tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post6696693789974490475..comments2024-03-27T23:11:38.102+01:00Comments on 'MLM' The American Dream Made Nightmare: Robert FitzPatrick on 'Vemma', 'MLM' and the FTC.David Brearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-89633508955846173092015-09-21T18:20:08.693+02:002015-09-21T18:20:08.693+02:00quixtarisacult- Thanks.
http://www.azcentral.com...quixtarisacult- Thanks. <br /><br />http://www.azcentral.com/story/money/business/consumers/2015/09/18/vemma-pyramid-scheme-case-federal-judge-ruling/32571325/<br /><br />This insightful ruling is quite extraordinary when you know that it could be applied to literally hundreds of other 'MLM' front companies, shielding essentially the same racket, but which the FTC has been ignoring (in certain cases, for decades).David Brearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-69774033086622861242015-09-21T17:51:11.838+02:002015-09-21T17:51:11.838+02:00I suppose you have seen this: https://www.truthin...I suppose you have seen this: https://www.truthinadvertising.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/FTC-v-Vemma-pre-inj-order-.pdfquixtarisaculthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07051645876072252255noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-24976836561363436282015-09-17T13:09:10.528+02:002015-09-17T13:09:10.528+02:00Many thanks for your efforts David. I can now see ...Many thanks for your efforts David. I can now see there can be no other solution of the MLM puzzle than the one you have laid out in these clear comments and Mr. FitzPatrick in his article.A.N. Other Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-69044986843698896022015-09-17T09:57:37.907+02:002015-09-17T09:57:37.907+02:00Anonymous - The problem with the FTC going after &...Anonymous - The problem with the FTC going after 'MLM' racketeers, is that the chronic failure of the FTC to protect the public, has been (and remains) a significant part of the problem.<br /><br />All 'MLM' racketeers (including the 'Vemma' mob) have falsely claimed that their activities were perfectly legal and approved by the FTC. Yet the quantifiable results of hundreds of these so-called 'MLM business opportunities' have not been 'similar to Vemma:' they have been absolutely bloody identical, but the quantifiable results of 'MLM' rackets have been deliberately hidden from the boys and girls at the FTC, and, until now, they haven't had the wit to go and look for them, let alone find them .<br /><br />Please apply your critical and evaluative faculties and try to understand that the legally-registered corporate labyrinth known as 'Vemma' was not a 'business.' On the contrary, its quantifiable results (i.e. effectively-universal net-losses for all its constantly churning particpants) prove that it was a highly-organised criminal enterprise disguised as a 'business.' As such, 'Vemma' was part of an ongoing criminogenic phenomenon of historic significance<br /><br />There are approximately 1400 copy-cat criminal rackets (laughably described as the 'MLM industry') hiding behind legally registered corporate labyrinths in the USA. There are former senior FTC officials who should be facing racketeering charges themselves for allowing this tragicomic situation to come about.David Brearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-89860970179014951082015-09-17T00:01:17.494+02:002015-09-17T00:01:17.494+02:00I agree that most MLM companies have a business mo...I agree that most MLM companies have a business model similar to Vemma, but I don't see any problem ith FTC going after Vemma. They need to start somewhere. Stopping the entire industry at the same time would not be possible, and it is smart to start with a company they are sure they will be able to shut down and make precedence that will make it easier to shut down other MLM companies.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-26198500293525704412015-09-15T09:33:12.358+02:002015-09-15T09:33:12.358+02:00Anonymous - Perhaps, but in my opininion, FTC offi...Anonymous - Perhaps, but in my opininion, FTC officials are more than 60 years too late when it comes to challenging the 'MLM' fairy story. What has come to be laughably-referred to as the 'MLM industry,' should now be finally recognised as a major racketeering problem for the FBI.<br /><br />One would have to be pretty naive, and/or stupid, to imagine that all the hundreds of copy-cat corporate structures (currently employing exactly the same reality-inverting 'MLM income opportunity' jargon to hide the key-information that all of them have had effectively 100% loss churn/rates for never-ending chains of ill-informed participants) have not been part of an ongoing criminogenic phenomenon.<br /><br />The so-called 'Herbalife income opportunity' has been hiding exactly the same catastrophic results as the so-called 'Vemma income opportunity.'<br /><br />Effectively universal losses for tens of millions of 'MLM' participants, combined with an effectively universal lack of complaint, proves that it would be far more accurate to describe so-called 'MLM income opportunities,' as reality-inverting invitations to commit financial and psychological suicide.David Brearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-40595198376400027342015-09-15T08:23:45.861+02:002015-09-15T08:23:45.861+02:00I think the FTC needs to decide if the abuses in H...I think the FTC needs to decide if the abuses in Herbalife have been isolated cases or if they have been part of a system. The FTC has looked at Vemma and decided the abuses were not isolated. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-25798028860036043712015-09-09T11:24:25.247+02:002015-09-09T11:24:25.247+02:00Anonymous - What you thoughtlessly describe as ...Anonymous - What you thoughtlessly describe as 'extreme words,' form merely an accurate and fully-deconstructed analysis of an extreme situation (i.e. a very serious chronic failure of US law enforcement to recognise a criminogenic phenomenon of historic significance) which I didn't create. <br /><br /><br />David Brearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-37329075433950021252015-09-09T11:03:09.735+02:002015-09-09T11:03:09.735+02:00Your recent comment was extreme David.
"The ...Your recent comment was extreme David.<br /><br />"The idea that the Commisioners had to take a vote on this, is both frightening and funny. The 'MLM' fairy story has been allowed to spread around the globe for more than 60 years, without any rigorous challenge to its overall authenticity from US law enforcement agents.<br /><br />Personally, I think that the last people on Earth who should be tackling any part of the 'MLM' phenomenon, are US trade officials. Notice how this FTC press release still employs the thought-stopping term 'MLM' without qualification or irony. <br /><br />In respect of the wider 'MLM' phenomenon, for a very long time I've been saying that you can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time (with the notable exception of the many ambitious dunces with law diplomas, temporarily holding down low-paid jobs at the FTC, like former FTC Commissioner, Pamela Jones Harbour).<br /><br />I'm now very curious to learn what differences the current crop of FTC officials might put forward between the 'Vemma' racket and all the others, particularly the one called 'Herbalife.' "Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-55110187890664311592015-09-09T09:35:24.557+02:002015-09-09T09:35:24.557+02:00Anonymous - My published, overall brief-analysis o...Anonymous - My published, overall brief-analysis of so-called 'MLM' (which is in broad agreement with that of Robert FitzPatrick) is as follows:<br /><br />More than half a century of quantifiable evidence, proves beyond all reasonable doubt that what has become popularly known as 'Multi-Level Marketing' is nothing more than an absurd, cultic, economic pseudo-science, and that the impressive-sounding made-up term 'MLM,' is, therefore, part of an extensive, thought-stopping, non-traditional jargon which has been developed, and constantly-repeated, by the instigators, and associates, of various, copy-cat, major, and minor, ongoing organized crime groups (hiding behind labyrinths of legally-registered corporate structures) to shut-down the critical, and evaluative, faculties of victims, and of casual observers, in order to perpetrate, and dissimulate, a series of blame-the-victim closed-market swindles or pyramid scams (dressed up as 'legitimate direct selling income opportunites'), and related advance-fee frauds (dressed up as 'legitimate training and motivation, self-betterment, programs, recruitment leads, lead generation systems,' etc.).<br /><br />Perhaps you'd like to enlighten my readers as to what you find 'so extreme' about my choice of words?David Brearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122471861776758998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7762286463497378104.post-70119434701546950462015-09-09T09:28:46.543+02:002015-09-09T09:28:46.543+02:00Robert FitzPatrick describes exactly the same situ...Robert FitzPatrick describes exactly the same situation that you have described David, but he's not so extreme in his choice of words.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com