Quote: (03-25-2014 02:58 PM)assman Wrote:
IRS: Bitcoin is not currency
No surprise here - government is protecting the most important (and perverse) monopoly there is.
Wrap your head around the concept of paying capital gains tax on Bitcoin appreciation that comes about as a result of dollar printing. If you didn't get that, stop and really think about what the foregoing means.
No surprise indeed, and something that I predicted would happen.
I admit I'm not the most Bitcoin-savvy individual. I see Bitcoin from an outsider's perspective. And from an outsider, I would actually agree with the government that Bitcoin in its present form appears to be more of a commodity than a currency.
Even though Bitcoin is a peer-regulated currency as opposed to a government regulated currency, it appears to me that the value of Bitcoin is measured in relation to the U.S. dollar. The dollar is still the reference point to the value of Bitcoin.
To an outsider, Bitcoin appears to be a commodity and potential investment vehicle. To my knowledge, there's not a single employer that pays their employees in Bitcoin. Employers and employees can't pay their taxes in Bitcoin. We pay into a system with government issued currency, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Bitcoin, at present, appears to be a vehicle used primarily for online trade.
In the future, there is a possibility that peer-regulated "startup" currency could overthrow fiat currency, and it's pretty mind-boggling and exciting to think about the implications, but in the interim there's not a government on Earth that's going to recognize Bitcoin as a legitimate currency. They'll treat it like any other commodity like gold or crude oil.