Neighbor says bitcoin is a ponzi scheme

[SeanArce]

What exactly does he mean?

[empoweoqwj]

He means he wants to buy your bitcoins off your cheap. Don't give in 

[DeathAndTaxes]

What exactly does he mean?

He means he calls anything he doesn't understand a ponzi scheme.

Bitcoin may be many things.  It may be horribly flawed, it may be naively optimistic, it may never gain more than a marginal niche, hell it may crash and burn spectacularly tomorrow but it certainly isn't a ponzi scheme.

Let him know the ECB (no friend to Bitcoin) said as much in their report on virtual currencies.  Actually no regulator, governmental agency, or consumer watchdog group has stated Bitcoin is a ponzi.

[SeanArce]

I still don't know what it means. I could use google, but for the sake of conversation, I'll wait for an answer here

[DeathAndTaxes]

I still don't know what it means. I could use google, but for the sake of conversation, I'll wait for an answer here

really you googled "ponzi scheme" and nothing useful came up.  Like maybe wikipedia article explaining the concept of a ponzi scheme in the first post.

Maybe you don't know how to use google.  I rarely do this but LMGTFY

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=ponzi+scheme

[notme]

I still don't know what it means. I could use google, but for the sake of conversation, I'll wait for an answer here

really you googled "ponzi scheme" and nothing useful came up.  Like maybe wikipedia article explaining the concept of a ponzi scheme in the first post.

Maybe you don't know how to use google.  I rarely do this but LMGTFY

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=ponzi+scheme

No, he said he doesn't want to google it because he wants someone to explain it to him.  To which, I would say search these forums for ponzi and post in one of the other 29 threads.

[rikur]

PONZI = PERPETUAL ONLINE NON ZIMBABWEAN INCOME-GENERATOR

Knowing that you're lazy it simply means that if you send me your Bitcoins, the Bitcoin network will send you 10% of the amount back every day and you can make unlimited amount of money.

No really, google stuff and do some thinking yourself.

[franky1]

What exactly does he mean?

A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to its investors from their own money or the money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from profit earned

[r3wt]

PONZI = PERPETUAL ONLINE NON ZIMBABWEAN INCOME-GENERATOR

Knowing that you're lazy it simply means that if you send me your Bitcoins, the Bitcoin network will send you 10% of the amount back every day and you can make unlimited amount of money.

No really, google stuff and do some thinking yourself.

go change your tampon sally, theres no need to be yelling at newbs. does it make you feel cool?

[QuestionAuthority]

Don't listen to them. They are just grumpy old men. I'll tell you what it is but first I have an investment idea for you. Since you seem new and I like helping out new people I'll give you the exclusive chance to double your money. Send me 5 Bitcoins today and I'll send you back .0001 Bitcoins a day in interest for a year and at the end of a year I'll send you 10 Bitcoins doubling your initial investment. Ok?

[areebmajeed]

Just slap him.

[illpoet]

pm pirate@40 here on the forum he will explain it for a small btc donation

[BitChick]

Bernard Madoff=Ponzi Scheme

Basically the thought is any investment where the early adopters get rich, the later adopters lose everything is the concept.

From the Bitcoin/Wiki Myth page:

In a Ponzi Scheme, the founders persuade investors that they’ll profit. Bitcoin does not make such a guarantee. There is no central entity, just individuals building an economy.

A ponzi scheme is a zero sum game. In a ponzi scheme, early adopters can only profit at the expense of late adopters, and the late adopters always lose. Bitcoin has an expected win-win outcome. Early and present adopters profit from the rise in value as Bitcoins become better understood and in turn demanded by the public at large. All adopters benefit from the usefulness of a reliable and widely-accepted decentralized peer-to-peer currency.

[JoelKatz]

What exactly does he mean?

He could mean anything. But at best, he means that he believes early investors are profiting only from the investments of later investors and that there is no realistic prospect for any actual value to be produced and thus, on net, investors must necessarily lose money.

[Diamondstarfall]

I believe there has been many many discussion on this particular topic already on this forum

Do a simple search of "ponzi scheme" on here and read it through if you have and decide for yourself.

[rikur]

go change your tampon sally, theres no need to be yelling at newbs. does it make you feel cool?

The newb in question clearly said that he didn't even google it because he is lazy. I was actually helping him by giving him an obvious BS answer so that he might do some critical thinking himself in the future. This is a must in the Bitcoin world, unfortunately.

[BitBank]

The only correlation between bitcoin and a ponzi scheme is that one may argue that in both cases, early investors (or users) are better off than those who get involved later on. Even this analogy is based on the assumption that bitcoin will certainly be less valuable in the future than than they are today... anbd bitcoins are also a currency, not simply an investment.

[notme]

go change your tampon sally, theres no need to be yelling at newbs. does it make you feel cool?

The newb in question clearly said that he didn't even google it because he is lazy. I was actually helping him by giving him an obvious BS answer so that he might do some critical thinking himself in the future. This is a must in the Bitcoin world, unfortunately thankfully.

Herd behavior is how we wound up with the current financial system.  More critical thinking is needed at this point in time.

[QuestionAuthority]

go change your tampon sally, theres no need to be yelling at newbs. does it make you feel cool?

The newb in question clearly said that he didn't even google it because he is lazy. I was actually helping him by giving him an obvious BS answer so that he might do some critical thinking himself in the future. This is a must in the Bitcoin world, unfortunately thankfully.

Herd behavior is how we wound up with the current financial system.  More critical thinking is needed at this point in time.

You better hope the average dumbass can use Bitcoin or this really is a Ponzi scheme! Now apologize to the newbie and get him buying coins so mine are worth more. LOL

[r3wt]

go change your tampon sally, theres no need to be yelling at newbs. does it make you feel cool?

The newb in question clearly said that he didn't even google it because he is lazy. I was actually helping him by giving him an obvious BS answer so that he might do some critical thinking himself in the future. This is a must in the Bitcoin world, unfortunately.

eh thats a valid point on the critical thinking but these are newbs here. its like a new car we gotta ease them in you know? the brain cant handle all this cutting edge technology.