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Edit: I did not believe sillysaurus was being serious. I am not trying to poach. If you'd like to work on a decentralized marketplace we'd love to have you hel

Edit: I did not believe sillysaurus was being serious. I am not trying to poach. If you'd like to work on a decentralized marketplace we'd love to have you help out with OpenBazaar. Feel free to join our Slack and discuss what you might like to work on if you'd like.

sillysaurus3 9y ago
I mean, this is the perfect example of why not to join your project. You're here because we're talking about you. You made this offer because this is a subthread about displacing you, specifically. I don't trust people who are so opportunistic, and there are many reasons not to let you get control over a network that may be with us for the next hundred years. How about you go work on your project run by former spooks, and I'll start my own, and we'll see who comes out on top? You're also the beficiary of investors. Ask yourself: why are they investing in you? Your stated goal is to never turn a profit, ever. You've also foregone any ICO attempt, which is free money. Why? Because you can't, because if people start using your project with your new Tor support, you'll be a co-conspirator in a drug distribution network. But you don't just come out and say this. You're not straightforward. It's fake idealism, and that quality more than any other is what motivates me to compete here. The fact that you're worried is even more evidence that we were onto something. Maybe others will join me, if I show convincing progress. Or maybe not, and you'll be the eBay of the future. Considering your founders' ties, that's pretty unsettling. So why don't you join me instead? This is a standing invitation to all readers: email me. Let's figure out how to organize this and make it work.
- tylersmith 9y ago
  I'm not sure what you mean. I browse on HN a lot and post fairly frequently. I was surprised to see our project as the topic of the first comment on this article. It's not like I was seeking it out to pounce on a PR attempt. Feel free to start your own project and compete; that would be great. We have a number of competitors and we're all driving the ecosystem forward. "Your stated goal is to never turn a profit, ever." I don't know where you got that idea. The company I work for, OB1, does certainly intend to make a profit at some point. "You've also foregone any ICO attempt, which is free money. Why? Because you can't" We could probably raise a lot of money an ICO, but we'd prefer not to. We even wrote about the reasons why: https://blog.openbazaar.org/why-openbazaar-token-doesnt-exist/ https://blog.openbazaar.org/why-openbazaar-token-doesnt-exis... "because if people start using your project with your new Tor support, you'll be a co-conspirator in a drug distribution network." No more so than Bram Cohen is a conspirator in a piracy network. And this kind of potential limitation in getting funding is exactly why ICOs exist. "But you don't just come out and say this. You're not straightforward. It's fake idealism, and that quality more than any other is what motivates me to compete." I don't understand what you think I'm not being straightforward about, but feel free to compete. I don't understand why you would want to given that you clearly think the idea is not very good for good luck.
  - sillysaurus3 9y ago
    A better analogy would be the founders of TPB. They went to jail for getting money from pirated content (ads). What do you think will happen to you when you try to extract any money at all from a network that people are using for darknet purposes? And you're adding Tor support and testing Tails for them. Except wait, you're insulated from these ill effects because your founders are former spooks. You have ties to protect you. I wonder why anyone would want to create a Tor equivalent for a marketplace for physical goods? Especially the government? It's interesting how you're deflecting at the end -- I do think this is a terrible idea, and has the potential to unlock the gates of hell onto the world in the form of addicts having an endless supply of their addiction at the push of a button. But if you're determined to build your business on the backs of these people, then I am determined to beat you. If this technology is inevitable, then I think it's best not to let you come out on top. We'll see if anyone agrees.
    - tylersmith 9y ago
      I don't know what you think I'm trying to deflect from but if you spell it out for me I'm more than happy to be candid. "A better analogy would be the founders of TPB. They went to jail for getting money from pirated content (ads). What do you think will happen to you when you try to extract any money at all from a network that people are using for darknet purposes?" TPB is a search engine for pirated content. OB1 search, duosear.ch, and mubiz.com (the main 3 OB search engines) do not show illicit content. If anybody happens across some please notify us immediately. "Except wait, you're insulated from these ill effects because your founders are former spooks. You have ties to protect you." Brian used to work for Booz Allen. That's it. I don't know which others you're referring to. I highly doubt Brian has government protection. "Especially the government?" The government has no involvement in OpenBazaar but even if they did, so does Tor. What do you think the Tor project is trying to hide?! "But if you're determined to build your business on the backs of these people, then I am determined to beat you." If you truly believe it's such a horrible project (the scariest you've ever heard of you said), then trying to out compete us seems extremely hypocritical.
      - 9y ago
- tylersmith 9y ago
  Also, which two spooks are you talking about? Brian did work for Booz Allen, but he's the only one that has worked for the federal government as far as I know. If there's a mole afoot please let me know who.
  - sillysaurus3 9y ago
    Both the founders live within a 20min drive of Langley. This is easily verified. I know one of them probably hasn't worked directly for a government agency, but that is quite a coincidence for both people to be located literally next to one.
    - tylersmith 9y ago
      There are 3 founders, and Brian is the only one that close to Langley. Sam lives in Michigan and Washington lives in Australia.
      - sillysaurus3 9y ago
        This is misinformation at best, and a straight-up lie at worst. http://samuelrpatterson.com/about-me/ http://samuelrpatterson.com/about-me/ I’m a husband and father of three living in Virginia. I'd rather assume positive intent, but you really aren't helping your cause here. If any readers are interested in more about OpenBazaar (and possibly why to stop them), here's a subthread from last time they came up on HN: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14830081 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14830081
        tylersmith 9y ago
        Oh man, it's very tragic that Sam has not updated his website. Stop us? How do you propose to do that? Edit: Also I implore anybody that thinks Sam is a "spook" to speak with him on Slack or Reddit. He is one of the smartest libertarian thinkers I've personally met. It's genuinely funny to think he might be an undercover narc or something.
- theWatcher37 9y ago
  What an extremely hostile and accusatory post. Mods, is this the kind of behavior we want here?

sillysaurus3 9y ago

I mean, this is the perfect example of why not to join your project. You're here because we're talking about you. You made this offer because this is a subthread about displacing you, specifically. I don't trust people who are so opportunistic, and there are many reasons not to let you get control over a network that may be with us for the next hundred years. How about you go work on your project run by former spooks, and I'll start my own, and we'll see who comes out on top? You're also the beficiary of investors. Ask yourself: why are they investing in you? Your stated goal is to never turn a profit, ever. You've also foregone any ICO attempt, which is free money. Why? Because you can't, because if people start using your project with your new Tor support, you'll be a co-conspirator in a drug distribution network. But you don't just come out and say this. You're not straightforward. It's fake idealism, and that quality more than any other is what motivates me to compete here. The fact that you're worried is even more evidence that we were onto something. Maybe others will join me, if I show convincing progress. Or maybe not, and you'll be the eBay of the future. Considering your founders' ties, that's pretty unsettling. So why don't you join me instead? This is a standing invitation to all readers: email me. Let's figure out how to organize this and make it work.

tylersmith 9y ago
I'm not sure what you mean. I browse on HN a lot and post fairly frequently. I was surprised to see our project as the topic of the first comment on this article. It's not like I was seeking it out to pounce on a PR attempt. Feel free to start your own project and compete; that would be great. We have a number of competitors and we're all driving the ecosystem forward. "Your stated goal is to never turn a profit, ever." I don't know where you got that idea. The company I work for, OB1, does certainly intend to make a profit at some point. "You've also foregone any ICO attempt, which is free money. Why? Because you can't" We could probably raise a lot of money an ICO, but we'd prefer not to. We even wrote about the reasons why: https://blog.openbazaar.org/why-openbazaar-token-doesnt-exist/ https://blog.openbazaar.org/why-openbazaar-token-doesnt-exis... "because if people start using your project with your new Tor support, you'll be a co-conspirator in a drug distribution network." No more so than Bram Cohen is a conspirator in a piracy network. And this kind of potential limitation in getting funding is exactly why ICOs exist. "But you don't just come out and say this. You're not straightforward. It's fake idealism, and that quality more than any other is what motivates me to compete." I don't understand what you think I'm not being straightforward about, but feel free to compete. I don't understand why you would want to given that you clearly think the idea is not very good for good luck.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  A better analogy would be the founders of TPB. They went to jail for getting money from pirated content (ads). What do you think will happen to you when you try to extract any money at all from a network that people are using for darknet purposes? And you're adding Tor support and testing Tails for them. Except wait, you're insulated from these ill effects because your founders are former spooks. You have ties to protect you. I wonder why anyone would want to create a Tor equivalent for a marketplace for physical goods? Especially the government? It's interesting how you're deflecting at the end -- I do think this is a terrible idea, and has the potential to unlock the gates of hell onto the world in the form of addicts having an endless supply of their addiction at the push of a button. But if you're determined to build your business on the backs of these people, then I am determined to beat you. If this technology is inevitable, then I think it's best not to let you come out on top. We'll see if anyone agrees.
  - tylersmith 9y ago
    I don't know what you think I'm trying to deflect from but if you spell it out for me I'm more than happy to be candid. "A better analogy would be the founders of TPB. They went to jail for getting money from pirated content (ads). What do you think will happen to you when you try to extract any money at all from a network that people are using for darknet purposes?" TPB is a search engine for pirated content. OB1 search, duosear.ch, and mubiz.com (the main 3 OB search engines) do not show illicit content. If anybody happens across some please notify us immediately. "Except wait, you're insulated from these ill effects because your founders are former spooks. You have ties to protect you." Brian used to work for Booz Allen. That's it. I don't know which others you're referring to. I highly doubt Brian has government protection. "Especially the government?" The government has no involvement in OpenBazaar but even if they did, so does Tor. What do you think the Tor project is trying to hide?! "But if you're determined to build your business on the backs of these people, then I am determined to beat you." If you truly believe it's such a horrible project (the scariest you've ever heard of you said), then trying to out compete us seems extremely hypocritical.
    - 9y ago
tylersmith 9y ago
Also, which two spooks are you talking about? Brian did work for Booz Allen, but he's the only one that has worked for the federal government as far as I know. If there's a mole afoot please let me know who.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  Both the founders live within a 20min drive of Langley. This is easily verified. I know one of them probably hasn't worked directly for a government agency, but that is quite a coincidence for both people to be located literally next to one.
  - tylersmith 9y ago
    There are 3 founders, and Brian is the only one that close to Langley. Sam lives in Michigan and Washington lives in Australia.
    - sillysaurus3 9y ago
      This is misinformation at best, and a straight-up lie at worst. http://samuelrpatterson.com/about-me/ http://samuelrpatterson.com/about-me/ I’m a husband and father of three living in Virginia. I'd rather assume positive intent, but you really aren't helping your cause here. If any readers are interested in more about OpenBazaar (and possibly why to stop them), here's a subthread from last time they came up on HN: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14830081 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14830081
      - tylersmith 9y ago
        Oh man, it's very tragic that Sam has not updated his website. Stop us? How do you propose to do that? Edit: Also I implore anybody that thinks Sam is a "spook" to speak with him on Slack or Reddit. He is one of the smartest libertarian thinkers I've personally met. It's genuinely funny to think he might be an undercover narc or something.
theWatcher37 9y ago
What an extremely hostile and accusatory post. Mods, is this the kind of behavior we want here?