Surf on over to Power Line and you'll see an interesting business opportunity tucked in among the sidebar blogads. BetonIraq.com offers the savvy investor a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to purchase the Iraqi Dinar (IQD) at rock-bottom prices and invest in the future of a free and democratic Iraq at the same time.
Sounds like a pretty cool deal, no? Even liberals might be interested, seeing as how it bypasses Rumsfeld's gang and goes right to the struggling nascent democracy itself. The blogad pitch seems convincing, too:
With yet another successful election, time may be running out to buy the New Iraqi Dinar before it hits the open market.Hot dog! Click on the BetonIraq link and you get even more information, interspersed with photos of voting Iraqis, Iraqis waving American flags, Iraqis hugging American soldiers—you get the idea.It's now unbelievably affordable. The same amount that was once equal to over $82,000 can now be purchased for around $45. But, what happens when the oil really starts to flow?
Before the Gulf War (part one), goes the pitch, the IQD was valued at over $3. Now it has fallen to a fraction of a penny. "Can Iraq's economy achieve, in a free market, what it once achieved under a brutal dictatorship?" Think that's questionable? You need go no further than the right sidebar to a set of "Beyond the Headlines" links. "Is anything good happening in Iraq? Much! Follow these links to see beyond the headlines, and discover the true Iraqi spirit of progress."
The problem? BetonIraq.com is, if not a total scam, at least an incredibly dubious investment. The pre-Gulf War dinar was "worth" $3.22 because that's what Saddam Hussein set its value at in 1982. Like the ruble of Soviet days, the IQD was not traded in free markets, so this previous "value" had no bearing in reality and was never tested on the open market.
XE.com, one of the biggest currency exchange websites, has an entire section devoted to IQD scams, and warns investors that "buying the Iraq Dinar is a high risk investment with a poor outlook."
According to XE, the current value of the IQD is tightly controlled by the Central Bank of Iraq, and for good reason.
They evidently fear that open trading of the IQD would lead to a rout in which the value of the IQD would sink to practically nothing. Consider the situation. Why tightly control the trading of the IQD if it is likely to appreciate in value? If the value of the IQD were to surge, this could be held out as evidence of a surge of confidence in Iraq's economy.Continued on the next page Page 1 — Page 2
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Nicelady
What if they're right?
I see this blogcritic has 2 google adds for dinars as well.
I would advice researching Noozz and Zawya on Iraq.
2 - Pete Blackwell
Who do you mean by "this blogcritic"? It's not me, since I don't have ads on my blog.
What if they're right? The conventional wisdom is that they're not. I suppose if you want to throw away $50 (or however much), you're welcome to. You could strike it rich, but you probably have a better chance with the lottery.
The point about the dinar is that it's worth a fraction of a penny when shielded from market pressures. That's about as advantageous a situation as you can get. But, it's not the real world.
3 - Frank
I understand what many critics are trying to warn iraqi dinar investors about. However, when everyone it trying to sell, that is the time to buy. For example, look at the airline stocks right after September 11, 2001, they fell in value. Every one was trying to sell. The investors who saw this as an oppotunity to buy are very well off today. In addittion, Sir John Templeton bought many stocks during the great depression because he saw opportunity, and at the same time controlled his emotion not to act on his vision. Unfortunatly, when blood runs in the streets, opportunity arises. Which way will you veer?
4 - Pete Blackwell
But unlike, say, stocks in the depression, there's no reason to believe this currency will go up appreciably. There's no "normal" for it to return to yet. It's never been tested in the market. All indications are that it would nose dive if it was.
Take Turkey, for example, a country miles and miles better off than Iraq. Up until they lopped 6 zeros from the currency last year, 1 US Dollar was worth 1,370,000 Turkish Lira. Does that, by itself, mean that one should invest in the Lira? Of course not. There has to be a reason to believe it will gain in value.
Since the IQD has never even had the chance to try, (for good reason, as XE.com showed), there's absolutely no reason to believe it will.
5 - rsb
You seem to be advertising dinars as well. Why are you giving them a hard time while doing the exact same thing?
6 - Morgan
So why is it you still associate with blogcritics.org when they had no fewer than 4 IQD ads appearing before your first paragraph was even finished? Are you not ultimately responsible for what you're hawking? Or is blogcritics.org using your material without your permission? Or do you just exempt yourself from the criticisms you level at others?
7 - Constant
"Who do you mean by "this blogcritic"?"
Here's your answer:powerline.org
8 - Drew
LOL! Hey Pete, take a look at the ads at the top of your own page. As Carlos Mensia would say, "Derdeder."
9 - Tari
Umm...yeah, I would have a look at the ads on this very page! Sheesh. Are you just a little embarrassed? Nope, didn't think so.
10 - Bill
Pete - Where does it say that the Powerline guys ENDORSE the contents of the adds? Smells like a cheap shot by some guy nobody has ever heard of. The only person "hawking" anything dubious around here is you. Could it be blog-envy?
11 - Ajax
So the Iraqi Dinar ads on the Powerline page are BAD, but the Iraqi Dinar ads on this page are GOOD. It's so confusing ...
12 - Creon
Wow, total Powerline smackdown. I'm on your side politically...but...well dude, better luck next time.
13 - Capitalist Infidel
Talk about liberal hypocrisy. Dinars here for sale as well. The intellectual vacancy of the left is stunning!
14 - Master of None
Ouch, that's got to hurt. Better put something on that.
15 - mikem
Nice catch, Pete. And way to go disappearing the two google dinar ads that were above your post. That means they were never there and your post is NOT a laughingstock.
"I see this blogcritic has 2 google adds for dinars as well"
No, No. See, not there!
16 - Dudley
So the question remains, what are Pete Blackwell and Co. doing pimping a currency scam on their website? I'm aware that blogads are automated to a degree, but the gentlemen at Blogcritics are ultimately responsible for what they're hawking.
Apparently at least one fool writes at blogcritics.org...
17 - aaron
Dan Rather, is that you ?
18 - pete
The last official price traded on the open market was in 2002 at 1 dinar = 33 cents US
Comparing to Turkey is no good because the only asset the country has is the tourist industry and fake designer clothing.
There's oil in Venezuela but to take control of oil in Iraq is more important for the US because they need a presence over there to stop the Middle Eastern countries starting their own oil trading exchange to trade their oil for Euro's instead of Dollars
That's the real underlying reason for the conflict with Iran. They are trying to start their own oil exchange, as was Saddam Husein.
Is the Dinar thing a scam?
When you take a high risk investment and it works out, then you can expect a high return.
The only way it's a scam is if the people selling it to you say that it's going float on Forex tomorrow at $3 per Dinar and they overcharge you.
Why are people selling it?
Why do people buy and sell shares or futures / commodities.
Why don't they just sit on their oil and gold stocks, because it's pretty obvious they'll be worth more in the future.
Everybody buys and sells, that's what makes the world go round.
If you can buy the Dinar at a fair price and sit on it and you've checked out the facts about how this situation has happened time and time again,
then if you personally think it's worth investing an amount that you feel safe with, why not buy some.
eg. Afghanistan...2003...New currency...Floated on Forex...Big gains...Country's assets...Opium fields.
Iraq's assets...Second largest World oil reserves and Largest World Natural Gas Reserves.
Don't just label it a scam until you check out the facts.
19 - Dan Lowenberg
Man, did you humiliate yourself. I feel sorry for you, bro.
20 - Tommy
My Goodness. Your ilk shoot from the hip again and again and again. You should be able to hit something at some time. Maybe not. Conservative sharpshooters just pick you off one at a time, time and time again.
Go back to brainwashing the captive audience of 18-year-olds in your poly sci 101 class, professor!
21 - Aaman
I think the caveat on the dinar scam is valid, but it unrelated to this or any site - blogads and google's adsense don't ask the site publishers when they run these ads.
22 - Denver Soldier
Pete you owe the Powerline guys an apology. The ads were NOT endorsed by them - they were blogads that I've seen at a variety of sites, like the Google adsense ads that showed up on THIS site for Iraqi Dinars. Like any "Get Rich Fast" internet come-on, such offers deserve extra scrutiny.
Now back tothe facts:
Get your facts straight - and be man enough to retract the gratuitous lie you published, and publish a correction. They didnt do anything of the sort that you assumed that they did, and you were quite wrong in your statements.
Its one thing to disagree with them as I am sure many do, its another thing entirely to falsely impugn their character and publish a blatent lie through your incompetence and/or negligence.
23 - m
let's recap, shall we?
1. pete blackwell writes a post taking apart the IQD scam on his blog, parentheticalremarks.blogspot.com.
2. the post gets reprinted on blogcritics.org, an apolitical aggregator of interesting blog posts.
3. at the top of the reprinted page are some automatically generated, context-sensitive google ads. due to the frequency of the word "dinar" in the post, the google ads link to dinar scams such as the one debunked in the article.
4. a blog called power line interprets this as "A site called "Blogcritics" ripped us for a Blogad on this site that advertises Iraqi dinars." power line continues to not link to the relevant post and decrees blogcritics to be a 'liberal blogger.'
5. power line's slightly overenthusiastic readership descends on the reprinted post, demanding retractions and name-calling and otherwise embarassing themselves.
advantage: blogosphere!
24 - Constant
1. Pete Blackwell attacks Power Line Blog for carrying a certain ad.
2. With Pete Blackwell's knowledge and consent (one presumes), his attack on Power Line is reprinted at blogcritics.org.
3. Irony ensues.
4. Power Line correctly points out the irony.
5. Merriment ensues.
25 - Jim
That one's going to leave a mark.
Didn't your momma tell you the proverb about those who live in glass houses?