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Author Topic: Hey, this is a scam right?  (Read 1941 times)
kasperov (OP)
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July 10, 2012, 07:41:24 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.
John (John K.)
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July 10, 2012, 07:43:57 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.
What are you referring as a ponzi scheme?
pekv2
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July 10, 2012, 07:44:31 AM
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I think he might be referring it to bitcoin.
Yuhfhrh
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July 10, 2012, 07:44:40 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.

You are right about not trusting anyone, but you are wrong about bitcoin being a ponzi scheme.
pekv2
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July 10, 2012, 07:46:58 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.

You are right about not trusting anyone, but you are wrong about bitcoin being a ponzi scheme.

Ionno, they say that, but there are a few here that I trust like PatrickHarnett, Theymos, psy, MatthewM, Kluge and a few others, a few select actually have my real name, home address and phone number.
the joint
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July 10, 2012, 07:47:55 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.

You mean Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is legit, but it may come off as a ponzi to those who have not done their research.  The first people who invested in Bitcoin (e.g. those who were among the first miners, those who started the first Bitcoin businesses and exchanges, etc.) took a significant risk in terms of time and/or money to set everything in motion, and they deserve the rewards they have gotten.

Bitcoin is revolutionary, and if you take the time to build a good reputation and see what Bitcoin and this forum has to offer, you can be part of that revolution.  But, be extremely weary of scammers and others who will try to take advantage of you.  That being said, welcome!  There are a lot of incredibly bright people here from whom you can learn a lot.  You can also make a lot of money if you take advantage of the numerous opportunities here Smiley
kasperov (OP)
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July 10, 2012, 07:48:10 AM
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Bitcoin was created and is run by people I cant trust, so how can I trust bitcoin?
pekv2
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July 10, 2012, 07:49:20 AM
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Is this like a ponzi scheme to try and make people rich? I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.

You mean Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is legit, but it may come off as a ponzi to those who have not done their research.  The first people who invested in Bitcoin (e.g. those who were among the first miners, those who started the first Bitcoin businesses and exchanges, etc.) took a significant risk in terms of time and/or money to set everything in motion, and they deserve the rewards they have gotten.

Bitcoin is revolutionary, and if you take the time to build a good reputation and see what Bitcoin and this forum has to offer, you can be part of that revolution.  But, be extremely weary of scammers and others who will try to take advantage of you.  That being said, welcome!  There are a lot of incredibly bright people here from whom you can learn a lot.  You can also make a lot of money if you take advantage of the numerous opportunities here Smiley

^
John (John K.)
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July 10, 2012, 07:49:47 AM
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Please do a readup on ponzi schemes first: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme
Bitcoin is an P2P based commodity, and there is no guarantees on any returns or profit. It's just another commodity. The prices are determined by the rates people are willing to buy and sell at.
NothinG
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July 10, 2012, 07:51:26 AM
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Bitcoin was created and is run by people I cant trust, so how can I trust bitcoin?
Bitcoin is created so you don't have to trust anyone.

John (John K.)
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July 10, 2012, 07:52:09 AM
 #11

Bitcoin was created and is run by people I cant trust, so how can I trust bitcoin?
No one 'runs' bitcoin, much like the fact that no one 'runs' torrents as everyone taking part is one of those who are running it.
Bitcoin is completely open source and distributed with the MIT license, so anyone is free to dissect the code to see why should you trust it.
the joint
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July 10, 2012, 07:53:10 AM
 #12

Bitcoin was created and is run by people I cant trust, so how can I trust bitcoin?

Bitcoin is an open-source program and anyone can review the code.  There are a lot of programmers here and if Bitcoin were a scam, people would become aware of it quite quickly.  Also, Bitcoin is 'run' by its users, not its developers.  It's a peer-to-peer currency, and there is no centralized authority that controls it.  We, the people, control it.
John (John K.)
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July 10, 2012, 07:56:43 AM
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OP, I know you're mystery2048 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=31266 .
Why start the trolling with a new account?
kasperov (OP)
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July 10, 2012, 07:58:16 AM
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who is mystery2048 ?
pekv2
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July 10, 2012, 07:59:11 AM
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who is mystery2048 ?

A troll?

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=31266
drakahn
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July 10, 2012, 07:59:49 AM
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splirow/crushroyal have come to the forums? oh joy
Don't feed the soiledcoin trolls

14ga8dJ6NGpiwQkNTXg7KzwozasfaXNfEU
Meni Rosenfeld
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July 10, 2012, 08:39:54 AM
 #17

Is this ... to try and make people rich?
Bitcoin was created to allow people to more efficiently exchange goods and services they are capable of supplying for goods and services they value, thus increasing the effective wealth of everyone in the world (on average). So in a way, yes.

I was told this by several people and not to trust anyone.
Trust me on this, don't trust anyone. Especially people telling you not to trust anyone.

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CodesInChaos
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July 10, 2012, 09:09:01 AM
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Bitcoin is certainly a somewhat risky investment. If it fails those who get out too late will lose most of their investment.
If bitcoin succeeds, early investors will profit a lot. But that's not that different from investments in startup. Both the risks and the potential gains are large.

The bitcoin protocol itself is designed to minimize the required trust. Unlike a ponzi there is no party that can simply run away with all the money. The relatively fair scheme of coin distribution is one of bitcoins strongest points. I'm sure if the scheme were designed in a way that the inventor held all coins in the beginning, it would have failed.

Still there are some parties who can do *a lot* of damage. For example MtGox or those who can upload new versions of the official client. But they have much to lose from bitcoin going down, so it's unlikely that they deliberately do something evil. Them getting hacked or legally compelled to do something destructive is one of the significant risks bitcoin faces. So lets hope for more diversity in both clients and exchanges.
kasperov (OP)
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July 10, 2012, 11:16:11 AM
 #19

http://www.quora.com/Bitcoin/Is-the-cryptocurrency-Bitcoin-a-good-idea

Interesting read...
Taz
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July 10, 2012, 11:38:05 AM
 #20

interesting how?
It just says bitcoin is bad because it's stupid and stupid because it's bad.
Some vague mention of new world order
and concludes that if it run by the banks it would be worthwhile.
Doesn't seem like it was thought out from an unbiased point of view.
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