Go around these assholes.

It can be done.

Pardon me but fuck those people.

Assume every government organization and every private organization is spying on any/every Bitcoin organization. Information, like all other tools, becomes a weapon in the hands of a capitalist.

consumer protection groups have nothing to do with financial laws. its all about business ethics and product sales.

the only consumer rules i want to see are
1) BUSINESSES cant claim a pre-order as being a pre-order if the product does not launch within a month, and businesses should be fined if they exceed a month and not refund customers

2) BUSINESSES should have high level security to protect customers data and funds, and as such if they want to hoard $1mill of customer funds, they have to have insurance liability insurance to match such amounts (premiums for that amount are actually cheap so wont stifle innovation)

3) BUSINESSES should practice 'fair trading' principles.

4) if a customer pays $500 500Euro or 1 bitcoin, the refund should be the same form and same amount. it should not matter about international exchange rates. if a business is afraid of losing out due to refunds, then they should not sell bogus crap to need to offer refunds

in short. consumer laws that exist today to protect customers should be followed by bitcoin businesses, and law enforcement should not shy away from getting involved just because its bitcoin.. no consumer laws need changing as 1-4 are normally in most countries the back bone of existing consumer laws. and this will not in any way mess with bitcoin.. just the businesses ethics

Go cry some more.

They'd better spy on their moms' asses, idiots

100% agree with this statement!

its just a way to create more regulations and, therefore, barriers to entry.  This will curtail innovation by ensuring that only VERY big players (ie, large corporations or VC-backed companies and Wall St) will be able to enter the Bitcoin sphere.

The government already holds a monopoly on the banking system, which is why we had the 2008 Credit Crisis, S&L Crisis, etc.  New innovators cannot compete with the banks because of the barriers to entry in that market.  Government wants to apply the same template to Bitcoin ...

And it's all under the deceptive aegis of 'protecting the consumer'

You think the MtGox fraud was big?  Hell, that was only $500 million!

How about the 2008 credit crisis, in which the US taxpayer got jacked for FOURTEEN TRILLION?  That was directly DUE TO REGULATIONS preventing competition with those fraudulent banks!

America, wake the hell up.