Thats not to say cryptocurrency itself is a con.
Blockchain and decentralized cryptofinance technologies are, in my opinion, crucial for the future.
They provide insurance against government and social tyranny in an ever-changing and dangerous world.
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A simple rule to remember is that coins are money and tokens are property.
And that, dear readers, brings us toMaricoin.
A cryptocurrencytokenthats recently entered a testing phase in the Chueca community in Madrid, Spain.
Whats interesting about Maricoin is that its name is an apparent play on words.
The word maricon, in Spanish, is analogous to the English pejorative faggot.
Its meant to be derogatory and dismissive in a homophobic or anti-queer way.
I will give a minor concession.
And its worth mentioning that many queer people use terms otherwise considered derogatory colloquially among themselves.
Omg they really said “f*gcoin” with a straight face.
fursed croughurt (@Ty_Sunshine_87)January 4, 2022
But lets move past the name.
They havea website, but its useless.
Theres no mention of who the Maricoin team is or any specifics on exactly what it is.
So what do we actually know about Maricoin, on the technical level?
Poop emoji, thats what.
But that doesnt mean I havent gleaned a few insights.
Algorand, and by extension Maricoin, isnt a cryptocurrency backed by work (mining).
Its a token, like the kind you get at Dave & Busters.
Its backed by proof of stake, like a stock.
In other words: the more you own, the more value your holdings have.
This is because your proof of stake can be used to win fabulous prizes!
The winner is awarded new ALGO.
Lets be very clear here: Im not saying Algorand is a scam or a marketing scheme.
The website listed in the Algorand assets page, Maricoin.coin, doesnt exist.
Heres the thing: we have no idea how the Maricoin entrepreneurs actually intend to tokenize their Algorand holdings.
Its done this way so that theres no possibility first-tier holders can lose money handing out said discounts.
They stand to make money off holders three times for every transaction.
It all contributes to the ultimate goal: to put money into the main players Algorand holdings.
Is Maricoin a scam?
It depends on whether youre at the top or the bottom of the pyramid.
Maybe Maricoin is legit.
Perhaps its an inside joke amongst friends thats just meant to drum up some business for their shops.
But, no matter how you view it, it feels exploitative.
Its, in essence, monetizing the idea of queer-friendly networking.
At best, Maricoin is a legal tax on queerness that anyone savvy enough to exploit can participate in.
I wont be surprised if we find out that this is some sort of prank.
I also wont be surprised if we dont.
But wed love to see a research paper and a coherent explanation in lieu of guessing.
Do what you want with your money though, nothing written in this article is meant to be advice.
