Monthly Archives: March 2014

Isle of Man Welcomes Bitcoin Exchanges: ‘No License Required’

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“The Isle of Man seems to be setting itself up as a hub for bitcoin-related businesses. The self-governing British Crown dependency is already appealing to conventional businesses and wealthy individuals, and the latest indications are that this fiscally liberal environment will be extended to cryptocurrency-related activities as well.  The Isle of Man is highly attractive to e-business not least because of its low tax regime, where resident individuals are taxed at 20% to a maximum of £120,000 per year, while businesses pay no corporate tax and banks only 10%.  The island also boasts massive bandwith and redundancy, with world-class DDoS protection and multiple options for secure hosting.”

http://www.coindesk.com/isle-man-welcomes-digital-currency-exchanges-license-required/

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New IRS Bitcoin Rules Pose a Problem Startups Can Solve

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“Bitcoin, the IRS says, is property, not a currency. And as such, when you buy something with the volatile digital currency it’s most likely a taxable event.  That sounds like a bookkeeping nightmare, but as with so many of the twists and turns that face bitcoin as it matures as a digital currency (er, property) it’s also an area where new bitcoin startups could step in.  ‘I think this is going to create a huge opportunity for hosted wallets,’ says Jered Kenna, a bitcoin entrepreneur and the CEO of Moneyandtech.com. He believes that the smart bitcoin wallet makers will simply be able to add this as a service, tracking the capital gains and losses as you spend your bitcoins through the year.”

http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2014/03/irs-bitcoin/

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Threatening ‘IRS’ calls, emails are scams, officials warn

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“Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said her staff is looking into reports of an unspecified number of telephone calls to Nassau County residents from a Washington, D.C.-area number in which the caller claims to be an IRS agent and demands immediate payment and threatens an audit. The IRS, on its website, says such calls also sometimes threaten driver’s license revocation and sometimes are followed up with calls from people claiming to be police or the state motor vehicle department. The agency says some scam artists ‘spoof’ or imitate the IRS toll-free number on caller ID to make the call appear legitimate. Callers often demand payment through a preloaded debit card or wire transfer.”

http://www.newsday.com/business/threatening-irs-calls-emails-are-scams-officials-warn-1.7514990

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The Disturbing Truth Behind Your Next Income Tax Return

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“The least of the problems with income tax is that it takes your money. The really big problem is that the income tax takes your life. It gives the government direct access to the things you own and sets up the political-bureaucratic sector to be the final arbiter of what you can and cannot consider to be yours.  Illustrating this point is the bitter news that the IRS has considered it completely legal to demand access to your email archive whenever it wants. This news came about because of a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the American Civil Liberties Union.”

http://www.bonnerandpartners.com/the-disturbing-truth-behind-your-next-income-tax-return/

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The best and worst states for taxpayers

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“Hate paying taxes? Then consider a home on the range, and keep as far away from New York as possible.  An American making the median national income, driving an average car and living in the median-priced home could end up paying either 60 percent less or almost 40 percent more than the national average.  Wyoming had the lowest taxes for residents. That state’s taxpayers shell out 66% less than the national median. Alaska came in closely behind, and Nevada rounded out the top three.  On the other hand, New York ranked dead last—its residents pay 39% above the national average. California is right behind at 37 percent above the average, followed by Nebraska’s 36 percent.”

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101504033

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Connecticut enacts nation’s highest minimum wage at $10.10/hr

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“President Obama and congressional Democrats want to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.  Connecticut Gov Dannel Malloy, a Democrat, signed the legislation in New Britain, Conn. Thursday evening.  Malloy made the bill a law at the same diner Café Beauregard — where he had met with the president earlier this month to discuss hiking the minimum wage.  Malloy believes this move will revitalize the economic health of the city.  ‘This is just a step in moving people in the right direction,’ Malloy said while signing the bill. ‘We will be lifting people out of poverty in the state of Connecticut. Increasing the minimum wage is not just good for workers, it’s also good for business,’ he added.”

dailycaller.com/2014/03/28/connecticut-passes-nations-highest-minimum-wage/

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Google: Gov. requests for user information up 120% over four years

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“Government requests for user information in criminal cases have increased by about 120 percent since we first began publishing these numbers in 2009. Though our number of users has grown throughout the time period, we’re also seeing more and more governments start to exercise their authority to make requests.  We consistently push back against overly broad requests for your personal information, but it’s also important for laws to explicitly protect you from government overreach. That’s why we’re working alongside eight other companies to push for surveillance reform, including more transparency.”

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/transparency-report-requests-for-user.html

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After seven years, exactly one person gets off the gov’t no-fly list

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“Ibrahim’s case, as just one of hundreds of thousands of individuals who have been placed on such lists, shows the system’s opacity. First, the only surefire way to even determine if one is on such a list in the US is to attempt to board a flight and be denied. Even after that happens, when a denied person inquires about his or her status, the likely response will be that the government ‘can neither confirm nor deny’ the placement on such lists.  The government’s surrender in Ibrahim comes on the heels of a new report by the American Civil Liberties Union that shows just how insanely difficult it is to contest one’s status on the government blacklists.”

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/03/after-seven-years-exactly-one-person-gets-off-the-govt-no-fly-list/

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Police Officer Arrests Firefighter At Accident Scene In California

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“An argument broke out between a California Highway Patrol officer and a firefighter from Chula Vista, as they clashed over where the Chula Vista crew’s fire engine should be stationed. Firefighters had placed their vehicle along the center road divider, close to where a car had flipped over, and behind an ambulance. Emergency personnel tended to the car’s two occupants as the conflict went on around them.  CBS 8’s cameras captured the incident, which ended with the firefighter being handcuffed and placed in the back of a police cruiser.  The firefighter, Jacob Gregoire, 36, was held in the police car for about 30 minutes before being released, CBS 8 says.”

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/02/05/272144424/police-officer-arrests-firefighter-at-accident-scene-in-california

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Study: Drug Dogs Most Likely To Err In Traffic Stop Scenarios

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“Dogs trained to detect the presence of illegal drugs are most likely to provide false alerts in situations involving the search of a motor vehicle, according to the findings of a study published online in the journal Forensic Science International.  Drug dogs’ failure rates were even more pronounced in situations where the animals had access to the inside of a vehicle. In this scenario, dogs correctly responded to the presence of contraband only 58 percent of time. They provided false alerts 36 percent of time.  In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Illinois v Caballes that an alert from a police dog during a traffic stop provides a constitutional basis for law enforcement to search the interior of the vehicle.”

http://norml.org/news/2014/03/27/study-drug-dogs-most-likely-to-err-in-traffic-stop-scenarios

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