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Comment by stavrianos | Hacker News Reader

So governments are going to shut down bitcoin- as I understand it, this is done by making it illegal to use bitcoin in otherwise legal transactions. That seems like the kind of thing that'd tank the value of bitcoin, making it useless. On the other hand, there aren't too many places that you can spend bitcoin right now anyways- maybe it'd be an empty gesture?

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How is the government going to shut it down? If a government makes it illegal to use bitcoins, this is hardly going to stop their use. This is an article about drugs here, right? Has prohibition stopped the illegal trade of drugs?

If I used bitcoins, it would be for otherwise legal transactions. I might sell my software for bitcoins and pay for hosting, advertising, and development in bitcoins. It bitcoins become illegal, I wouldn't consider using them for any of those purposes. I have too much to lose and very little to gain by accepting and trading in bitcoins. The underground economy is huge, but it's not an economy I participate in. I look to bitcoin as just another means of exchanging value with people, not as a way to buy drugs or launder money.

If a government makes it illegal to use bitcoins, it'll reduce their use for legal things, and the value will go down.

Forcing bitcoins into the black market may have the opposite effect on their value. Since no national border can stop a digital currency, it wouldn't be a problem to convert a bitcoin into a "legal" currency as needed.

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