for life and liberty

With New Initiative ‘Galactic,’ PayPal Wants To Own Payments And Commerce In Space

"In a slightly bizarre announcement today, PayPal is debuting PayPal Galactic, an initiative to own universal payments and commerce in space. Yes, outer space. PayPal is looking to address and solve the problems of what the standard currency looks like in a cash-free interplanetary society, and how banking, risk and fraud management systems will adapt to this. The company says that there is already the need for a galactic payment system. Astronauts inhabiting space stations still need to pay for life’s necessities—from their bills back on Earth to their entertainment, like music and e-books, while in space." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWith New Initiative ‘Galactic,’ PayPal Wants To Own Payments And Commerce In Space

Germany: Parliamentary inquiry declares Bitcoins tax-exempt after one year holding time

"Thus, the digital money from the Treasury treated differently than, for example, stocks, bonds or certificates. All of these asset classes are subject to withholding tax of 25 percent plus solidarity surcharge and church tax. In bitcoins falls after a holding period of one year on the other hand, no such tax. The tax exemption of capital gains in Bitcoins findings of a parliamentary inquiry that has provided to the federal government the FDP financial expert Frank Schaeffler and the 'world' exists. 'It is good that investments in Bitcoins is finally legal certainty. Private profits from the sale of Bitcoins are tax-free after one year,' said Schaeffler." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGermany: Parliamentary inquiry declares Bitcoins tax-exempt after one year holding time

Bitcoin Exchange Berlin to Open on Saturday, June 29

"More and more people in Germany know that the Euro system will inevitably collapse, so they want to be prepared for what comes next. Germans are especially sensitive, as we went through two major monetary disasters in the last century, and the Euro will surely be the next one. So many people now think about getting their savings into gold, silver and Bitcoin. Platoon Kunsthalle is an ideal site for the Bitcoin Exchange Berlin as it serves as a communication consultancy specializing in mobilizing cultural movements and community events." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin Exchange Berlin to Open on Saturday, June 29

Bitcoin Black Market Competition Heats Up, With Pro Marketing And Millions At Stake

"Watch the cheery video ad for the latest dark-web drug marketplace today, and you’d be forgiven for thinking it was selling a service as mainstream as online dating or car insurance. Atlantis, which launched in March, is poised to take on the Silk Road, which remains by far the biggest drug sales site, with close to 60,000 unique visitors a day by one researcher’s rough measure and $22 million annual sales according to a study last year. Both run on the anonymity service Tor to hide the location of their servers and the identities of any visitors to their sites, and both accept Bitcoin to avoid having their transactions tracked through bank records." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin Black Market Competition Heats Up, With Pro Marketing And Millions At Stake

More Small Businesses Embrace Bitcoin

"Having the latest technology can help a small company stand out against the competition. And that is perhaps the biggest reason Bitcoin, a nascent system using virtual currency to make payments online, has drawn a strong following among small-business owners. It is unclear if business transactions were part of the original vision for Bitcoin, which was started in 2009 and isn't backed by a central bank. BitPay Inc., an Atlanta firm that processes Bitcoin payments, says it has signed up more than 8,000 merchants world-wide—all small companies—since it formed in May 2011." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore Small Businesses Embrace Bitcoin

Catholic bishops: Indefinite detention ‘wounds the moral reputation of our nation’

"The top of the Catholic hierarchy in the United States on Tuesday called on U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to close down the Guantanamo Bay prison facility. 'Detainees have the right to a just and fair trial held in a timely manner,' he told Hagel. 'For at least 86 detainees ‘a crime has not first been proven.’ The indefinite detention of detainees is not only injurious to those individuals, it also wounds the moral reputation of our nation, compromises our commitment to the rule of law, and undermines our struggle against terrorism.' Pates further said reports of forced feedings of prisoners on hunger strike suggested the U.S. was violating basic human rights." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCatholic bishops: Indefinite detention ‘wounds the moral reputation of our nation’

Russia: U.S. demands to hand over Edward Snowden are ‘ravings and rubbish’

"President Vladimir Putin confirmed on Tuesday a former U.S. spy agency contractor sought by the United States was in the transit area of a Moscow airport but ruled out handing him over to Washington, dismissing U.S. criticisms as 'ravings and rubbish'. In his first public comments since the fugitive flew in on Sunday, he appeared to make light of the affair around Edward Snowden, whose flight from U.S. authorities is becoming an increasing embarrassment for President Barack Obama." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRussia: U.S. demands to hand over Edward Snowden are ‘ravings and rubbish’

British inventor of the World Wide Web scolds ‘insidious’ Western governments over spying

"The British inventor of the World Wide Web accused Western governments of hypocrisy in spying on the Internet while lecturing repressive leaders across the world for doing exactly the same. Tim Berners-Lee, a London-born computer scientist who invented the Web in 1989 as the Berlin Wall crumbled, said the West was involved in 'insidious' online spying that could change the way normal people use their computers. Berners-Lee said the revelations about U.S. and British spying could alter the way people use the internet, especially for younger generations who can use it in intimate ways. He also questioned whether the governments could safeguard sensitive data once collected." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritish inventor of the World Wide Web scolds ‘insidious’ Western governments over spying

Is Your Retirement Planning as Bad as Most Americans’ Planning? Find Out Here.

"Approximately 38,000,000 working households in the United States do not own any retirement assets. This is about 45% of all the working households in the United States. They do not have an IRA. They do not have a 401(k). They do not have anything. In other words, they have made no plans whatsoever to fund their retirements. If we take into consideration all households in America, the median retirement account balance is $3,000. Got that? $3,000. The utter impossibility of this situation should be obvious. This is not a slight shortfall. This is a guaranteed head-on collision inside the American social order. That is because the Social Security system is going bankrupt." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIs Your Retirement Planning as Bad as Most Americans’ Planning? Find Out Here.