Crypto bull John McAfee threw down the ordeal to the US Internal Revenue Service and dared the agency to come after him for tax evasion.
McAfee, 73, professed in a striking tweet storm that he hasn’t filed a tax return in eight years. Why? He explained:
1. Taxation is illegal.
2. I paid tens of millions already and received Jack Sh*t in services.
3. I’m done making money.
4. I live off of cash from McAfee Inc.
5. My net income is negative.
McAfee then claimed that he’s a “prime target for the IRS” before boldly challenging the authority to trail him. “Here I am,” he aggravated.
I have not filed a tax return for 8 years. Why? 1: taxation is illegal. 2: I paid tens of millions already and received Jack Shit in services. 3. I’m done making money. I live off of cash from McAfee Inc. My net income is negative. But i am a prime target for the IRS. Here I am.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) January 3, 2019
John McAfee’s Stance On Taxation
Prior to the Twitter dare was a scorching attack on the tax-collection authority, which McAfee says has gotten too authoritative and daunting.
“It now destroys us,”
he mourned.
No one will fuck with the enormous power of the IRS. It emerged as an SS like intimidation arm of the government during prohibition – when drinking alcohol was a crime. Unable to buy legitimatte alcohol the publuc relied on family stills. From destrying stills, it now destroys us
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) January 3, 2019
Before that,he aggravated the IRS, saying:
“I have prepared my entire life for this battle. We will not be able to shrug off the yoke of this corrupt and insane government without a struggle.”
I’m challenging the agency responsible for fueling our Government’s madness – the IRS. The IRS will not sit idly by. I know this. But i have prepared my entire life for this battle. We will not be able to shrug off the yoke of this corrupt and insane government without a struggle
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) January 3, 2019
Hours earlier, McAfee condemned the agency, saying “taxation is theft. It is unconstitutional.”
It’s imprecise what McAfee meant as he has a reputation for being unusual and a history of making uncanny Twitter rants.
I’m done trashing the SEC. Let’s move on to the IRS – the agency that takes from you an average of three months of your labor each year. First – taxation is theft. It is unconstitutional. Prior to the civil war there was no income tax, yet we managed. Stay tuned for the truth.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) January 3, 2019
$100 Million Fortune Wiped Out
John McAfee is a cybersecurity pioneer who produced the McAfee anti-virus software program.
At the peak of his wealth, McAfee’s net worth topped $100 million. After the 2008 US financial calamity, he stated to have lost most of his fortune.
He now charges about $105,000 to post a tweet, according to his website. This earned him an unpleasant repute as a crypto shill who will encourage anything as long as he gets paid.
As a result, McAfee in May 2018, was strained to express regret amid revelations that an ICO he certified had plagiarized its website content and whitepaper from another project.
John McAfee-Endorsed ICO Apologizes For Plagiarizing Content From Blockchain Taxi Platform https://t.co/jEZkCBJsAw $btc pic.twitter.com/NJOc5qhdL6
— Ｍｉｃｈａｅｌ (@MichaelcMcKee) May 18, 2018
In June 2018, McAfee — a libertarian — announced that he planned to run for president in 2020. He later admitted that the announcement was a PR stunt, and that the only platform for his presidential campaign would be to promote crypto.
Crypto Investors Must Pay Taxes, says IRS
Meanwhile, the Internal Revenue Service has delivered a statement to pay taxes on gains earned from crypto holdings for the investors. In February 2018, the IRS ordered Coinbase, the top crypto exchange to present them with data of 13,000 customers.
On February 23rd 2018, Coinbase sent a notice to all affected users.
“Coinbase notified a group of approximately 13,000 customers concerning a summons from the IRS regarding their Coinbase accounts.”
Bitcoin advocate Andreas Antonopoulos bemoaned his fate on Twitter.
Received notice from Coinbase today, that my account is one of the 13,000 that they will have to turn over to the IRS under the court order.
Not surprised, I knew I would be in that group. In case you were wondering, I’ve filed & paid taxes for my bitcoin income, gains/losses.
— Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) February 23, 2018
Several Coinbase customers were distressed about the fact that IRS received their accounts records. Some consider that because crypto being decentralized and mostly unregulated, they’re invulnerable to taxation.
Also Read: Overstock to be the first retailer to pay State Taxes in Bitcoin
Other users were offended that Coinbase had not provided them with any particular advanced notice to file taxes on their crypto monetary profits.
Ron Paul: Crypto Should be Exempted from Taxes
In December 2018, former US Congressman Ron Paul asked the government to abolish the Federal Reserve and excuse all cryptocurrencies from taxation.
Ron Paul stated that the artificial market machinations cause recessions and darned the Fed for manipulating interest rates.
Paul stated that the only way to shun a Fed-created recession is to allow people to use cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and also to exempt crypto from taxes.
Also Read: Several Exchanges allegedly failing the Proof of Keys Event
