I don't understand this mentality. There is only an additional service on the market, nobody forces you to use it if you don't see the need. If somebody else finds it useful, how it is your problem?
> This isn't to say one organization going mainstream PSP will hurt Bitcoin. I simply don't see the point, that's all.
Good for you. But you can already buy drugs with bitcoin. That problem has been solved; for a while now. What's not solved is being able to use it for everything else. That's only going to happen with more legitimacy and general use.
The government regulators are the ones who cause fees, delays, or spying on international transfers. Bitcoin has solved this problem, and international transfers can be done just as easily and quickly as any other transaction.
At some point this is sure to change for Bitcoin Central customers, as the government starts making decisions about how Bitcoin transactions should be handled.
Again, I'm not complaining of a detriment to myself or anyone else. I just don't see the point.
Perhaps calling it a "huge step backwards" was misguided. What I meant by that was, if I were a customer of Bitcoin Central it would feel like a huge step backwards for me, and if the general Bitcoin community went this direction it would feel like a huge step backwards.
EDIT: grammar
Banks are already great for things that banks do, like insuring deposits and putting your account within reach of authorities. Presenting an ID to get a Bitcoin account which is regulated by central authorities, both private and government, seems antithetical to the purpose of Bitcoin.
This isn't to say one organization going mainstream PSP will hurt Bitcoin. I simply don't see the point, that's all.
The rest of us will continue using Bitcoin through Tor and i2p, keeping our money safe and anonymous.