Discussion for article #237274
“Everyone I talk to gives the same reason why: Mormons make up 82 percent of the population in this county, and people gullible enough to believe the ridiculous collection of fables comprising Mormonism will swallow anything.”
FIFY.
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Because you have a population which has already demonstrated a propensity to believe in outrageous scams.
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I think it’s not so much the tenets of the religion as the social structure. There’s an incredible level of social organization, so everybody knows a whole bunch of potential sales prospects. Combine that with the patriarchal thing where women aren’t really supposed to work outside the home, and you have a huge reservoir of energy that needs to be poured into something. Pity it’s this. (Although it could be worse.)
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Part of what makes these programs work so well in Utah is the fact that Mormons tend to be overly trusting of other Mormons, particularly those who attend their local ward (church). Such people are often viewed as being above suspicion.
Why it never occurs to these people that someone might attend a local ward or work to obtain a temple recommend for the express purpose of taking advantage of the gullible is beyond me.
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How did it happen?
Well there are lots of sucke-I mean, Mormons, there.
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That also worked for Bernie Madoff.
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I had a roommate in college who got hooked into Amway. He bought the dream hook, line and sinker. He dropped out of his healthcare-related studies, went to all the conventions, worked it as hard as he could. and he failed. In the years that followed – and we’re talking about 20 or more – he chased one multi-level scheme/dream after another. Fortunately, his wife had a job that could support their family. Ultimately their marriage broke up, which was sad. He’s a great guy, and no dummy, and a good salesperson to boot. And he’s got nothing to show for all his work in all those years.
Once I also covered the corruption trial of a U.S. Navy Captain (and contracting officer) who was tried, convicted, and sentenced to prison for twisting contractors’ arms to support his side Amway business. That guy brought his Bible to federal court every day , and told me outside the courtroom how sure he was that the Lord would deliver a not-guilty verdict. He was wrong.
The conclusions I drew from both of the above is this: Some people do make a good living in multi-level marketing. But they often do it at the expense of many, many others who lives are left in ruins.
This is a very good piece of journalism, Alice Hines. You should feel proud!
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Really outstanding article.
I was born and raised in Utah, and thought the author did a great job covering many of the ins and outs of the situation.
Bravo.
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So how much have the supplement manufacturers paid Sen. Orrin Hatch?
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yeah, if any of my friends considers me a potential sales prospect, they will very quickly find out they are not my friend once they try to push their MLM scam on me. I can think of few quicker ways to end a friendship, short of sleeping with a friend’s spouse or stealing from them.
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that’s very common with any religion. “You can trust me, I’m a -blank- like you!” Little wonder that grifters seek out religious rubes. There was a notorious case with the Baptists some years ago, where I live. Do a web search on “Baptist Foundation Arizona” for the details. One of the truly sick aspects of this scam was that the Baptist Foundation got to use the Baptist religion name, but legally speaking it had no ties to the church itself. It was specifically set up so that the church / religion had no liability whatsoever for its activities, while enjoying all the benefits of the association. Or, at least the benefits after the grifters took their cut.
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Years ago one of my wife’s business colleagues invited us to dinner, a 30 mile drive. She was excited that we were opening up new social avenues and that we were cool enough to get the invitation.
Turned out to be an Amway pitch. I hate those people.
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Ah, yes, take the happy pill in happy valley and you will, finally, maybe, be happy.
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I’ve noticed that most of the Mormons I know are medicated or drug abusers, much more so then the usual ratio of other holy roller types. What’s going on here?
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I live in Mass where we had a Mormon Governor a while back who temporarily rented the position and moved on … you may have heard of him. Didn’t know much about Mormons but heard a news story about their proselytizing. Whatever else you can say about Mormons their upbringing is tailor made for creating salesmen and businessmen. If you spend 2 years selling something (Mormonism) no one wants, then selling something someone wants must be a breeze.
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This was actually a subplot in the final seasons of the HBO series Big Love. One of the sister wives played by Jennifer Goodwin gets involved in hawking a line of Amway like products with amusing results. It’s interesting that the writers were well versed on the nuances of Utah’s get-rich multi-level marketing schemes to include it.
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Orrin Hatch is proof that scum floats.
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Thank you for such a great article. Very well researched and written.
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I know a woman who was about 6% body fat, i guess when I first met her and then she became an amateur bodybuilder and Herbalife saleswoman. She achieved 4% body fat (I think) entirely by adding muscle, and uses her competitions to sell supplements. But it’s totally the Herbalife, not genetics or working out 6 hours a day.
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