This just melted my brain a little.
I place $20 in a box.
So do you.
Now the box contains $40, and we both know it.
I sell the box to you for $30.
And we both walk away with a $10 profit.
Okay so there’s $70 total.
The first guy puts in $20, ends up with $30, for $10 profit.
The second guy puts in $50, ends up with $40, for $10 profit, because $20 was his money to begin with.
So why is this so confusing?
Nice. If you work at a store and someone starts fiddling around with cash vs. credit vs. debit cards, paying with one then asking for refunds and paying with another, etc. then this is likely what they’re trying to pull off. The important bit is to ‘remind’ the mark that the box contains $40 when you ask for $30, to distract them from the fact that half that $40 is already theirs.
| A | Box | B |
|---|---|---|
| Start: Both parties have $60. | ||
| $60 | $0 | $60 |
| Round 1: Both pay $20 into the box. | ||
| $40 | $40 | $40 |
| Round 2: B pays $30 to A | ||
| $70 | $40 | $10 |
| Round 3: B removes $40 from the box. | ||
| $70 | $0 | $50 |
| Result: A just conned B out of $10. | ||
(Source: futilitycloset.com)
