# Interesting Story



## supperfly17 (Apr 18, 2012)

So I met this guy in the gym, who randomly started talking to me. Anyways he asked me if I was interested in working part time and making some more money on the side. I was intrigued, I said "sure, how do I make the money?". He basically gave me his card right away, he is a "Rapid Retirement Specialist". He said it would take 2 hours to get into the details of the service, but basically he said there is no selling, no door to door knocking etc. His business makes the client's bills all tax deductible. He said your rent, your heating, electricity, water bill any of your bills will be deductible. I smirked. He said he has business partners who are professors, doctors, engineers all making 3 figure salaries on the side. The business partners have monthly meetings, so he invited me to one as well. 

I got a little mad, but didnt want to cause a scene, so I told him I would contact him if i was interested.

Rapid Retirement Specialist, what a scam. Made me so mad.


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## 6811 (Jan 1, 2013)

I think I would attach a copy of his card to an explanatory note and send it to Revenue Canada. Probably wouldn't hurt to send copies to police and BBB either.


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## supperfly17 (Apr 18, 2012)

6811 said:


> I think I would attach a copy of his card to an explanatory note and send it to Revenue Canada. Probably wouldn't hurt to send copies to police and BBB either.


Yes I still have the card with me. But hey, maybe is a "legal" way of claiming your bills to CRA


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## Islenska (May 4, 2011)

Have to give him points though, that is an innovative name. 

That would be an interesting thread...........scams I've run into, but this one is pretty good!


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## behappytoday (Sep 16, 2011)

..And it has to do something with the retirement.

Why don't you go to that monthly meeting, and then tell the forum what is it all about?


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Same...report back to CMF. We can exploit the scammer or better still, some of us can write a blogpost about it


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## supperfly17 (Apr 18, 2012)

My Own Advisor said:


> Same...report back to CMF. We can exploit the scammer or better still, some of us can write a blogpost about it



I think Ill skip the meeting but thanks for the advice . On a side note this is what it says on the back of the card "95% of the population are unhappy with their job, income and age and are broke by age 65... Could this be you? It's time for a change! Contact me now." A BIG fat LOL at this.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

AMAZINGLY, when I googled "rapid retirement specialist" it lead me to a bunch of Google links to ACN, a multi-level marketing company that involves reselling phone services: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACN_Inc.

EVEN MORE AMAZINGLY, I am sure what that random guy said was true! He doesn't make his money by sellling...he makes it by recruiting people to work under him, the classic definition of MLM.


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Geez...


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

Not to get off topic, but as a service, I love ACN. If you have a short list of people you talk to a lot long distance, it's great. My parents live about 3 hours away. I call them everyday, often just to say "hey". My kids, aged 5 and 3 spend hours a month talking to them about nothing.


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## Dmoney (Apr 28, 2011)

crazyjackcsa said:


> Not to get off topic, but as a service, I love ACN. If you have a short list of people you talk to a lot long distance, it's great. My parents live about 3 hours away. I call them everyday, often just to say "hey". My kids, aged 5 and 3 spend hours a month talking to them about nothing.


Skype!!!

I ended up at one of those ACN indoctrination events. Had a friend who had an acquaintance who was trying to recruit suckers. Friend asked me along without knowing what it was, he was told it was a "great money-making" opportunity. Talk about a scam. They talk it up big, tout the three success stories and then fleece you.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

crazyjackcsa said:


> Not to get off topic, but as a service, I love ACN. If you have a short list of people you talk to a lot long distance, it's great. My parents live about 3 hours away. I call them everyday, often just to say "hey". My kids, aged 5 and 3 spend hours a month talking to them about nothing.


You can also just get VOIP. I have unlimited long distance in North America for $120 a year.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

Just because there is an underlying product doesn't mean it is not an MLM scheme.
All MLM schemes (aka scams) have some sort of underlying product.
Good ol' mother-of-all MLM scams - Amway and Quixstar - also had products.
So do Herbal Life, Japan Life, Malealuca, and scores of others I can't recall right now.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

Is there any question about this, though? The wikipedia entry I linked to starts with the following words: "ACN is a multi-level marketing company..." and that is the very first Google link on the query "what is ACN?"

Editing to say that MLM is distinct from pyramid schemes, which are illegal: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_scheme


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

andrewf said:


> You can also just get VOIP. I have unlimited long distance in North America for $120 a year.


Or $12/year with MagicJack. I am into year 6 this month.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

MoneyGal said:


> "ACN is a multi-level marketing company..." and that is the very first Google link on the query "what is ACN?".Editing to say that MLM is distinct from pyramid schemes, which are illegal: [/QUOTE]But MLMs sell product for a...m that pays for all the layers of commission.


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

Dmoney said:


> Skype!!!
> 
> I ended up at one of those ACN indoctrination events. Had a friend who had an acquaintance who was trying to recruit suckers. Friend asked me along without knowing what it was, he was told it was a "great money-making" opportunity. Talk about a scam. They talk it up big, tout the three success stories and then fleece you.


Skype and other VOIP options aren't really options in my rural area. Well, that's not totally true, but the cost of the premium internet service far exceeds the ACN bill.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

I do not like the MLM sales model. (I don't like very many kinds of sales models!) I'm not trying to argue for direct sales...I was responding to Harold's statement, "just because there is an underlying product doesn't mean it is not an MLM scheme." My point was intended to be, yeah - there's no argument that ACN is MLM, but MLM (legal) does not equal pyramid scheme (illegal).


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Dmoney said:


> Skype!!!
> 
> I ended up at one of those ACN indoctrination events. Had a friend who had an acquaintance who was trying to recruit suckers. Friend asked me along without knowing what it was, he was told it was a "great money-making" opportunity. Talk about a scam. They talk it up big, tout the three success stories and then fleece you.





andrewf said:


> Dmoney said:
> 
> 
> > Skype!!! ...
> ...


I prefer Skype at $30 USD a year to call continental US & Canada phones. It's been handy using a laptop or netbook (particularly from Mexico) to call a regular phone. 

Though my co-worker has been using Google Talk for free for three months without issues.




crazyjackcsa said:


> Skype and other VOIP options aren't really options in my rural area. Well, that's not totally true, but the cost of the premium internet service far exceeds the ACN bill.


Is the regular internet service bad? 
What's the ACN bill monthly, approximately?

I believe I'm on the slowest Rogers cable internet possible. Next visit with my brother, I'm planning on testing how his Telus airstick works ...


Cheers


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Don't forget about Dir-e-ct B-uy. (I added the dashes to keep their "social media manager" or spin doctors away from this thread)

And wasn't there a company mentioned here 1-2 yrs ago, something to do with gumball machines?

Harold's right. Products do not make or break pyramid schemes. Ive heard their pitch. You've heard one, you've heard them all. Very aggressive people at their "workshops" and seminars. Building wealth alright...from your pocket.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

Think of the most popular MLM schemes over the years - starting with say Amway, Quixstar, Herbal Life, Japan Life, Maleuluca, Primerica, Forever Living, and so on.

They range from complete hogwash products such as Forever Living, Japan Life, to somewhat slightly meaningful products such as Primerica mutual funds.
They might be legal, but most of them are borderline at best.

It is not hard for the seasoned scammers and con artists to make up products or services with no real value to create a basis for the MLM scheme.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

Eclectic: I find the user experience better using a normal home phone rather than using a headphones/microphone. Just personal preference. I have unlimited long distance on the mobile phone, too. Also, I don't particularly like or trust Microsoft, who are recording all your conversations sent through Skype and forwarding it to the US government (and possibly others?).


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

As an aside to the OP, I would report the member to your gym manager. They are obviously trying to solicit. I have had this happen to me at Chapters 2x, and at a gas station 1x. Same pitch, different scam.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

Cal said:


> As an aside to the OP, I would report the member to your gym manager. They are obviously trying to solicit. I have had this happen to me at Chapters 2x, and at a gas station 1x. Same pitch, different scam.


GREAT point. It is so annoying to want to browse books or work out in peace, and then feel like your workout time/browsing time is getting all corrupted with low-grade sales pitches. Bah!


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## YYC (Nov 12, 2012)

Hilariously, I just saw an ad for 'MLMtrainer" under Moneygal's post, served by google ads, which leads to a site that is all about MLM's.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

MY SECRET PLAN IS WORKING!!!

...whoops.


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## Retired Peasant (Apr 22, 2013)

Thankfully, I rarely see ads - Firefox with AdBlock+ addin.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

I think using adblock is somewhat antisocial.


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

Surely you're not serious, andrewf?


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

andrewf said:


> Eclectic: I find the user experience better using a normal home phone rather than using a headphones/microphone. Just personal preference.


I'm guessing that means you haven't picked up one of the handset, dual landline/Skype cordless or wifi handsets then? 

http://www.canadianvoipstore.com/skype/skype-phones




andrewf said:


> ... Also, I don't particularly like or trust Microsoft, who are recording all your conversations sent through Skype and forwarding it to the US government (and possibly others?).


*shrug* ... Assuming it's a Canadian company providing a regular line - what makes you think our esteemed gov't are going to turn down US requests to monitor & record? For that matter, what makes you think CSIS and/or the Communications Security Establishment isn't already doing the same? 

For a voip line - with the computing/storage capacity, I suspect as soon as the data stream hits a major part of the US backbone, it's being recorded anyway.


Cheers


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

Eclectic12 said:


> I prefer Skype at $30 USD a year to call continental US & Canada phones. It's been handy using a laptop or netbook (particularly from Mexico) to call a regular phone.
> 
> Though my co-worker has been using Google Talk for free for three months without issues.
> 
> ...


My usual long distance bill is about $10-$20. I talk to my parents for about 10hrs a month, my inlaws for about half that, my sister in Alberta for about 2hrs, and that all works out to be free. Then for about 6-cents a minute I talk to people who aren't signed up with ACN, plus the $7 a month fee.

I can't get high speed phone or cable where I am, so I have to go with satellite. I pay $50 a month. I have download speeds of about 3mbps and upload speeds of around 800kbps. And I have a 5gb cap. 

So looking at something like vonage, yes I'd save a little bit of money. Until the power goes out, and then I don't have a phone.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

You can encrypt VOIP. Microsoft changed Skype so that it could decrypt all transmissions (for the purposes of recording and sending to NSA).

Karen, serious about what?


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## Spudd (Oct 11, 2011)

I'm with you, Andrew. Seeing ads doesn't hurt me, and it lets the content providers give me content without charging me for it. If everyone used adblock, content providers would have to start charging and it would be not only more expensive, but more annoying (logins everywhere, etc).


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

Meh. I'm a content provider. I don't feel compelled to view ads. I'm probably anti-social.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

crazyjackcsa said:


> I have to go with satellite. I pay $50 a month. I have download speeds of about 3mbps and upload speeds of around 800kbps. And I have a 5gb cap.
> 
> So looking at something like vonage, yes I'd save a little bit of money. Until the power goes out, and then I don't have a phone.


I think you will find the latency in satellite communications will make VOIP undesirable.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

Spudd said:


> I'm with you, Andrew. Seeing ads doesn't hurt me, and it lets the content providers give me content without charging me for it. If everyone used adblock, content providers would have to start charging and it would be not only more expensive, but more annoying (logins everywhere, etc).


How would an advertiser know that you use adblock? As long as the users are in the minority, it remains free.


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