Crypto Regulations: Are they necessary?

How do you regulate an asset that was meant to be for the people and governed through the self governance by the individual? In all honesty, I don’t think that it can be done. Where the individual will want their freedom, the government will create a rule that consumes everyone based on the few. This will initiate a clash between powers. Though, we all know how the government behaves when their powers are threatened.

The question that will need to be answered is: “Can the individual be trusted to govern themselves without oversight from a group of ‘out of touch’ politicians?” I believe, yes. This will come with its own set of issues that the individual would need to accept for self governance to work.

1. When something bad happens, we would need to be able to right it off as the minority. This means that when criminals, terrorists, cartels, etc. move funds through cryptocurrency, they are acting within their rights to do so. Since they have not be proven guilty and thus remain innocent, they have technically (in the eyes of the law) not done something wrong. At which point it would be the duty of law enforcement to prove the illicit activity and convict them. Creating a law that would restrict the capabilities of the law abiding citizen in efforts to solve a problem that is being facilitated by the few has been proven to create more issues than solve problems. This being because the law abiding citizen is now restricted, while the criminal continues to disobey the new laws without concern. (You know, because they are criminals and they don’t care about laws.)
2. Management of your funds would become your responsibility and ensuring proper delivery over the correct blockchain or network would be entirely your burden. There are multiple chains, multiple networks, and layers to cryptocurrency. Sending the wrong token or coin to the wrong address connected to the wrong network or chain could mean a loss of funds that are not recoverable. (Sometimes, I have seen funds recovered…but as of now, it is near impossible.) The government, including folks like Paul Krugerman, think that you need their protection from the possibility of losing your funds through the process of exchange and P2P transactions. Which to me personally means, they don’t think you are smart enough to learn how to correctly manage yourself and your money. That is why there are laws and rules created by the Fed and banks that restrict your access to your money. Ever tried to get more than $500.00 at your ATM? Rules about the amount you can withdraw are determined by a board of overseers that determine what your limit can based on limitations of the bank and cash flow. With cryptocurrency, cash on hand would no longer be an issue and thus no longer would need regulations.
3. Doing your own research. A portion of the regulatory talks have been around the risk in a speculative asset like blockchain and cryptocurrency. Everything you do in life comes with a risk and your decisions are always based on a risk to reward ratio. Driving for example. When you make the decision to get in your vehicle and drive to the grocery store you have subconsciously determined that the risk (getting in your vehicle and driving with other drivers potentially getting in an accident that could lead to harm or death) is out weighed by the reward of purchasing groceries and feeding your family for a week or two. See? The government hasn’t regulated that choice. Oh, wait, they have. We have just become accustomed to the regulation and accepted it as normal. With cryptocurrency we have the opportunity to create guidelines for ourselves that no longer need societal majorities for adaptation.

There are more convoluted layers to the regulation of cryptocurrency that we can dive into at another time. For now, let’s take these thoughts and begin a discussion. Ask your questions, make your comments, engage with your community about the possibilities of a world where your finances are your own and no one can tell you what to do with them. You would be the captain of your destiny and your life, families lives, etc. This is a pivotal moment for the crypto space. What are you thinking?