From: dlv@bwalk.dm.com (Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM)
Date: Sun, 10 Nov 1996 14:10:41 -0800 (PST)
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Pyramid schemes and cryptoanarchy
In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.32.19961110162356.00a10f10@ix.netcom.com>
Message-ID: <Fc67wD17w165w@bwalk.dm.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


Clay Olbon II <clay.olbon@dynetics.com> writes:

> It seems that pyramid scheme spamming has increased of late (if that is
> possible!).  In my lifetime, I can only remember a single snail-mail
> instance of a pyramid scheme - over the net it is an entirely different
> story (although the number of instances is probably proportional to the
> number of lists I subsribe to).

I once received a paper version of the Craig Shergold spam (i.e. a
solicitation of business cards to be sent to the dying boy without any
computer networks being involved) and became curious and looked into why
people spread these memes. It turned out that there's a substantial number
of people involved in marketing/public relations who sort of stay in touch
by forwarding these memes, good luck chain letters, multi-level marketing/
pyramid schemes etc to each other. The MMF spam we see on the net is a
vague echo of the MMF spam moving around USPS, with real cash. Fortunately
most folks involved in this have been too clueless to use the 'net or we'd
see a lot more of it. I suppose if it ever becomes cost-effective to use
digital cash and the Internet for MMF, they'll do it. Thus far putting
MMF on the 'net generally results in the loss of any accounts mentioned
in the spam, so getting cash via USPS is much more effective.

---

Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM
Brighton Beach Boardwalk BBS, Forest Hills, N.Y.: +1-718-261-2013, 14.4Kbps