Security as Profiteering in Capitalism

Security as Profiteering in Capitalism

1. Security as Commodity

   
   

   • In centralized capitalism, security is privatized and priced — think private guards, gated communities, cybersecurity firms, or even insurance markets.

   • Fear itself becomes monetized: the more insecurity people feel, the more they buy security products.

   • This creates a feedback loop where insecurity is profitable — so systems may unconsciously sustain or exaggerate it.

   
   

2. Control and Dependence

   
   

   • Centralized systems enforce security through institutions: banks safeguard money, states safeguard borders, corporations safeguard data.

   • But this makes people dependent on middlemen, and those middlemen extract value (fees, taxes, subscriptions).

Decentralized Networks and Security

1. Peer-to-Peer Trust

   
   

   • In DNAs, trust is coded into the system itself — via cryptography, consensus mechanisms, and distributed ledgers.

   • Security isn’t sold as a product; it’s built into the fabric of the exchange.

   
   

2. Transparency Instead of Fear

   
   

   • In capitalism, opacity benefits those selling protection. In DNAs, transparency makes manipulation harder.

   • Everyone sees the ledger; “truth” is collective rather than monopolized.

   
   

3. Covenantal Security

   
   

   • From a theological economist view, DNAs represent a return to covenantal trust: security arises from community agreement, not top-down authority.

   • Security here is less about profiteering and more about shared responsibility.

   
   

Theological Insight

• Capitalism’s Security: Profiteering security resembles Pharaoh in Exodus — extracting wealth by keeping people in cycles of fear and dependence.

• Decentralized Security: DNAs resemble covenant communities in Scripture — where trust is distributed, justice is transparent, and responsibility is mutual.

Conclusion

In capitalism, security is often a business model — a way to profit from fear.

In decentralized networks of assets, security is a design principle — embedded in transparency, distributed trust, and shared accountability.

The challenge, theologically, is ensuring DNAs don’t drift back into profiteering models — because human sin tends to re-centralize power. The task is to keep security covenantal, not commercial.