10 ms·

Heroin is illegal, though? Still don't understand how the analogy applies to cryptocurrency. >The company could decide the FDA was wrong... But why would the

Heroin is illegal, though? Still don't understand how the analogy applies to cryptocurrency. >The company could decide the FDA was wrong... But why would they decide this? Since Heroin is, again, illegal.

khuey 3y ago
Unregistered securities offerings are also illegal.
- shkkmo 3y ago
  No, selling unregistered securities to people who aren't accredited investors is illegal.
bb88 3y ago
Would it have helped if she prefaced it with, "Here's a hypothetical about a company wanting to do illegal things..."? The style of argument is akin to Reductio ad Absurdum, taking an absurd position to it's logical conclusion. The "absurd position" here is a company wanting to sell heroin on the open market, and she takes that to the logical conclusion. She could have said "meth", "nuclear weapons", or "dead infants", or whatever instead of heroin to make her point. If you read that as a comparison to Coinbase being a heroin dealer than you're the one editorializing her effort. Here's another reductio ad absurdum argument: Let's assume the earth is flat. Either the surface of the earth must go to infinity or people must be walking off the edge of it somewhere.
- friend_and_foe 3y ago
  Youre completely.ignoring the fact that "heroin is illegal" is cut and dry. Securities are not illegal. Selling them without a license is. Asking them to clarify the law and getting told "the law is clear" is not in any way the same as selling heroin knowing it is illegal.
  - rjbwork 3y ago
    The law is clear. It's not the job of regulatory agencies to advise companies on how to become compliant with the law and their rules. The law and their rules are...the law and their rules! Hire a lawyer for that!
    - AnthonyMouse 3y ago
      > It's not the job of regulatory agencies to advise companies on how to become compliant with the law and their rules. Honestly this should be a core mission of all regulatory agencies and the fact that it isn't is a disgrace.
      - JumpCrisscross 3y ago
        > this should be a core mission of all regulatory agencies and the fact that it isn't is a disgrace You want public sector corporate law? If we’re socialising law, I’d think we’d start with criminal defense.
        bb88 3y ago
        I personally don't want tax dollars to fund corporate lawyering.
        friend_and_foe 3y ago
        Theres a distinction somewhere between "socializing law" and "tell me why you'd sue me before I do it accidentally."
        hef19898 3y ago
        The latter isn't a thing so. Especially if, as Coinbase and Binance did, ignore willingly the most basic rules around ypur business because of tech, innovation, disruption and the internet. About time that reality checks happen.
      - rjbwork 3y ago
scott_w 3y ago
Then replace “heroin” with “mouldy, maggot-ridden meat” and you get the point.
- bb88 3y ago
  Brilliant!
nl 3y ago
In the very next paragraph she explains the analogy: > These three functions — bringing together securities orders for buyers and sellers, trading securities on behalf of others, and intermediating trades — are typically required to be separate due to conflicts of interest that emerge when one entity controls all of them. She is saying it is like Heroin. >> >The company could decide the FDA was wrong... > But why would they decide this? Since Heroin is, again, illegal. She is pointing out how absurb it is that Coinbase has decided the SEC is wrong (about the separation of roles) since - as you point out - not having the separation of roles is illegal.

khuey 3y ago

Unregistered securities offerings are also illegal.

shkkmo 3y ago
No, selling unregistered securities to people who aren't accredited investors is illegal.

bb88 3y ago

Would it have helped if she prefaced it with, "Here's a hypothetical about a company wanting to do illegal things..."? The style of argument is akin to Reductio ad Absurdum, taking an absurd position to it's logical conclusion. The "absurd position" here is a company wanting to sell heroin on the open market, and she takes that to the logical conclusion. She could have said "meth", "nuclear weapons", or "dead infants", or whatever instead of heroin to make her point. If you read that as a comparison to Coinbase being a heroin dealer than you're the one editorializing her effort. Here's another reductio ad absurdum argument: Let's assume the earth is flat. Either the surface of the earth must go to infinity or people must be walking off the edge of it somewhere.

friend_and_foe 3y ago
Youre completely.ignoring the fact that "heroin is illegal" is cut and dry. Securities are not illegal. Selling them without a license is. Asking them to clarify the law and getting told "the law is clear" is not in any way the same as selling heroin knowing it is illegal.
- rjbwork 3y ago
  The law is clear. It's not the job of regulatory agencies to advise companies on how to become compliant with the law and their rules. The law and their rules are...the law and their rules! Hire a lawyer for that!
  - AnthonyMouse 3y ago
    > It's not the job of regulatory agencies to advise companies on how to become compliant with the law and their rules. Honestly this should be a core mission of all regulatory agencies and the fact that it isn't is a disgrace.
    - JumpCrisscross 3y ago
      > this should be a core mission of all regulatory agencies and the fact that it isn't is a disgrace You want public sector corporate law? If we’re socialising law, I’d think we’d start with criminal defense.
      - bb88 3y ago
        I personally don't want tax dollars to fund corporate lawyering.
      - friend_and_foe 3y ago
        Theres a distinction somewhere between "socializing law" and "tell me why you'd sue me before I do it accidentally."
        hef19898 3y ago
        The latter isn't a thing so. Especially if, as Coinbase and Binance did, ignore willingly the most basic rules around ypur business because of tech, innovation, disruption and the internet. About time that reality checks happen.
    - rjbwork 3y ago

scott_w 3y ago

Then replace “heroin” with “mouldy, maggot-ridden meat” and you get the point.

bb88 3y ago
Brilliant!

nl 3y ago

In the very next paragraph she explains the analogy: > These three functions — bringing together securities orders for buyers and sellers, trading securities on behalf of others, and intermediating trades — are typically required to be separate due to conflicts of interest that emerge when one entity controls all of them. She is saying it is like Heroin. >> >The company could decide the FDA was wrong... > But why would they decide this? Since Heroin is, again, illegal. She is pointing out how absurb it is that Coinbase has decided the SEC is wrong (about the separation of roles) since - as you point out - not having the separation of roles is illegal.