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Nice article keanbosch, thanks for posting it!

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@ AliceW and Cicero above (and everyone)

We live in a time where our .gov and many others are sticking their nose into our business & wallets and taking away our rights!  Anonymity is a right, almost a duty.

So is our Second Amendment.  Yes, please do buy a gun, and learn to use it right.  The more who are armed, the harder it will for them to take our rights away.

And with learning a few techniques, you can vastly increase your privacy using BTC.  Mixing services.  A used laptop that you bought for cash there at the pawnshop.  Sending your BTC around to your wallets (at less than 10 cents, why not), and creating more...!

You almost have to think like a spy nowadays just to have some tranquility!

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Yes, trucoin charges 5%.  They also charged me $3.00 as a one-time set up fee.

Still, where I am there are very few people around who will exchange BTC for my cash.  5% is quite reasonable for me.

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I have now used trucoin.com's service to buy BTC with a credit card.  They have only been offering this service for a few days now, and it is limited to just eight states now (although they promise service to many more soon).

Step-by-step instructions for opening a wallet at blockchain.info and using trucoin.com's service are detailed below:

http://goo.gl/zllrtT

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On an unrelated matter (no loss of money or BTC), I have not received a reply to my PM to them either.

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@ leezay

There are several companies that advertise on the Internet that they will take your Bitcoin for gold.

Gold is the ONLY thing I have spent BTC on...

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I have mentioned on other threads that I have used bitmixer.io's service several times, I am now up to about 10 times (including once today) that I have used the service.

Every single time everything went smoothly.  I sent BTC to FOUR wallets in one of my transactions with them.

While I am not able to comment on exactly how stealthy the service is (based on time delay, using just one "to" wallet address, etc.), the outputs of the transactions (I look at blockchain.info) seem like bitmixer.io does a good job covering the trail (none of the sending wallets in the bulk match my actual sending wallet).  Taint seems relatively low as well, another plus.

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I do have to acknowledge that sharedcoin.com has also worked well for me.  My understanding of their security flaw (allowing skilled hackers to follow mixed transactions) is that "they are working on it".  I would have confidence in sharedcoin.com (they are affiliated or owned by blockchain.info) as well.

Especially if you use both mixing services, one right after the other, to REALLY HIDE your trail...    

They don't cost much...

 

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It is essentially impossible to predict when the next financial crisis will occur, but there seems to be little doubt that IT WILL HAPPEN.  The Banksters are a big problem, perhaps the single biggest, but there are many ways things can go wrong...

David Stockman is right:

NONE of the imbalances or our financial problems have been solved.

NO ONE (of significance) has gone to jail.  (Corzine, where IS he...?)

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In addition to the timing of the collapse (or maybe more than one, always stay alert), there is the additional issue of WHAT kinds of things could happen.  No one really knows this either.  The dollar could crash.  The government could seize part or all of our bank account savings.  A big war, or an EMP.  No one knows.

I have long been a great believer in diversification.  I have diversified into BTC since I learned enough about it to give me some confidence (although less than 1% of my net assets are in BTC).  Gold, stocks & bonds, real estate, CA$H/FIAT$ in the "Bank of Sealy", overseas assets, survival products (guns & ammo, food & water, medicines, etc.) all might have a place depending on each person's comfort zone.

Physical, mental and spiritual fitness are likely critical too.  Preparation can be a big job.  Best to get started ASAP.

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I used trucoin.com just today, I bought about $98 and change worth of BTC for $100 (price movement) + $5 as fee + $3 to get set up (see remark just below).

It took a jump through a hoop or three (DEBIT card in my case, my billing address <> to mailing address, scan & send photo ID), but once I got everything done, the service worked fine.  Less than 24 hours from when I saw their announcement until I got my BTC.

Highly recommended (I have very few in my area who I can buy BTC for cash from).

Mike took care of my issues.  He told me that they were very busy today!


Disclosure: I have never worked with an exchange (beginner, don't know how) nor am I affiliated with trucoin in any way.

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-- Buy BTC for CA$H.

-- Use mixing services to anonymize your BTC.

-- Buy a used laptop (different IP address!), and only use it (wifi) in places where you do NOT use your present computer(s).  Use a different email and different wallets in your "new used" laptop.

And the above is just Bitcoin.  Be creative and think like a spy!

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Gold, silver and platinum offer other quiet (and more stable) ways to preserve wealth.  Precious metals are a great Store of Value.  Gold has over 5000 years of history of serving as a Store of Value.

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Who among us newbies does NOT regret buying BTC in 2011?  I have always been bad about predicting the future (esp. short-term).

Diversification is great way to invest!  I now own some BTC (my average buy-in cost may be around $650, I would have to run the numbers), but I own gold as well.

Gold and BTC complement each other!

Holding stocks, some real estate and other legit investments is ideal (when possible), you are more likely to participate in an upside move, and have much less dangerous downside concentration risk.

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After some jumping through hoops (ID had to be scanned & sent to them, they had to make sure my DEBIT card was OK, etc.), I bought 0.15 BTC (almost $100) or so just this afternoon.  They charge some 5% for the service.

All went well.  I resent my received BTC on to the two mixing services I use.

A comment above referred to another service (buying BTC by credit card I presume), but I have not heard of them.  trucoin.com was mentioned at reddit last night, so I gave them a try.

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They are starting with just the eight states, but will apparently be in 25 or more pretty quickly.

YES, Mike told me that they were very busy today!

I am NOT affiliated with them in any way, but I do like the ability to buy BTC when I want, without having to deal with an exchange (note that I have not explored using any of the exchanges yet, still a beginner).

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I just saw that https://www.trucoin.com/ is now selling BTC by credit cards.  I wonder if this may jump-start BTC a little more in that it appears that it is now very easy to buy them...

I am not affiliated with them, so I did not place this topic under "Service Announcements".

I will probably try them out soon.

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Whoever is first to use their service please let us know how it goes.

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Good luck!

I hope I can make this one.   

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I am as bearish as the next guy.  And have been since Jimmy Carter...

But there has been no existential collapse yet.  It may happen.  Smart people will diversify their investments.  Put, say, 5% of your net wealth into physical gold (more if you are OK with the risk and concentration).  Put, say, 1% into Bitcoin (again, if you are aware the risks and are OK with them).

If you are even more worried, add "lead bullion" and lead delivery devices, and lay in water & food.  The "Preparations List" is almost endless, but having some of these items will shield you in a dramatic financial crash.

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My "best guess" is that a collapse is possible.  20% probability?  Who knows?  Not me, not you.  Diversification is one of the very few "freebies" in investing.  A diversified portfolio is likely to have better upside and with fewer risks than being overly-concentrated.

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bitmixer.io, yes, the whole mixing process takes maybe an hour or so.  I am happy with bitmixer.io, also with sharedcoin.com (blockchain.info's service).

Note, that bitmixer.io is NOT the same as apparent scam site bitmixer.info (or similar).

"Slightly confusing to the stranger..."

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If anyone has the money (that they can afford to lose "in case the worst happens with BTC"), then I believe that buying, say, 0.5% - 1.0% of your net wealth into BTC is good diversification.  If you know what you are doing (OROBTC is still a relative beginner), then, sure you can buy more if you feel OK about the risks.

As is gold for diversification.  As are equities (stocks).  Real estate, etc.  Diversification is one of the few "freebies" in investing, you will likely make more, and certainly have less risk of big losses than overly concentrating risk by putting too much into one basket.

Prudent fishez will stay out of debt though...

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I used both bitmixer.io and sharedcoin.com in transactions very recently, twice each (both services) used for each of two transactions, "the better to hide my coins, my dear".

That makes my total about nine times using each service, NO hitches, NO problems.

sharedcoin has one advantage: it makes a new wallet for you (using a blockchain.info wallet) automatically.

bitmixer has one advantage: it allows you to send mixed BTC to multiple wallets all at once (with optional time delay).

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My thinking is that BTC and gold compliment each other nicely.  I have some BTC, but I own more gold, having bought on-and-off since the 1980s.

I have even bought gold with BTC (from goldsilverbitcoin.com), see my article from December:

http://goo.gl/pJM7UE

There are at least THREE other online companies who sell gold coins for BTC.

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I am becoming more convinced that BTC is reasonably safe, stable and secure.  And OK for even beginners like me (with proper homework).  I am actively trying to increase by BTC holdings and to learn to obscure my trail from any nosy types (mixing services, a used computer from the pawnshop paid with cash, etc.)...

While I agree that BTC was created for transactions (and cheap fees as a bonus), BTC has a real role as a Store of Value (albeit volatile over any short-term) as well as giving anyone the ability to quietly move your wealth almost anywhere you want.