You're right Mike, although I'm not from US and I am not talking about US, but the same principle applies basically to every country.
You raised very good points about taxation, but I guess we're going well out of the topic. What I was trying to say is that if we want to go mainstream with Bitcoin, they should be taxed as any other currency, otherwise I believe the system cannot grow enough to replace established currencies.
Sorry to use the US specifically; I live here and it's the only place I know, so I can't speak for any other country.
This is why Bitcoin is so disruptive; we know we cannot continue our lives as we know it and just as well expect Bitcoin to succeed. Either Bitcoin will need to change to accommodate government, or government will need to change to accommodate Bitcoin. No technology is more disruptive than that which threatens a government's lifeline. I have no doubt that Bitcoin will reach the masses, in time, and I have every expectation that there will be conflict. But it seems, in the future, government is going to have a lot less power, the more Bitcoin spreads. The complexities of the tax system we have today rely on a controlled currency; with Bitcoin, a flat tax seems to be the only method of taxation left; the age where we taxed money every time it moved is closing.