Why bitcoin will be outlawed

Dogmatix

Dogmatix

Active Member
Because it's to easy to outlaw when it's branded like this:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-05/dark-internet-linked-to-drug-seizure-spike/4410872

Dealers shed light on dark internet's drug trade

...

To protect its illegal trade, the site uses complex masking software and money exchanges.

Users have to download an encryption network, and the only money allowed is Bitcoin - an online currency that also hides purchasers' identities.

Computer expert Chris McDonald is not a Silk Road user but has studied the technology behind it and believes it is unbeatable.

"We're talking about tens of thousands, if not millions of years to break into these algorithms," he said.

"So for a small piece of data we have the traditional problem where if you spend more effort trying to break into an encrypted piece of data, then by the time you've successfully broken into the data, the data itself has no value."

...
Click to expand...
 
there was a story on 7:30 Report last night. Complete with interview with backlit & shadowed hoodie drug dealer.
 
Are you two missing the point a little bit?

The point being that the Govt sees bitcoin as drugs money, and could outlaw it.

The rest of the article is just about dealers sending stuff through the post and using a website to deal.

My comment is about bitcoin - and its perception, now in the mainstream media.
 
Bitcoins have all the attributes of cash, and we can see how govt is tightening up on cash, reportable cash transactions etc.

Bitcoins aren't actually that private anyway, so if govt look at it they should actually leave it alone as it is easy to track bitcoin movements. Users have to go to a lot of trouble to make bitcoins private and I can't see most average users doing that. That is one of its problems I think to widespread adoption.
 
The Government hates competition!

In the 1930s during the great depression a town in Austria called Worgl printed its own currency, it was thriving until the Gov shut it down at the request of the National Banks. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wörgl#The_W.C3.B6rgl_Experiment

In 2009 the FBI shut down the Liberty Dollar and stole 8million dollars worth of gold and silver http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Dollar

The Bitcoin doesn't have a warehouse to raid, there is nothing for the government to confiscate to help pay for their efforts.

The combined efforts of many governments couldn't even shut down the Pirate Bay.

Good luck to them trying to shut down Bitcoin! I think the biggest danger to Bitcoin is the general public not accepting it.

Most new technologies seem to be driven by the porn industry, flip card animation>cinefilm>videos>internet>paysites etc. I think once the porn industry adopts bitcoin they will never look back.
 
^ thanks Bron, great comment

I agree they'd be smart to leave bitcoin alone, but policy is not usually smart (and is excessively reactive at the moment) :)
 
Jislizard said:
The Government hates competition!

In the 1930s during the great depression a town in Austria called Worgl printed its own currency, it was thriving until the Gov shut it down at the request of the National Banks. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wörgl#The_W.C3.B6rgl_Experiment

In 2009 the FBI shut down the Liberty Dollar and stole 8million dollars worth of gold and silver http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Dollar

The Bitcoin doesn't have a warehouse to raid, there is nothing for the government to confiscate to help pay for their efforts.

The combined efforts of many governments couldn't even shut down the Pirate Bay.

Good luck to them trying to shut down Bitcoin! I think the biggest danger to Bitcoin is the general public not accepting it.

Most new technologies seem to be driven by the porn industry, flip card animation>cinefilm>videos>internet>paysites etc. I think once the porn industry adopts bitcoin they will never look back.
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Good post, and I've seen the well-reasoned argument before.

I'm not saying they would shut-down bitcoin, but rather that they'd outlaw it - make it illegal to use.

Then all they have to do is monitor usage and prosecute. It becomes marginalised due to illegality.

Unlike gold, which holds value over generations, bitcoin requires liquidity (hence fairly constant trading) in order to retain a semblance of value. If it is outlawed, this may reduce trading and liquidity.

That's my take on it anyway.
 
Go the Austrians (the Worgl Austrians that is, not the b**tard Government and its crony banksters). Hadn't heard of that before
 
bron suchecki said:
Bitcoins have all the attributes of cash, and we can see how govt is tightening up on cash, reportable cash transactions etc.

Bitcoins aren't actually that private anyway, so if govt look at it they should actually leave it alone as it is easy to track bitcoin movements. Users have to go to a lot of trouble to make bitcoins private and I can't see most average users doing that. That is one of its problems I think to widespread adoption.
Click to expand...

Without realising it Bron, I think you have given anyone with wealth assets tied to a searchable paper trail a moment to pause and consider.

It's not hard to see why people had a backlash over the PM online store *requiring* personal ID to make a purchase, even for transactions under 5k.

It's the same basic principle, is it not?

Personal privacy is as much a cornerstone of personal liberty as anything else you can consider when all things are said and done.

The further you fly under the radar on any asset you own, the better protected you will be.

Silver is the most useful industrial metal on the planet with more strategic applications of any other metal out there.

When the stuff runs out, how far of a stretch would it be for the government to try and lay claim on the rest in the name of 'national security' and label all Silver Stackers a potential terrorist threat, hoarding national security resources for personal gain and profit?

It's really not that much of a leap to consider that a potential reality.
 
Dogmatix said:
Good post, and I've seen the well-reasoned argument before.

I'm not saying they would shut-down bitcoin, but rather that they'd outlaw it - make it illegal to use.

Then all they have to do is monitor usage and prosecute. It becomes marginalised due to illegality.

Unlike gold, which holds value over generations, bitcoin requires liquidity (hence fairly constant trading) in order to retain a semblance of value. If it is outlawed, this may reduce trading and liquidity.

That's my take on it anyway.
Click to expand...

One of the differences between bitcoin and say the liberty dollar was that the liberty dollar was US based and so the US govt could shut it down. If the US makes bitcoin illegal, well, there's still a fairly large market outside the US these days.

I also suspect the drug war is on it's last legs.
 
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