Topic: why do people trust pirate? (Read 3000 times)

He already openly stated it was a con.


And..


"k everyone". IMO, his username and these statements shed light on his psychological rationale. That he's trying to teach people a lesson about "trust", so in the end he won't feel very guilty for making off with his booty.

The ones who deposited were either co-participants who hoped to time their withdrawals and take gains, or blinded by greed.

people don't seem to realize that pirate is in control of gpumax as well...

I don't think this saga ends with BTCST

I bet he has a hollow wooden leg full of usb sticks containing bitcoins.

who blindly trusts a guy openly named "PIRATE"

Fair enough, I also sent a few coins to bitcoinmax, even though I assume(d) it was a ponzi.
But anyone trusting Pirate without knowing more than what is known publicly, I would label an idiot for it. Even if they may turn out to be lucky idiots if they actually get their money back.

*shrug*   I wouldn't call them ALL idiots.  Those who believed it was a scheme of some sort made a calculated assessment as to the likelihood of being able to deposit, gain interest, and withdraw funds before the scheme collapsed.  Those who didn't believe it was a scheme perhaps had reasons for not believing it was a scheme.  Everyone had their own set of information on which they based their decisions, and calling them idiots because it looked like they invest in a scheme isn't necessarily true.

Of course, some were probably too blinded by greed to objectively view the information in front of them, so I might call them idiots. 

You are forgetting he was paying 7% interest per week. Which is the same as doubling the investment every 10 weeks.
That makes Pirate either a ponzi scam artist, or a genius since no one else figured out how you could possibly achieve such returns.

As for why people trust him? Honestly, it beats me. In the lending section of this forum they will require a scanned ID, proof of residence and what not before lending anyone 5BTC, but for some reason a lot of people feel confident lending pirate a total of 500000BTC without even knowing for sure what his real name is. Either they know more than the rest of us, or frankly, they are idiots.

Damn @ that list. Can't wait till this is all over and we can talk about multisig BIPs all day again.

So i read through some of the links listed and this is what im understanding: There's a guy named pirateat40. He has supposedly 500k BTC. People lended him money. There's a large group that calls him a scammer...
I'm still not getting the full picture  

whatever happened to the economy being driven by speculation and people happily mining away.. lol

I saw a screenshot of one of his pass throughs that listed requests for withdrawal. After about 4 hours that he announced closing shop, I saw at least 75k coins being requested for withdrawal. about 7-9 of them were 5k a piece. Many were 10 coins, 20, 100, 500, etc...

I bet he did have 500k coins...

That might just be what he has left (unlikely, according to our numbers, but who knows - the rest could have been sold weeks ago). However, Team Ponzi (the people who have constantly been saying that he's a ponzi) have tracked 150k in liabilities just to BitcoinMax, as of August 7th. If he never did anything with the coins, we found that as of August 7th (which is admittedly out of date but was the best we could do thanks to measures implemented to stop us from being able to gather this information) he had 83k BTC just from BitcoinMax. So yes, I think it's quite fair to say that Pirate is liable for 500k BTC.

You may have some reading up to do.  Anyway, this thread is at best, in the wrong forum board.

How much BTC have you lost out on because you listened to Vandroiy
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-much-btc-have-you-lost-out-on-because-you-listened-to-vandroiy-92581

Has anybody start to locate pirateat40?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/has-anybody-start-to-locate-pirateat40-102003

Who knows pirateat40 in real life?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/who-knows-pirateat40-in-real-life-97377

PirateAt40's Money Laundering Operations: GPUMAX and BST
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirateat40s-money-laundering-operations-gpumax-and-bst-82560

Look at a pirate, eye to eye if you dare.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/look-at-a-pirate-eye-to-eye-if-you-dare-91252

A Theory on what pirateat40 is doing
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/a-theory-on-what-pirateat40-is-doing-91508

Bryan Micon's List of BTC Ponzi Schemes that should not be listed as "Lending"
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bryan-micons-list-of-btc-ponzi-schemes-that-should-not-be-listed-as-lending-94900

Hey Pirate, it's Monday....WHERE ARE MY BITCOINS ?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/hey-pirate-its-mondaywhere-are-my-bitcoins-102079

centralized post of pirate payouts or other related news to the closing.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/centralized-post-of-pirate-payouts-it-is-over-piratescammer-admits-default-101958

How to Identify a Ponzi
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-to-identify-a-ponzi-100696

First-Hand telling of an online Ponzi: Eve Online's Currin Trading
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/first-hand-telling-of-an-online-ponzi-eve-onlines-currin-trading-91214

Loss of Profits, Libel, Team Ponzi and a Pirate
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/loss-of-profits-libel-team-ponzi-and-a-pirate-101377

How can PirateAt40 not be a Ponzi Scheme or otherwise damaging Bitcoin ?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-can-pirateat40-not-be-a-ponzi-scheme-or-otherwise-damaging-bitcoin-94902

100% proof pirate runs a ponzi (thought experiment)
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/100-proof-pirate-runs-a-ponzi-thought-experiment-91779

How to recognise a ponzi scheme
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-to-recognise-a-ponzi-scheme-91643

The Ponzi Scheme
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/the-ponzi-scheme-91607

I've said pirateat40 was running a ponzi
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/ive-said-pirateat40-was-running-a-ponzi-101461

PirateAt40's Money Laundering Operations: GPUMAX and BST
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirateat40s-money-laundering-operations-gpumax-and-bst-82560

Putting your money where Pirate's mouth is.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/putting-your-money-where-pirates-mouth-is-91661

The sorry and thank you Pirateat40 thread
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/--101345

[GLBSE] Pirate Pass Through Bonds!
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/--76594

pirateat40's end game (Thread 1)
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirateat40s-end-game-77457

pirateat40's end game (Thread 2)
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirateat40s-end-game-77889

My 10,000 BTC bet on Pirate
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/--97094

Pirate Warned Us
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirate-warned-us-101844

Anybody know who pirateat40 is ?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/anybody-know-who-pirateat40-is-101631

So what if Pirate does not pay back, he has a full weekend to dump...
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/so-what-if-pirate-does-not-pay-back-he-has-a-full-weekend-to-dump-101503

Could the sell-off have been caused by pirate cashing out?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/could-the-sell-off-have-been-caused-by-pirate-cashing-out-101538

I have made a 25% return this week trading *against* the pirate
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/i-have-made-a-25-return-this-week-trading-against-the-pirate-94708

#bitcoin IRC log: A pirate leads a flock of sheep over a cliff.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bitcoin-irc-log-a-pirate-leads-a-flock-of-sheep-over-a-cliff-93746

Pirate Squeezed?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirate-squeezed-93628

How protected is the GLBSE from a pirate default?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-protected-is-the-glbse-from-a-pirate-default-86853

BITCOIN SAVINGS & TRUST - Just when you thought Bitcoin was instant....
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bitcoin-savings-trust-just-when-you-thought-bitcoin-was-instant-101152

BS&T -- Are you staying or leaving?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bst-are-you-staying-or-leaving-91306

BS&T bank run
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bst-bank-run-101382

I believe theses quotes should now kill BS&T.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/i-believe-theses-quotes-should-now-kill-bst-91655

Mods: Keep your opinions to yourself (split from BS&T Home thread)
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/mods-keep-your-opinions-to-yourself-split-from-bst-home-thread-91389

Other People getting PMs from Vandroiy Discouraging Investment in BS&T?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/other-people-getting-pms-from-vandroiy-discouraging-investment-in-bst-92556

BTCS&T – Why many people here are massive scammers and suckers
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/btcst-why-many-people-here-are-massive-scammers-and-suckers-91552

BullShit Trust. It is the beginning of the end.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bullshit-trust-it-is-the-beginning-of-the-end-101167

TyGrr BTCST sub accounts! (Pirates Bank)
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/l-91370

How Large is BTCST exposure?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/how-large-is-btcst-exposure-98225

#BTCST Updates. Latest: 10:06PM EST
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/btcst-updates-latest-august-28th-616pm-est-102107

The gauntlet has officially been thrown down by Trendon Shavers aka. pirateat40
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/the-gauntlet-has-officially-been-thrown-down-by-trendon-shavers-aka-pirateat40-102327

Bitcoin Savings & Trust - Money Returned List (zero Monday, none reported Tues).
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bitcoin-savings-trust-money-returned-list-one-reported-closed-101942

[ANNOUNCEMENT] PIRATEAT40 and BTCST HAS DEFAULTED!]
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/announcement-pirateat40-and-btcst-has-defaulted-102106

It's Tuesday now, seems nothing will happen.
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/its-tuesday-now-seems-nothing-will-happen-102117

If Pirate Runs: The Danger of one entity with 500K BTC
 - http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=102184.20

Pirate paying back investors within a week OR two?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/pirate-paying-back-investors-within-a-week-or-two-101599

I'm giving 100% ROI away to anyone who thinks pirate is a fraud
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/im-giving-100-roi-away-to-anyone-who-thinks-pirate-is-a-fraud-101751

So now that Pirate is closing BTCST...
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/so-now-that-pirate-is-closing-btcst-101379

why do people trust pirate?
 - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/why-do-people-trust-pirate-102339

Other media:

Ponzi schemes: The Danger of High Interest Savings Funds
 - http://bitcoinmagazine.net/ponzi-schemes-the-danger-of-high-interest-savings-funds

The Bernie Madoffs of Bitcoin? As market heats back up, virtual hedge funds claim fantastical profits
 - http://www.theverge.com/2012/8/15/3243200/bitcoin-ponzi-schemes-savings-and-trust

Bitcoin Savings & Trust – Genuine or Joke?
 - http://bitcoinmagazine.net/bitcoin-savings-trust-genuine-or-joke/

Bitcoin discovered by high yield investment program (HYIP) operators
 - http://www.bitcoinmoney.com/post/28473024447

We are still to see a single shred of evidence that people have given him 500k BTC. It's quite likely that some people gave him some coins. By the looks of last weekend, I'd estimate somewhere in the region of 60 - 80 thousand, tops.

Still, I agree with the basic OP premise, it boggles the mind that he should even have taken that. People are not smart.

But we should all stop just repeating that he owns 500k, that makes absolutely no sense and, more importantly, THERE'S NO EVIDENCE FOR IT.

this is exactly what i want to know lol, who is pirateat40? I'm just recently getting back into this and ive missed a lot.

apparently people gave him a lot of BTC

did i miss the thread where he gained some credibility in some sense, or is everyone riding on speculation?

i even see people defending him, does anyone know _anything_ about this guy/gal?