It seems to me that the Americans have nothing to do with bitcoin, but they may prevent the conversion of bitcoin into other currencies. This can significantly reduce the demand for it if it is not established free circulation of bitcoins.
Software is protected by the 1st amendment (freedom of speech), so blocking/banning Bitcoin would likely be considered an act of censorship meaning an attempt to ban it would be stopped by the constitution. I dont think that the US will be hindering Bitcoin anytime soon; in fact I heard it has really boosted in popularity on the west coast in the last few years.
Of course I can very likely see most of Europe, China, and Russia restricting or outright banning Bitcoin in a struggle to remain in complete control of their citizens.
Good joke mate.
If we are talking about surveillance of the own population then the US is on par with china, russia & saudi arabia.
Europe in contrast would be like disneyland & paradise in one place for you people.
Depends on where you are in Europe. The UK is right up there with us, they are more intrusive in a 'you are always on camera' sense than the 'we are recording your communications' type of way. The reason China and Russia (not Europe) would ban bitcoin is the nature of government there, citizens already have little power versus the state enforcement arm. These are two cultures in which you can get 'disappeared'. Both countries are also having a problem with capital flight, due to said nature of.these govs.
To be fair, the EU has done alot to protect its citizens from mass surveillance (especially against us).
And for the record, the most intrusive nations are:
China, Malaysia and Russia scored lowest, followed jointly by Singapore and the United Kingdom, then jointly by Taiwan, Thailand and the United States. The best ranking was given to Greece, which was judged to have 'adequate safeguards against abuse'.[8]