I respect the idea of a non-fiat virtual currency concept, and I want it to give it chance.
However, like any new area, if naive or innocent people get hurt, that's not right. (even if it was originally unintentional harm, ex honest lenders/deposit takers) Realistically, the recent losses are fairly small compared to what happens in the US SEC's world, and probably won't attract the US SEC's attention. But that might not be the case in the future.
When laws are broken, it gives authorities the right to determine if it's worth going after the suspect. It doesn't matter if bitcoin was formed with the intention of being an ideal answer to every financial system's problem(just joking, but I think you understand). If bitcoin is disruptive enough or if it draws enough attention & fraudulent activity, it will become a topic for the authorities.
I would think supporters of bitcoin have an aligned interest to limit the acts that might attract unwanted attention. I would hope the idealists in us all want to limit the harm that might occur to naive or innocent people. I hope the developers & early adopters, are smart enough to avoid fraud, and I don't really worry about them. It's the newcomer's that need protecting, for it's those folk who will tell their friends and spread the word, good or bad.
I name dropped craigslist. Maybe it wasn't enough to name drop; Let me be specific, it involved US state attorney generals, here is one news clipping (there are many others):
http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=7507090&page=1#.UFZLlhUUBKY.