• Dizzy Devil Ducky@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    78
    ·
    9 months ago

    We know the person receiving the award probably isn’t smart enough to figure out why it’s pyramid shaped.

    • 🌘 Umbra Temporis 🌒@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      62
      ·
      9 months ago

      Like how they decided they’d hold it by gripping the top of the pyramid, not the base plate like a usual sane person.

      I bet if you asked them to hand you a drink, they’d hold it from the top with two fingers dipped into the fluid. Then proceed to be confused as to why you don’t want to drink it anymore.

  • Mastengwe@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    51
    ·
    9 months ago

    That there’s such thing as “crypto influencers” and that they’re awarded for pulling people into the scam not only blows my mind, but also indicates how fucked we are as a whole, when it comes to being able to think critically.

  • FIash Mob #5678@beehaw.org
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    15
    ·
    9 months ago

    Agreed that crypto influencers are atrocious people.

    However, when crypto has had three booms in seven years, you can ridicule it all you want, but it makes sense to put a small percentage of your investment money into it.

    • 4dpuzzle@beehaw.org
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      54
      ·
      9 months ago

      The return of investment on crypto doesn’t come from any value it generates. It comes from other people who made bad bets and lost their money on the same. That makes investing in crypto the same as participating in a Pyramid. Your argument, if taken for face value, can easily be extended to defend pyramid schemes.

      • sherlockholmez@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        10
        ·
        9 months ago

        The same is, however, true for most of the stock market.

        The only counter argument is dividends, which are extremely rare in most industries, and barely a dent relative to an investor’s portfolio.

        • erwan@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          13
          ·
          9 months ago

          You can argue that owning a piece of a company who generates value is not the same thing as owning some useless cryptographic token.

          • qwerty@discuss.tchncs.de
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            5
            ·
            9 months ago

            What’s the difference between a useless cryptographic token and a useless piece of paper if there are people willing to give me things I want for either?

            • erwan@lemmy.ml
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              2
              ·
              9 months ago

              The piece of paper you’re talking about is useful to exchange goods.

              The cryptographic token is not because it’s too volatile and transactions are costly.

              There is a reason the only things using Bitcoin as an actual currency are illegal things, buying credit card numbers or paying for ransomware.

              • qwerty@discuss.tchncs.de
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                9 months ago

                That’s just not true. Monero, litecoin, bch… transactions cost less than a penny. No one uses bitcoin for illegal things anymore (it’s tracable and forever on the blockchain, people use monero instead) but if they were wouldn’t that mean bitcoin is useful for exchanging goods?

                I use crypto for a bunch of legitimate things like paying for my VPN, phone bill, donating to foss projects etc.

                I use it because it’s more private, faster and more convenient for me. I can always have it with me, use it from any place, any time, for anything I want with no hidden fees and no one can seize, freeze, track or control my money. If you think that thoes things are valueable only to criminals you must have lived under some 1st world rock for a while.

      • qwerty@discuss.tchncs.de
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        9 months ago

        I use crypto to privately pay for my VPN, phone bill, to donate to foss projects. I sold some digital items online for crypto. I use it because it’s faster, more private (if done correctly) and convenient than using a credit card or bank transfer. No one can seize, freeze, or control my crypto. I can donate, pay or get paid on my own terms with no middle man. If visa, mastercard, banks or fintech companies generate value then so does crypto.

        • 4dpuzzle@beehaw.org
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          9 months ago

          I was talking about the use of crypto as an investment, not as currency. While the latter was the purpose that cryptocurrencies were originally designed for, the former now far outweighs it.

      • jarfil@beehaw.org
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        9 months ago

        People who call crypto a pyramid scheme <-> People who know the difference between pyramid and Ponzi scheme

        PS: if you think crypto is a pyramid scheme, stay away from crypto.

      • FIash Mob #5678@beehaw.org
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        9 months ago

        Your comment does not make sense in light of facts. Crypto boomed in 2017, 2020, and is currently booming again.

        • MystikIncarnate@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          10
          ·
          9 months ago

          I’m suggesting that my “investment budget” is nothing.

          I think this one flew right over your head.

          Specifically, I’m making light of the fact that no matter how hard I try to make a living wage, I still struggle to make everything work, indirectly shedding light on the recent discussions about stagnant wages and out of control inflation, raising costs to live while providing me no means by which to afford those increases.

          Most months I barely have enough left over to buy myself a single meal at a restaurant as a once-a-month treat, nevermind have money set aside for retirement or have an “investment budget”.