Oddbean

I should have been clearer with my concerns. I'm not worried about the government knowing what I'm doing. I may hate tax and despise how big the federal government is, but I'm not interested in being an outlaw. My issue with KYC lies with the exchanges. Seems like there are 5 data breaches a day, these exchanges are high-value targets, and I do not have the time or money to be able to afford the risk of a data breach with my SSN, ID and likeness of my face. As we all know, federal bureaucracy is a sluggish nightmare and that's about the last thing I need on my plate right now.

Agreed, but I think this is where we differ. The trade is owning more bitcoin vs. "Seems like there are 5 data breaches a day, these exchanges are high-value targets, and I do not have the time or money to be able to afford the risk of a data breach with my SSN, ID and likeness of my face" I don't think the tradeoff is close. You could have no or small amount of bitcoin and have less risk of the quoted above, or you could have more bitcoin and slightly more risk of the quoted above. Both seem very risky KYC situations, but one situation you have more bitcoin which seems to de-risk substantially most aspects of life. IMO

The main thing I'm trying to say here is this: you guys all believe in Bitcoin with a do-or-die sentiment. That's awesome! I wish I could be at that point. However, for those of us who think it could be good but want to take things slower, these obstacles are 10x higher. That's the point I'm making. It's not as simple and perfect as some people claim it is. Sure, I could just say "screw it" and dive in head first but at this point in my life, I've got a lot riding on my career change, building financial stability and so forth. I can't afford big risks to my finances OR my time, so that makes it exceptionally difficult for me since I have to find complicated solutions in this situation.