Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation

Eugen Leitl eugen at leitl.org
Mon Nov 15 06:20:04 PST 2010


On Mon, Nov 15, 2010 at 06:17:56AM -0800, Sarad AV wrote:
> 
> 
> I was checking and Wikipedia has deleted its Bitcoin entry. how strange!did they say why?

Wikipedia is in the information deletion business now.
You might have missed the memo (maybe their deletion
squad got it first).
 
> Sarad.
> 
> 
> --- On Mon, 11/15/10, Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org> wrote:
> 
> > From: Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org>
> > Subject: Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation
> > To: tt at postbiota.org, info at postbiota.org, cypherpunks at al-qaeda.net, or-talk at freehaven.net
> > Date: Monday, November 15, 2010, 6:39 PM
> > http://www.bitcoinblogger.com/2010/11/bitcoin-gains-legal-protection-through.html
> > 
> > SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2010
> > 
> > Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation
> > 
> > 
> > There are many legal implications when utilizing Bitcoin.
> > Users of Bitcoin
> > who conduct business with the wrong people could face
> > charges of money
> > laundering, identity theft, and/or fraud. Honest Bitcoin
> > users could be
> > implicated in crimes by criminals engaging in phishing or
> > malware and
> > stealing identities. The Bitcoin economy resembles that of
> > the wild, wild,
> > west with inherently little or no regulation. Because of
> > the barbaric nature
> > of this new currency it is highly susceptible to legal
> > attacks by law
> > enforcement. Bitcoin has recently, however, gained some
> > legal protection by
> > the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). In another
> > significant milestone
> > for P2P cryptocurrency the EFF has agreed to accept Bitcoin
> > donations! The
> > EFF is known for legal cases involving high profile tech
> > companies such as
> > Apple, Google, Craigslist, and Facebook. The simple fact
> > that the EFF is
> > welcoming anonymous donations is a small but significant
> > step towards Bitcoin
> > societal acceptance.
> > 
> > Accepting anonymous donations is not a light decision by
> > the EFF, and the
> > implications are monumental. For example, selling or buying
> > Bitcoins with an
> > anonymous user could mean unintentionally aiding terrorism
> > or helping North
> > Korea build nuclear weapons. Or, political groups accepting
> > Bitcoins could be
> > accepting funds by enemies of the state. The United States
> > recently placed
> > sanctions on Iran for its nuclear programs, and if Bitcoins
> > are adopted
> > universally then sanctions would no longer work as a tool
> > to change the
> > behaviors of government. In essence, the globalization of
> > Bitcoins will
> > affect international political policy.
> > 
> > The disruptive nature of Bitcoin can cause unease with
> > existing institutions
> > and the war against Bitcoin will be waged through a legal
> > front. The
> > endorsement of the EFF could set up a legal battle in the
> > future, "Bitcoin
> > vs. Entity X". What courts could fail to realize, however,
> > is the
> > non-centralized aspect of Bitcoin, which makes shutting
> > down the service next
> > to impossible. Most likely, that is why Bitcoin will
> > succeed no matter what
> > trials and tribulations it may have to face. Nevertheless,
> > the EFF's
> > willingness to accept Bitcoins will further the
> > cryptocurrency's cause, and
> > will encourage the recognition of Bitcoin as a currency to
> > be "official".
> > 
> > Several members of bitcoin.org have been involved in making
> > the endorsement
> > of the EFF happen which you can read at this forum thread.
> > Feel free to
> > donate to the EFF at their donation page. 
> > 
> 
> 
>       
-- 
Eugen* Leitl <a href="http://leitl.org">leitl</a> http://leitl.org
______________________________________________________________
ICBM: 48.07100, 11.36820 http://www.ativel.com http://postbiota.org
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