
How the IRS Could Cripple Cryptocurrency - SQL2219
http://reason.com/archives/2017/01/24/the-irss-war-on-coinbase
======
oliwarner
> Should the IRS have authority to make financial-services companies turn over
> millions of customer records when they suspect a handful of customers could
> be evading taxes? Most people would respond with an emphatic no.

Really? Seriously?

As somebody who pays tax towards the upkeep of his country, I'm all for
complete financial accountability to the appropriate authority. Generally
speaking, I think if they thought about it, most other taxpayers would agree.
Authorities like the IRS and HMRC are investigating where people _hide_ their
income and savings.

Why do I care about that? Up to 45% of that money rightfully belongs to my
country. If they're not paying, it means I'm actually paying more than I need
to (or we're crashing further into deficit, which my family is paying for).

Of all the "freedoms" we sacrifice to governments, financial privacy is the
one I care least about because it can hurt everybody and the people who would
owe most are best placed to abuse it. Lower middle classes suffer most.

Edit: Just read the comments and a few articles around reason.com and I can
see my way of thinking isn't the same as theirs. I hope I never hate my
country and the people in it as much as they do.

