Another Utah-based scam unveiled

[_dartagnan]

Please take five minutes to watch this video about the “Noni Juice” phenomenon, started by LDS who apparently returned from their missions in Tahiti and decided to sell this Tahitian fruit juice as a miracle for every disease you can think of. This video clip interviews the people selling it and actually includes a hidden camera in a session where two women are trying to sell it.

http://cbs2.com/video/?id=14365@kcbs.dayport.com&cid=71

Legally they cannot say it is a “cure” for diseases without medical proof, so they decided to circumvent that hurdle by calling it a “miracle” instead.

I saw this clip and had too many flashbacks of Amway, Quixtar, Herbal Life, and yes, the missionary discussions where LDS members were sitting in telling me stuff they probably shouldn’t have. Anything they could do to sell me on the product.

by the way, this video clip was brought to my attention by one of my English students here in Brazil. He said a member sold him a bottle for 75 bucks. He knew it was crap but the guy was poor and so he was just trying to help him out. He talked about his concern with this because it is started by Church members in Utah and he was upset about that. He doesn't know that Utah is a hot spot for pyramid scams like these.

[_Some Schmo]

I don't know one can watch a video like that and not think that people are either stupid or desperate... or both.

Sad.

[_Runtu]

Please take five minutes to watch this video about the “Noni Juice” phenomenon, started by LDS who apparently returned from their missions in Tahiti and decided to sell this Tahitian fruit juice as a miracle for every disease you can think of. This video clip interviews the people selling it and actually includes a hidden camera in a session where two women are trying to sell it.

http://cbs2.com/video/?id=14365@kcbs.dayport.com&cid=71

Legally they cannot say it is a “cure” for diseases without medical proof, so they decided to circumvent that hurdle by calling it a “miracle” instead.

I saw this clip and had too many flashbacks of Amway, Quixtar, Herbal Life, and yes, the missionary discussions where LDS members were sitting in telling me stuff they probably shouldn’t have. Anything they could do to sell me on the product.

by the way, this video clip was brought to my attention by one of my English students here in Brazil. He said a member sold him a bottle for 75 bucks. He knew it was crap but the guy was poor and so he was just trying to help him out. He talked about his concern with this because it is started by Church members in Utah and he was upset about that. He doesn't know that Utah is a hot spot for pyramid scams like these.

Oh, I thought you were going to say the church had a new PR video out. ;)

[_Who Knows]

I live right next to their huge facility in Pleasant Grove - and drive by it every day. And every day I have to shake my head as I pass it.

Could multi-level marketing schemes like this be the 'great and abominable church' spoken of the in the Book of Mormon? ;)

[_Runtu]

I live right next to their huge facility in Pleasant Grove - and drive by it every day. And every day I have to shake my head as I pass it.

Could multi-level marketing schemes like this be the 'great and abominable church' spoken of the in the Book of Mormon? ;)

I got invited (well, paid ten bucks) to attend a "Living Scriptures" presentation back when I was in college. They talked about how this wasn't "about money" at the same time they showed on an overhead a picture of a guy standing next to the Porsche he bought with last year's earnings. Then they said the multilevel marketing scheme was "organized just like the priesthood."

I hope there's a special place in hell for MLM hucksters.

[_moksha]

Then they said the multilevel marketing scheme was "organized just like the priesthood."

Was it similar?

[_Polygamy Porter]

The membership of Mormons is comprised of the deceived and the deceivers.

[_dartagnan]

As I was joining the Church back in 1989 there was a famous Mormon named Hubert Humphrey who was a multi-millionare. He used to be some kind of big-whig for Amway and then started his own pyramid company called A.L. Williams insurance. My Father, who was a Captian in the Army at Ft. Stewart, told me that the government had banned A.L. Williams from the military bases because they were using illegal techniques and making promises to clients they couldn't keep. It got so bad legally speaking that the company had to change its name to Primerica. I am not sure if it is still in business today or not.

Anyway, I was renting a room from this guy while preparing for my mission and he kept dragging me to these meetings. We had a meeting at Humprey's house, which was enormous. Everyone was intoxicated with the notion that if they stayed faithful to the business strategy implemented by Humphrey, that one day they will be able to afford a similar lifestyle. I think half of teh people in our stake were involved.

So I returned from my mission and say my old friend again off and on over the next few years. He was always at the Curch dances every month, driving the same crappy car, renting the same crappy house, and still adamant about the idea he was going to strike it rich any day now. It took about nine years before we were able toc onvince him he had wasted all his time and effort on a get-rich-quick scheme that had no future.

A few years later I moved to Orlando where I was introduced to another pyramid company called Quixtar. I wasn't introduced by LDS but I realized soon enough that a good portion of the Quixtar reps in Orlando were LDS. A young couple who recently married were fanatics about it. I went to a FHE at their house once and they literally bore their testimony that this company was true. They said they prayed about it beforehand, just like they did before joining the Church.

I wanted to throw up.

[_silentkid]

My first missionary companion in the MTC tried to get me involved in Amway. Priceless.

[_Sethbag]

In my previous ward before I moved to the state I live in now, there was a couple that worked full-time for that company (I forget the name) that sells magnet crap, like bracelets and other magnet jewelry, and special magnet shoe inserts and so forth, that were supposed to improve one's health. My wife actually dragged me to a meeting they were having with some bigwig from the magnet company, in an auditorium with several other dozen people. He had this piece of crap electronic device that he would wave around in front of the magnet things to "detect the magnetic energy" or some such bullcrap. I made the point that I could do the exact same thing with just a coil of a wire and a tiny lightbulb for $2. There's nothing mystical or particularly interesting about what happens in a coil of wire when waved near a magnet (read: changing magnetic field induces a changing electric field in the wire, ie: a voltage). It was all so retarded I couldn't believe my eyes. The guy asked for volunteers to stand on the magnetic shoe insert and then asked people if it didn't feel different, like a tingle or whatever. Well I tried it, and I didn't notice a difference at all, and I said so. The guy was a little annoyed with me. Others said they felt a difference. I guess that's the power of suggestion at work.

Anyhow, the whole enterprise was a big joke if you ask me, but it was a joke on all the people who spent their money buying all this magnetic crap to improve their health.