ESSAYS

essays.II

BEWARE ! THE CON MAN

The Con Man makes it business to be always agreeable,
charming and quick to shower others with compliments
bordering on flattery. He is quick to embellish the
accomplishments of his victims in order to win their
confidence.

The Con Man is always physically presentable with
accouterments to enhance his appearance of
respectability and financial success: Late model
prestige cars, phony business cards and name dropping
are only a few of his tools of deception.

Con Men try to establish a common bound with their
victims by feigning a mutual interest in sports,
hometown, birthplace or any aspect that you have a
personal attachment or affection for.

This strategy is always an ingredient injected into the
prelude of the deception to break down your resistance
and to win your confidence.

Of course, if you already have developed a friendly
relationship with the Con Man through an introduction of
a respected friend, then these preliminaries to winning
your confidence are very much facilitated for the Con
Man:

Never take ANY introduction as a testimony of the the
person's integrity, regardless of the integrity of the
friend making the introduction.

Test the person's honesty yourself, by inquiries of his
associates, or direct questioning; don't hesitate to ask
your crucial questions, and ask for documentations
before making any legal commitments, like signing any
papers.

Always wait at least 24 hours before committing yourself
to any agreement..

Con Men are experienced in deception, so be very
cautious and very scrutinizing before accepting a person
on any level of friendship.

Learn to discriminate when picking your friends; don't
allow others to impose their friendships on you.

Most of the problems in your life will come from outside
yourself, specifically "friends' you did not choose
with discrimination. Discrimination is not prejudice:

Discrimination is using acumen or perception and
observation BEFORE judging.

Prejudice is prejudging.

Con Men are always looking for greedy or naive suckers
who are looking for a 'Good Deal` or getting something
for nothing.

Remember : There are no free lunches.

RED FLAGS: There are standard statements Con Men use in
their presentations to deceive victims:

To tell you the truth...
To be honest...
This is special offer we are using to promote our
product for a limited time only...
You or your house has been selected as a showcase...
Congratulations ! You have been selected for whatever...
Believe me, this is just what you need to whatever...
Trust me...

Lastly, don't buy from phone solicitors, don't buy
through the mail or from door to door salesmen. These
are the main avenues that Con Men use to get to your
purse strings.

The prudent buyer shops where he is sure of quality and
the return of product for cash is guaranteed.

REMEMBER ! If its too good to be true, it isn't true.
--------------------------------------------------------
This story contains many of the DEVICES Con Men use to
cheat victims. See if you can pick out the Red Flags.

THE PAPER HANGER
by Joe Lanza

I owned the Hollywood Dance Studio on Western and First
in the 1950's. After closing my dance studio for the
night, I usually went dancing at the at some local night
club.

This one night I went to the Penthouse, a colorful joint
on Western Ave., with an elevator for a front entrance.

This was one of my unlucky nights in many ways. It was
raining, and the attendance at the club was sparse of
dance partners, and I ended up by my lonesome. Just
before the 2 pm curfew, I hit the bar for a nightcap
before hitting the rainy streets.

A few stools from me was a young man, obviously drunk
with a lot of loose bills strewn carelessly in front of
him. (a ploy used to attract a sucker)

Playing the part of a good Samaritan I approached the
drunk, introduced myself to Tom, helped gather his
money up and stuffed it in his wallet for him.

As Tom and I got to talking Jerry, the bar tender came
over to us and in the course of serving us the last
drink of the night, I introduced Tom to Jerry.

Shortly after the introduction, Tom, the young drunk,
and I left down the back staircase toward the exit.
Just as we arrived at the exit, Tom said he forgot his
pen at the bar and asked me to wait while he retrieved
it. (Why did Tom really returned to the bar ?)

Some minutes later, Tom returned and we exited the club.

Tom had spilled whiskey over the front of his suit, and
expressed concern over his arriving home to his wife and
kid in that drunken condition in his whiskey soaked
suit. (What was my natural instinct ?)

I offered to take him to my dance studio where he could
clean up and dry his suit.

As we walked to my car, we passed by a foreign car
repair garage. Tom pointed out an expensive sport car
parked in one of the alleys and told me it was his. He
had burned out his engine in his last professional race,
and it was costing him a few thousand to replace.

I was impressed by his story. I had no reason to doubt
him, sympathized at his misfortune, and we drove on our
way in my two year old Chrysler Imperial.

When we got to my dance studio, Tom flaked out on the
couch, in my two bedroom apartment which was located
behind my studio.

The next morning After cleaning up, Tom asked to borrow
my car to go see his wife and kid, promising he'd be
back in an hour or so.

I was so completely taken in by his charm and sincerity
and his status, that I loaned him one of my expensive
suits, a clean shirt, a pair of clean shoes, and gave
him the keys to my Chrysler. (I trusted a stranger with
the keys to a valuable car)

That was about 10 am. Saturday morning.

He returned around four pm. He purchased my suit and
shoes with hundred dollar personal check, which was a
fair price in the 1950's, and asked me to help move his
wife and baby to a motel on Sunset Blvd.

Of course I couldn't refuse, since he did return my car
and did pay for the suit and shoes. (with a personal
check)

We drove to a residential neighborhood where he had me
cruise slowly by the house, explaining that he had had
an argument with his landlord and did not want to be
confronted by him, but had decided just to move out
without notice.

I did not have time to compute the rational of this
latest story and went along with his suggestion that I
drop him off, circle the block and pick him and his
little family up on my return trip.

I began to feel a little suspicious of Tom's integrity,
but I did as he asked and dropped him and his family off
at a motel on Sunset Blvd., late Saturday night.

Early Monday morning I went to the bank to cash the
hundred dollar check Tom used to buy my favorite suit
with. The check bounced. No account under Tom's name
ever existed.

I contacted the police, who informed me that Tom had
been passing bad checks all over town. Within ten
minuets, a squad car arrived at my studio and I
immediately led them to the motel I had dropped Tom
off Saturday night.

Tom, and his family had escaped just moments before we
arrived.

When I reflected on his escape later, I couldn't help
but be happy that Tom and his little family had made
their escape.

P.S.

When Tom had returned to the bar to retrieve his pen, he
instead, cashed a forty dollar check with Jerry, the bar
tender. Jerry had assumed Tom was a good friend of mine
and cashed the bad check on my behalf.

(Never take ANY introduction as a testimony of the
person's integrity, regardless of the integrity of the
friend who makes the introduction.

THE CON MAN IS A CHARMER !
WHAT IS THE TRUTH ?

Deuteronomy 5:20, " neither must you testify a falsehood
against your fellow man " :
Lying is intentionally telling a falsehood that causes
harm to others or avoids self pain and/or benefits the
liar. Whether the consequences are known to the
perpetrator or not is not a valid excuse or defense for
lying.

A person's complete life might be destroyed by a
careless lie whispered about, impugning his character:
Many unthinking people indulge in gossiping as an
acceptable social pastime, never considering the pain
and suffering that their idle gossiping may cause.

Although truthfulness is a praiseworthy quality, telling
the truth, AS YOU SEE IT, is not always a commendable
act; nor is YOUR truth necessarily the truth.

WHY DO WE BELIEVE OR DON'T BELIEVE ?

The truth, as you know it, is influenced by many
variables: your religious background, your limited
knowledge of the facts, your prejudices, judgments
based on generalizations, based on probabilities,
repeated falsehoods and plain gullibility.

There are situations where telling the truth can be
unnecessary (un-called for) and harmful.

Lying can be by commission or by omission.

Closely related to TRUTH is personal opinion which in
turn is based on personal beliefs and experiences; this
is a PROBABLE TRUTH.

Mathematics and scientific disciplines based on the
experimental processes are TRUTHS OF CERTITUDE.

The world is mostly made up of probable truths, which
sometimes lead to assumptions, theories and axioms
which in turn when scientifically proven do become scientific
facts; truths of certitude.

If you can't say anything good about a person, it is
wise to say nothing; neither imply by your silence any
evil, demeaning quality of the person in question.

IF YOU ARE RELUCTANT TO TELL THE TRUTH, KEEP QUIET !

THE VIRTUE OF HONESTY

(The honest person needs to use common sense)

Honesty is often defined as predictability, but since
criminals are often predictable in their behavior, this
definition is not acceptable in and by itself.

There is no moral obligation to answer questions honestly
to competitors, strangers or anyone who could present a
danger if informed of certain potentially damaging facts.

Strangers who ask more than one personal question are to
be dealt with warily and viewed with suspicion.

It is better to be paranoid and safe, than to be loose
tongued and vulnerable.

When dealing with friends, family, business associates or
loved ones, honesty is usually the best policy, wisdom and
discretion are needed if your honesty will cause untold
harm and has no redeeming value, then silence is the
better part of valor.

If your personal integrity is in question, do not
(worsen) exacerbate the situation with dishonest behavior.

If you are responsible for a problem or inadvertently have
made a mistake, admit it and take the consequences; more
often than not your honesty will be appreciated and your
self esteem will definitely improve.

When in a situation where your team or group acts in an
unfair, rude or dishonorable manner regarding their
opponent, disassociate yourself from them, do not allow
yourself to be associated with their group behavior, no
matter how it may affect the groups' attitude toward you.
Learn to stand up and show your disapproval, when an
injustice is being perpetrated.

Always remember, all good ideas, medical discoveries and
social movements started often by one person, the few,
and they have eventually influenced the rest of society to
accept the innovations for a better life.

When encountering a dishonest person, avoid him like the
plague. If your acquaintance is dishonest in his dealings with
others, he will sooner or later dupe you.

The wisest action you can take with dishonest people is to
avoid any interaction with them; eliminate then from your
society and your mind completely.

DISHONESTY IS A CONTAGIOUS DISEASE THAT HARMS THE HONEST

Rather than define Honesty, we must think of Honesty as
a spiritual attitude. Honest spirits do not harbor
negative or evil intentions.

Honesty is not volunteering information that would
inadvertently harm innocent souls.

An uninformed honest man is a prime target of the Con
Artist.

If you are not well-acquainted with a financial area,
do not trust others to be honest with you. Greedy
souls have no conscience when it comes to money.

Contracts are only as binding as the honesty of the
signatories, and only as substantial as the negotiable
security held in escrow.

The day of binding an agreement with a handshake has
long fallen into obsolescence.

To be honest and still avoid the pitfalls of the Con
Men, you can do two things: first avoid associating with
disreputable characters, and then educate yourself
assiduously in specific field of investment; and hire a
good lawyer for good measure, if you can find one.

When you have a project or a job opportunity that you
are working on, keep it to yourself until you have
achieved your goal and secured it legally. Stealing
ideas or job opportunities is just as rampant as plagiarism.

There are opportunists who will underbid you for a job
and abscond with your project if they have enough
information.

Where money and business opportunities are concerned,
keep your own counsel and if necessary seek out
trustworthy expert advice.

TO BE HONEST AND SAFE, BE INFORMED AND DISCRIMINATING

HONESTY WITHOUT CAUTION IS A SCENARIO FOR DISASTER

EDUCATION

(The following essay is suggested for college students)

Teachers' power over students' performances, negates any
honest exchange of creative ideas in the following ways:

Teacher controls direction and content of study, teacher
enforces personal views on captured audience and teacher
punishes and rewards students' responses with grades and
with sanctions or by censuring dissenting pupils.

It is criminal to impose your ideas on the vulnerable !
Dogmatism leads to closed minds, incapable of making
educated (informed) decisions which beneficially serves
the individual for survival in his society.

Education should be preparation of individuals for
financial survival, a background in ethics and art and
to aid them in achieving their personal aims in life.

When academic schooling fails, students should be
allowed to transfer to a school specializing in
preparing students for their desired vocation that can
help him survive financially and emotionally.

Every academic course should begin with an
indoctrination week; explaining the approach to the
subject, some sample problems or subjects of course,
suggestions for study techniques, and examples of
practical applications of subject for motivation.

After the indoctrination period, the student should be
given the option of continuing the course, dropping
course without grade or being allowed to monitor the
class without obligatory attendance or testing except
for a comprehensive Final Test and grade.

Attendance to class should be voluntary; students should
have choice of classroom or study hall. If teacher is
unable to attract a seventy per cent attendance, teacher
should be transferred or retrained.

DOGMATISM LEADS TO CLOSED MINDS

As a graduate History Student at UCLA in 1962, I attended a 3 hour class once a week. Our weekly assignment was reading two assigned books covering the American Civil War, and giving a verbal comparative evaluation of the books at the next meeting. We sat at a round table with a dozen students each giving their verbal report, starting from the Professor in a clockwise direction. I was seated to the Professor’s right placing me last in making my verbal comparison. To my surprise, all the preceding students found the book written in 1958 superior to the book written in 1867. When it came my turn to report, I cited several passages in the 1958 book that were literally plagiarized from the 1867 book. The Professor became so upset that he abruptly ended the class 20 minutes early. While walking down the hall from the class, two students walking along side of me, informed me that the author of the 1958 book was a personal friend of the Professor and that my negative report assured me of a failing grade by the Professor. Fortunately I was within the two week period to drop the class without any penalty. However, unknown to the Professor, I was able to continue the course to the end with freedom of fear from the dogmatic Professor retributional grading. I had a lot of fun in that class disagreeing with that pedantic Professor at UCLA for the rest of the semester.

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MORALITY *
(Laws governing human behavior)

Kant believed that Morality is based on the belief of
God, Freedom of Will and Immortality; he further
suggests that without Freedom, Morality is not possible.

Moral laws govern human behavior; the ultimate goal of
morality must be survival of the species.

Since all the living species have the primary instinct
of survival in common, it would seem logical to assume
that 'Survival" is the Prime Foundation of Morality.

Morality, therefore is based on the `Instinct of
Survival': If Kant's explanation is acceptable, than we
have to believe, that all species 'believe in God,
freedom of will and immortality', since the instinct of
Survival is inherent in all living things.

We than have to conclude,either all species believe in
God, have freedom of will and believe in immortality, or
that Kant's justification for his theory of Morality is
seriously faulted..

This does not, however prove the nonexistence of God or
dispute the belief in immortality: both concepts are
still unresolved by the existence of Morality.

Moral laws, i.e. the basic instincts for survival and
for the propagation of the species are genetically
embedded in all living things.

All species are born with enough built in instincts,
i.e. that is neural connections, for automatic reflexes
such as sucking, crying, sneezing etc.; for the more
sophisticated survival behaviors to kick in, they
require further maturing and the support of other
adults to become independent.

The laws of survival vary for different environments:
humans are best adopted to develop and adjust to the
greatest variety of environment because of their
superior intelligence.

Those humans or animals unable to adjust to their
specific environments end up in vulnerable positions and
are soon eliminated or in the case of a species may
become extinct.

It is because of the human brain that man improves his
ability to secure the survival and the healthy
propagation of its species.

Once man has secured his survival and the survival of
his progeny, man extends the basic Laws of Morality
(Survival) with additional complicated laws to further
enrich his comfort and protect his kind from violence.

In Kant's day (1774-1804) and especially in his
Puritanical' background, religion played a dominant role
in governing the people: The fear of God's wrath and
the lose of the soul's immortality were the forces that
enforced the common peasants' behavior:

Where the fear of God or the concept of immortality does
not exist as a restraint for the agnostic, police force
was always there to enforce the Moral Laws.

In today's environment, there are more agnostics, and
greater police force is needed to enforce the Moral
laws.

When man is unable to support his survival or that of
his progeny inside the moral laws, the basic instincts
of survival come into play and he resorts to any means
at hand outside the established moral laws.

When we say our society has become less moral, we are
admitting that the God concept no longer is as effective
as it used to be, for what ever reasons.

We can't keep on building more jails to keep up with the
escalating rise in crime due to the growing number of
immoral behaviorists. We have the find a more acceptable
avenue to appeal to the would-be criminal before he
continues on his road to `damnation'.

When one UNDERSTANDS the Moral Laws and the consequences
of COMMENSURATE punishment for the violation of such
laws, the cure is half way accomplished:

The second part of the equation for cure is simple:
EDUCTION !

There are many in power who would rather have the crime
that they feel invulnerable to, than to share the
opportunity to rise financially with others less
fortunate.

Education should be in a field of each individual's
choice and commensurate with their abilities; They
should be trained in a field which can help them
SURVIVE financially and support (PROPAGATE) their
families: This level of education should be a civil
right.

Education may take longer for some than for others, but
the duration of education should not be a criterion for
failure and denial as it now exists in Japan where the
suicide rate for failing college applicants is rampant.

Education is the most economical investment a community
can make. Any outlay of money for education, is
minuscule when compared to the taxes a productive
educated worker pays in a few years:

In addition to the taxes paid there are other benefits
derived, such as the expenses saved by the community in
dolling out welfare checks and diminished rate of crime
and the peace of mind enjoyed by all those living in a
healthier and safer environment.

Education is not a cure all; there will always be some
greedy bastards who wants more than they can earn or
those mentally ill and of criminal mentalities, but at
least we can afford to better handle the fewer
criminals with less strain on our economy and less
trauma in our lives when we have educated citizenry.

Besides improving the work ethic, the individual
needs to be prepared for the social and emotional
aspects of existence in a dynamic society.

A return to the traditional methods of education
including the three R's, is essential to improve the
level of the communities' morality.

Humane communications and moral behavior should be
mandatory in every educational system.

* Morality: Just as the Bible has mortal sins and venial
sins, society needs to have clear cut simple laws easy
to understand and reasonably comfortable to adjust to.

Civil laws need to be modeled along moral lines, i.e.
laws that are concerned with the survival, safety and
healthy propagation of the race.

Too much time, effort and expense is wasted on laws that
have nothing to do with morality, i.e. survival, safety
and healthy propagation.

When more than fifty percent of the criminals are
incarcerated for non-victim crimes and violent criminals
are released early for lack of jail space, our penal
system has to be completely overhauled or we will surely
end up in anarchy.
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THE POWER TO TAX IS THE POWER TO DESTROY
(destroy the pimps and pushers)

Legalize prostitution and drugs, monitor the industries
and tax them.

HOW TO SOLVE CONFLICTS

by Colman McCarthy
Washington Post

1. Define the problems:
Very often people argue about different matters
that the other person has no concern with. When
this is realized by both, the conflict ends.

2. Often it is a conflict of 'me and you' against the
problem, 'not me against you'.

3. List mutual concerns rather than differences.

4. Never ask, 'What happened", but rather What did you
do?.

5. Work on what is doable.

6. Work on listening; when you listen they talk.

7. Have a peace area to discus differences, away from
the battleground.

8. Ask for forgiveness.

9. Purify your heart: simplify what you need and what
you want.

10. Aim to achieve 'Faith' not 'Success'.

COMMON SENSE

Think out each situation prior to acting on it; list the
various options to meet and solve the problem.
Determine the most efficient options with the least
chance of failure or undesirable repercussions.

WHO WILL ENCOURAGE?

'A Prophet is NOT without honor except in his own
country or his own home' Matthew 13:57

When I was twelve years old, my brother-in-law who was
an accomplished musician, offered to teach me the
violin. Within a few weeks I was able to read and play
the first string with ease. I was very enthused and
looked forward to my lessons and practiced assiduously.
When my friends discovered I was studying the violin,
they began to taunt me for being too feminine. I felt
embarrassed because of their ridicule, and gave up the
violin to maintain my friends' acceptance of my
masculinity. I have ever since regretted complying to
my childhood friends' peer pressures concerning the
violin.

At the age of twenty two, I returned from WW II
determined to finish my last year of High School and get
a college degree. Once again the same childhood cronies
did their utmost to discourage me. Even my older brother
Nick, who I loved and respected, tried to convince me to
get a job with the Post Office and forget about college.

Fortunately, I had learned my lesson when I was
pressured to give up the violin. Never again would I
allow my friends or family to deter me from pursuing my
goals. At forty three years old, I fell in love and was
set to get married for the third time, when I
discovered my wife-to-be, an English teacher at the same
High School where I was also teaching, felt my goal to
become a writer was an impossible dream and she was
convinced I could never make a living at it.

Realizing I could never expect anything but
discouragement from her, I abruptly broke off the
relationship.

We are given gifts of potential talents which need to be
developed. It is a gift which we are to use both to
survive and to make contributions to our society of
creatures and our environment. If we are lucky we
discover these hidden talents early in life.

Aptitude tests do little to direct students. A person
may be qualified to be an engineer because of their
previous exposure to the science at an early age, but
many accomplished artists and technicians discover their
true calling late in life after taking many misdirected
paths.
I discovered my gift of composing music at 80 and have
written over 30 musical compositions in the last three years.

WHY DO FRIENDS AND RELATIVES DISCOURAGE OUR DREAMS?

Friends and relatives rarely understand the strength of
our motives or our desires to achieve certain goals,
nor do they know our true potential in given fields.

People who think they know you well, usually have
subjective concepts of your personality which are
almost always sketchy at best.

Aside from loving parents, few friends or relatives will
encourage you in your pursuit of goals, especially if
your goals might lead you on a path deviating away from
their areas or interests; the fear of losing your
companionship may be a consideration, jealousy can be
another. Whatever the reasons, you should not expect
support for your dreams or endeavors from friends or
family. Anything you can dream of, is possible. Take
what you feel are the first steps toward your goal and
the path to success will unveil itself as you progress
along the path.

Do not consider the length of the trail or the obstacles
that may have to be overcome. As you progress you will
be enlightened appropriately for each situation. It is
important that you have FAITH in your ability to grow
with your project. Expect false starts and failures, but
know that you learn with your failures and grow more
efficient with each obstacle overcome.

Once you decide on a goal that you have the physical and
Mental capabilities to achieve, do not let money or time
become an obstacle; they are only challenges. It took me
17 years to get my B.A from UCLA...and it was well worth
the sacrifices.

And remember...

'A Prophet is not without honor, except in his own
country or his own home' Matthew 13:57