Create new "Ponzi Schemes & HYIPs" subforum.

[DiamondCardz]

I am suggesting that theymos creates a new "Ponzi Schemes & HYIPs" subforum under the Gambling section and add a moderator who will move any Ponzi Schemes/HYIPs from Games & Rounds/Gambling to that subforum.

I do think that Games and Rounds is a useful forum for giveaways, but that these legitimate giveaways and in some cases even legitimate threads for websites are being pushed away by various Ponzi or HYIP threads. As well of this, I think some newbies to Bitcoin who may not understand the high risk of a Ponzi/HYIP may be enticed by the high rates of reward offered without knowingly having clicked on a section which says that the threads inside may be extremely high risk.

The addition of a Ponzi Schemes & HYIPs subforum would allow for sufficient warning to newbies while still allowing these kinds of threads to survive on the forums. One could argue that a sticky could be made, but we all know that the effectiveness of stickies is low. A moderator could be drafted in to the Gambling/Games and Rounds sections in order to move any new Ponzi or HYIP threads into the correct section, therefore preventing the aforementioned issue.

Anyway, that's my suggestion, if you have any arguments for or against it, please do share them.

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[hilariousandco]

It's been mentioned/requested a couple of times, but I agree.

[SelbyTsang]

It's been mentioned/requested a couple of times

Exactly. FYR: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=494662.0;all


Theymos' response 1:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=494662.msg5473635#msg5473635

New categorization might be good, but what exactly distinguishes a Ponzi-type game from other gambling?

Theymos' response 2:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=494662.msg5490114#msg5490114

Ponzi owners say to users that is "120%" "LEGIT" "STABLE" and other shit. They do not say - you MIGHT lost lost your money.

When you place a bet @casino - you know what you are doing and you know before you place a bet that you can be a looser or a winner

that is main different between Ponzi and other gambling projects.

PonziCoin says "So, I could lose all my investment? -> Yes, that is the gamble you take when playing Ponzi games," and, "you should never deposit more than you can risk losing." Does this make PonziCoin not a ponzi?

If there are many people who like traditional gambling games and not Ponzis, then a category should probably be created, but I'm not sure where the line would be drawn between Ponzis and other games. Maybe traditional games must be based 100% on chance? But that'd eliminate many other games as well.

Are you serious?  Casino games can be provably fair.  You don't go in expecting to win.  It's a chance.

If you're good at poker, you might go into a poker game expecting to win in a high percentage of games. Similarly, people skilled at playing Ponzis might expect to win often enough to get ahead. In both cases, newbies are very likely to lose a lot.

I think that it might actually be possible to make a Ponzi game trustless using advanced Bitcoin features like LockTime.

[DiamondCardz]

What distinguishes a Ponzi scheme from Gambling? His point is correct, they're both gambling, but Ponzi schemes have a much higher chance of turning out to be scams and they're much higher risk in that with traditional gambling sites you at least know whether you've win or lost, and know what you're getting into - with Ponzi schemes/HYIPs, not so much. It's hard to be lured into betting on a sportsbook or similar. With a Ponzi/HYIP, this difficulty to lure someone in decreases massively.

[farlack]

It doesn't matter, Theymos is to lazy to go in and add the subforum because hes to ignorant to determine the difference between a ponzi, and a gambling site.

[jbrnt]

I wish there is a subforum for ponzis. When they are all grouped within a subforum, I can ignore the whole subforum with one click.