The government really dislikes it when people make a living by conducting moral business practices without paying for their permission to do so. This is all too evident when examining the most recent arrest of a man for selling Bitcoin.
According to local news media reports, a Michigan man named Bradley Anthony Stetkiw has been charged by local authorities for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. The charges have been filed in US District Court. According to an indictment released by Detroit TV news services WD-IV Friday, the 52-year-old ran an exchange through the LocalBitcoins website, conducting transactions at restaurants in the Bloomfield area. Stetkiw is alleged to have sold bitcoin without a license (paying for permission from the government) as part of a business venture for approximately two years.
After selling about $150,000 in bitcoin, the feds set up a sting operation to catch Stetkiw. He sold more than $56,000 worth of bitcoin to federal agents through six meetings. Authorities say that that volume of transactions makes him subject to federal anti-money laundering regulations.
The government is not alleging that Stetkiw harmed anyone or took any property. He’s in trouble for not paying to register himself as a business. According to the indictment:
Operating under the user name ‘SaltandPepper,’ Stetkiw bought, sold and brokered deals for hundreds of thousands of dollars in bitcoins while failing to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements set fort in Title 31, United States Code, Section 5330.
Earlier this year, Detroit resident Sal Mansy plead guilty to the charge of operating an unlicensed money services business. He allegedly conducted $2.4 million-worth of transactions over a two-year period ending in July 2015. Other arrests in Missouri and New York suggest actions against independent U.S. bitcoin sellers are becoming more commonplace.
These arrests also suggest what many have feared for years: the government is attempting to take down bitcoin using nefarious means since they cannot figure out how to regulate the cryptocurrency.
I view Bitcoin much
like using cigarettes
as money in a prison camp.
EXCEPT cigarettes are a tangible
asset(I don’t smoke).
Bitcoin isn’t tangible
if the electricity
goes off.
Cigarettes and Top Romin. The currency choice of millions in America.
Here in Hawaii,
you need to include
Steinlager beer and
Spam.
Bitcoin = Tulip bulbs
I understand the concept of Bitcoin – a completely digital fiat currency backed by nothing but more…. fiat/faith that it is worth something. Blockchain encryption is fine…. for data. And data is indeed wealth in a sense. But as ‘rellik’ says, it is not tangible. As for the government getting involved due to the threat it poses – and it does pose a significant threat of one bullsh*t lie superseding an established bullsh*t lie – like all things government, I wish that it would just go away and leave people to their own ruin or success be they as they come. In short, Bitcoin is surely not for me. I want things I can touch. Ideas are fine and dandy…. like a pretty girl a fellow thinks is sweet; until, he marries her.
Whatever you think of it, it’s certainly lucrative right now. Make some money off of it while you can. It surely is for me.
Bitcoin and Gold and Silver will be not be relevant in the future.
Food and drinkable water will be more valuable than either.
Scientists Warn ‘Something Really Big Has Shifted’ That Is ‘Something We’ve Never Seen Before’ – Catastrophic Collapse Of Pacific Ocean Food Chain Found In Government Survey
Massive die-offs around the world: 103 whales in Brazil, 86% insects disappear in nature parks in Germany, multiple thousands of fish in Uruguay, Paraguay, India and Thailand.
What is prevalent to one may not be to another.
As the name bitcoins suggests, they are bits (ones and zeros)….not real coins. Just digital liquidity (cash) that could become worthless; especially when the govt has an interest in making them worthless, due to the anonymity and lack of taxation/control. Sell em, if you got em, B4 it’s too late.!!!!!
Thankfully, Obama crony Jon “Sorry, I took your $1.6 billion to cover a bad bet” Corzini won’t be impacted by this… or any other laws. Nor will Hilary.
Speaking of which, Slick’s perjury – which would have jailed you or me – had the same result.
I still believe Bitcoin was a beta test for the planned NWO global monetary system.
Good cop bad cop… Or maybe reverse psychology? They say it’s BADDDDDDDD but really, they just want you, to want it more!
off topic but check this new george soros propaganda ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHZvVsGGY-U
https://youtu.be/SHZvVsGGY-U
the video is proof – coming from the Democrats in fact – that the liberal traits of even dreaming is genetic!!! Otherwise, how could 4 kids in different homes all wake from the same dream at the same time? Talk about a hive-mind!! It was enough to make me wish I lived in Gillespie’s area and could vote for him.
SPAM…….eeeewwww…..
Trade tv dinners, fruit, MREs, anything… tuna, ravioli
anything but spam! Lol
They pack too much fat in “spam”.
Not sure what animal is used or how it is made.
I view spam and the crypto-currencies in a similar light.
The “soylent green” versions of what they imitate.
At least Spam doesn’t contain a tracking element in a “Block Chain”.
Ham and pork shoulder. Stuff lasts forever.
I believe Hawaii has the highest per capita Spam consumption
in the entire world.
It is even served in local McDonald’s.
Wrong conclusion but good fear porn. They are simply securing their future tax revenue. Why would the CME announce futures trading for BTC if they didn’t confirm the future existence of BTC???
Use your heads people. How many times has this happened in the past with gold schemes? Same thing.
Fiat currency is the governments’ bitcoin. It’s enforced by the barrel of a gun.
If that is the case I prefer the bitcoin that is not enforced by the barrel of a gun.