Sooo, a fellow co-worker told me about this new ponzi scheme er I mean charity organization, but with a twist. The basic idea is this:
Donate $6, separated into three $2 portions, to your fellow gifters in the organization, and in return, you are eligible to receive back as much as $28 in cash gift yourself.
Now, you can only keep $7, because the other $21 is then split into three $7 portions that you re-donate back into the program, but in return, you are eligible for an even higher sum... that you can keep only a certain portion of while you re-donate the rest back.
Sounds innocent enough. So, what's wrong with this picture?
In order for the system to work, you have to get a lot of new people to join and donate their money, and the magnitude is frightening.
For one thing, it will take up to 14 donations on the first level (hence the name 14 Eagles) just for you to complete level 1. That's roughly 4.6 people required to make the total of 14 donations needed. Let's just say 5 people.
Let me say this again. For you, one person, to make the initial profit of only $1(!), you need 5 people below you. 5 people.
And how many does it require to complete level 2? 25 people. It takes 5 Level 2 gifters, each requiring their own 5 people's worth of level 1 donations to reach level 2 in order for them to gift YOU enough level 2 donations to go to level 3. 25 people.
And how many is required to reach level 3? 125 people. And it just keeps going like that.
The funny thing is, my co-worker believes the math makes sense, because the misleading literature is only showing you the dollar amounts you have the POTENTIAL of making, but never once mentioning the number of people required below you to realize that potential.
There's something else too. Because it's a (shady) charitable organization, it's not really subject to the same regulatory standards as a regular business, even for network marketing types.
Plus, everything is literally handled through cash. Yes, they recommend that you hide the cash, wrapped in magazine pages, stuffed inside darkened envelopes. Uh huh.
Even their website, 14eagles.com, is locked down pretty tight. You can't get in without ID and password. Nothing shows up on the domain registration either. Gotta love a good charity organization with transparency oh wait.... IT DOESN'T.
All this lack of transparency also makes it easy for the program's creator to game the system and keep a substantial portion for himself without anyone knowing.
Fortunately, my co-worker is out of this program. One of the members of his church found some questionable legal details, and his entire church decided to collectively get out of it.
But anyways, here's another cautionary tale about how if something looks too easy or too good to be true, chances are, it is.
14 Eagles
June 23rd, 2010 at 06:19 am
June 23rd, 2010 at 08:44 am
June 23rd, 2010 at 09:41 am
June 23rd, 2010 at 10:05 am
Give us $6, and in time, if you're lucky, we'll give you $7 back so you can earn a $1 profit. Now, even though that $1 translates into roughly 16.7% return, there is NO GUARANTEE if or when that money will ever arrive.
What's worse, unlike investing or even trading, you own NO EQUITY in anything! Therefore, you can't sell anything back at a loss, or even deduct it for a tax loss harvesting. And because you freely gave away your money in some twisted name of charity, little can be done to address your grievances or get your money back.
Even gambling at a casino would be more entertaining than this. Actually, gambling is safer too, because at least there are gaming commissions that regulate the industry!
June 23rd, 2010 at 03:32 pm
Many people don't have sympathy for foolish or gullible people. I have a ton--those are NOT the worst human personality traits someone could have; although greed is somewhat involved when one gets into a pyramid scheme, there are many goodhearted people who get taken out because they don't have enough cynicism or commonsense to protect themselves in this thief-ridden world.
June 29th, 2010 at 10:43 am
June 29th, 2010 at 11:23 am
The hard part on these programs is getting to find two people to duplicate effort. It may take 100 people to get two to duplicate but it appears it could happen with two people with an opposite outlook than most people appear to have. You may have block your co-employee from an opportunity that he/she controls.
I could be that people do not have $6 or they don't have the effort, I really do not know!!!
June 29th, 2010 at 12:58 pm
Second of all, you're confusing the supposed revenue versus actual profit. No matter how you slice this, the program only allows you to keep 25% of your total revenue for each level. And of the money you get to keep, most are simply recouping your initial investment money. Again, you'll never see the light of most of that money, but that's what they show you anyways, and that's how they fool you into thinking you're rolling in it.
Thirdly, unless someone explicitly asks, it has never been my policy to tell someone what they should or should not do with their life. When my co-worker introduced this program to me, he was already a member. I didn't block him from anything. And when his church pulled out of the program, and when his wife made him to do the same, I once again had nothing to do with it.
No James. Nothing here is way off base. It's just another ponzi scheme. And the dollar amount involved is irrelevant. This is a life lesson about financial savvy.
Finally, $6 was only the first level. Each level you climb up requires more and more money, until you get to the upper levels, where it would require anywhere from $150 to $700 to participate.
June 29th, 2010 at 01:36 pm
June 29th, 2010 at 05:26 pm
June 30th, 2010 at 03:26 am
June 30th, 2010 at 05:51 am
I will say this much: Throughout the years of my exposure and introductions to various MLMs and ponzi schemes, I've seen fervent supporters defending passionately for their program. But to what end?
Ultimately, money gets funneled to the top for the few from the vast majority below. This is the basics of any MLM.
And when there is no transparency or oversight where money can easily be re-directed by an invisible hand, you've got all the makings of a ponzi scheme.
The only difference here is that, instead of selling or being sold over-priced products and services, you are going straight to the source and simply asked to give up your money.
This type of set up is indeed different from a Fortune 500 company, because most companies are subject regulatory bodies such as the IRS and the SEC. Fortune 500 companies most likely also have to create public financial records for their shareholders. Certainly corruption can still exist but at least it's harder than murky organizations such as 14 Eagles.
And yet, 14eagles does not claim to be a company, so why the comparison in the first place?
This type of set up is also different from getting a loan from your family or a true charity organization, because at least this is direct money transfer from people you trust, and with no 3rd party organizations that lack transparency.
I should also add that I too am from overseas and have received monetary support in the past. And I still do not like the look of this setup.
Indeed people can be quite ignorant. Too many people fall in love with their favored investments, and that ultimately causes them to lose their objectivity. They fully buy into the candy-coated rhetoric that is being pitched, because they want to believe so badly that this can work that they are not willing to look at the facts involved. Yes, most of what I've presented here are factual.
To simply ignore the facts I've present and make some blanket statement that I am forming an opinion here based on assumptions is, well, incorrect.
June 30th, 2010 at 07:40 am
What I read from them is, one never moves up a level unless they have the received the money in hand to do so. Explain to everyone how you are in a position to lose?? It has to be the lack of $6 and/or a willingness to place effort. I am writing this cause programs can work but narrow minded people can block people from an attempt to better themselves. The simple question that should be evident: Who else has offered to assist us for $6 lately??? Gifting programs have nothing to do with MLM. They are people sending money to people as I see it. Shenna above was correct, people can afford $6. But, they have to get out of their own way first.
June 30th, 2010 at 08:48 am
Again, while it may look like you received $6, you do not keep $6. You don't make back your $6 until you've received $24 total, and you don't make the $1 profit until you've reached the $28 total.
Also, while the premise may be to give each other money, it is nevertheless a MLM structure, minus the products and services that are usually associated with such a program. This time, they're just calling it a straight "gift". I'm not saying all MLMs are a bad thing in and of itself, but it is what it is.
June 30th, 2010 at 09:57 am
June 30th, 2010 at 07:46 pm
This gifting program sounds like it could work and if it does, I'll be happy for those who created it and for those that had the courage to take the risk to give up their hard earned $6 in hopes for a gift to be returned to them. Sounds like Church to me. Talk about scams. lol. Just playin, I do believe some churches do serve a positive roll in the community.
I used to work for a major lottery. I used to take money all day from people hoping to get rich from a stroke of a pencil or a scratch of a piece of cardboard. This is no different.
So I said all that to say this. I respect all of your opinions. As for the person that started this blog thank you for bringing this to the light but you only made this program more popular.
In everything you do, do it with the utmost diligence. you will either succeed big or fail big. At the least all you have done is blessed 3 people with $2.
July 1st, 2010 at 03:57 pm
July 4th, 2010 at 08:25 pm
July 4th, 2010 at 11:59 pm
July 6th, 2010 at 01:39 pm
July 6th, 2010 at 06:17 pm
July 8th, 2010 at 06:11 am
July 10th, 2010 at 08:32 pm
July 11th, 2010 at 11:11 am
Even if I don't have the exact details nailed down, the premise remains the same. In order for one person to at least break even, it takes three people below you to give you money. And those three people need nine people below them to break even. And those nine need twenty seven people below them to break even. And so on and so forth.
Regardless of what magnitude you want to use, there is nothing wrong with that very simple math. In the end, a lot of people will have to lose money in order for some existing people to gain money. It's a simple, zero sum game where money is transferred upwards.
And I guess that's why it's necessary to silence critics like me eh? Even though the concept is dirt simple, some of you guys cling on to the minor details surrounding the program and decide that's enough to discredit me and invalidate the whole argument?
And while I'm here, James, you're trying too hard to try to get a rise out of me. The attempts are laughable, and that's really all I can say about it.
Triple MMM, who signed the mortgage? Did they force you to sign it or did you sign it willingly, regardless of the terms? Did you analyze the terms? Did you make sure that it was a mortgage that you can afford?
For what it's worth though, some of the details regarding the lending industry also bothers me, and I've blogged about it quite a bit as well (particularly the subprime derivatives and the lack of transparency).
However, I must disagree with the argument that this is about fear over something that I do not understand. Quite the contrary, the premise is very simple and ultimately flawed, and using this blanket criticism out of context not only falls flat, but it really says something about those who are making such criticisms.
Yes, I recognize that some have made money, and I am happy for you, especially for those who are being nice about this. However, I also think it's important to point out that all MLM and ponzi schemes have made money for somebody, and still that doesn't make the program any less riskier or flawed. Even organized crime makes money. Please remember that just because some people have made money does not prove that something is a good idea to begin with.
And yes, there are those who also complain that I am not giving the program the fair chance. That's a fair argument at least. However, I can't begin to tell you how many times in the past people have said that to me about their program, only for me to relent, join their seminars, take a chance with a bit of money, only to find the program fail eventually. I've already heard the 14 Eagles pitch and read the promotional material. The only step left is to put up the money, which I do not want to do.
Finally, to those who are being nice or at least objective about this, even if you disagree with me, I thank you for the nice gesture.
July 12th, 2010 at 02:22 pm
-You (disservice yourself) when you spin facts
-You (continue to misrepresent-yourself) as you continue to misrepresent information . . .
-This is private program . . .
-It's not for (everyone)
-This is not a business . . .
-This is not a company
-This is not a investment . . .
-There are no percentages regardless of your spin. . .
-7-10 homes in this country are 60 days from living in the street. . . . ( in one of the richest counties in the world ) . . .
-I have seen the poor bail out millionaires and multi-millionaires . . .
-Jobs were lobbied/sold out of this country 30-40yrs ago . . . .
-Gas is at $3.00+ and going up . . .
-I have seen 911, Katrina, & oil spills, Hattie earthquakes, massive forcloseures. . .
-I have seen young men & women soldiers gladly give there life, etc . . .
-Habitat for Humanity: people helping people for a new home . . .
-Quakers Barn Raisings . . .
-Giving food to Charities food pantries . . .
-Feeding families on Thanksgiving, . . .
-Feeding the Worlds Poor
-$2 donation (freely), to 3 possible strangers,
- donations forwarded in all steps are from donations received . . . ( not out of your pocket ). . .
- not advocated to give out of your pocket, but you can . . .
- Pass step 1, it’s not advocated to give out of your pocket . . . ( know need to )
- Help 2, and donate out of the donations received
-I’ve given birthday gifts, mother’s day gifts, valentines day gifts, fathers day gifts, graduation gifts, tithes, offerings, police charities, feed the hungry, given to those with a hand out on the streets, Christmas gifts and have given cash gifts for each celebratory occasion for 35+ yrs. and will continue to give an I am not a company or non profit.
Now I can't donate $2 to 3 possible starngers WOW!
Dig the well before the water is needed . . .
July 12th, 2010 at 03:54 pm
( WOW!! )Instead of complaining . . .
Someone/s presents a ("tiny solution")
and the dobbermans just rip it apart without providing another solution . . . WOW ( cool )
Lets just all talk about the problems, like the 24hr News . . .
( this countries challeges are Decades older than 5 weeks )
This program is only 5 weeks old, dangit, I guess this is enough time to get it right, since there are "enough" good jobs and no massive layoffs, no credit pimps . . . and no unemployment, no massive foreclosures and ALL IS Perfect on the other side.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biff or Billy this private solution aint the solution for everyone, . . .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-$2 donation (freely), to 3 possible strangers &
donations forwarded in all steps are from donations received . . . ( not out of your pocket ). . .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You mean to tell me,
( all this fuss )
all boils down to,
a one time donation of,
$2 to 3 possible strangers,
then donating out of the donations received,
paying 44 cents to $1.00 to
send a donation, instead of 44 cent to $29+.
and being able track it all
for a LIFETIME (one time fee)
of less than $11
and privately inviting 2
who'll do the same. ( WOW )
GEEPERS i'm scared LOL!
Just because some people have received large donations does not prove that something is necessarily bad or good.
Seek Solutions
July 12th, 2010 at 04:15 pm
My prediction is that BA is going to be spending a lot of time in this post refuting random people that have stopped by that would prefer you not know the truth. By far the best way to judge advice is to take a look from who it is coming from. Take a look back through BA's blog and you'll see high quality financial advice all the way through. As for the pro commenters with no way to tell who they really are or what hidden agenda they have, I would advise taking all their comments with a (very, very large) grain of salt
As for me and my qualifications, I am only the person that runs this personal finance site
July 12th, 2010 at 05:33 pm
Either way, this is nothing compared to that time when I talked about traffic tickets. Haha, now that was funny.
GET-HONE-FACTS, the only thing I can say is that 14 Eagles isn't entirely driven by charity. Rather, it is driven by a pyramid scheme where money is "donated" upwards towards existing members, regardless of what their charitable "needs" are. That's just what it is....
If you really want to help people, there are lots and lots of very good charities out there where your donated money will go to people truly in need. And if you are one of those in need of help, please look them up and ask them to help you!
No matter how you guys spin this, a real charity organization gives to those who need it without expecting anything back, whereas 14 Eagles give only to privates members above them, and their incentive is the potential that you too can profit like them!
A TINY SOLUTION, you're trying to cry foul about the relatively small amount of money involved, but as I've already stated, it's not the amount that matters. What matters is how it works, or in my eyes, does not work.
Come on guys, this is very simple. I'm just one man. I'm just speaking my mind. If you guys are completely right about about all this, and I'm completely wrong, then why let little ole me bother you? Just ignore me and go about your money-making business.
July 13th, 2010 at 12:13 am
I received a question about whether 14 eagles was a scam
July 16th, 2010 at 01:54 pm
It never ceases to amaze me that the folks who really need an activity/opportunity like this are the ones that cause the most grief for themselves and everybody else! UNBELEIVABLE!
I have been an Eaglet since June 13th and have had nothing but heartwarming experiences with 14 Eagles. Slowly, I have been successful and the gifts do come in the mail from other eaglets!
I have been sharing this activity in my travels with my warm market friends and even the people standing in front of Wal-Mart and other stores with their hands out panhandling money from the public.
I have taken the time and stopped and asked what the persons problem was that caused him to stand out in 95 DEGREE HEAT and beg for money!
The two that I met told me that they would love to work but they were laid off from the housing market of fixing and repairing the insides of homes in this area.
So what did I do? I offered to give him a $6.00 gift that he could either have the time of his life with or (as in life) he could make a choice and take the gift that I gave him (Paid It Forward) and bless three other people with it! It was his choice after I explained how 14 Eagles worked and was all about!
The result was since he was out of work and had all the time in the world to share his new found activity with the rest of the unemployed he new, he had a new lease on life to be productive and is now helping bless more people with his new good fortune!
In other words, I TAUGHT HIM HOW TO FISH instead of just giving him Money/GIFT so he can starve again in a few days!
My question is, where are the employed people I meet everyday and why aren't they stopping to offer a solution on helping these people to be productive and do something with their lives?
Play time is over folks! The world is changing rapidly (for the worst) and the goody goody negative people are becoming part of the problem instead of the solution!
I also am working with an 83 year old friend of mine that just realized that he has come out of his depression since joining 14 Eagles a month ago and is now trying to make an impact on the seniors who might listen.
Very few do though as they are in the (To Good to Be True) mode and are doomed to poverty because that is what they have been brainwashed into by our so called officials!
Feed me! Feed me! I'm Hungry...is the main jest I have been observing along with all the local food pantries that are closing and thousands of people in the newspapers are saying "WE Don't Know What We Are Going To Do"!
In my local newspaper a few days ago 100 families a day do not know what they are going to do when the local pantry goes out of business because there are not enough funds or volunteers to keep up with the growing demand of hungry people who are down on their luck or lazy not to try and do something for themselves! This activity would save every one of them if they would listen...but they won't!
I want to throw up every time I get a response about the ponzi/pyramid thing from ignorant people and pastors that I meet also!
They wouldn't know a real blessing if it walked up to them and tapped them on the shoulder!
In their heads they are expecting hundreds and thousands of dollars from either old money inheritances from their aging members or flowing down from heaven to save their ever growing bankrupt churches!
The church that backed out of an activity like this did not do their church or the future members any great service by bending and buring their heads in the sand!
The biggest ponzi going now is the way our country is being run now and the public is buying it hook, line and sinker thinking the system will save them!
The Big Boys Don’t Care! Get It?
Enjoy Your Poverty Negatorians!
P.S. Always Remember,
Profits/Gifts are Better Than Wages Any Day!
July 20th, 2010 at 08:47 pm
July 20th, 2010 at 09:09 pm
July 21st, 2010 at 06:16 am
I would like to respond to you, but your response, to be blunt, is filled with more of the same kind of incoherent rambling I've seen so far from the kinds of financially ignorant people that would drink a pyramid scheme kool-aid in the first place.
I mean, have you truly taught another man how to fish? Not to me. You have only introduced him to a sort of con game to get other people to willingly hand fish over to him. That is not true fishing skills.
foxy and kelly:
Feel free to participate and to continue to participate in 14 eagles if you wish. Unlike many of the 14 Eagles supporters here, I'm not here to tell others what to do. I'm here to simply speak my mind, and very simply, I don't agree with such a program.
July 21st, 2010 at 10:41 am
If I go get a job (Just Over Broke) flipping hamburgers will I ever advance and make more success for myself than the guy that hired me? No, but if I share an opportunity whether it is a gifting program or a MLM vitamin program, I have the potential to bring in more prosperity than the person that invited me to the activity. Makes sense to me to get rewarded for my personal efforts if I choose to share and WORK!
That's why networking is not called net-sleeping-in or net-fooling-around and expecting riches to come ones way by doing NOTHING which is now common place here in the American culture.
People have become spoiled, lazy and complacent.
The worst is yet to come!
July 21st, 2010 at 11:19 am
That said, I do not agree that this is the reason why we have high unemployment or poverty rate. People spent more than they can afford. That's the bottom. Doesn't matter if they're an entrepreneur, a 9 to 5 cubicle rat, or in a pyramid scheme.
Also, I do not agree that 14 eagles is necessarily the solution to high unemployment or poverty. One can also get a job and work their way up, or start a business through legitimate avenues.
In the end, it doesn't make sense to equate either doing 14 Eagles or doing literally nothing. We can all do SOMETHING to better ourselves. We should. But I would argue that 14 Eagles is NOT the only way, but more importantly, there are much better ones out there.
July 21st, 2010 at 12:21 pm
July 26th, 2010 at 01:19 pm
July 29th, 2010 at 03:51 pm
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:10 am
As I have been introduced to cash-gifting recently, I am intrigued with how different groups of people respond to it. There is a negative force & a positive force in all things. I have been astonished as to why certain people are so threatened by it. I have finally figured it out why a select group of people are actually “offended” by such good & charitable works…and yes…I said “charitable” because that’s exactly what it is.
Sure, there may be those “gifting” who let the inherent nature of greed get the best of them; who may be more interested in “getting” than giving”. So what do you propose we do… stick probes to us cash-gifters to see who really has the best of intentions? Arrest those who actually feel delight when they receive the cash gifts? How absurd is this? Here is the simple fact: It is our natural, inherent, and moreover, we… “The People” have a Constitutional Right do certain things. We have the right to assemble together and to gift one another, and to do it lawfully! The mere fact that many cash-gifters are afraid to divulge their identity should scare ever freedom-loving citizen, even if you are a cash-gifting hater!
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:10 am
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:13 am
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:15 am
Wake Up America! This is a war not just against these inherently bitter, fruitless, unsuccessful MLM’ers. More importantly, this is a war on our constitutional rights. Both the MLM’ers & the IRS have one common interest: to scare & bully you into hiding and have a strong desire to infringe upon our god-given right to assemble together and help one another, but for dissimilar reasons, both of which is driven by GREED. The government/IRS: they want more money from you (in the form of taxes) because evidently they aren’t getting enough to fund their outright reckless spending and the UNPRECEDENTED fraudulent govt. expenditures that we witness today. These MLM’ers (or “cash-gifting haters”) are threatened because they want your business and do not want anything to stand in the way of that, even if it does mean that your life could be changed for the better. All you MLM’ers who’ve let your greed override your love of freedom aught to be ashamed of yourselves!
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:17 am
There are many scams out there, and perhaps even in the cash gifting realm, but here is the truth that you will hardly find anywhere else because yes…people are afraid to share their identity. There is no secret about that. Look at all the scare tactics these people use. Here is the truth: The large majority of those that participate in cash gifting are successful! I am witnessing it with my very own eyes, and I must make a confession…it is exciting (Is that “illegal” to feel excited about it?)! Many are afraid to share it in fear that their “door will get kicked in”, as the MLMWatchdog puts it (a little extreme, don’t you think?). Hey…Isn’t this how the days of Hitler began? First, they start small by instilling fear into people; when a particular group of citizens with an agenda co-mingle with the government with a commonly shared interest. Then, the natural rights of the people are infringed upon. This is a slippery slope that history has seen before. Even more frightening is that we currently have an American president who has relentlessly dismissed and outwardly defies The U.S. Constitution that is meant to protect us and our rights as U.S. citizens. People do what they must to survive. Ordinary, average people are struggling to feed their families and put a roof over their head right now. Perhaps you personally may not be in this dire position yet, but a vast number of Americans are in big, big trouble as of the date I write this. We have a president now with an unwavering determination, to kill the American economy (and if anybody thinks this is by accident, or for those of you who have drunken the coolade that It’s Bush’s Fault, you are kidding yourselves and need to wake up!). Gifting works! It’s helping many more people and would help even more people if more would take an unwavering stand about this and stand together to defend our most basic human rights. Hey… all you MLM’ers, people would love to buy your overpriced shampoo, or your vitamins, or your groceries if only they had the means to. But you know what? Meeting our family’s basic needs takes precedence. And this is what many families across the nation are down to now.
When our founders founded this country, we didn’t have any “stimulus packages” and there were no divisive political community organizations to be heard of, like ACORN for example, which cater to helping a select group of people (which our tax dollars are funding by the way). Even our very own government… who is supposed to protect us and our futures, have lost the trust of most Americans now. People are literally scared and anxious about what is to come of our country. Many of these “cash-gifting haters” who paradoxically, will publicize their own Christian faith in an effort to steer you clear away from cash-gifting, will ridicule the fact that many cash-gifters openly and unapologetically declare their Christianity. These “cash-gifting haters” will mock them to make it appear to the uninformed that those Christian givers are “using” their faith as a means to enlist others. Perhaps. I can’t tell you what is inside the mind and heart of every person and neither can anybody else, but I can tell you this: Cash Gifting is the most Christian-Like act you can participate in! And I make no bones about that. I’ve learned more about myself and I have a newly-found awareness about my thoughts and feelings as I do give to others since my participation in cash-gifting. More than any one single thing I have gained through my participation, Personal Growth is at the top.
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:20 am
August 2nd, 2010 at 08:41 am
No, I'm not hater. I just don't think it's a good idea. The fact that you think civil disagreement makes me a hater makes you the illogical and presumptuous one.
No, I don't feel threatened. I don't know why simply disagreeing with someone automatically implies that I feel threatened. I mean, why would I feel that way? Doesn't makes sense.
Mentioning references of probes, arrests, and the Constitution is being misleading with hyperbole. Come on, really?
And why do you think detractors are angry, malicious, and have an indignant nature about them? Is it truly angry, malicious, and indignant to simply disagree? Did you really do true, scientific research on this?
Wow, and the diatribe just keeps going and going. It's kind of sad. After reading your comments, I don't see how you can make your case about this. But if you have any specific issue you'd like me to address, then let me know and I will do so.
g2k2:
Thanks you for the offer. At least that seems a lot more reasonable of a response than your fellow supporters.
But no, I must politely decline. I've already made the argument several times that just because something can work, it still doesn't mean it's a good idea.
The basic premise, if I must repeat it yet again, is that for you to make back $6, someone else has to give up $6. And the source of that $6 is from the people below you, paying you. So for someone to have earned more than that, it means others below you have collectively lost that same amount. And for them to break even and even make a profit, it means that more people below them has to be recruited to give those below you.
Bottom line, pyramid schemes are an unsustainable model.
And yes, I did not get the details correct earlier on the math. That's because I was mistaken on the information I've received. However, it was only on the details, and such details don't invalid the whole premise, thought I realize that it only complicates my position on this since many supporters that don't want to hear what I think on this and will only use that to show how wrong I am.
When it's all said and done though, I don't get why you guys are so fired up over this.
August 2nd, 2010 at 09:09 am
Certainly do your homework about which cash gifting communities you choose to join if you choose to do so. I can’t speak for All the various cash-gifting communities out there, but I want to defend the notion that “only people at the very top benefit”; or those who have joined earlier vs. later. This is simply not true, at least with the particular community I involve myself with. No one person has a special unfair advantage over another. I have quickly learned that not all cash-gifting communities are the same. You must do your own research to really know that you are making the right step. Just as with anything else, there is the good and the bad to all things. There are great cash-gifting communities out there helping many people overcome their struggles, you’ve just got to search to find the right ones. If you don’t choose to participate in the most charitable, freedom-inspiring, and plentiful act that I’ve recently discovered, why then ruin it for everyone else? What is inside the hearts of these “cash-gifting haters” that would prompt them to divide people, to provoke such hatred and disdain towards others, many of whom are literally in “survival-mode” right now and just trying to feed their families? Whatever it is, it certainly isn’t “god-like”.
August 2nd, 2010 at 09:20 am
your comment that "just because something can work, it doesn't mean it's a good idea."...is probably the most unintelligent & foolish assertion I've ever heard.
Cash Gifting Works People! What works can change your life. Sometimes, it really is that simple.
August 2nd, 2010 at 09:56 am
Now that you know that I am looking out for your interest, I still stand by my assertion that it is a scam.
August 2nd, 2010 at 10:23 am
Also, why is my comment the most unintelligent thing you've ever heard? Quite the contrary, I think the inability to grasp that concept is well, telling about someone's lack of intelligence....
"Can work" means work for now, for a short while, despite being able to dodge the risks and the odds against it. It does happen. Whether people win the lottery or manage to get away with murder, it does happen!
And yet, neither lotteries nor murder makes it a good idea even if you somehow make it work for you. This includes the very concept of pyramid schemes.
Seriously now, this isn't that difficult is it?
August 3rd, 2010 at 12:26 am
You Really Do Have "More" Broken Than Your Broken Arrow!