But, according to the creeps at the IRS, they have the right to tax it when we merely receive it, and then tax it again when we cash it out into fiat. Nice double taxation sleight of hand.
What are you talking about? You only pay capital gains tax on capital
gains. If you receive something of value (crypto, stock, whatever) then later sell it, you pay
income tax on what it was worth when you received it and
capital gains tax on how much (if at all) it increased in value between when you received it and when you sold it. If you sell immediately before it appreciates in value, you have no capital gains and hence no capital gains tax.
Does dividend get the same treatment from the IRS?
Yes. Everything does. The IRS is merely clarifying that the same rules that apply to everything else also apply to crypto, because apparently some people seem to think that the normal rules of finance don't apply to their Magic Internet Money.