Author Topic: Legal Trouble for Delegates  (Read 4670 times)

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Offline chamme

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Yeah, that is why I dislike the finite number of delegates on a decentralized network. Maybe we can enable infinite number of delegates, if anybody want to be one and have clients support them to do so?

Offline maqifrnswa

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I get your point, there are legitimate legal worries - but I'm more worried about the SEC than the CIA/NSA. Terrorist are funded by bearer bonds and other financial instruments (including cash), but it isn't illegal to own them. But you will get nailed to a wall by the SEC if you try to exchange them without a license.
maintains an Ubuntu PPA: https://launchpad.net/~showard314/+archive/ubuntu/bitshares [15% delegate] wallet_account_set_approval maqifrnswa true [50% delegate] wallet_account_set_approval delegate1.maqifrnswa true

Offline AsymmetricInformation

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I'm not a lawyer, and I hadn't really planned to represent my position in a debate, but I just want to point out a few things.

1. "US senators complain" is not the same as "illegal". Regrettably, in 2014 only the former is important.
2. The US has arrested non-Americans in many ways and on many occasions. I also point out that, instead of being arrested, "terrorist financiers" might just get killed via drone.
3. Even though the next 100 people may step up in line and continue the BTS-service offering, these people might be reluctant to do so. Moreover, they will have no reputation, may themselves be NSA employees, etc.

Again, I don't plan to run a full debate, the above points are very obvious to me. I anticipate some here to raise objections to which there are, again, obvious rebuttals. I don't really plan on pursuing the point, it was just something that crossed my mind, so if I don't respond please do not assume it is because I would have nothing to say.

Offline thazel72

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Delegates are not just in the US, isn't that the point of a decentralized system? They can't arrest everyone.

Offline maqifrnswa

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This is a continuation of a small comment I made here: https://bitsharestalk.org/index.php?topic=6304.msg84176#msg84176

My reasoning was just that US Senators might complain about BitUSD transfers, or even BTS transfers, claiming them to be money-laundering / tax-evasion / terrorist-financing. The NSA would then physically locate the 100 delegates and the government would throw them all in prison, as was done to so many Bitcoin predecessors.

Not wanting to derail the thread, which was about additional responsibilities for delegates, I just thought I would manually move the discussion here.

Delegates should not be from jurisdictions where there operation would be considered illegal. However, this is crazy grey area at the moment: regulatory guidance says that individual coin miners do not need licenses (and there is some tax guidance as well). At this moment, BTSX is just another alt coin. Once trading starts, then it is an entirely different situation - and one there is no regulatory guidance for a decentralized exchange system, just for a decentralized exchange of asset system.
maintains an Ubuntu PPA: https://launchpad.net/~showard314/+archive/ubuntu/bitshares [15% delegate] wallet_account_set_approval maqifrnswa true [50% delegate] wallet_account_set_approval delegate1.maqifrnswa true

Offline AsymmetricInformation

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This is a continuation of a small comment I made here: https://bitsharestalk.org/index.php?topic=6304.msg84176#msg84176

My reasoning was just that US Senators might complain about BitUSD transfers, or even BTS transfers, claiming them to be money-laundering / tax-evasion / terrorist-financing. The NSA would then physically locate the 100 delegates and the government would throw them all in prison, as was done to so many Bitcoin predecessors.

Not wanting to derail the thread, which was about additional responsibilities for delegates, I just thought I would manually move the discussion here.