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> Drugs are (highly) illegal but most people I know are at most two phone calls away from scoring whatever they want whenever they want. And yet most people do

> Drugs are (highly) illegal but most people I know are at most two phone calls away from scoring whatever they want whenever they want. And yet most people don't. Knowing you can do something illegal, and doing it, are vastly different things.

aianus 11y ago
> And yet most people don't. If people's life savings depended on circumventing capital controls, they would find a way. It's already a reality in China [1] and (until recently) Argentina [2]. Hell, where I'm from (Canada) 43% of people admit to having smoked marijuana in their lifetimes. And that's just breaking the law for fun, not serious practical reasons like saving $xx,xxx when your crappy central bank decides to inflate away your bank account. [1] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-02/china-s-smurfs-beat-cash-controls-sending-real-estate-soaring http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-02/china-s-sm... [2] http://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-for-your-dollars-in-buenos-aires http://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-fo...
- gnaritas 11y ago
  You're looking at the actions of a very few people and making unjustified sweeping conclusions about what everyone is willing to do. A very small minority of the populations in both those countries are breaking the law to get their money around capital controls, that doesn't in any way challenge the point that most people won't. Most people break drug laws at some point in their lives just for fun, still not relevant to the fact that most don't most of the time. Most people obey most laws most of the time, especially ones that can get them into serious trouble. No amount of anecdotes of some people this or some people that changes that fact. Laws matter.
  - aianus 11y ago
    > Most people obey most laws most of the time I think you're inverting the causation. Of course things that most people do most of the time would not be illegal, those laws would be very difficult to introduce and sustain politically. > especially ones that can get them into serious trouble It's not enough for a law to carry a heavy penalty, people have to believe they can/will get caught and the penalty will apply to them. Which is true for robbery and capital murder but not so with drug use, capital controls, porn bans (click here if you're 18), copyright, etc. > Laws matter. Only if someone has the ability, will, and the resources to consistently enforce them. Which is to say, they would not matter in third-world countries with mismanaged economies where people need to break the law to buy BTC/USD.
    - gnaritas 11y ago
      It's true for drug use as well, but that's not the point. The point is laws do deter, they don't prevent everyone, but they can easily kill mass adoption of anything. You can try to skirt around that all you like, but it's true none the less. Bitcoin is not special in this regard, if the US outlawed it, mass adoption would not be an option. And no, you don't need consistent enforcement of laws to make them intimidating, selective enforcement does that too.

aianus 11y ago

> And yet most people don't. If people's life savings depended on circumventing capital controls, they would find a way. It's already a reality in China [1] and (until recently) Argentina [2]. Hell, where I'm from (Canada) 43% of people admit to having smoked marijuana in their lifetimes. And that's just breaking the law for fun, not serious practical reasons like saving $xx,xxx when your crappy central bank decides to inflate away your bank account. [1] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-02/china-s-smurfs-beat-cash-controls-sending-real-estate-soaring http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-02/china-s-sm... [2] http://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-for-your-dollars-in-buenos-aires http://www.buenostours.com/getting-the-best-exchange-rate-fo...

gnaritas 11y ago
You're looking at the actions of a very few people and making unjustified sweeping conclusions about what everyone is willing to do. A very small minority of the populations in both those countries are breaking the law to get their money around capital controls, that doesn't in any way challenge the point that most people won't. Most people break drug laws at some point in their lives just for fun, still not relevant to the fact that most don't most of the time. Most people obey most laws most of the time, especially ones that can get them into serious trouble. No amount of anecdotes of some people this or some people that changes that fact. Laws matter.
- aianus 11y ago
  > Most people obey most laws most of the time I think you're inverting the causation. Of course things that most people do most of the time would not be illegal, those laws would be very difficult to introduce and sustain politically. > especially ones that can get them into serious trouble It's not enough for a law to carry a heavy penalty, people have to believe they can/will get caught and the penalty will apply to them. Which is true for robbery and capital murder but not so with drug use, capital controls, porn bans (click here if you're 18), copyright, etc. > Laws matter. Only if someone has the ability, will, and the resources to consistently enforce them. Which is to say, they would not matter in third-world countries with mismanaged economies where people need to break the law to buy BTC/USD.
  - gnaritas 11y ago
    It's true for drug use as well, but that's not the point. The point is laws do deter, they don't prevent everyone, but they can easily kill mass adoption of anything. You can try to skirt around that all you like, but it's true none the less. Bitcoin is not special in this regard, if the US outlawed it, mass adoption would not be an option. And no, you don't need consistent enforcement of laws to make them intimidating, selective enforcement does that too.