> The test for inside information is that it is "material, non-public information used to inform the trade decision."
Not for much longer.
ITPA replaces that with the simpler, squishier and more vague "obtained wrongfully". Wrongfully is not defined. It passed the House; if the Senate votes it in it'll be law:
> It mostly illustrates the inability of the government to be effective.
Be careful, the Financial Panopticon lobby is getting better at this at an exponential rate. Just look at how they reacted to cryptocurrencies.
> a large purchase of a high end tv at the last day of the year, which then would be returned a couple days unopened.
If the purchase is electronically receipted the return will be as well. All they have to do is change the wording from "purchases" to "net purchases". Or just issue a regulatory interpretation indicating that's what the legislators meant in the first place.
For the same reason garbage collection service is mandatory in most cities: because people will generate trash and dispose of it one way or another. In the city I lived in if you don't pay the trash bill they add it to your sewer bill, and if you don't pay your sewer bill they put a lien on your house.
When you go to sell your house, do you want the government interviewing potential buyers and vetoing the ones it thinks are likely to buy a car and park it on the street? A block or two away if necessary? Sorry sir, the high bidder for your house works in an industry that makes him a car-commuting risk. You'll have to settle for the second-highest bidder.