Quote from: DeathAndTaxes on January 29, 2013, 03:58:59 AM

Quote from: tailwind on January 29, 2013, 03:46:50 AM

Quote from: TehTDK on January 29, 2013, 03:23:40 AM

The US government would only have power to shutdown exchanges running on servers hosting in the USA. Any other exchanges would have to be shut down by the appropriate country their hosting recides in. Obviously USA would and could try to pressure them into closing it, but that would be a gamble at best.

A Gamble? I think the US Government still has enough firepower to be very persuasive.

Thanks
TW

Of course. Bitcoin is such a threat the US is going to engage in a shooting war to force other nations to shut down exchanges. Shit if they did that Bitcoin would probably be $329,038 USD per BTC because it would be downright proof of the power of Bitcoin. Nobody spends bilions going to war to destroy something which doesn't matter. We didn't see the great Flooz War of 1999 for example.

If the US banned exchanges it would simply push them into offshore locations (which have long since flipped the bird at the US when it comes to banking regulations). In the short term that would be negative, BTC price would likely tank overnight, but longer term BTC would emerge even more powerful and people would point to the failed US action as both a sign of the threat that BTC represents to the established powers and the resiliance of the global network.

I doubt the US would make a move like that. Regulate and tax is far more effective than ban and lose all control.

regulate and tax? go tell that to the DEA and all our failed drug warriors. never underestimate the irrationality of a politician.

let me lay out a scenario...
some kid has bitcoins goes on Tor and buys some guns cuz they just passed some new gun laws that made it illegal for him to buy guns at his local gunshop. he takes those guns shoots up a school. investigators later find out that he used USD he earned working at McD's opened up an account with dwolla, exchanged USD to BTC on bitinstant, signed onto TOR, bought a gun anonymously on a hidden service and I'll let the media and the politicians write the rest of that story...