The Big Con
by David Maurer, David W. Maurer · first published 1999
7mentions
4recommended by
5HN commenters
2008–2020first – last mentioned
80% recommend20% neutral
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…truly stupid mark isn't going to understand the scheme; an intelligent person will immediately see the way they stand to benefit. It's the willingness to cheat that gets you in trouble. Check out The Big Con by David Maurer
on “Cryptoqueen: A woman scammed the world, then vanished” ↗If you, like me, hate cheating and being cheated, you should really read the mentioned book "How to Cheat at Everything". Another book that I recommend is "The Big Con" by David W. Maurer. And if you are one of the few people who have never seen "The Sting" you should watch it now. It is one of the best movies ever and you may learn one or two things about cheating.…
on “Private equity looting public health in a pandemic” ↗Wow, further evidence that the most important tech book I ever read was Maurer's The Big Con: http://www.amazon.com/Big-Con-Story-Confidence-Man/dp/038549... I keep waiting for an enterprising Nigerian journalist to write the 419-scammer version of this book.
on “Gizmodo: Psystar's a Hoax” ↗Highly recommended reading if you are ever tempted to take advantage of an apparent scam in progress: David Maurer's The Big Con, the hundred-year-old story of swindlers who stole tons of money by setting up fake stock scams, then luring bystanders into placing side bets on the scams-in-progress. (This is the book that inspired…
on “Company with zero revenue and one employee currently worth 3.8B” ↗If this subject interests you, I cannot recommend highly enough David Maurer's classic book "The Big Con," (https://www.amazon.com/Big-Con-Story-Confidence-Man/dp/03854...) published in 1940. Its subject is the early 20th century confidence man rather than that of the 19th, but it's full of rich detail…
on “The 19th Century Confidence Man” ↗…understandable one) to prevent having to view oneself as being duped. I think it's a shame though because we'll all be duped or scammed to some degree in our life, no need to change the past. Anyway reading "The Big Con" by David Maurer right now, a book by a sociologist about con-men in the 1940s. It's the basis for the movie "The Sting", and its remarkable how many people in the book are conned but refuse to believe…
on “One Billion Dollars Short, Bill Ackman, and the Siege Of Herbalife (2015)” ↗…the money, then skips town and spends the money on hookers and booze, you need to talk to other folks than Ira Ritter: http://www.amazon.com/Big-Story-Confidence-Man/dp/0385495382 The stories in The Big Con demonstrate convincingly that businessmen will, in fact, often just give you money if you ask them for it while wearing the right kind of suit.
on “Ask HN: What are some examples of people asking for things that are out of reach” ↗