Now that Liberty Reserve is going to be prosecuted I think the OP question is now more relevant then ever.
Users who think that just because the company isn't in the United States doesn't mean the United States can't get you. They can, and they will. They got these guys and none of them were in the US, nor was the company in the US. If BTC-E is indeed operating without any licenses or outside of any regulations (they could be above board, but who knows) Users of BTC-E are being silly if they think that they are safe from the US government.
The lesson should be that they can get you anywhere. And they will.
Even if btce gets shut down, the most that will happen is an inconvenience, the money will be returned to account holders because nobody will be able to prove they came from an illegitimate source. Another exchange will take its place.
You're assuming quite a lot in that one. The 'inconvenience' could last years as a trial dragged through the legal system. Liquidators might return only USD selling off any coins at any rate without consideration.
You're also assuming BTC-E keeps meticulous records. If they don't- your money might looks like anyone else's and the burden of proof could be on the user to prove a) where the funds came from b)their identities. Look at Bitcoinica, Bitfloor, the old tradehill, Intersango, those funds are stuck indefinitely. With Bitcoinica Mt.Gox actually still has all the money, but the refuse to release it. What are you going to? Wait years for a resolution or until you forgot you ever owned it in the first place.
Not to mention, users could be targeted themselves.
I can tell u have a hate on for these type of services but your are most certainly fear mongering now.
Oh you can tell? My liberal use of provocative questions and legitimate concerns? Huge tip off. :-)
No users, unless specifically targeted for illegal activities would be prosecuted and I'm sure a vast majority of people using btce are legitimate small time traders and miners.
That depends. Are US citizens using BTC-E declaring their earnings on their capital tax gains on their tax returns? That's a pretty quick way to turn a regular honest 'small time' trader into a criminal pretty quickly. It's not a question about whether you're a bad person out to do evil, it's question of how many lambs the government wants on an alter. They want you, they will find a way to get you.
With cryptos the block chain would store all address of funds sent to btce so this could easily be used to return cryptos to there senders. The fiat cash would be a little more tricky but it would be up to the authorities to prove u committed a crime before seizure. Freezing btce funds is just that, frozen, not expropriated.
Once again, I'd say look at the case of Bitcoinica- they are in liquidation yet the funds are still frozen. Indefinitely at this point.
I'm not saying the funds would be expropriated, but I am saying that frozen funds might take an extremely long time to get back. Surely you don't think the government would return funds without first asking everyones ID? Not to mention your blockchain example is flawed. The funds come in on the blockchain- yes. But what happens to them inside of the exchange is up to BTC-E. That would depend on BTC-E's internal record keeping and I assume any investigation into the recent 'hacks'.
Critical thinking isn't fear mongering.
EDIT: Sorry my quotes up there are a mess.