Why Jehovah's Witnesses Are Susceptible To Ponzi-Schemes and Rip-Off Artist More than the public!

by BucketShopBill 25 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  BucketShopBill

  This thread is dedicated to my friend Blondie when she asked "Why the Pay Day Loan Shop woman had so much access to JWs". In 1993 the Jehovah's Witnesses in Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterery, Stanislaus, San Fransisco, Alemeda Counties were spreading word of the Miracle Worker of Money from San Fransisco. Word traveled throughout the Circuit Overseers, District Overseers telling everyone these brothers in San Fransisco were paying 15% for "180 days loans"without any risk, most of these JWs were Elders and COs and DOs, it was only among them the scam remained to create a "in crowd feeling" and left out non Elders setting up the Sheep for something special down the road! Soon some of the DOs and COs wanted to use their cash to (six months, annual rate was 30 percent) buy things, the brothers printed out these bogus "Monthly Statements showing huge increases, some brothers decided to put their entire net-worth or borrow to join the band-wagon party! The brothers behind this Scam were juggling cash and soon realized it was time to allow the Rank-and-File who were begging to become part of this Scam, dumb JWs froathing at the mouth heard about "easy money", "no brains needed to get rich!". I think he was priming the pump to get the big bulk of cash from the Sheep and soon he did, the early COs and DOs pulled some cash while the newbie JWs poured out their savings to be among the Spiritually Elite JWs and soon found out where following the Spiritually Elite JWs get you financially(They will find out where it get's them spiritually on Judgement Day!).

  COs, DO and Elders were now allowed to spread the word that our Brothers JW-Mutual of KingdomHall Fund was open for everyone! I know several Circuit Overseers who lost Millions of Dollars, the Sheep got sheered because the COs and DOs were telling everyone how wonderful these brothers were and "there was not risk!" because "Jehovah's People are not crooks!". JWs are not very smart when it comes to investing money as a whole, sure there are brothers and sisters who are very good with money and know how to make more but they are looked upon by other JWs with great suspcion or considered "materialistic" because their not poor Window Washers like the faithful majority who occupy low paying jobs.

  The next Ponzi Scheme was out of San Diego, then the Pay-Day Loan Bitch who really cleaned-the-JW Clocks because she was a JW and "JWs don't rip people off!"
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  zeb

  If these poor b&s had seen anything like an education in their time they would have known and understood fully this rule;

  "If it sounds too good to be true it usually is".

  So it was a jw who did the fleecing eh? Chances are this was not the first and wont be the last time they have done this. But in a cult like the wts where paedophiles are covered up then a straight crook wont rate a mention thats if the elders know about this individual. Further that it was a jw doing the fleecing is a further example of jw's getting rules of the wts dealing with cong matters confused in their minds with what goes on in the business world.

  My sympathies for their losses.
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  NAVYTOWN

  For the most part, average JWs are rather gullible. Since they will unquestioningly believe the nonsense from the GB, that makes them easy pickings for various scam artists. Look at the 1975 debacle....so many JWs fell for that silly story hook, line and sinker. Sold homes, businesses, etc. And there is always another up-coming calendar date that sets the rank and file on fire. But what can you really expect from JWs who forego higher education just because some pompous nobodies on the GB tell them to. I have very little sympathy for adults who hand their thinking abilities over to group of uneducated fools in New York. Anyone with a lick of common sense sees the light and quits before they are harmed any further.
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  Bungi Bill

  For the most part, average JWs are rather gullible.

  Exactly!

  Bill
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  prologos

  They are very trusting individuals, trying to escape from a rapacious world, and

  Kind of greedy, thinking they can --, for as little as 15 minutes per month, -- gain trillions and trillions of Millenia in the PROMISED* panda petting paradise.

  A Promise* from the WT INC, a corporation that has not once delivered on it's printed prospectuses' promises.
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  LisaRose

  This is why scam artists sell their lists of suckers to other scam artists, people who fell for one kind of fraud are more like to fall for another type of fraud.
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  WingCommander

  I remember back about 20 years ago some snake-oil salesman JW's blew thru our local congregations here on the east coast talking about some new-age BS about "testing the body", finding multiple personalities in people in the congregations, and something about the "three-brain". It was some weird, totally weird, SH*T. A trusted family friend and elder came around with this all excited. My father was aghast at his gullability. It was in it's own way, a wake-up call for us. These crooks were running some form of kinesology or some stupid crap, and fleecing the flock royally, then leaving to the next congregation. Freakin' crooks!

  - Wing Commander
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  hoser

  I've seen three of these investment scams over the past few years. One involved jw's and the other two were non jw's. I guess there are suckers out there too. The reason they are so successful is because people are greedy and these schemes are engineered to play on peoples desire for easy money. One was a real estate scam, the other two were shares in start up companies.

  All three of the investment schemes followed the same pattern though.

  1. The investment was initially offered exclusively to prominent members of the group.

  2. The returns on investment for these elite few were unrealisticly high. Once these ones got their dividend checks they did the advertising for the scammer by telling all their friends and family. There was an option to reinvest instead of taking the cash and many did this.

  3. The scammer was at first hesitant to allow new investors, but then did allow but only investors who would commit a minimum amount, 10,000 or 25,000 dollars. Many borrowed and mortgaged their houses to get these funds.

  4. The scammer held meetings saying how great business was and mailed out fake income statements showing high returns on peoples investments.

  5. One day the scammers left the area without notice(but with a lot of money) and the whole thing fell apart.
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  L3G

  BSB,

  I know several Circuit Overseers who lost Millions of Dollars

  When I was in I didn't know any CO millionaires. Rather they were sort of glorified pioneers. Wow, things must have really changed. Is is the Borg paying them big bucks now?
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  Vidiot

  The JW religion itself is, arguably, a form of pyramid scheme, so of course JWs are susceptible.

  My Dad would occasionally get taken in by MLMs; it really annoyed my Mom.