disease, a public health emergency or any other threat to public health.” Transcript and YouTube Video: eugenefernandes.com/letters-from-a-contrarian Show-notes 2:51 How the JCCF tapped Brown to help represent seven churches and three individuals in Manitoba, and what their case was. The churches couldn’t gather, and the individuals couldn’t protest. 6:01 The Government argued that the infringements on rights and freedoms were justified. 8:46 Brown cross-examined Dr. Jason Kindrachuk, Lanette Siracusa, Carla Lipkey, Dr. Brent Roussin, Dr. Jason Bullard, and Dr. Joel Kettner. 10:38 Three revelatory insights that came to light in the cross examination: one, the Manitoba government had exaggerated the scarcity of hospital and ICU beds in the province during the Christmas season, along with their ability to expand the hospital system. Two, a positive PCR test result does not mean that the person is infectious. 14:29 Lastly, three - the government justified their measures on the basis that everyone else was doing it. No cost benefit analyses in sight. 16:47 This bandwagon defence (“everyone else was doing it”) might’ve been understandable at the pandemic’s start, but after 14 months, not as much. 22:11 The government does not have a legal obligation to justify their infringements up until someone challenges them in court. But the expectation is that they would justify the measures publicly. They didn’t. They used fear instead. 23:29 One consequence of using fear to threaten citizens into accepting public policy: vaccine hesitancy. 27:01 Are medical officers of health legally supposed to have the power and the role that they currently have? Thoughts about accountability mechanisms and a faith in democracy. 28:39 Rights and freedoms: easy to give up, bloodily difficult to get back. That’s why you don’t give an inch. Equality jurisprudence is developing far more than negative freedoms. Lawyers don’t seem to care. 31:55 Courts and discretion: Canada vs USA. 34:13 Brown was vilified by his peers and many others on social media in March 2020. Many lawyers are now changing their minds - if an emergency has lasted 14 months, then maybe it isn’t an emergency. 37:22 How Brown stood up to the pushback: say what you think, look at the reaction, and ask if it’s creating unnecessary conflict. Try to be minimally impairing. Have skin in the game by directing your energy towards the venues where it makes the biggest impact and where you’ll be heard. Instead of being a Twitter warrior, he took the opportunity to challenge the restrictions in this court case. And know what your principles are. 41:16 As a citizen who opposes the restrictions, write letters to your (provincial) elected leaders. Let them know you want to calculate your own risk and that their paternalistic attitudes aren’t welcome. Second, step forward to the JCCF or the CCF! They need volunteers to help challenge these Charter violations. 43:01 The possible costs of stepping forward for public interest litigation (some public shaming in court by lawyers, and it’s unlikely but you may have to pay too). 45:20 Safety culture eroding liberty. Contact Contact D. Jared Brown at brownlaw.ca or on twitter at @litigationguy Contact Eugene Fernandes at eugenefernandes.com or on twitter at @eugenefds