Imagine if that $5.9 million was actually used to improve Bitcoin itself and its community, rather than replacing a forum software that in 2025, still reigns as one of the best forum solutions there has ever been.
It is a big loss but the Bitcoin forum and Bitcoin community, then Bitcoin growth initiatives are very different things. You can ask the forum to spend money for other things beyond this forum, because it's like off-purpose spending as it does not relate to forum operations. It can break unofficial MOU between forum admins and donators, VIP members too.
It's a lost investment in development of a new forum software that will never be used because bad developments after many years. I believe in theymos because he is a careful and well minded person that shown in his posts and policies in the forum, so this failed investment is one of minus things from him, but it does not wipe out his good administration here for Bitcoin forum in many years since Satoshi Nakamoto disappearance.
If this forum followed the same values that Bitcoin has instilled within it (namely decentralization where possible, prioritizing consensus and open source development) then the forum wouldn't have wasted 3000+ BTC on building the forum software, and its community wouldn't be as corrupt as it is today.
I am almost certain that Satoshi Nakamoto would be appalled with the state of this forum, the members who rank high within it, and would only be pleased with its activity (which in my opinion, would be higher if it prioritized Bitcoin's core values, and is lower due to its administration).
Running a forum of this size is not an easy feet. I'm not persecuting theymos in any way - however I am persecuting the fact that there is an elite class of decision makers, when this forum should have prioritized decision making by voting, and doing its best to be as decentralized/community governed as possible - as is the bitcoin way.
Imagine if that $5.9 million was actually used to improve Bitcoin itself and its community, rather than replacing a forum software that in 2025, still reigns as one of the best forum solutions there has ever been.
Don't imagine.
Every organisation, whether profit or non-profit constantly seeks ways it can grow. Companies spend millions in research only to find out it was a waste of time. That's real life.
There has never been a visionary leader in history, whether the leader of a country, company, movement or any other organisation who didn't have to make bold decisions. If it doesn't work out, we get up dust ourselves up and try again. Don't ever blame anybody for trying.
As the saying goes, "The difference between a genius and a madman is in the result'.
If things had worked out just as he hoped and the new software became better than the current one, he would have been hailed for the bold step
You have a right to ask questions but don't make it look like he made a foolish decision for trying to make the forum better. It just didn't work out, so we move on.
Your argument is fine however at the end of the day, the entire fund that was purposed to improving
Bitcoin and
its community was used to rebuild forum software that did not need replacing. I'm not blaming anyone for the decision, though the decision was a stupid one - and not just a stupid one, it was one that the entire community did not vote on. It seems to have just been decided somewhat unilaterally to use the entire/majority of the amount of donated Bitcoin toward a software that was decided by the top ranks of the forums, which additionally put Bitcoin in the pockets of the those ranked at the top of the forum.
Even if the forum software was a good idea and hypothetically the community came to a consensus and agreed upon it (you know, in the way that everything else in Bitcoin is done), then it should have been built open source, just like Bitcoin was. All the donated BTC should not have gone to some private development group of kids.
The difference between good leaders and bad ones are not just their results, its their decisions...and the decision to rebuild perfectly good forum software, to sell all the donated BTC, to have no transparency, to build closed source, to hire kids, and the list goes on, shows poor leadership, and a long series of bad decisions. You can paint it nice and pretty as you have, however reality is, it is not that pretty.