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The US government looked into towing icebergs to Africa in the 90s and back then they estimated it'd cost hundreds of millions to successfully pull off, even though it could be done fairly easily.
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Jul 22, 2014 03:40
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Towing bergs for water supply or even the idea of cooling parts of the planet has been floating around for centuries. Nowadays I'm sure most crackpot plans rely on the facts that most oil drilling rigs have the ability to haul bergs that are 4m tons and apply that to a long haul voyage.
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Jul 22, 2014 11:01
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Just remembered about an old pre-kickstarter crowd funding project from years ago, 'The Big Box Project' Back when the 360 was deep in the RROD phase, MS would require customers to send them their broken consoles in a box at their own cost, which they would then ship back (later they would send you a box to pack the console in) Some guy got so pissed at the idea of having to find a box, he started this project, the idea being that he would ship his broken 360 to microsoft in a giant shipping container, which they would have to ship back The website is long dead, but looking at Internet archive, he got over $1000 in donations. When Microsoft changed their policies regarding shipping, the guy claimed victory, mused about what to do with the cash, and it looks like he was never heard from again. http://web.archive.org/web/20070629011610/http://www.test.thebigboxproject.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 10/10 good scam
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Jul 22, 2014 12:25
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That Ritot bullshit now has over $432,000 courtesy of some very dumb people and it's still got 30 days to go. STOP GIVING THEM MONEY. A few have caught on and are asking for refunds in the comments, and there's a guy just asking question after question who has been accused of spamming by the scammers. http://www.connectedly.com/ritot-smartwatch-indiegogo-campaign-raises-red-flags This is one of the few critical articles I've seen about it. quote:Daytime usage - The pico projector by Explay only produced 14 lumens. A quick search online reveals that it takes a few thousand lumens to clearly see a projection outdoors. Generating this amount of brightness also brings up the obvious question of battery life. The last one alone should raise huge red flags. Some guys just come out of nowhere with an incredibly unlikely piece of technology? Well sure I'll give them my life savings. Also their office address is a virtual office. it dont matter has a new favorite as of 17:37 on Jul 22, 2014 |
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Jul 22, 2014 16:13
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The rise of crowd funding has an ushered in a golden age of unprecedented prosperity for scammers and snake oil salesmen.
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Jul 22, 2014 17:07
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O Hanraha-hanrahan posted:That Ritot bullshit now has over $432,000 courtesy of some very dumb people and it's still got 30 days to go. STOP GIVING THEM MONEY. A few have caught on and are asking for refunds in the comments, and there's a guy just asking question after question who has been accused of spamming by the scammers. The nearly impossible technology, the page of bad photoshops and the lack of any technical information, The untraceable designers and especially the fact that the only reward to be shipped are the watches themselves? This is definitely a scam. I am a bit surprised they are so untraceable though because I assumed the lack of rewards was so they would only be on the line for the product, and they could just throw their corporation under the bus after a year of 'development' or whatever and run off free. (Like most dumb wrist thing kickstarters) It sounds like this is just an old fashion take the money and run scam though. I went looking for more foolishness on kickstarter, but accidentally found something I want to back. :/
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Jul 22, 2014 18:54
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Excels posted:https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/488665254/letters-to-everybody I'm unreasonably upset that your low-effort, money-grab Kickstarter is doing better than MY low-effort, money-grab Kickstarter. But at least I'll save myself the dignity and not post a link to it.  Edit: whoa, a $10 backer appeared out of nowhere. Project funded. Cause I set my goal at $10. 
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Jul 22, 2014 19:10
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O Hanraha-hanrahan posted:That Ritot bullshit now has over $432,000 courtesy of some very dumb people and it's still got 30 days to go. STOP GIVING THEM MONEY. A few have caught on and are asking for refunds in the comments, and there's a guy just asking question after question who has been accused of spamming by the scammers. Seeing people throw hundreds of thousands of dollars at smoke and mirrors makes it a tempting thing to engage in as well. I mean drat, if you could get away with it cleanly there's got to be very few people who wouldn't be willing to put in a little work to collect a windfall that buys you a car and house (or two), pays off all your debit, and leaves you with a nice cushion of cash afterwards.
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Jul 22, 2014 21:57
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What's stopping the owner of that watch scam from putting up 20k of their own money to get the ball rolling for that very same reason, that if people see other people donating then it must be something worth backing.
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Jul 23, 2014 03:17
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Autechresaint posted:What's stopping the owner of that watch scam from putting up 20k of their own money to get the ball rolling for that very same reason, that if people see other people donating then it must be something worth backing. This is done all the time. Especially on kickstarter where they need to get to a magic number to collect anything.
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Jul 23, 2014 03:29
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MrAptronym posted:This is done all the time. Especially on kickstarter where they need to get to a magic number to collect anything. But then they're paying tax on their own cash. It seems like there are easier ways to scam people.
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Jul 23, 2014 03:33
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Autechresaint posted:What's stopping the owner of that watch scam from putting up 20k of their own money to get the ball rolling for that very same reason, that if people see other people donating then it must be something worth backing. The fact that they'd lose somewhere around 9% of that 20k all told.
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Jul 23, 2014 03:46
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Nintendo Kid posted:The fact that they'd lose somewhere around 9% of that 20k all told. They could always pull it before the kickstarter ends.
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Jul 23, 2014 04:08
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Nyarai posted:They could always pull it before the kickstarter ends. If there's truly no interest, then they'd be under their goals.
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Jul 23, 2014 04:59
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Nintendo Kid posted:If there's truly no interest, then they'd be under their goals. This is mostly conjecture, but a few scam starters have been seen with a few unusually large donations at the start. Other times we have seen a large donation right at the end that brings the starter to exactly the goal. (That could be legit interest though) The idea is usually to gather interest and then slowly back out and hope you make overage. Also most scams aren't at the "Needing 20k fuel" level, most have modest goals. Even if you do take the 9% out of your personal investment, you come out ahead as long as other people put in their cash. So if your goal was $50,000 and you put in 20,000 you only lose 1,800 of your cash if you get 30,000 in other people's. You could also technically put the money down on a card that can't pay it and let the charge bounce, or better yet use a stolen card to seed the money since you are a horrible thief anyway. I guess none of these are the most efficient scams, but since almost no one has been punished in kickstarter scams so far, I can see why it would be attractive to those of dubious moral fiber. It is hard to get people to start giving to a $0 project too, and not all these people are the greatest at PR. Plus, you can be a total shut in and a conman! Livin' the dream!
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Jul 23, 2014 05:12
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Morglon posted:Or dig some wells or do anything else that gets water there that's less retarded. The only thin I can imagine that would be dumber would be along the lines of "let's go to outer space to get a comet with water and drop it on Africa." It would probably be cheaper to capture a comet or iceteroid and drop it on Africa than it's to haul an iceberg to Africa.
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Jul 23, 2014 05:16
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hohum posted:But then they're paying tax on their own cash. It seems like there are easier ways to scam people. If it fails, they're out a grand total of nothing. If it succeeds, they can drop their own pledges enough to still keep it above the funding level.
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Jul 23, 2014 05:41
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Young Freud posted:It would probably be cheaper to capture a comet or iceteroid and drop it on Africa than it's to haul an iceberg to Africa. No, it's been studied and it'd only cost a few hundred million for towing an iceberg down. A space mission would easily run to the billions.
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Jul 23, 2014 05:42
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I, have no idea what this is. But it's pretty funny at the very least.
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Jul 23, 2014 05:46
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I an obvious joke by someone trying too hard to funny and failing completely. At least this particular band wagon attempt on "wacky" potato salad style lol-bucks involved something besides food.
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Jul 23, 2014 06:06
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Young Freud posted:It would probably be cheaper to capture a comet or iceteroid and drop it on Africa than it's to haul an iceberg to Africa. I'd sure be cooler to watch... well unless you are one of the billion or so people in Africa. No, then I suspect things will be very hot. Chomp8645 posted:I an obvious joke by someone trying too hard to funny and failing completely. At least this particular band wagon attempt on "wacky" potato salad style lol-bucks involved something besides food. Wacky humor wears thin surprisingly fast when you're busking with it.
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Jul 23, 2014 06:12
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Maksym Pashanin of Confederate Express and Knuckle Club fame/infamy is apparently a squatter. Not a cyber-squatter but a literal squatter. Squatter in Palm Springs also accused of duping online gamers Airbnb Host: A Guest Is Squatting In My Condo And I Can't Get Him To Leave Maksym, in response to notice of impending cessation of utilities posted:Hi Cory, this is Maksym. I have consulted my attorney. As I have said multiple times already, I am LEGALLY occupying the domicile (E104). My nature of work from home is dependent on having electricity, and my income while working averages $1000-$7000 per day, involving over 2000 customers in the U.S. alone. IF THE ELECTRICITY GETS CUT OFF I WILL BE LOSING MONEY EVERY DAY. I am pressing charges for blackmail and damages caused by your negligence and malicious misconduct, including $3800 PID Espresso machine as well as medical bills for my brother's hospital visit after he got sick here drinking unfiltered tap water (Ulcer). Not only what you do is illegal, it is also extremely discriminatory in nature and has caused me and my brother a lot of stress in suffering. Edit: fixed typos Mirificus has a new favorite as of 06:46 on Jul 23, 2014 |
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Jul 23, 2014 06:15
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WickedHate posted:Oh, those weren't scare quotes, I was just using them because they aren't commonly used terms outside of those circles. congrats on being in to puppyplay
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Jul 23, 2014 06:51
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theironjef posted:In my limited leather/shibari beginner experience it is the worst fetish in the world, because it basically empowers lolrandom people to charge around busy workshops or events being clumsy assholes because they are "puppies" that "don't know better." Then again I might just know more than the average number of irritating bratty subs, and they'd be doing that poo poo anyway under some other guise. lmao i loving love you retarded idiots
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Jul 23, 2014 06:52
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speaking of scams..Areal's kickstarter earned ~65k (somehow, it was at 35k for weeks), but was was suspended 14 hours ago. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1577656602/areal holy crap update 25..they link pictures of all the people they call 'trolls' for calling them out. like personal information and such. Wtf? I've never seen someone stoop that low.. Edit: and apparently they were trying to get people to think that Putin himself emailed them about the game? https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1577656602/areal/posts/919596 Autechresaint has a new favorite as of 07:39 on Jul 23, 2014 |
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Jul 23, 2014 07:18
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Autechresaint posted:speaking of scams..Areal's kickstarter earned ~65k (somehow, it was at 35k for weeks), but was was suspended 14 hours ago. LOL and then update 26. "Hey Forbes sorry we threw a tantrum a toddler would call embarrassing and outright accused you of slander and stated that you had become a cheap Chinese knockoff of yourself. No hard feelings." quote:They are now claiming that our success on Kickstarter is fabricated, whilst conveniently failing to mention that people are using multiple accounts to make a bunch of 1 dollar pledges, and every time a new backer comes along, they remove 1 or 2 pledges, so that it looks like our sum is increasing without any new backers. The gently caress? If this is even true, that is the most ridiculously convoluted trolling I've ever seen. 
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Jul 23, 2014 07:45
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hohum posted:But then they're paying tax on their own cash. It seems like there are easier ways to scam people. So long as it's not flexible funding you could pledge a bunch of your own money to get the ball rolling then pull the pledge later, if you're over the minimum funding without that initial seed you'll get paid and not spend a dime. Mirificus posted:Maksym Pashanin of Confederate Express and Knuckle Club fame/infamy is apparently a squatter. Not a cyber-squatter but a literal squatter. Shame, that game looked alright, and someone has put some work into it already. Seems appropriate that a zombie game would be made by a crazed squatter.
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Jul 23, 2014 09:57
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Robo Reagan posted:congrats on being in to Fixed. Autechresaint posted:speaking of scams..Areal's kickstarter earned ~65k (somehow, it was at 35k for weeks), but was was suspended 14 hours ago. This is really blatant. What's the point of continuing past this part? Do they think they will get unsuspended? Know when to fold'em, scam artists.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:15
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Finally something work Kickstarting I present The Forever Bible: A Bible that Literally Walks on Water. An indestructible bible! quote:The Bible is an incredible message of hope, love, and the eternal strength that lives within every one of us. Because of how powerful its message is, the Bible is the most popular book of all time. With well over 6 billion copies on the planet, millions of people are falling more deeply in love with the Bible every second. And this project is bringing you the Bible, in a whole new way.  quote:For centuries, publishers have printed the Bible with impeccable detail, using the highest quality papers and leather. We are continuing that tradition by printing the Bible with the very best materials that exist today. Using Space Age nanotechnology, we are able to print the Bible on an advanced paper that doesn’t use any trees, is 24X stronger than regular paper, and is completely waterproof, dirt-proof, tear-proof, and otherwise life-proof. The Forever Bible even floats in water, while keeping your notes and highlighted passages pristine.  The goal is 30,000 Currently it is at 8,271 quote:Pledge $10,000 or more Mr Ice Cream Glove has a new favorite as of 17:44 on Jul 23, 2014 |
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Jul 23, 2014 17:41
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Pastor Robb could work in a home shopping channel.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:49
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Getting a new bible would cost so much less.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:51
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Mr Ice Cream Glove posted:The goal is 30,000 Airfare to ~Africa~, along with accomodations and food, are going to eat up a fair chunk of that 10k. Like at least 20%.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:52
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Mr Ice Cream Glove posted:Forever Bible. At least I get the idea with this one and can see some use for an ultra-durable book that people take everywhere. 40 bucks seems like a bit much to even get a copy though. It's not even fireproof.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:55
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The main problem is that bibles are typically made with really thin paper to keep the size and weight reasonable. How thin can poly paper get? It seems like you'd end up with a bible that's like six inches thick.
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Jul 23, 2014 18:31
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Germstore posted:The main problem is that bibles are typically made with really thin paper to keep the size and weight reasonable. How thin can poly paper get? It seems like you'd end up with a bible that's like six inches thick. Poly gets pretty thin, I had a friend who used some with watercolors and it was surprisingly thin, but not bible/dictionary thin. No, this will be a bit of a tome. Its not really indestructible though, it gets punctured, dinged, bent, inked, burned and whatever else. Mostly just waterproof and harder to tear. (Which I admit is super nice.) If you need to take a bible with you rock climbing and don't mind the extra space, yeah, I can see missionaries using this. It fills a niche I suppose. My issue is that it seems pretty sacrilegious to pour chocolate syrup all over your holy book, even if it won't stain.
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Jul 23, 2014 18:41
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MrAptronym posted:My issue is that it seems pretty sacrilegious to pour chocolate syrup all over your holy book, even if it won't stain. Sacrilegious, or sacrilicious? 
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Jul 23, 2014 18:43
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Forget about the bible, I want to hear more about the space age nanotechnology they're using. Also some of the rewards include a space pen in case you need to write in your nanotech bible while scuba diving or going for a space walk.
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Jul 23, 2014 18:45
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From projects around my area.quote:Receive a photo of me making AMAZING BACON WRAPPED GREEN BEANS, a "thank you" posted to our website and I will say your name out loud. Amazing.
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Jul 23, 2014 18:49
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Why are they floating in oil? I made the same before and they are not supposed to be fried. That actually looks disgusting. Also GEEZ PEOPLE LEARN TO USE CAPS LOCK WHEN NECESSARY.
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Jul 23, 2014 19:28
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Autechresaint posted:speaking of scams..Areal's kickstarter earned ~65k (somehow, it was at 35k for weeks), but was was suspended 14 hours ago. West Games posted:We are restarting funding directly via our website, so please check it out and support us there: http://areal.west-games.com/
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Jul 23, 2014 19:33
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