In a recent development that has stirred the Bitcoin community, developer Luke Dashjr’s proposal to address the congestion caused by Ordinals and BRC-20 tokens on the Bitcoin network has been met with support and strong opposition.
Dashjr failed to rally enough support for a proposed “bug fix” to the Bitcoin code that would essentially put an end to Ordinals and Inscriptions on the blockchain. Bitcoin developers are split on the matter and without majority consensus, the decentralized nature of the blockchain will not allow any changes to the code.
Core developer Ava Chow eventually ended the meeting, remarking that the PR was “controversial” and the debate had reached a “stalemate.”
She said:
“In its current state, [the PR] has no hope of reaching a conclusion that is acceptable to everyone.”
The “bug fix”
Dashjr, a prominent figure in Bitcoin development, had proposed a solution to “spam filtration” in part of the Taproot transactions, aiming to block Ordinals and BRC-20 tokens, which he described as exploiting a vulnerability in Bitcoin Core.
Dashjr’s stance, while rooted in concerns over network integrity, has sparked debate over the decentralized nature of Bitcoin’s governance. His proposal to implement the fix in Bitcoin Knots v25.1, a derivative of Bitcoin Core that he maintains, has not seen adoption in the upcoming v26 release of Bitcoin Core, with hopes for its inclusion in v27 next year.
Dashjr’s bold claim that “Ordinals never existed to begin with. It’s all fraud” has further fueled the controversy.
The debate
Debate continues to rage among the Bitcoin community on whether Ordinals are a positive or negative force for the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Proponents — including Michael Saylor — argue that Inscriptions and Ordinals are an innovation that has renewed interest in Bitcoin. Supporters claim that the market wants Ordinals and Inscriptions since the rising fees show a clear demand for them.
Proponents argue that Ordinals are the perfect way to beta-test the Bitcoin blockchain for mass adoption. They also highlight that these tokens have created a new revenue stream for miners that will continue to be lucrative long after the last Bitcoin is mined.
Meanwhile, detractors believe that Ordinals are an attack on Bitcoin and could dilute its credibility as “digital gold.” They believe these tokens have caused unnecessary spam and congestion on the blockchain and should not be associated with Bitcoin.
Developer Jimmy Song recently called Ordinals the new altcoin pump and dump scam. He said investors have wisened up to the difference between Bitcoin and all other cryptocurrencies, making it harder for scammers to create honey pots on other chains. Song claimed that scammers now use Bitcoin’s reputation and image to lure investors into new scam coins like Ordinals.