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Ask Slashdot: How Does One Freely Use Bitcoin In the Land of the Free?

Posted by BeauHD on from the freedom-comes-with-a-cost dept.

New submitter devrtm writes: It appears that Bitcoin, a currency designed with anonymity in mind, can be effectively used almost anywhere in the world, except in a few countries where it is regulated, and in one country where you can only use it if you give up your privacy. That country is the United States. I have accumulated quite a few BTC from the currency's early days where block rewards were still at $50. There was a period of time where one could get a nearly anonymous debit card, or use BTC online with merchants. Nowadays, non-U.S. payment providers no longer issue debit cards to the U.S. residents and the U.S.-based merchants accepting BTC are nearly extinct. The only way to use BTC in the U.S. is to convert it to USD. Unfortunately, that conversion requires giving up your personal information to a U.S.-based BTC payment processor, and there are rumors that signing up for those services raises red flags with certain three letter acronym organizations. I have nothing to hide, but I do value my privacy. Can one freely and anonymously live off of their Bitcoin wallet in the U.S.? I am afraid the answer is no. Does anyone have an experience that proves me wrong? Please share.

4 of 270 comments (clear)

  1. My how times change. by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 1, Interesting

    My how times change. "Back in the day", anyone voicing most of the opinions here so far would be modded into oblivion...

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    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
    1. Re:My how times change. by Baron_Yam · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The thing about that is that the people invested in Bitcoin (emotionally, not necessarily financially) have a quasi-religious fervour and are willing to put proportionately far more time than anyone else into the subject.

      They must be down to an exceedingly small fraction of the social networking user population if they're no longer able to overpower discussions on social networking sites.

  2. Convert it to cash by buying/selling goods by EvilSS · · Score: 4, Interesting

    So go on the "dark web" trade your bit-coin for drugs. Sell drugs to locals and take cash. Bingo! Really, this isn't a difficult situation at all.

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    I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.
  3. Re:Bitcoin is not money by JcMorin · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Bitcoin is classify as money in: - Europe (Except France) http://curia.europa.eu/jcms/up... - Japan http://asia.nikkei.com/Politic... - Mexico https://sppld.sat.gob.mx/pld/i... - Afghanistan http://www.coindesk.com/how-bi... - Czech Republic http://www.rozhlas.cz/zpravy/e... - South Africa http://www.treasury.gov.za/com... I don' have links but I heard it's also consided a currency in - Russia, Switzerland and Nigera