I read some pretty snarky comments on the Bitcoin thread regarding Burt’s arrest and felt it necessary to start a new thread on this subject. Mocking our family’s situation is in poor taste. Making fun of our request for help shows a darkness of soul that is to be pitied. A child’s life has been forever altered because of these events. This is serious and should not be the subject of gossip or idle speculation or mockery. I am not a member of the Bitcoin community. I have been impressed by those trying to help our daughter recover her savings. I have been shocked by the cruelty of others. I’ve given everyone the ability to contact me directly. Many here seem to prefer to gossip than learn the facts. Micon and one other person are the only two to contact me.
Burt is a trader just like the rest of you. His is a middle-aged electrical engineer who has been a long time Bitcoin enthusiast and investor. If Burt needs a business license to trade for himself, then ALL of you need a business license too.
The IRS views Bitcoins as an investment for individual trading, like stocks and bonds. The gains and losses are taxed accordingly. If you acquire a federal business license and call yourself a business, then you will need to comply with different IRS rules and regulations as well as state rules and regulations.
The attack on Burt by the U.S. Justice Department is an attack on Bitcoins and the Bitcoin community. You should help defend your Bitcoin community. You could easily be next. Burt was targeted long before the Florida arrests. Chances are, some of you are already in the government’s cross-hairs.
Why help Burt? Burt is a good person who has worked hard all of his life. He always helps a friend or family member in need. He helps other engineers find jobs. He has taught Bridge and Biblical Greek to senior citizens to help keep them active. Over the years our family has made generous contributions to numerous charities including the Red Cross during disasters. We have both volunteered countless hours at our church (we are Methodist). Burt served on the Staff Parish Relations Committee for a term. I taught Sunday school until I had to retire during this school year due to the stress from being attacked and betrayed by our country. Burt volunteered at our daughter’s school and taught math to 3rd graders.
Since 2004 we have donated over $40,000 to nonprofits. We are the ones who need help now. Since Burt is being targeted for investing in Bitcoins, we had hoped the Bitcoin community would help us.
Because of the Justice Department’s attack on our family, we had to stop our contributions to our church, There with Care, water.org, Partners in Health, the Emergency Family Assistance Association and many other charities. We are still sponsoring a child in Peru even though we really shouldn’t because of the legal fees. We didn’t want her to suffer because of the U.S. Justice Department's actions against our family.
Yes, our legal fees and costs have reached $200,000.00. It is an astronomical sum. It represents our retirement fund, our daughter’s education, and the loan we took out against our home to pay the fees. We are trying to raise $80,000.00. Defending an innocent person bankrupts a family.
Ask yourself. If the government believed you needed a business license, should the government send you a letter advising you to get a license? Or, should the government storm your house, throw you in solitary confinement, bankrupt your family, take all of your electronics and Bitcoins and cash, ruin your thirty year old business and cause financial loss to three Colorado companies?
A notice from the government is the reasonable person’s answer.
Should Burt be deprived of the right to vote, own arms, and volunteer at his daughter’s school because he failed to get a business license for a personal hobby? Hell no is the right answer.
This case is not about paperwork, i.e., the business license. This is an attack on the Bitcoin community and Bitcoins.
I imagine most of you on Bitcointalk are fairly young and inexperienced. Burt is old enough to be your father. Imagine the government surrounding your father’s house, putting your father in shackles, putting your father in solitary confinement, and ruining your father’s business all for not having a business license. You too would be angry and demanding justice.
There will be no justice. The best we can hope for is to raise enough money so that our daughter doesn’t lose the only home she has ever known. She will always be traumatized by what has happened. She will never trust or believe in the United States.
Our family appreciates any financial help you can give us. Our websites are
www.burtw.com and
www.jmwagner.com Thanks,
Jean Wagner
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