'MLM/Prosperity Gospel,' the most pernicious, and profitable, form of cultism operating in the world today.

From 'The Universal Identifying Characteristics of a Cult' (David Brear Axiom Books copyright 2005)
Cultism is a trap. Obviously, anyone who only examines the bait in a trap and who remains unaware of its true purpose, risks getting caught themselves. Just like a mousetrap, the basic design for the cultic trap has remained the same down the centuries even if the presentation of the bait has become evermore sophisticated. Sadly, many commentators have found it impossible - when faced with the apparently illogical results of cultism - to abandon their existing academic, and professional, disciplines, which are anchored in the logic of the traditional world. Consequently, their understanding has often been made impossible by misplaced objectivity. However, it must be remembered that a counterfeit banknote might be 99.9 % perfect, but the bit that is not makes all of it a fake. Similarly, in order to have any chance of understanding cultism, it must be approached from the apparentlysubjective point of view that its results are always the product of a contagious deception, the victims of which unconsciously accept fiction as fact. Only then, can the phenomenon be examined with genuine objectivity. Once this vital principle has been learned, the apparently authentic words and images reflected by persons under the influence of cultism - like those printed on counterfeit banknotes - are revealed as dangerous distractions. They should never be taken at face value and, therefore, I try to remind the reader of this at all times. Any commentator who repeats the reality-inverting shielding-terminology of any cultic group, but without detailed qualification (or heavy irony), demonstrates that he/she remains at a pitifully low-level of understanding.
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Due to the vast number of people it has deceived, exploited and silenced around the globe during the previous 50+ years, and the mountain of cash it has unlawfully generated (and continues to generate), the so-called 'MLM/Prosperity Gospel' is without doubt one of the most pernicious, and profitable, forms of blame-the-victim cultism operating in the world today. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that, due to their growing number and level of infiltration of traditional culture, 'MLM' racketeers represent perhaps the greatest threat to democracy and rule of law, of any latter-day cult instigators. 

Although cryptic warnings about this type of exploitative, esoteric ritual belief system can be found in the Bible (e.g. the 'Golden Calf'), its contemporary, bedazzling 'income opportunity' camouflage has been perfectly-tailored to reflect the spirit of the times. Whilst it almost goes without saying that selectively-blind, professional 'scholars of religion' (like Britain's Eileen Barker at 'INFORM,' America's J. Gordon Melton, etc.), have completely failed to identify, let alone inform anyone about the hidden dangers lurking inside this 'commercial' variation of the age-old cultic, Trojan Horse. 

Since 1989, UK tax-payers have been funding, via the UK government's Home Office, a registered charity known as 'INFORM,' housed at the London School of Economics, Dept. of Sociology. In recent years, 'INFORM' has been receiving around £140 000 annually of public funds. Part of this has been used to assemble a labyrinthine 'data base,' allegedly to provide free and objective, up-to-date information about 'cults and New Religious Movements,' for legislators, academics, law enforcement agents, members of the public, etc. 

Some 'members of a minority religious movement' 

Whilst reading the following, typically-nonsensical, sweeping statements (which could have come straight out of the 'Ministry of Truth' in George Orwell's 'Nineteen Eighty-Four'), bear in mind the reality of the world we live in (as shown in the above, chilling photograph). These statements are to be found on 'INFORM's' external Website under the apparently objective title:


 'When is a religion a cult?'

'Inform believes it is important to recognise that definitions are man-made decisions. Exactly what characteristics are "put together" under a label, and where the distinguishing boundaries are drawn between different phenomena, can vary from place to place and time to time. Furthermore, different people may use the same concept to refer to very different things. Sometimes a term is used merely to denote a negative or positive evaluation, rather than to tell us about the specific characteristics of the phenomenon.

It is worth noting that most countries have no precise definition of the word "religion", nor is there a recognised definition in international law; however some institutions have their own working definitions and some countries have registers of recognized religions.

  

Although "cult" and "sect" are used as technical terms by sociologists of religion, these terms have come to be used as pejorative labels in popular parlance, often telling us more about the attitude of the speaker than about the movement in question.

For this reason, Inform prefers not to label a particular group or movement as a "cult", but instead, to use more neutral terms such as "minority religion" or "movement" as a starting point, and then to describe what it is that the movement believes and does.'

http://www.inform.ac/node/1357


When translated into plain English, the sociological 'Thought-Police' at 'INFORM' have effectively issued the unbelievably-arrogant edict that:


No one is allowed to challenge the authenticity of anything labelled 'religious movement ,' whilst 'sociologists of religion' are the only people wise enough to define and use the terms, 'cult' and 'sect.' Therefore, anyone else employing them, is not to be trusted! 


Thus, through the constant repetition of the thought-stopping word, 'religion,' the obvious truth that (in the hands of narcissistic criminals, and/or criminal psychopaths) the phenomenon of self-perpetuating, non-rational, esoteric, ritual belief systems, can be easily perverted for the clandestine purpose of human exploitation, has been excluded from UK government policy for more than 20 years. Readers of this Blog should take note that, contrary to what the members of 'INFORM' have implied, no phenomenon can be accurately defined (arbitrarily or otherwise, and certainly not by a country). However, all phenomena have universal identifying characteristics. Indeed, as George Orwell proved, once you know how they work (by dissociating their exploited-victims from external reality whilst giving them the illusion that they are making free-choices) all totalitarian deceptions (which are reality-inverting constructions of twisted human minds) can be deconstructed by one universal allegory. The reason why I took the trouble to follow Orwell's example, by setting down the universal identifying characteristics of a pernicious or criminogenic cult, is so that when any free-thinking individual employs the word 'cult,' there can be absolutely no doubt as to what he/she means.


Sadly, whilst the members of all-encompassing organizations like 'INFORM' grudgingly accept that some crimes have been committed by the adherents of some 'religious movements,' they also continue to include in their 'doublethink' view of the cult phenomenon what narcissists, and megalomaniacal psychopaths, claim to have been doing, in apparent ignorance of what they have actually been doing (i.e. steadfastly pretending moral and intellectual authority whilst pursuing various hidden criminal objectives - fraudulent, and/or sexual, and/or violent, etc.). In reality, the inflexible members of groups like 'INFORM' who have obstructed and denigrated intellectually-rigorous common-sense inquirers into the cult phenomenon, have been a significant part of the problem and not the solution to it. Currently, 'INFORM's' unjustifiable public-funding (which last year was reduced by 75%) is under further review.

Since 2001, the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has effectively-ignored 'Prosperity Gospel' cults which continue to hide behind labyrinths of legally-registered corporate structures peddling financially-suicidal so-called 'Multi-Level Marketing/income opportunities.' These have all been variations of essentially the same dissimulated closed-market swindle based on the self-perpetuating, crackpot, pseudo-economic theory that endless chain recruitment + endless payments by the recruits = endless profits for the recruits. However, as is the case with 'scholars of religion,' ill-informed and selectively-blind trade regulators should never have been tasked with dealing with any part of the reality-inverting criminogenic cultic phenomenon in the first place. 'Prosperity Gospel' cultism has remained beyond the understanding of most trade regulators, because its mystifying external presentation was designed to be beyond the understanding of anyone unable to look beyond the end of his/her nose. That said, in theory, every agent of the FTC is supposed to act only in the interests of his/her employers - the people of the American republic. In reality, for years, certain senior FTC agents have had a severe conflict of interest, because they know full-well that, one day (if they keep their noses clean), they will have the possibility of taking lucrative posts as 'lobbyists.' The evidence for this extensive subversion of the democratic process, and suspension of the rule of law, in the USA, is massive and conclusive. Unfortunately, its catastrophic results have not been confined to 'the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.' 

Despite the fact that organized fraud, and the bribing of public officials, are serious criminal offences which, in theory, are covered by the US federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 1970, in 2006, the FTC put forward a new 'rule' allegedly to regulate (what its agents somewhat euphemistically described as) 'deceptive business opportunity propositions' (i.e. 'MLM income opportunity' frauds). The proposed 'rule' R511993 openly-recognised that there has been a serious problem with 'direct selling' in the USA and the FTC was finally going to require all so-called 'direct selling' companies to disclose much more key-information about their previously-hidden activities in order to protect the public. Predictably, as soon as this proposed change was published, the FTC was flooded with 17000 comments (many sent by deluded 'MLM' core-adherents) all vehemently opposing the inclusion of 'MLMs' in the new 'deceptive business opportunity rule.' Self-evidently, this almost-unprecedented 'public lobbying' campaign was itself part of a centrally-controlled, criminal attempt to prevent the investigation and prosecution of fraud and, therefore, it forms part of a pattern of ongoing, major racketeering activity. However, the demonstrable-dunces with diplomas at the FTC evidently took the pro-'MLM' comments at face value, and held 'hearings' and 'workshops.'

The 'Mormon' bosses of the 'Xango' mob

Amongst the 17000 comments sent to the FTC were those from 'MLM' front companies steadfastly pretending moral authority and to be supporters of any government moves to stamp out business opportunity fraud (provided they were not included). The following extracts have been taken from one such poisonous 'MLM' fairytale sent by the 'Mormon' bosses of the 'Xango' mob:

'XanGo is a privately held Utah limited liability company started in October 2002.  

Headquartered in Lehi, Utah, XanGo currently has nearly 600 employees.  XanGo 

operates under the direct sales business model, and thus utilizes independent distributors 

as its sales force.  There are roughly 500,000 XanGo™ Independent Distributors 

worldwide.  XanGo currently markets only one product, a mangosteen dietary 

supplement called XanGo™ Juice.  Mangosteen is a small, purplish fruit native to 

Southeast Asia, with a Latin name of Garcinia Mangostana.  Outside of XanGo Juice 

production, XanGo’s main service is to provide marketing and business support for its 

distributors.  XanGo is an active member of the Direct Selling Association (DSA) and 

holds itself, as well as its distributor force, to the DSA’s code of ethics. 

XanGo gives five to seven percent of its net profits to charity, particularly 

Operation Kids, which is an umbrella charity that funds: Operation Smile, Best Buddies, 

National McGruff House, COTA (Children’s Organ Transplant Association), Steve 

Young’s Forever Young Foundation, Christmas Box House International, and Right to 

Play.  Additional charities we donate to include: Hope Alliance, UMED (University of 

Utah charity), and other individual projects.  XanGo’s charitable commitment was a part 

of the company since conception, and truly reflects who we are...
... Taken together, these additional requirements will have a significant impact on the number of business opportunities sold by XanGo and all other direct selling companies.  While unquantifiable at this time, the cost to XanGo alone could possibly be in the millions of dollars a year.  Just in Utah, where XanGo is headquartered, multi-level marketers constitute a $4 billion dollar industry.  This industry employs over 4,600 Utahans, provides additional income to more than 90,000 Utah distributors, and pays millions in annual taxes.  Additionally, many companies in this industry give heavily to charity.  The state- and nation-wide impact this proposed rule will have is incalculable, yet certainly devastating.' 

http://www.ftc.gov/os/comments/businessopprule/522418-08351.pdf . 

As ever, it is interesting to note that the precisely-worded document which the 'Xango' bosses sent to the FTC, doesn't actually say that anyone has ever generated an overall net-income lawfully by regularly retailing 'Xango's' effectively-unsaleable wampum (i.e. $40 per bottle fruit juice) to the general public for a profit, because that would have been a direct lie. Furthermore, if  giving stolen millions to charity is proof of honesty, then Bernie Madoff should not be in prison today. Again, when the wider-evidence is examined, reality-inverting documents like this, are clearly part of a centrally-controlled, criminal attempt to further shut-down the critical and evaluative faculties of US federal trade regulators, in order to obstruct justice. Therefore, they form part of the same pattern of ongoing, major racketeering activity (as defined by the US federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 1970, and clarified by subsequent US Supreme Court Judgements).

Orrin Hatch promoting the 'Xango' racket on his official US Senate Website. http://hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/lifeinthesenategallery

Orrin Hatch at the 'grand opening of Xango's energy-efficient HQ' Lehi, Utah.

Perhaps the most significant (and predictable) omission from the 'Xango comment' to the FTC of 2006, is its bosses' extensive financial connections with the leadership of the 'Mormon Church' and with the venerable 'Mormon' Senator for Utah, Orrin Hatch.

Although it doesn't seem possible, faced with flocks of abusive 'MLM' shepherds and their financially-suicidal, bleating sheep, instead of holding their nerve and achieving their objective, senior FTC officers ignored their duty of care to the American public and ran-up the white flag. So-called 'MLM schemes' were suddenly exempted from the 'deceptive business opportunity rule' R5II993 which the FTC had specifically proposed to regulate 'MLMs' in the first place. However, several former, senior FTC officials are now to be found bleating in the 'MLM' fold.

Timothy Muris

J. Howard Beales

Joan Z. Bernstein

In their new, much-more-highly-paid capacities as attorneys acting for 'MLM' racketeers, three former FTC officials, Timothy Muris (FTC Chairman 2000-2004), J. Howard Beales (FTC Director Bureau of Consumer Protection, 2001-2004) and Joan Z. Bernstein (FTC Director Bureau of Consumer Protection, 1995-2001), submitted obstructive documents to the FTC hearings in which they opposed the wording of the new 'deceptive business opportunities rule' (Muris and Beales were ostensibly acting for 'Primerica Financial Services' and Bernstein for 'Amway').

Thus, an effectively-toothless new FTC 'rule' was introduced at the start of 2012 which requires anyone in the USA selling a 'business opportunity (other than an 'MLM') to supply anyone buying that 'business opportunity,' with a one page disclosure-form which must include: evidence to support any earnings claims, a list of any previous legal actions against the sponsoring company, and a declaration of the company's cancellation/refund policy. In other words, although they are obviously not described in accurate deconstructed terms by current FTC officials, this 'rule' specifically excludes 'MLM Prosperity Gospel' cults from regulation and effectively places their bosses above the rule of law in the USA. Sadly, FTC agents have completely failed to recognise 'Prosperity Gospel' cultism as a form of major, ongoing racketeering activity, because the FTC has itself foolishly allowed the instigators of these gangs to register their criminal activities as 'direct selling/MLM' companies: 'Amway', 'Herbalife', 'NuSkin', 'Xango', etc. However, in the adult world of quantifiable reality, no evidence exists (in the form of audited accounts; particularly, income-tax payment receipts) proving that a significant number of the constantly-churning adherents of any of these organizations (which all have exhibited the universal identifying characteristics of a cult) has ever received an overall net-income from lawfully-retailing goods, and/or services, directly to the general public for a profit.

David Vladeck

To add insult to injury, the following non-specific statement had previously been made by David Vladeck, the current  FTC Director Bureau of Consumer Protection:


'The victims of these (business opportunity) frauds are our neighbours - people who are trying to make an honest living... they risked their limited financial resources in the response to the promise of a job or an income - a chance at a profitable home-based business. But these turned out to be empty promises - and the people who counted on them ended up with high levels of frustration and even higher levels of debt.'

David Vladeck's largely-empty rhetoric was also repeated by another leading FTC attorney, Eileen Harrington. Obviously, it is a perfect description of 'MLM income opportunity' fraud, but these laudable words were part of the FTC's ironically-titled initiative, 'Operation Empty Promises' which, unbelievably, has not targeted any of the most-pernicious 'MLM' mobs.


http://ftc.gov/opa/2011/03/emptypromises.shtm  http://www.ftc.gov/multimedia/video/cases/empty-promises_hanks.shtm .


Meanwhile, the US Dept. of Justice, which (due to its previous, let's turn a blind-eye to businessmen, policy) is now sinking in a sea of fraud, has recently announced the following impressive-sounding initiative - a 'consumer protection working group to combat consumer fraud.' In plain language, this translates as: large numbers of US Justice Dept. attorneys now have a further pretext to keep holding 'conferences' at the expense of their employers whom they have failed to protect.


 http://www.stopfraud.gov/opa/pr/2012/February/12-ag-200.html . 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-20/-extravagant-spending-16-muffins-found-at-justice-conferences.html .


Judging by their previous, shameful track-record, legally-qualified, senior US government officials, would appear to be some of the last people in America who should be tasked with coming up with solutions to fraud. 

Self-evidently, the only common-sense legislation which could have halted 'MLM Prosperity Gospel' cultism in the USA many years ago (and before it became a global problem), would have been to have made it a fundamental requirement for the instigators of all alleged 'direct selling/income opportunities' to produce quantifiable evidence to prove that they have had a significant and sustainable source of revenue other than that deriving from their own participants. Had such common-sense legislation been enacted and rigorously enforced, then, since 1970, if the instigators of any alleged 'direct selling/income opportunity' had been unable to produce such elementary proof of the economic viability, and legality, of their alleged 'commercial' activities, they could have been immediately arrested by FBI agents, their labyrinths of counterfeit corporate structures closed-down and all their illegally-acquired assets seized, under existing RICO legislation. 

Figures published by the US 'Direct Selling Association'

Once you understand that all so-called 'MLM' companies have been cultic Trojan Horses, it is a pointless exercise examining their reality-inverting 'commercial' exteriors. The blindingly-obvious questions which have never been put to the officers of the so-called 'Direct Selling Association' by either the American press or by US law enforcement agents, are as follows:

1.  Exactly how many US citizens have signed up for so-called 'MLM income opportunities' overall, and exactly how many overall have got back more than they paid in
2. Out of all the alleged 'multi-billion dollar direct retail sales ' claimed by you and your member companies in the USA down the years, exactly what percentage have been authentic, external, retail transactions to members of the general public for a profit, rather than internal transactions between your member companies and their many millions of alleged 'business owners,' but which have been laundered as 'retail sales' by you, and by your member companies, in order to dissimulate the operation of closed-market swindles from which the ill-informed ordinary contributors cannot have hoped to receive any more money than they paid in?
3. Excluding all your own member companies' documentation, and that issued to their alleged 'distributors,' what quantifiable evidence can you produce proving that any of your member companies' alleged 'Multi-Level Marketing income opportunies' have actually had any significant, and sustainable, external source of revenue other than that deriving from their own participants? 

Although it remains unthinkable to many people, a large part of the so-called 'direct selling industry,' which recently boasted '$28.56 billions of annual retail sales in the USA,' can be proved to have been nothing more than the 'corporate'-front for a collection of 'Prosperity Gospel' cults running some of the most extensive, and outrageous, dissimulated, closed-market swindles in history. For a long time, it has not been in the interests of the US Justice Dept. to face up to this ugly reality, because 'MLM' racketeers have greased the palms of a remarkable number of key persons, and organizations, in the American establishment (particularly, leading members of the Republican party). Indeed, the ultimate dream of 'MLM' racketeers (to have the protection of the sitting US President), might soon be again turned into a nightmare reality. As far as we know, not even the 'Mafia' achieved that, but in 2011, it was revealed that two Utah-registered corporate structures controlled by the 'Mormon' bosses of the 'NuSkin' mob had each given $1 million  to 'Restore Our Future,' a so-called 'Super PAC' (instigated by former aides to 'Mormon' Mitt Romney), to 'support Mitt Romney's bid for the White House.'

David Brear (copyright 2012)