| UNFAIR PARK | CRYPTO CRASH BY JACOB VAUGHN T aylor Shead is the CEO and founder of the Dallas company STEMuli Technology. The com- pany partnered with the Dallas Independent School District to create an educational metaverse, a virtual world where students can play and learn. It’s already been rolled out to students at the district’s Dallas Hybrid Prep. But, Shead hopes to continue expanding on the compa- ny’s digital world. One of her more ambi- tious ideas is to one day reward students with cryptocurrency. The crypto market is volatile, but that doesn’t seem to give Shead much pause about implementing digital money in STE- Muli’s educational metaverse. Asked about it on Friday, Shead said they hope to roll out a cryptocurrency-based reward system sometime in the next year. She said they plan on building an in-house system for their rewards where the value of their digi- tal money is set in stone. The hope is this will shield them from changes in the general crypto market. “Our approach is first to build an internal database for tokens and rewards,” Shead said. “Then enable students to [cash out] those rewards once they have hit certain milestones. Because an internal database governs our reward system, they would not be subject to those fluctuations.” Others, like employees who opted to re- ceive some of their paycheck in cryptocur- rency, aren’t so protected. That’s because, like investing in stocks, throwing money into cryptocurrency is always a gamble. There have been two big dips in the value of cryptocurrencies in about a month’s time, the latest hitting Bitcoin. It’s still the most valuable cryptocurrency in the world, but now it’s only worth about $21,000 a coin. It was worth $68,000 at its highest. According to a survey conducted by sofi. 44 com, an online bank and personal finance company, some employees are increasingly interested in cryptocurrency and non-fungi- ble tokens, or NFTs. The survey found that while employees still feel retirement match- ing and financial planning tools are impor- tant benefits for employers to offer, 36% of workers said they want the ability to get paid shutterstock in cryptocurrency. Some employees, 42%, also said they would like to receive NFTs as performance rewards. Workplace Intelligence and SoFi at Work conducted the survey in the U.S. Dec. 21-29, asking 1,600 “HR leaders” and employees about financial wellbeing, financial literacy and workplace benefits. The respondents were between the ages of 18 and 74 and re- ceived a “small monetary incentive” for tak- ing the survey, according to sofi.com. A global poll conducted by deVere Group, a financial services company, found that “more than a third of millennials and half of Generation Z would be happy to receive 50% of their salary in Bitcoin and/or other cryptocurrencies.” Shead said she considered offering STE- Muli employees a portion of their pay in cryptocurrency but didn’t move forward with the idea. She’s a big sports fan, so when she saw NFL and NBA players opting to get paid in crypto, it piqued her interest. Some of those players, like the Rams’ Odell Beckham Jr., lost big when the price of Bitcoin plummeted earlier this year. The contract he signed with the Rams’ had him taking his salary in Bitcoin, according to deadspin.com. His original salary was val- ued at $750,000 in Bitcoin. It came crashing down to just over $400,000 before taxes. But, Shead said the crashes have piqued her interest again, largely because the prices of some cryptocurrencies have fallen so low. “I observed the market factors this year and it just didn’t make sense to take the risk early 2022,” she said. “Perhaps now would be a good time to reconsider. It may be a great in- vestment opportunity.” Or it may be what its critics at the website Web3 is going just great calls it: a grift. For the last couple of years, local artist Clay Perry has been diving deep into the world of crypto and NFTs. These are part of a new iteration of the internet people are calling Web 3, of which Perry is an enthusi- ast. The crash in values hasn’t made him flinch either. “I know many people who got hit hard during this dip, but for me, it doesn’t The crypto market is volatile, but some employers are considering offering crypto rewards. really worry me much,” he said. “I’m more interested in the ecosystem and being a part of the community rather than making money in the short term,” Perry said. “It’s really just a matter of your risk tolerance and what you can handle.” In April, when things seemed a bit more promising for crypto, CNBC reported that the “perk” of offering to pay employees in digital money was gaining popularity. But for some, offering this “perk” is really just capitalizing on a fad to lure young workers. SharpRank, an independent ratings agency, is just one company using the tactic. The company’s founder and CEO, Chris Ad- ams, essentially told CNBC offering to pay in crypto is a trend, and they’re cashing in on it. “When Starbucks first became popular it was important to be seen with a Starbucks cup,” Adams told CNBC. “It’s very similar with respect to being able to have some sort of cryptocurrency because that’s what all their friends are talking about.” ▼ POLITICS GOP’S FAR-RIGHT ‘WISHLIST’ T rassed by what they saw down there,” the Republican said Monday on CNN. Mark Jones, a political science professor Some workers say they would like to get paid in cryptocurrency and receive non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as performance rewards. at Rice University, told the Observer that the state GOP’s platform is essentially a “sym- bolic wish list” for the party’s most devoted and die-hard activists. But once planks are adopted and priorities are created, he said, Republican lawmakers will face pressure to push forward that agenda during the 2023 legislative session. Not all of the priorities will be converted into law, Jones added, but at least a few of them likely will. The latest convention is a continuation of a shift toward the right that’s been unfolding for at least two decades, said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. It’s made up of a base of roughly 5,000 “true believers” who gin each other up whenever they congregate. Jillson notes that he’s been talking about GOP platforms for a quarter-century. “Each time there are the old tried-and-true stan- dards, and then there are the next steps to- ward the cliff, which are variations on issues of God, guns and gays,” he said. “That’s true again this year, but I think it’s a relatively steady march to the right.” Here are 20 of the GOP’s most out-there items on this year’s wish list. 1. Secession Even though the state has trouble keeping the power on, the Texas GOP is eyeing inde- pendence. They believe we retain “the right to secede from the United States, and the Texas Legislature should be called upon to pass a referendum consistent thereto.” 2. Prayer in schools Forget separation of church and state, y’all. Republicans want to see the Bible, prayer and the Ten Commandments back in the courthouse, classroom and other govern- ment buildings. 3. Statewide electoral college As if one electoral college isn’t enough. The state’s GOP thinks that a Texas-specific one is necessary for the election of “all statewide office holders.” TEXAS REPUBLICANS HAVE INTRODUCED A NEW FAR-RIGHT PARTY PLATFORM. BY SIMONE CARTER exas Republicans are in the national spotlight again, making headlines for the party’s uber-conservative plat- form considered at the GOP convention re- cently. Liberals, of course, were horrified by the items, but even some Republicans seemed shook by convention attendees’ rampant homophobia, veteran derision and flirtations with secession. Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich didn’t mince words when discussing the conven- tion. “What happened in Texas was a clown show, and I think even clowns were embar- 4. Ban sex education in schools... Texas’ GOP wants lawmakers to prohibit sex education from all public schools, plus any- thing about “sexual health, or sexual choice or identity.” 5. …But teach that life begins at fertilization. Yes, sex education needs to be banned, Re- publicans say. But they do want Texas schoolchildren to learn about the “humanity of the preborn child,” i.e. that life starts at fertilization. 6. Ban on drag queen story hours Drag queen story hours shan’t be part of the program at any of the state’s public schools and libraries. 7. Abolish the Department of Education Republicans are arguing that the >> p6 MONTH XX–MONTH XX, 2014 JUNE 30-JULY 6, 2022 DALLAS OBSERVER | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | MOVIES | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | FEATURE | SCHUTZE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS | DALLAS OBSERVER CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | CULTURE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS dallasobserver.com dallasobserver.com
