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And sometimes they maybe have a point. Ponzi schemes exist because people chose not to see what's right in front of them, that those returns are not credible.

And sometimes they maybe have a point. Ponzi schemes exist because people chose not to see what's right in front of them, that those returns are not credible. See my answer https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21032129 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21032129 elsewhere on this thread and rebut that, because if you can then we can perhaps, perhaps, suggest something better. I sound like I'm arguing for con artists but |I'm not, they are maybe a price that has to be paid. I really don't know. Maybe there's a better way. I don't know.

JohnFen 7y ago
> Ponzi schemes exist because people chose not to see what's right in front of them, that those returns are not credible. I think we may differ in what counts as "choosing" here...
- tempguy9999 7y ago
  Ok, that may be a wrong word. What would be a better description?
  - JohnFen 7y ago
    "blind to", maybe? The thing is that people who fall for scams (and make no mistake, all of us can fall for a scam if presented with the right one) honestly don't think they're scams. They're being lied to. The fault for this lies entirely on the shoulders of the criminal.
    - tempguy9999 7y ago
      > They're being lied to. If the lie is obvious many people will look away out of greed. There's a saying that if you deceive someone then at some level they wanted to be deceived, and while that's pretty self-serving for the criminal there's also a fat grain of truth in it. > The fault for this lies entirely on the shoulders of the criminal. Well, technically yes but in reality people are willingly dumb, which rather abets the criminal, no? I'm afraid we must agree to disagree.
      - JohnFen 7y ago
        > If the lie is obvious many people will look away out of greed. Some will, sure. But what's obvious to you is not necessarily obvious to others. As I said, we are all susceptible to this. I guarantee there are lies you and I will fall for that are obvious to others. Greed is not necessarily a factor. > in reality people are willingly dumb, which rather abets the criminal, no? I don't think more than a tiny percentage of people are willingly dumb. > I'm afraid we must agree to disagree. Fair enough!

JohnFen 7y ago

> Ponzi schemes exist because people chose not to see what's right in front of them, that those returns are not credible. I think we may differ in what counts as "choosing" here...

tempguy9999 7y ago
Ok, that may be a wrong word. What would be a better description?
- JohnFen 7y ago
  "blind to", maybe? The thing is that people who fall for scams (and make no mistake, all of us can fall for a scam if presented with the right one) honestly don't think they're scams. They're being lied to. The fault for this lies entirely on the shoulders of the criminal.
  - tempguy9999 7y ago
    > They're being lied to. If the lie is obvious many people will look away out of greed. There's a saying that if you deceive someone then at some level they wanted to be deceived, and while that's pretty self-serving for the criminal there's also a fat grain of truth in it. > The fault for this lies entirely on the shoulders of the criminal. Well, technically yes but in reality people are willingly dumb, which rather abets the criminal, no? I'm afraid we must agree to disagree.
    - JohnFen 7y ago
      > If the lie is obvious many people will look away out of greed. Some will, sure. But what's obvious to you is not necessarily obvious to others. As I said, we are all susceptible to this. I guarantee there are lies you and I will fall for that are obvious to others. Greed is not necessarily a factor. > in reality people are willingly dumb, which rather abets the criminal, no? I don't think more than a tiny percentage of people are willingly dumb. > I'm afraid we must agree to disagree. Fair enough!