Senator Charles Schumer Pushes to Shut Down Online Drug Marketplace

[saqwe]

There are people here who view Bitcoin as nothing more than an opportunity to stick it to the man, for the sheer malice of the act.  The benefits of the system itself are secondary to the damage it could do to the people in power, from their perspective.

This attitude is in its own way as savage as the corruption that has driven so many of us to distrust our own governments.

true

[matonis]

I just came across this excellent article on Schumer's 'moral' crusade that I thought you all might enjoy:

Chuck Schumer’s New War on Bitcoin
http://rulingclass.wordpress.com/2011/06/06/chuck-schumers-new-war-on-bitcoin/

[midnightmagic]

May I enquire as to whether any tools have arisen from any help you've given to LE, and whether those tools, scripts, or techniques (thought-work) are also available to the rest of us?

[Anonymous]

This attitude is in its own way as savage as the corruption that has driven so many of us to distrust our own governments.

No, not when these authorities commit massive amounts of holocaust and malice against its people and never cease.

[error]

May I enquire as to whether any tools have arisen from any help you've given to LE, and whether those tools, scripts, or techniques (thought-work) are also available to the rest of us?

http://blockexplorer.com/

[em3rgentOrdr]

I just came across this excellent article on Schumer's 'moral' crusade that I thought you all might enjoy:

Chuck Schumer’s New War on Bitcoin
http://rulingclass.wordpress.com/2011/06/06/chuck-schumers-new-war-on-bitcoin/

Nice blog post there.  Yes, these politicans really show their ignorance here...

[Goldenmaw]

This attitude is in its own way as savage as the corruption that has driven so many of us to distrust our own governments.

No, not when these authorities commit massive amounts of holocaust and malice against its people and never cease.

There is a very real difference between the revolutionary spirit and the thirst for revenge.  I maintain that animosity towards one's own government is just as bad as a government's animosity towards its own people.  Either of those things is a sign of deep social sickness.  I want change, but I have no use for harm or havoc in themselves.

[n0m4d]

This attitude is in its own way as savage as the corruption that has driven so many of us to distrust our own governments.

No, not when these authorities commit massive amounts of holocaust and malice against its people and never cease.

There is a very real difference between the revolutionary spirit and the thirst for revenge.  I maintain that animosity towards one's own government is just as bad as a government's animosity towards its own people.  Either of those things is a sign of deep social sickness.  I want change, but I have no use for harm or havoc in themselves.

Two names in the compounding list - just in the last year or so:
Jose Guerena.
Erik Scott.

Had the Japanese got as far as India, Gandhi's theories of "passive resistance" would have floated down the Ganges River with his bayoneted, beheaded carcass. -- Mike Vanderboegh.

[Goldenmaw]

Two names in the compounding list - just in the last year or so:
Jose Guerena.
Erik Scott.

Had the Japanese got as far as India, Gandhi's theories of "passive resistance" would have floated down the Ganges River with his bayoneted, beheaded carcass. -- Mike Vanderboegh.

I had an eloquent rebuttal typed out, but upon rereading your post I noticed that it didn't really have any bearing on anything I've said here, so the effort was kind of a waste.

[Blindside]

Wait till the feds get their Quatum computers (yes they exist) on this.  Unfortunately, they could easily destabilize the bitcoin market with enough computing power.... which they can afford. 

[proudhon]

Wait till the feds get their Quatum computers (yes they exist) on this.  Unfortunately, they could easily destabilize the bitcoin market with enough computing power.... which they can afford. 

Oh noes!  SELL!

[Goldenmaw]

That's nothing.  If the Sectoid base on Cydonia uses its brain computer to psycalculate the hashitization ratio in the fourth dimension, all 21 million coins will be generated.  Yesterday!

SCRAMBLE X-COM FIGHTERS

[finnthecelt]

I'll post any responses I get, though I don't expect any.

You'll get one.....something like this.....

"Thank you for contacting the office of xxxxx. We value the opinions and needs of all our constituents (so much so we send them all the same form letter)..."

We will look into this matter".....blah, blah, blah...

[alexandre]

I only read the first couple pages of this thread, but here's my opinion.

I've seen a lot of mob mentality lately. From people unquestioningly opposing WikiLeaks because their government opposed it to people cheering when the guy who wrote "The Pedophile's Guide to Love" on Amazon got arrested for simply publishing a book, I've come to the conclusion that although most people *say* they want freedom, they really don't. Freedom implies taking responsibility for your own actions, including when you make mistakes. People don't seem to like that.

In my opinion, it would be a huge threat to Bitcoin if the government kept calling it "money laundering" and so forth. Even though US dollars can also be used to purchase illegal things anonymously, if people get angry or scared enough, trying to correct their misconceptions will be like whispering to someone at a rock concert. People here have said that Bitcoin would simply become a black market item and gain even more value. While that may be true, I have no need for a currency that is limited to black market usage. If businesses and ordinary individuals aren't adopting it, what's the point?

I think we need to do something to reach the masses. Maybe a bunch of us pool together to take out a billboard in some heavily populated area like LA. If we can associate Bitcoin with ideas like "currency," "convenient," "replace PayPal," "secure," and so on, that would be a great first step. There's other obvious things that need work too, like making it easier to get Bitcoins. As it stands, the average person isn't going to go through all the trouble. It'd be nice if there were a way to link your bank account to a site (like how PayPal does it) and use that to get Bitcoins instantly.

[TraderTimm]

In short, the executive summary is:

"People are stupid."

With the corollary:

"People ruin everything."

Yeah, I include myself in that - but luckily I've managed not to ruin everything I like.

[Salameh]

As far as I can tell, the people on this forum know enough about Bitcoins and technology to disregard what people are saying. However the average person does not. I was telling my family about Bitcoin and instead of using their Google-fu they asked friends on Facebook. Sadly their friends just told them it was a money laundering tool. We really need to find a way to educate the average person.

In my opinion, it would be a huge threat to Bitcoin if the government kept calling it "money laundering" and so forth. While that may be true, I have no need for a currency that is limited to black market usage. If businesses and ordinary individuals aren't adopting it, what's the point?.....
I think we need to do something to reach the masses. Maybe a bunch of us pool together to take out a billboard in some heavily populated area like LA. If we can associate Bitcoin with ideas like "currency," "convenient," "replace PayPal," "secure," and so on, that would be a great first step. There's other obvious things that need work too, like making it easier to get Bitcoins.

I like the idea of making Bitcoins look good to the average person, but I think that a billboard would not work, our culture is so used to advertising that it would be completely ignored. I propose that a good way to promote Bitcoin would to push its use on social websites like Facebook. If we can get it used regularly on Facebook nobody would ever see it as a money laundering tool.

[finnthecelt]

Wait till the feds get their Quatum computers (yes they exist) on this.  Unfortunately, they could easily destabilize the bitcoin market with enough computing power.... which they can afford. 

That's assuming that the entirety of gov't WANTS it shutdown....

With potential currency crises looming "they" may want several alternatives squarely in place to keep goods and services flowing.

[MacFall]

Wait till the feds get their Quatum computers (yes they exist) on this.  Unfortunately, they could easily destabilize the bitcoin market with enough computing power.... which they can afford. 

That's assuming that the entirety of gov't WANTS it shutdown....

With potential currency crises looming "they" may want several alternatives squarely in place to keep goods and services flowing.

"They" would only want that if "they" can control it. You think they give a wet fart if people starve to death?

[FlipPro]

http://www.cafepress.com/bitcointeeshirts.546402495

[bitcool]

"They" would only want that if "they" can control it. You think they give a wet fart if people starve to death?

Whoever "They" are, I am sure they don't live in caves. Without a functional currency, goods and services can't flow, the US will descend into complete chaos, the suburbs of Washington DC or New York will not be spared.