I Hate New York - Mostly the BitLicense!

I'm laying in bed stewing and pissed off. I probably wont post this till the morning, or I may not post this at all. All I know is right now I'm not falling asleep! I generally try to keep things positive, but I feel like a good rant, and a serious need to vent. Sometimes it's good to just put it all out there!

As many of you know I live in NY state. I discovered today that NY state in their infinite wisdom has decided to decline the BitLicense to Bittrex cryptocurrency exchange. This is terrible news because now Bittrex will probably cease dealing with NY residents. Although they haven't made an official statement at the time of this writing, it seems to be the inevitable conclusion. This means I have to find another exchange to replace Bittrex.

I trusted Bittrex. I was comfortable there. On top of that they're one of two major altcoin exchanges in the United States. The other being Poloniex and they don't deal with New York customers either for the same reason. I'm not sure if Poloniex ever applied for the license. I think they just figured it was easier to not deal with New York residents.

So the only two major altcoin exchanges in my country wont deal with me now because of the state I live in. This really puts New Yorkers in a precarious position. Speaking for myself, I'm faced with two simple choices. Cash out or transfer the portfolio to another exchange. I suppose the third option is to move to another state, and I'll admit, the thought has crossed my mind. For the most part, I'm a full time trader, and this is hindering my income in a big way.

Considering the last year we had in crypto, selling now is suicide! I have no problem holding long term. As a matter of fact, I intended too. I built those bags with full intent of keeping them long term. I keep them on the exchange to dump on the occasional pump and short sell when I can. Having that much coin, sitting in a wallet, doesn't make me money. Trading makes me money. A trader has to trade!

So I can't or won't sell. I could find another exchange but herein lies the problem! I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER EXCHANGE! I trusted Bittrex. I was comfortable there. They're located in my own country and they were my exchange of choice.

I've searched and honestly the alternatives are sketchy as hell. The only exchange I liked, with a decent assortment of coins, the same coins I have, and decent volume was Upbit. Doing a little research, the exchange has been under scrutiny for fraud investigations and other allegations. I can't believe my local government isn't giving me much of alternative other than quit trading or invest in another country on a shady exchange.

This is insanity! I live in the United States, and I can't trade in the United States because I live in New York. This is crazy! On top of that, my local government is forcing me to invest my money in institutions based in other countries. Have these people completely lost their minds! Have our politicians grown this out of touch? Seems their solution for everything is either a tax, a license or a permit. Welcome to NY! Seems more like the extortion racket to me.

I think the thing that pisses me off most is that I pay taxes. Both federal and state on my crypto gains. This is what my tax money supported. It paid some bureaucrat to write a bill that requires a license that makes my life more difficult. The government gets upset that most people aren't filing their crypto gains, but can you blame them. They've done nothing to support the industry and they make compliance close to impossible! Shame on them, and shame on all of us for allowing it!

I could go on and on about this. The bottom line is I was happy and comfortable trading on Bittrex. I don't need BIG BROTHER to protect me from myself. I'm a grown man, I can make my own decisions. I know the risks, and if things go south I have to take responsibility for my own actions. It shouldn't be the governments place to intrude!

On top of that, when did this level of government intrusion become acceptable. KYC/AML treats innocent people like criminals, and puts us all at risk. Companies that have to comply with these regulations have to keep huge databases of their clients personal information. These database are huge targets for real criminals who want to sell that data for identity theft. KYC/AML causes more problems than the problems they're trying to prevent!

I think what bothers me the most is that this isn't about protecting me or you. It's about protecting the status quo.It's about protecting a dying system that has become rotten and corrupt. Protecting their corporate interests, big banks, the federal reserve and a perverse and corrupt monetary system. Exactly what cryptocurrency was designed to eradicate.