When is a conviction not a conviction?

Shyam

Many people have suggested to me that the multi-billion dollar global 'MLM' racket is comparable to the multi-billion dollar global tobacco racket, in that it has been gradually allowed to grow and to infiltrate traditional culture to a degree where it can be severely limited (by public education), but not stopped (by traditional law enforcement). However, I would contend that, although the noxious effects of nicotine addiction are obviously far more-deadly, 'MLM' addiction is even more pernicious - in that 'MLM' frauds have been designed to self-perpetuate, silence their victims and isolate their beneficiaries from liability. Indeed, 'MLM' frauds behave like variations of the same, sustainable computer virus. History has proved that when an 'MLM' fraud has effectively run its course in one country, it simply moves on to infect the minds of ill-informed individuals elsewhere. This is exactly what is happening right now in India, where (due to the previous maintenence of an absolute monopoly of information) very few people currently seem to be aware that'MLM' is addictive, let alone that it has noxious effects.

Fifty years ago, the bosses of the US tobacco industry still maintained an absolute monopoly of information over the facts that nicotine is an addictive drug and that smoking has noxious effects. Today, after a long struggle, that monopoly has been effectively destroyed in the USA, but nicotine addiction remains an enormous, and growing, problem elsewhere; particularly, in poor African countries (where a packet of cigarettes still costs just a few cents). That said, the USA seems to have become a country which is not run for the benefit of its people, but for the benefit of billionaire racketeers. The recent refusal (without comment) of the US Supreme Court (at the request of the Obama administration) to get involved in a 10 year legal battle between the American people and the tobacco industry, has left many people baffled http://www.ricolawblog.com/articles/rico-law/tobacco-1/ . However, immediately after the Supreme Court debacle, the value of shares in tobacco companies rocketed.

In brief, after examining the evidence, various US courts previously decided that, for more than half a century, the bosses of the US tobacco industry had engaged in a vast conspiracy to defraud the American public by maliciously combining to hide the truth about the deadly risks of smoking and pasive smoking, in order to make money. Not only that, but the bosses of the tobacco industry were judged to have systematically denied that nicotine is an addictive drug (contrary to the findings of their own researchers), whilst secretly introducing dangerous additives into cigarettes to render nicotine even more addictive. This extensive, and highly-organized, fraud was judged to have generated hundreds of billions of dollars illegally whilst destroying the health, and causing the deaths, of countless millions ill-informed Americans. However, various other legal rulings have blocked the US government from recovering (under the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act) $280 billions of past, illegal tobacco profits and a $14 billions penalty to finance a national campaign to reduce smoking. After coming to office, the Obama administration appealed (on behalf of the American people) to the US Supreme Court in order to obtain the $294 billions, but the Court declined even to examine the matter.

In other words, the billionaire bosses of the US tobacco industry are convicted racketeers sitting on a pile of stolen cash, but (after making promises to reform) it's 'business' as usual.

The billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' mob and, their many copy-cats, must have followed this protracted farce with great interest.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

It is a case of cheating and money circulation scheme, says Supreme Court

Now let us look at the judgement of the highest court of the land, the Supreme Court of India. In Kuriachan Chacko and others vs. State of Kerala (2008) 8 SCC, the Supreme Court stated that Section 2 (c) of Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 does not insist that enrollment of members must be by members already enrolled. It also stated that enrollment of new members by whosoever is immaterial. (It should be noted here that Amway also claims that there is no compulsion to enroll new members.)

A quick look at the scheme reveals that each member has to pay Rs. 625 and purchase one unit of lotteries from the promoters. The promoters will make use of Rs. 350 to purchase 35 lottery tickets of the Kerala Government for the next 35 weeks. If the unit-holder wins any prize up to Rs. 5000 in the 35 draws, the promoters shall collect the amount and pay the same to the unit-holder. If the unit-holder wins any prize above Rs. 5,000 the ticket shall be handed over to the unit holder for collection of the amount. The balance of Rs. 275 will be used for the subscription of a magazine for one year. The unit holder will be returned not only Rs. 635 for twice his investment Rs. 1250 on an early date. The promoters said that all persons would be able to double their investment at the earliest. No specific time, however, was given but it was assured that the amount would be doubled at the earliest and it would be paid on the basis of seniority.

Under the scheme, the amount of Rs. 1250 will be paid to the unit-holder as soon as 14 more members are enrolled. The idea appeared to be very attractive and the membership collection during a short period reached to almost Rs. 500 crore (five billion). There was aggressive publicity and marketing through visual and print media. More and more amounts were coming into the kitty of the promoters from unit holders.

Suddenly, however, there is a jolt to the scheme. Police authorities registered a crime against the promoters for an offence punishable under Section 420 of IPC (cheating) read with Section 34 (joint liability) and under Sections 4 and 5 read with Sections 2(c) and 3 of the PCMC Act, 1978 and Sections 45 -I (bb) 45-S and 58-B of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The High Court confirmed the trial court framing of charges.

When the case reached the Supreme Court, in this case, it was held that both the essentials of Section 2(c) of the Act are present. The scheme provides for (i) making of quick of easy money and (ii) it is dependent upon an event or contingency relative or applicable to the enrollment of members into the scheme. A member would be entitled to double the amount only when after his enrollment, additional 14 members are enrolled in the scheme. The second ingredient such payment of money is dependent on the 'event or contingency relative or applicable to the enrollment of members into the scheme' is thus very much present. The contention that there is no obligation on the part of the unit-holder to enroll more members has no force. Section 2 (c) nowhere provides that a member of the scheme must himself, enroll other members. The requirement of law is 'an event or contingency relative or applicable to the enrollment of members into the scheme' and nothing more. The event or contingency on the happening of which the amount would become payable must be relative or applicable to the enrollment of the members into the scheme. It is immaterial by whom such members are enrolled. The sole consideration is that payment of money must be dependent on an event or contingency relative or applicable to the enrollment of more persons into the scheme, nothing more though nothing less. In the present case, the second ingredient is very much present.

It is clear in the advertisement, a member would get double the amount when after his enrollment, two members were enrolled under him and thereafter, 4 other persons were enrolled under them and after their enrollment 8 persons were enrolled under them. Thus only after 14 persons under the first enrolled person become members under the scheme, the first person would get Rs. 1250 i.e. double the investment. It must be evident for any discerning mind that this scheme cannot work unless more and more subscribers join.

The Supreme Court stated that there is no reason to assume that the promoters had no contumacious intention and they embarked on the venture without any culpable motive on the honest assumption that the tickets sold through them will win prizes and sufficient commission will be available to pay double the amount to all the unit holders. The Court took note that the fact that inherently there is merit in the allegation of the prosecution that the scheme so grossly unworkable that the persons who made representations to that effect and induced persons to part with money did entertain the contumacious intention.

The Supreme Court upheld the High Court observation that the promoters very well knew that it is certain that the scheme was impracticable and unworkable making tall promises which the makers of the promises knew full well that it could not work successfully. It could work for some time in that "Paula can be robbed to pay Peter" but ultimately when there is a large mass of Peters, they will be left in the lurch without any remedy as they would by then have been deceived and deprived of their money. If it is so, it could be said to be a case for application of Section 420 (cheating) read with 34 (joint liability) of IPC of course at this stage.

The Supreme Court, thus, dismissed the appeals.

'MLM' bullshit hides a financial holocaust

Shyam

Yet again, senior Indian Judges have not only applied the law, but also common sense. When faced with aggressive writs maliciously designed by unconvincing racketeers to obstruct justice in order that they can continue to commit crime, senior Indian Judges continue to rule that what the more-convincing, legal representatives of so-called 'MLM' companies all claim their employers to have been doing, carries no weight in a court of law.

Sadly, the law is generally restricted to examining individual cases. However, when the wider-picture is examined, more than half a century of evidence (including tens of millions of ill-informed individuals around the world who have collectively wasted billions of hours and dollars, but who have mostly remained guilt-ridden and silent) proves beyond all reasonable doubt that 'Mutilevel Marketing' has been the made-up technical-sounding shield for a pernicious blame-the-victim fraud based on propagating unquestioning belief in an emotionally and intellectually overwhelming, cultic pseudo-science. Typically, obedient adherents of 'MLM' groups have all been granted ego-inflating names, and/or ranks, and/or titles, whilst non-initiates have been referred to using derogatory, dehumanizing terms. Although 'MLM' initiation has at first appeared to be reasonable and benefits achievable, this self-perpetuating bullshit has gradually become evermore costly and mystifying. Ultimately, it has been completely incomprehensible and its claimed benefits have never been quantifiable.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

V-Can Network used the same tactic of Amway in 2003

In 2003, a multilevel marketing company V-Can Network (Private) Limited which marketed three products - Ozone water purifier, Magnetic bed and Companion (multipurpose foldable table with four seats and designed to look like a suit case) filed a writ petition in Madras High Court to issue a writ of Mandamus directing the police not to prevent the company from carrying on their day-to-day business of selling their products and services under the multilevel marketing scheme by using their respective offices and network systems.

The company said that each of the products cost Rs. 5990 and sold under distribution system in addition to the direct sales which is being networked from individual to individual. This system already existed in India and many other companies are doing the same business of individual networking system. The consumer makes the purchase out of his won will and there is no compulsion in the business and the same person out of his own decision and will may become a distributor or may remain as consumer himself. (Amway puts forward the same argument) The distributor is getting commission for the sale he is undertaking and such independent distributor have the power not only to sell the products but also appoint two other distributors under him and all of them can sell the company products and earn points apart from incentive commission on the value of the products sold.

The purchaser who became distributor on accumulation of 600 value points, becomes an independent distributor and eligible to avail discount up to 30% of the sale price of the product. Three products are manufactured scientifically. Nearly 50,000 distributors in five States are depending on this business and nearly two lakh people are directly involved earning livelihood out of this system. Though there is no complaint from any quarter, recently police arrested four distributors and registered a case. The company stated that leading legal personalities have certified that their system of business would not fall within the ambit of PCMC Act.

After exhaustive hearing, the High Court held that though the company claim innocence and their business being lawful, the same has to be ascertained only after thorough investigation, final report, trial, evidence and judgement and in such circumstance, the grievance expressed by V-Can Network cannot be gone into a writ jurisdiction. It is needless to mention that it is open to them to put-forth their defence before the appropriate court if their business is lawful. Hence this writ petition is dismissed.

NMart, a racketeer waiting out there to strike Indians a la Amway

NMart, a national level racket is about to strike Indians. NMart, a Gujarat-based retail outlet is soon launching 30 retail outlets through out the country including a small city like Vijayawada. They plan to sell provisions and every purchaser would get points on purchase of provisions like rice, cooking oil and others. On attaining some points, they would be rewarded with cash incentives or they could opt for more provisions. It looks good. We all purchase provisions every day and we purchase them wherever it is reasonably priced and of good quality. What more we need if we get points in our kitty for purchasing goods and would be rewarded.

But the catch is, we have to enroll as members by paying Rs. 5,500. We would be given coupons worth Rs. 5,000 which could be used in 48 months. If we use them we get points also. If every member enrolls more members they would be benefited. Rings any bell. This is nothing but another copy cat of Amway India.

In essence, this fellow wants to encash the greed of people even before launching a single retail outlet. If he could enroll 1,000 members (5,500x1000) he would neatly pocket Rs 5.5 million even without selling a single kilo of rice. If he collects membership fee from all the 30 retail outlets through out the country, one could imagine how much he is going to pocket. That is the racket which is out there waiting to strike Indians.

Now the question is whether the Indians would accept to be robbed once again. Already a set of racketeers set foot in the market inducing the gullible to become members in the scheme. These shameless, educated brutes do not mind to cheat their own friends and relatives with the promise of getting rich easy and quick. The other day a mysterious person called the Secretary of Corporate Frauds Watch (CFW) and attempted to convince him that this is a good business opportunity. He said that he has seen the pamphlets distributed by CFW appealing people not to fall prey to the multilevel marketing menace.

Corporate Frauds Watch has already taken up this issue with the higher police officials and they promised to look into the racket.

Amway India or Apple FMCG they are all same family of racketeers

Shyam

The familiar, reality-inverting, bullshit defence put forward by amoral Indian attorneys acting for the 'MLM' racketeers behind the corporate structure known as 'Apple FMCG,' beggars belief. Just like the amoral Indian attorneys acting for 'Amway India Enterprises,' they have tried to portray their criminal employers as innocent victims - law-abiding businessmen/women under attack.

Just to recap Shyam, these unoriginal shysters have claimed that:

- 'Apple FMCG' must be legitimate, because no participant in its 'MLM' scheme has (so far) complained

- 'Apple FMCG' markets everyday consumer goods (branded'Joy Eternal' ) using 'Networks of Distributors,' some of whom were unemployed men who have earned good incomes from 'MLM', because they were talented and because they put in a lot of effort

- 'Apple FMCG Distributors' can earn commission by selling products to the public and by recruiting more 'Distributors,' but 'Apple FMCG' cannot be an endless chain pyramid scam or money circulation scheme, because these commissions are actually calculated on the value of goods sold by 'Distributors'and their recruits, and on the value of goods sold by the recruits of their recruits, etc. ad infinitum

- The Indian police have no right to investigate the activities of 'Apple FMCG' as being possibly in breach of Indian criminal legislation designed to protect the Indian public from economically-unviable money circulation schemes, because the owners of wealthy US-based 'MLM' companies have been permitted to register companies all over the world including in India

Yet, 50+ years of evidence proves that:

- the cruel techniques developed by 'MLM' racketeers have been maliciously designed to blame their victims and load them with guilt, in order to prevent them from complaining.

- no matter how much effort they put in, no non-salaried 'MLM'commission agent could have earned a living out of selling products (for a profit) supplied by their 'MLM' company, to persons who were not non-salaried commission agents of their company, because the controlled high-price and banal quality of 'MLM' products has always rendered this diversionary wampum effectively unsaleable on the open-market

- in reality, the only conceivable avenue that has been left open to non-salaried 'MLM' commission agents to try to make a profit, has been to hand over a regular, inflated cash payment (arbitrarily defined as 'sales') to their 'MLM' company (in exchange for a quantity of diversionary wampum), and endeavour to infect more, contageous 'MLM' victims by persuading them that the exact duplication of this proven plan of self-consumption and recruiment, combined with 100% belief in its authenticity, can lead anyone to Total Financial Freedom

- the billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' mob have bought political protection in the USA, paving the way for countless copy-cat 'MLM' racketeers in America and all around the world

Given this evidence, it is no wonder that the ginning gangs of identical 'MLM' racketeers behind 'Amway India Enterprises'and 'Apple FMCG' have sought to obstruct an intellectually-rigorous investigation into what actually lurks behind their identical fake 'Direct Selling' companies.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

The 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw reverts to a classic cultic tactic

Shyam

As predicted, your resident 'Amway IBO' (Insolvent Bullshit Offerer), Mr. Steadson, continues to accuse us of blindly believing all legitimate business to be a fraud. However, his latest puerile insults again reveal him to be dissociated from external reality:

'Quite frankly I'm astounded that people that stupid have managed to mate and have children and spread their stupid genes.'

Unfortunately, Mr. Steadson's extensive Internet propaganda activities prove him to be a deployable agent furthering the criminal objectives of cultic racketeers. Apparently, he has become completely dependent on a collective paranoid delusion of absolute moral and intellectual supremacy fundamental to the maintainence of his individual self-esteem/identity and related psychological function. In plain language, at the present time, it remains impossible for this self-appointed and self-righteous, comic-book, masked-avenger to come out of the stale darkness of the 'Amway' bunker into the bright light of day and accept the global financial holocaust that unquestioning belief in the authenticity of these absurd, so-called 'MLM Business Opportunities' has caused, and continues to cause.

Again, senior Indian Judges have seen right through layers of reality-inverting 'MLM' bullshit, but that doesn't stop Mr. Steadson from firing-off another unsolicited barrage of the stuff.

Faced with the simple explanation of how (starting with the'Nutrilite' and 'Amway' originals) all so-called 'MLM Business Opportunities' have been cruel, blame-the-victim, closed-market swindles (without significant, or sustainable, sources of external revenue to produce profits for all the tens of millions of transient victims who have been deceived into handing over their cash during the previous 50+years), Mr. Steadson is obliged to follow one of the classic reality-inverting tactics of cult apologists. When the authenticity of their mystifying, pseudo-scientific bullshit is challenged, such people always accuse their challengers of being too stupid to understand.

Notice, however, that the 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw can't go so far as to say directly that senior Indian Judges are too stupid to understand how 'MLM' works, but (in effect) that's exactly what he has said.

Unfortunately for Mr. Steadson and his de facto bosses, senior Indian Judges appear to be in complete agreement with us. They have worked out exactly why so-called 'MLM' can never work and is, therefore, unlawful and a menace to society.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Madras High Court raps Apple FMCG like AP High Court to Amway India

Now let us look at another multilevel marketing company M/s Apple FMCG Marketing (Pvt) Ltd which filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court appealing to declare that its business model of selling products through the network marketing system is legal and not in contravention of the provisions of the Prize Chits & Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 or any other law. This was way back in 2004.

The Madras High Court held: It is true that several companies including multinational companies carry on the business of the 'multilevel marketing' and ti is also true the the Executive and the law enforcing authorities keep a blind eye on such activities. This also does not make an illegal act legal. It is always a fact that the law enforcing authority would try to close the stable only after the horse had escaped (para 22).

The petitioner is a company marketing various products including shampoo, tea, coffee powder, after-shave lotion etc. under the brand name 'Joy Eternal' through network marketing. Several unemployed youth have taken up the marketing of these product and have earned satisfactory incomes depending on their talents and efforts.

No complaints have been received from any consumer about the quality of goods sold. Under the scheme of network marketing the company sells products to the customers and the consumers in turn can sell the products to their peers and earn commission out of the sale. In fact it avoids many middlemen and cost of advertisement, etc. The marketing process is carried out directly by recruiting the customers themselves as distributors of the products and services; the company regularly organises business development meetings and seminars, distributor meetings, etc. The participants of the meetings are encouraged to take up the distributorship of the products and are suitably registered if they so desire. There is no service fee for registration as distributor. Any person who is interested is given a product for the price fixed. The distributors are encouraged to enroll more distributors. The commissions are given only as per the volume of the sales made by the individual distributor and his team. This system ensures that intermediate distributors are not like a chain leading to the customer and the company.

There are only two stages-- stockist and distributor. The distributor can introduce another person as a distributor and he will also get commission. The distributor has to put in his effort in selling the products and then only he will get the commission. The company also takes care of the risks involved in the trading activities; there is no deposit of money by the consumers and the products are given to the person who pays the money for the same. The distributors are paying the price for the products they purchase. (Rings any bell. This is the same modus operandi employed by Amway India- Editor)

The petitioner (Apple FMCG) submitted that earlier 45% of the sale amount was distributed as commission but presently it is increased to 65% of the sale price. That means the goods which are worth Rs. 35 are sold at Rs. 100 and this Rs. 35 covers not only the price of the goods but also expenditure involves forth administration of the company. Of course the court cannot interfere with the fixation for the price. Anybody is free to fix any price and it is for the customers to accept or not. But it is not an ordinary sale of goods. The persons are lured to become a distributor only on the hope of expectation that he may get more commission if he sells the products similarly to others. Of course, many persons are earning lot of commission in this manner. This chain is likely to progress for some time. At one point of time the progress of the chain will stop. On that day persons who buy the products may not find any further distributor to purchase from them. By the time the company would have earned enormous profit. But a very large number of persons would be left cheated.

The main contentions of the petitioners are as follows:

1) So far no complaints have been received against them from any distributor. Therefore, this multilevel marketing has not caused any loss to any of the distributors.

2) There is no 'service fee' for registration as distributor.

3) Every distributor gets commission on the basis of the volume of business that is generated by him.

4) No chain of customers in the process.

5) The distributors and the purchaser pay the value of the product that is purchased, therefore, they are not paying any excess amount.

7) They collect only nominal service charge for the service rendered.

8) The surveillance by the respondents (the Police) violates the petitioners' fundamental right provided under Articles 19 (1) (a) and 19 (1) (g) of the Constitutions of India.

9) Further the Union of India has also clarified that the multilevel marketing does not infringe the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978.

Mere fact no complaints were received does not make an act legal, if it be otherwise illegal.

The contention of the petitioners is that there is no chain of customers. This contention appears not acceptable. The scheme creates chain of customers and only when the chain progresses without any break in any of the links, the principal distributor gets more commission.

The contention that no service charge is collected also does not appear to be correct.

The progress of the chain of customers, at some point of time, would get saturated and the distributor, who purchases the goods will not find any purchaser/sub-distributor to sell or enroll afresh. Therefore lakhs or even millions of people are bound to lose their entire money.

There cannot be any doubt by enrolling new members and by the process of selling the goods to new distributors this chain progresses; the person who became such member earlier get commission without doing any work; getting such a commission is nothing but getting quick or easy money. Therefore such schemes the so called 'multilevel marketing' definitely falls within the definition of money circulation scheme.

Regarding the Union of India making a clarification that multilevel marketing does not violate or offend the provisions of the Act, it is to suffice to say that it is not for Union of India or any Member of Parliament to interpret the provisions of any Act. The power to interpret the Act is only vested in the judiciary and that power is not given to the Executive. The statement given by the Union of India or its Officers that multilevel marketing does not attract the provisions of the Act cannot legalise an illegal act.

It is always a fact that the law enforcing authority would try to close the stable only after the horse had escaped. That is the law enforcing authority do not take preventive action to enforce the provisions of the existing law.

For all these reasons the scheme of so called multilevel marketing cannot be said not to violate the provisions of the PCMC Act.

Apart from that this multilevel marketing results in exploitation of the personal influence of each and every distributor or his close relative. Though it may not amount to in violation of this Act, it would attract some other laws; it may result in undue influence, coercion, extortion, etc.

It is true that the petitioners are comparatively a small fish in the business of the so called MLM. There are other comparatively bigger associations or institutions or companies which adopt similar schemes. (Probably, the Madras High Court was thinking of Amway India). It is for the enforcing authorities to have a watchful eye on all such activities.

Follow the money

Shyam

(At the risk of the masked 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw, Mr. 'IBOFB' Steadson, accusing us of being the rabid adherents of an 'international anti-capitalist cult' who blindly believe all legitimate business to be a fraud).

Based on the courageous testimony of some of its victims, the reality-inverting corporate mask known as the 'India Today Book Club' has obviously been hiding an elementary advance fee fraud. Typically, this ugly deception has involved the manipulation of individuals' instinctual desires.

Countless, ill-informed Indian citizens have been induced to hand over their money in exchange for cheaply-procured wampum (which they would never want to buy in the cold light of day) by progressively bedazzling them with what appear to be more and more attractive future rewards.

As ever, an old maxim applies:

'If something seems too good to be true, then it probably is too good to be true.'

I sincerely hope that the victims of 'India Today Book Club' can recover their losses, but I think it's pretty safe to assume that, just like 'Amway India Enterprises,' the grinning dummies registered as the corporate officers of this fake company will not be the persons who have pocketed the lion's share of its illegal profits.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Another victim of India Today Book Club comes out

Here is another victim of India Today Book Club

ITBC | Fraudsters and Cheats | Proposal for a Class Action Suit

Hi,
I am Sujata Garimella.
Like you, I too trusted the India Today name and had ordered stuff from ITBC. My experience was awful. I did not get what I ordered for. I did not get the promised "extras". And I did not get any solution either.
This whole nightmare started in September 2009 for me.
To top it all they still keep calling me.
I plan to sue them for Rs. 10 lakhs. I have started an action against them and would like more victims of ITBC's dirty tricks to join in because there is a lot of strength in numbers.
Please click the link below and join in.
http://voip-india.webs.com/itbcsuethem.html
Like you and me there are lakhs of other victims of ITBC's malpractices. There is a link in the web page above that will take you to a list of the sites on which people have complained. I request you to take the time and send at least 50 of them this mail and ask them to send it forward.
That way we can reach the maximum number of people in the shortest period of time and quickly initiate legal proceedings.
I hope we have 10,000 people and then, if not getting the money we can at least ensure that the company closes down.
Looking forward to take up arms together with you.
Sujata

Let us hope more and more people would come out and file criminal cases against such con companies.

Could a criminal like Amway continue its illegal business?

A person was arrested for indulging in a crime. He was arrested, chargesheeted and the trial is going on. Could he be allowed to commit the same offence again and again. Is it possible in any country? But it happens only in India.

Here the person in question is Amway India. Police conducted raids on the premises of Amway India and filed a criminal case. Amway India approached the High Court to declare its business model as legal. However, the High Court decided otherwise and held that its business model is illegal and the police could go ahead with the investigation. The Amway India again moved the Highest court of the land, the Supreme Court of India. The Highest Court also found the company guilty. The Police filed the charge sheet in the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court, Nampally, Hyderabad. The trial is going on.

However, the Amway India is allowed to continue its illegal operations. It is high time to ponder what is wrong with our judicial system.

Another thing is the perfunctory investigation by the CID police of Andhra Pradesh. They investigated into a money circulation scheme but found out that only nine persons were involved in the money circulation scheme. How come? Don't ask questions. That is the way the CID investigates. More, they do not take cognizance of the persons who filed writ petitions in the High Court stating that they are Independent Business Owners of Amway India. For reasons better known to the CID, they were let off without including their names in the charge sheet.

The State Government issued an order restraining specifically Amway India from issuing advertisements in any media. This order is more in breach than in observance. Still, no action is initiated against Amway India.

Above all, Amway India through its front organisation the Indian Direct Selling Association demands legalisation of direct selling in the country. Never ask what is direct selling.

What would happen to the country if there is no respect for the law of the land?

'Multilevel Marketing' addiction can seriously damage your financial and mental health

Shyam

These latest reality-inverting comments are typical of transient, insolvent 'Amway' addicts. However, the demonstrably-deluded persons repeating these lines are self-evidently so bedazzled by the Utopian 'Amway' myth and, consequently, so devoid of their critical and evaluative faculties, that, even when it is clearly explained to them that the billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' mob are vile racketeers who have maliciously created, and/or subverted, a mystifying labyrinth of (apparently independent) corporate structures pursuing lawful, and/or unlawful enterprises, in order to prevent, and/or divert, investigation and isolate themselves from liability, these poor persons remain incapable of facing the ego-destroying reality that they have been deceived and are being exploited.

Interestingly, near-identical sophistic arguments have been produced by the billionaire manufacturers of cigarettes and their political lobbyists, to those produced by the billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' mob and their apologists. These have then been repeated by nicotine addicts. However, when the calculation is made about how much smoking-related illnesses, and premature deaths, cost, and how much tax-revenue and jobs the legal manufacture and sale of cigarettes has generated, an entirely different picture emerges. Yet, this is only part of an even wider, and dangerously-evolving illegal picture.

Today, if cigarettes were an entirely new product to the market, then, in the interests of public health (and the chances of being re-elected), no democratic government could justify their legal manufacture and sale. For decades the owners of the tobacco industry maliciously lied to, and/or withheld the truth from, the public about the noxious effects of smoking. I don't know about India, but, after the truth leaked out, for a long time in the European Union all cigarette packets had to carry a large warning sign: 'SMOKING CAN SERIOUSLY DAMAGE YOUR HEALTH'. The sign now reads : 'SMOKING KILLS'. There are even packets of cigarettes that carry gruesome colour photographs of smoking-related cancers, and European governments have individually increased their taxes on smoking to prohibitive levels. (Same is the case in India too.) The UK has some of the highest tabacco taxes in the world. However, the manufacure and sale of counterfeit cigarettes, and the smuggling of tax-free authentic cigarettes into Europe, has become a multi-billion Euro, illegal business.

http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/10/334&type=HTML

The defence of the 'Amway' racketeers on the sophistic grounds their counterfeit 'Direct Selling' companies generate thousands of jobs and millions of dollars of taxes around the world, is laughable. In reality, for more than half a century, behind the absurd front of 'Direct Selling' has lurked a multi-billion dollar closed-market swindle (upon which some retail sales-taxes have been paid to make this unlawful enterprise appear lawful) and related-advance fee frauds (a.k. a. 'tool scam') with even larger tax-free profits.

The damage that 'MLM' swindles have secretly caused, and are still causing, to the global economy (not to mention the misery inflicted on individual victims and their families) is almost without parallel in the sordid pantheon of major organized groups.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Amway apologists cry over loss of jobs

Following are some of the comments recently Corporate Frauds Watch received. One look at them reveals how hollow are they. These are all sent by 'wisemen'.

1. U Should be the first CHEAT. ur work has damaged many employees families.. crores of tax loss to govt. thousands of jobless.. u r taking their feed away.. ur saying fraud watch.. can u dare to watch political fraud.have u some family.. what they do.. are they also some blackmailers? atleast keep them good.Think at ur heart. CAN U CREATE 1 JOB IN UR LIFETIME? DONT CRY ON OTHERS?

2. u r an advocate.. for what what is the use.. my friends are out of job from amway..just for this trash.. when many countries on their way with amway..getting more taxes.. when the public are accepting that,,what is with u.can u give one job atleast.. have u clearly paid ur taxes..just posting some thing is not service.. do atleast some work.. do not blackmail and live.. ur food smells that sorrows..think at ur HEART.WHY CANT U WATCH POLITICAL FRAUD.. NO SUCH DARE..HA HA HA.. OFCOURSE U R A PART OF THAT ..BLACKMAILER.

3. When the people are ready to buy a product at high price..they may like the quality.. ur shoes may cost 50 on platform..but when in showroom they may be sold at 500 also. people who will to purchase do that.. is this considered cheating? who are u to question.. are u providing a job to any unemployed.. ur the first cheater against the public. U big Blackmailer.. think at ur heart.

Let us look at them one after another. The messages say that my work has damaged many employees families. Is it true? Is there really employment in Amway. And wisemen say that crores of tax loss to the Government. The facts are otherwise. On one hand, the Amway apologists claim that their business is growing leaps and bounds and on other hand these 'wisemen' say that Amway is crashing. Which one is truth?

The funny point is that these wisemen are asking me to concentrate on political fraud. In essence they are agreeing that this is a business fraud. It is like kettle calling pot black.

These 'wisemen' never understand that Amway is actually causing loss to the exchequer and it is also damaging the social fabric of our society. People who lost money in this scam would never trust you again in their life time. This is all the more dangerous.

You are losing nothing but freedom from the crooks. Come out open and say how much you actually lost in this scam.

UK politicians were once groomed, and then bribed, by the 'Amway' racketeers

Shyam

I see that the deeply-confused 'Amway IBO' ( i.e. 'Insolvent Bullshit Offerer'), Mr. Scott 'Tex' Johnson, has posted a link on your Site to http://www.zeenews.com/news650034.html .

According to the standard comment, which Mr. Johnson continues to leave on all independent, anglophone, news Websites carrying stories about 'Amway', 'Amway is a scam',but he still blindly refuses to accept that the organization is a criminogenic or pernicious cult which, therefore (by its very nature), cannot be reformed.

In his latest unusually-polite post on your site, Mr. Johnson has merely attempted to direct your readers to a typically, ill-informed article written by an Indian journalist who (reading between the lines) actually explains how the billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' mob are currently following one of their standard, reality-inverting tactics in India, in order to prevent investigation. By steadfastly pretending to be on the side of Indian regulators, the agents of these grinning, American racketeers are trying to make it seem unthinkable to the average, less-than-intellectually-rigorous Indian journalist or politician that 'Amway India Enterprises' is a fake 'Direct Selling Company' hiding a vast closed-market swindle and related advance fee frauds. However, the bosses of the 'Amway' mob followed exactly the same reality-inverting tactic in the UK about 20 years ago. At that time, their UK agents groomed and bribed a nice-but-dim, elderly, Conservative member of parliament, Mr. Andrew Rowe http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Rowe , by wining, dining and stuffing him with 'MLM' bullshit and then offering him £10 000 a year to act as a 'consultant.'

Another nice-but-dim, elderly, Conservative member of parliament, Sir James Lester http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Lester, was also groomed and bribed by the Director of the so-called 'UK Direct Selling Association'. This pin-striped old-boy was also wined, dined and stuffed with 'MLM' bullshit and then offered the free use of an expensive car.

Mr. Rowe (whom I went to see in the mid 1990s) turned out to be completely ignorant of what lurks behind the shiny 'Amway'façade. He really truly believed that the company officers of 'Amway UK Ltd.' wanted tougher legislation in the UK to control pyramid scams. When it was clearly explained to Mr. Rowe how the 'Amway' pyramid scam operated and how the billionaire bosses of a US-based organized crime group were actually exploiting his greed and ignorance in order to try to steer UK legislation away from product-based pyramid scams, Mr. Rowe turned a rather strange colour and began to tremble. Less than two weeks after my meeting with him, he resigned from his job as 'Parliamentary Consultant to Amway UK,' but his paid interjections on behalf of foreign-based racketeers remain on the UK parliamentary record. Furthermore, as far as I am aware, Mr. Rowe pocketed the £30 000 with which he had already been bribed by these thieves, and never made any other public utterance on the subject of 'Amway' or on his brief, embarrassing role of a political dummy preventing the investigation of a major fraud.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Mr. Steadson's mask is a big lie

Shyam

The reality-inverting mask of 'IBOFB' ( 'Independent Business Owner Fight Back') behind which the 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw, Mr. David Steadson, has lurked, tells us plenty.

'Amway' (short for, 'the American way') has been the main, reality-inverting mask behind which an abusive totalitarian cult has lurked. During six decades, the billionaire bosses of the 'Amway' cult have steadfastly pretended absolute moral and intellectual authority whilst exploiting tens of millions of transient adherents. Core- 'Amway' victims have been deceived into becoming de facto slave recruiters for a criminal enterprise. However, they have been arbitrarily and falsely defined as 'Independent Business Owners' in order to load them with guilt and prevent them from complaining.

The power of this form of mental manipulation (generally referred to as, Neuro Linguistic Programing) becomes evident when you read Websites run by former core- 'Amway' victims. Virtually none of them describe themselves as the victims of a fraud or as ill-informed participants in a fraud. Without stopping to think, these individuals continue to repeat a reality-inverting terminology invented by criminals in order to load their victims with guilt and prevent them from complaining.

As Joseph Goebbels said:

‘If you tell a big enough lie and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.'

Unfortunately, each time the reality-inverting mask 'IBOFB,' has appeared on the Web, Shyam, (without qualification or heavy irony) its wearer's de facto bosses have succeeded in repeating their big lie.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Blame-the-victim fraud is running riot in the current economic crisis

Shyam

A very bright young man who works for a new UK government ageny (where all types of fraud can be reported by the public), has drawn my attention to the following, cruel insurance scam which is currently stealing around £350 millions each year in the UK http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11044315 . He immediately recognised the frightening, underlying similarity between this type of fraud and 'MLM' swindles.

The cruel insurance scam involves staging road crashes and then forcing innocent drivers to accept the blame so that inflated 'insurance claims' can be made. It is perpetrated by organized gangs of psychologically dominant men who target vulnerable (often elderly) individuals or commercial drivers who are less likely to argue about a fake 'insurance claim' against a vehicle which they do not own. In the UK, it has been estimated that approximately 30 000 crashes were staged last year, and some of the racketeers responsible have even registered their very own fake 'claims management' companies so that they can process their own fake 'insurance claims' more rapidly.

Blame-the-victim 'MLM' fraud is even more sinister, because, for more than 50 years, victims have been peddled the same so-called 'Independent Business' over which they have had effectively no control, but which has been maliciously designed to crash with them, apparently, alone at the wheel.Despite what its vile apologists steadfastly pretend to be reality, 'MLM' victims have been peddled the same fake route-map to Utopia and told to drive their fake businesses at full speed and never to go for the brakes. The result has been economic carnage, but in some extreme cases 'MLM' victims have lost their lives.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

Some questions for the unquestioning 'Amway' faithful

Shyam

When is a profit not a profit?

When is a 'Business Owner' not a Business Owner?

The masked 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw, Mr. 'IBOFB' Steadson, has previously assured your readers that the 'Amway' myth of 'Total Financial Freedom in 2-5 years by exactly Duplicating a Proven Business Building Plan,' was a figment of our imaginations. However, he now claims that he actually knows someone who has achieved this miraculous (if uncommon) rags to riches transformation, but typically he can supply no independent evidence (in the form of audited accounts) to support his absurd lie.

Mr. Steadson has further explained that your new, resident, self-proclaimed 'investing expert,' Mr. Craig, 'never said that Total Financial Freedom could be achieved from the Amway Business Opportunity in 2-5 years,' he merely claimed that you could make a 'good profit' from the 'Amway Business Opportunity' after '2-5 years hard work.'

Observe, how Mr. Steadson remains within the strict confines of his ' Positive Amway' script. He never qualifies his absurd lies by saying 'net-profit' or 'overall profit.' The latest term,'good profit', is meaningless nonsense; for whenever the audited accounts of large groups of active 'Amway' adherents have been examined by qualified investigators, it has been discovered that, despite their scripted-pretence to be making good profits, virtually 100% of these proud 'Business Owners' have actually been programmed to ignore reality whilst losing their money hand over fist to the benefit of billionaire racketeers.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

After 3 years, you too can be insolvent

Shyam

Yet more unsolicited 'Amway' bullshit has arrived as a comment on your blog.

No one seriously disputes that at the level of 'Amway' initiation arbitrarily defined as 'Gold Producer,' it is impossible to have received an annual net-profit. None the less, your new, resident, self-proclaimed 'investing expert,' Mr. Craig, proudly boasts of having taken 3 years to arrive at this level of certain insolvency.

Typically, the parental-sounding Mr. Craig, doesn't actually claim to have made a net-profit from the operation of his financially-suicidal, so-called 'Amway Business,' but he remains totally-convinced that one day (if his will remains strong) he will do so. Unfortunately, 50+ years of quantifiable evidence proves that the longer anyone has persisted as an unquestioning 'MLM' adherent: the more money they have lost.

David Brear (copyright 2010)

One of Mr 'IBOFB' Steadson's non-existent core-adherents of 'Amway' myth has appeared

Shyam

I see that your blog has received another free load of unsolicited bullshit from an intellectually-castrated core-adherent of the absurd, but nonetheless pernicious, 'Amway' myth of 'Total Financial Freedom in 2-5 Years by following a Proven Business Building Plan.'

This time, the author of the comment has actually signed it, Alex Craig, and Mr. Craig pathetically describes himself as a 'photographer, investing expert and proud Amway Business Owner.' On the evidence of his comment, Mr. Craig also apparently subscribes to the paranoid, totalistic theory that anyone criticising the object of his blind-devotion must be being paid to do so. In other words Shyam, he has been programmed to believe that you and I (and all free-thinking individuals challenging the authenticity of the 'Amway' myth) are part of an international conspiracy to destroy a legitimate Business Opportunity. Unfortunately, since the so-called 'Amway Business Opportunity' is undoubtedly a camouflaged closed-market swindle which has been proven to have had an effectively 100% failure/drop-out rate during the previous 50+ years, then Mr. Craig is self-evidently deluded. Indeed, more than half a century of quantifiable evidence proves it to be an absolute certainty that this self-proclaimed 'investment expert' will have never made one penny of overall net-profit out of operating his so-called 'Amway Business' and that he never will. Notice how Mr. Craig imagines himself to be helping himself by converting others to his group's beliefs, which is the self-gratifying and self-righteous model of reality common to deeply-deluded cult adherents. Whilst he remains under the influence of this sanctimonious bullshit, Mr. Craig systematically defends the billionaire racketeers who are exploiting him. Typically, he begins their reality-inverting 'Amway' key-words with capital letters.

What is truly pathetic about Mr. Craig's comment is that he also believes himself to be in complete agreement with the masked 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw, Mr. 'IBOFB' Steadson, whom he describes as 'nice avatar, whoever you are'. However, Mr. Craig has made specific reference to the '2-5 year Amway' myth in his comment. Yet, for obvious reasons, Mr. Steadson has steadfastly pretended that the '2-5 year Plan to Achieve Total Financial Freedom' does not exist. Thus, according to the 'Amway' Lord Haw Haw: deeply-deluded 'Amway' adherents like Mr. Craig do not exist.

David Brear (copyright 2010)