How will the IRS figure that out. Also let us pretend I use VPN + Tor since I am also a dark market user.
A mousetrap never runs after a mouse
They won't necessarily go after you exactly just because you bought $100,000 worth of Bitcoins at Coinbase. They will just sift through the Coinbase records to see who can be caught most easily, pick up a few of those poor fellas, make them into scapegoats and show them on the TV. On the other hand, if you don't live in the US, it seems that you have nothing to worry about so far, I guess. But better be safe than sorry, of course
Yeah this could be all for show and another fear mongering strategy used by the US government to discourage the use of Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies. It will not be surprising if the ruling banks are trying to put pressure on the government to put a stop or even ban Bitcoin.
Personally, I don't think that it all comes down to fear mongering for the purpose of discouraging the use of Bitcoin as well as other cryptocurrencies, though the elements of such a strategy are clearly exhibiting themselves. I'm more inclined to think that these or similar actions are not directed against Bitcoin itself but rather toward disincentivizing people from evading taxes with it. This is quite in line with what all tax collecting agencies do throughout the world...
Their ultimate aim is to collect taxes not to ban or discourage people from using something
But is there really a lot in US Dollars they can collect from the use of Bitcoins? I do not think their ultimate aim is just to collect taxes. When the US government makes moves such as this one, there is always a hidden agenda behind it. Sorry for my distrust but we have seen governments around the world that seek to oppress and take advantage their people even in democratic countries.
I myself share your distrust, at least, to a degree
But let's remain impartial and unbiased. If they (the US government) had a hidden agenda behind this matter, we wouldn't see the IRS sniffing around Coinbase but rather the FBI intervening directly in Coinbase operations. These agencies (IRS, FBI, NSA and other alphabet services) are pretty much closed societies themselves, and they don't like sharing info with each other. Therefore, it may be interesting to indulge in conspiracy theories, but the reality is usually more prosaic overall