Posted on 12/05/2012 6:36:35 AM PST by Slings and Arrows
Really, the concept of “financial security” doesn’t exist.
Even if you have enough in “savings” to last you the rest of your life, with enough “quantitative easing”, that can be worthless in a couple of years.
Our only security lies in God, ultimately. He’s the only thing that can’t be shaken.
</facetious>
Actually, that’s Rush Limbaugh’s old NY apartment. Some of these looters make a mighty fine living tho.
BOLO for Jeffrey Hillman, 54, barefoot scam artist.
I smelled scam when I saw the picture. He was sitting barefoot outside a shoe store.
Funny story. A guy came into the Firehouse one day panhandling. One of the Firefighters , a black guy, really nice guy good Fireman, nice man,told him if he was hungry he would fix him some soup.
The Firefighter sat the guy down fixed him some soup, and just as the panhandler sat down to eat it we got a run.
When we came back the Firefighters shoes were gone, and the soup was still on the table. I won’t soon forget the Firefighter walking the streets in his long boots looking for the guy who stole his shoes.
Yes, and complete with the photographer who just happens to be the supervisor of a police call center.
Actually, it’s not an apartment, it’s a townhouse in a private mews, and he’s not panhandling, he sells newspapers - partly out of the performer’s desperation to have an audience, and partly because he hasn’t been right on the head since his wife died two years ago.
Which is exactly why I never give money to panhandlers. They probably make more money than I do...
Maybe the officer can buy him some new drapes for his apartment.
Indeed - it was a Buddhist monk who actually introduced me to the idea that unthinking “charity” can be useless, or actually harmful for the giver and receiver both, by creating or enabling bad karma.
One’s intent is only a first step. True compassion is thinking, and understanding causes and effects.
I congratulate the policeman for his kindness, but what did that man on the street need? I’m not sure, but expensive boots were not it.
A Con Game, or Confidence Game, is where a person attempts to steal from another person through deception. The thief shows the victim that he, the thief, has confidence in him, the victim. The thief than acts as if the victim should then reciprocate and have confidence in the thief. The strategy used to steal from the victim is known as The Con or The Sting or The Kansas City Shuffle.
Here are the players in a Con Game:
THE GRIFTER - This is the boss. He/she is the brains of the operation. This is the person who runs The Con.
SHILLS - These are assistants to The Grifter. The Shill is used to distract the victim or encourage the victim. Shills can be young or old, male or female, attractive or plain. A shill can look like anyone.
THE MARK - This is the victim. The person The Grifter and Shills are trying to steal from. Also known as THE SUCKER.
*chuckle* Once again, no good deed goes unpunished.
A Confidence Game relies on human emotions, senses and behaviors to work. A Grifter attempts to take advantage of a person’s greed, fear, naïveté, arrogance and compassion. A mugger will come up and stick a gun in your face and demand your money. A Con Game is much more subtle. They have the same goal, though, they want to steal something. Since a Con Game is a game, oftentimes The Grifter is caught up in the competition. The goal is to make easy money, but The Grifter may also run the con to try to humiliate someone, or to see how much he can steal, or to take from another thief.
One of the oldest Con Games is THE PIG IN THE POKE. The Grifter needs a young pig, a cat, a couple of heavy bags. The Con can be run by just The Grifter or with a Shill. The Grifter appears to be selling young pigs. The Grifter assumes the disguise of a country bumpkin. As The Mark comes near, The Shill will ask The Grifter the price of a young pig. The Grifter will quote an extremely low price. The Shill readily agrees to the sale. The Grifter will hand the Shill a bag with a small pig in it. The Shill makes sure to show the pig to the mark and perhaps tell him that The Grifter is a real easy touch. Now, an honest farmer would know that the price for the pig is too low and that is suspicious. The Grifter is counting on The Mark’s greed to overcome his caution. The Mark agrees to buy a pig from The Grifter, and the Grifter makes the sale. There will usually be some kind of a reason for The Grifter to leave (”Oh, there’s my Dad!”) and The Grifter is off. The Mark gets home and opens the bag to find a cat inside. The Grifter and The Shill meet where the money is divided and the next con is planned.
The police officer was not made a fool of.
Amen.
I remember the moment very well when I realized what compassion really was.
It was summer in downtown Indianapolis... it must have been 105 degrees and we were experiencing a long heat streak, everyone was getting sick of it. I was on my lunch break and had already eaten and walked to the 2nd floor of the parking garage to retrieve something from my car before returning. I happened to look down (outside on the street below) and saw 2 homeless guys. One had fallen over and was unconscious, the other was shaking him around, doing his best to revive him. Now, the first thing that mad an impression on me was the other people... everyday people like me who were walking on the sidewalk and very literally stepping over this man who lay on the ground... and they kept right on walking like he was a piece of trash.
Now, regardless if this man was drunk or drugged out, he was a human being... most likely stroking out and quite possible on deaths door. I called for an ambulance and continued to observe from the second floor above.
The police showed along with fire/rescue about 2-3 minutes later and what happened next made me realize what made a man.
The police, whom I routinely look at with disdain and near hatred, treated this grimy, smelly and tattered homeless guy as if it were his own brother. He carried him into the ambulance himself and was talking to the now partially coherent guy and trying to give him any comfort he could. He treated him and his property with dignity and respect.
I don't know the outcome, I have to assume the guy was Ok in the long run. But, I got the message... when the almighty sends you a postcard, you read it... and you don't forget it. I don't see people the same way anymore and I do my damnedest to make sure that I am NOT one of those people stepping over those in need. I don't spend time trying to figure out how they got there or if I feel they deserve help or not... they will be judged on their own merit, as will I.
Con Games have been around for quite some time. Bernie Madoff was running a con. He made billions of dollars off it. George Soros has made his money off of something he calls “Reflexivity”. This is essentially a con. He takes advantage of people’s greed. Soros is really a One Trick Pony, but he’s an extremely good One Trick Pony.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.