Define "scam"? Who is trying to scam who in this situation? The Liberlanders feel more like a LARP group than any sort of pyramid scheme, and it's not like there was any serious risk of them actually receiving recognition and depriving the actual nations nearby of the (as you point out) worthless land.

whenever I see LARP in any context but literal live action roleplaying (nerds doing nerd shit in the woods, and even then it can be iffy) what follows is the worst fucking take I’ve ever seen. is LARPing just how libertarian fuckheads cover for their illegal militia shit these days?