SL747@usu.bitnet (05/25/88)
Reference: 5807@cup.portal.com Date: 25 May 88 In article <5807@cup.portal.com> JJ@cup.portal.com (UNK) writes: > Poor College Student needs Your Help!! :-( > > Hi. I just finished my junior year in college, and now I'm > faced with a major problem. I can't afford to pay for my senior > year. I've tried everything. I can't get any more student loans, > I don't qualify for any more scholarships, and my parents are as > broke as am I. So as you can see, I've got a major problem. But > as far as I can see, there is only one solution, to go forward. > I've come along way, and there is no chance in hell that I'm going > to drop out now! I'm not a quiter, and I'm not going to give up. > > But here is why I'm telling you all this. I want to ask a favor of every > one out here on the net. If each of you would just send me a one > dollar bill, I will be able to finish college and go on with my life. > I'm sure a dollar is not much to any of you, but just think how it > could change a person's life. I'd really like to encourage all of you > to help me out, I've no other place to go, no other doors to knock > on. I'm counting on all of you to help me! (PLEASE!) > If you would like to help a poor boy out, please send $1 (you can > of course send more if you want!! :-) > > [Name and mailing address deleted] > > PS. Please don't flame me for posting this to so many newsgroups, > I really am in dire need of help, and if any of you were as desparate > as I am, you just might resort to the same thing I am. Also, please > don't tell me to get a job! I already have one and work over 25 hrs > a week, plus get in all my classes, plus find time to study! So hey, > please consider it! It would really mean a lot to me. Thank you! > > NOTE: Any extra money I receive will go to a scholarship fund to help > others in the same situation. :-) I am not really sure who this should be sent to or what can be done, but it seems that this JJ is sending this to every newsgroup that exists on this network. From what I can see he is just going down every newsgroup name and send to that group. So far today, I have counted at least 22 postings. It kind of irritates me that he would do this, but I am sure that there are a lot more that are even more irritated than myself. If there is anything that can be done before this guy reaches the end of the list of newsgroups, it would be a good idea, atleast in my opinion. This is not intended to be either a flame posted to this newsgroup, nor am I trying to pass on his message, just one concerned net-reader that feels something should if could be done. Thanks.
max@eros.uucp (Max Hauser) (05/25/88)
In article <032407.2147405664@cc.usu.edu> SL747@usu.bitnet writes: | I am not really sure who this should be sent to or what can be done, | but it seems that this JJ is sending this to every newsgroup that exists | on this network. From what I can see he is just going down every newsgroup | name and send to that group. So far today, I have counted at least 22 | postings. ... Well, this person is transmitting a plea throughout at least the United States for mailed money and is stipulating explicit purposes to which it would be put. Therefore, in contrast to many Usenet gambits that are merely obnoxious, JJ's would seem to fall within the purview of the US fraud-by-wire and other federal statutes, and therefore eligible for the attention of the US Department of Justice, including the FBI. Any eager young D-o-J attorneys out there who might want to take it and run with it? On the other hand, for all anyone has said on the net, JJ may be perfectly honorable about the use of the money, in which case the postings, spread indiscriminately across utterly inappropriate newsgroups and not even all cross-posted (as though making it hard for a reader to skip them all at one stroke would somehow increase the force of the appeal), are merely obnoxious. Surely the administration or ownership at cup.portal.com is accountable for this, and may even be eager to stop the flood. Certainly, further outrages of this kind would not bode well for a site's connectivity.
jgd@csd1.milw.wisc.edu (John G Dobnick,EMS E380,5727,) (05/26/88)
From article <032407.2147405664@cc.usu.edu>, by SL747@usu.bitnet: > Reference: 5807@cup.portal.com > Date: 25 May 88 > > In article <5807@cup.portal.com> JJ@cup.portal.com (UNK) writes: >> Poor College Student needs Your Help!! :-( > [Removed lots of verbiage -- you've seen it already, multiple times] > > I am not really sure who this should be sent to or what can be done, > but it seems that this JJ is sending this to every newsgroup that exists > on this network. From what I can see he is just going down every newsgroup > name and send to that group. Actually, it's getting worse. He is now sending this message to (at least some of) the "mailing lists"! I just received a copy in info-tahoe today. Non-human-moderated or automatic-gateway mailing lists seem to be fair game now. Presumably human-moderated lists will quash this message. -- John G Dobnick Computing Services Division @ University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee UUCP: uwvax!uwmcsd1!jgd INTERNET: jgd@csd4.milw.wisc.edu "Knowing how things work is the basis for appreciation, and is thus a source of civilized delight." -- William Safire -- John G Dobnick Computing Services Division @ University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee UUCP: {ihnp4|uwvax}!uwmcsd1!jgd INTERNET: jgd@csd4.milw.wisc.edu "Knowing how things work is the basis for appreciation, and is thus a source of civilized delight." -- William Safire
dg@lakart.UUCP (David Goodenough) (05/26/88)
From article <032407.2147405664@cc.usu.edu>, by SL747@usu.bitnet: > Reference: 5807@cup.portal.com > Date: 25 May 88 > > In article <5807@cup.portal.com> JJ@cup.portal.com (UNK) writes: >> Poor College Student needs Your Help!! :-( > > I am not really sure who this should be sent to or what can be done, > but it seems that this JJ is sending this to every newsgroup that exists > on this network. ..... A while back someone suggested a "Squelch" type control message. Here we have a use for such an entity. As I said before, it has to be used with EXTREME caution, but I think that this case warrants the use of such a system. Thoughts anyone? -- dg@lakart.UUCP - David Goodenough +---+ | +-+-+ ....... !harvard!adelie!cfisun!lakart!dg +-+-+ | +---+
todd@uop.edu (Dr. Nethack) (05/28/88)
You all remember those messages yes?
Well it is a longer distribution than you thought..
A friend on eunet in finland told me he has seen them as well.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------tmanos@aocgl.UUCP (Theodore W. Manos) (05/30/88)
(For the sake of everybody's bandwidth, I *haven't* included any/all of JJ's
infamous article in question....*everybody* knows what it says :-) )
This "plea" for money ($1 from everybody) strikes me as extremely similar to
another one that occured last year by a student in several newspapers around
the country (except that his was *known* to be legit - it was checked out by
the newspapers first). As I recall, this fellow ended up garnering something
in the vicinity of >$500,000. Jeeze, that could even cover his tuition at
Harvard :-). I don't recall what was done with the excess funds.
For some reason, I find this advertisement from "JJ" to be of a slightly more
dubious nature :-). Got to give it to the guy though...great way to retire
without ever having worked.
As far as Portal, it's management, and the majority of the stuff that I've
seen come from the users there, well....my mother taught me that if I couldn't
say anything nice about somebody/something, then don't say anything at all :-).
---------
Ted Manos tmanos@aocgl.{COM,UUCP,UU.NET} or ...!{uunet,mcdchg}!aocgl!tmanosvixie@palo-alto.DEC.COM (Paul Vixie) (05/30/88)
Groan. In article <22.UUL1.3#935@aocgl.UUCP> tmanos@aocgl.UUCP (Theodore W. Manos): >As far as Portal, it's management, and the majority of the stuff that I've >seen come from the users there, well....my mother taught me that if I couldn't >say anything nice about somebody/something, then don't say anything at all :-). Hey! I take exception to this. The stuff from Patrick Townshend (sp?) about the fire in the Chicago telco switch was absolutely top notch. I've received answers to obscure technical questions from Portal subscribers. Let's not judge the whole kaboodle by the flashier mistakes that've come from there. -- Paul Vixie Digital Equipment Corporation Work: vixie@dec.com Play: paul@vixie.UUCP Western Research Laboratory uunet!decwrl!vixie uunet!vixie!paul Palo Alto, California, USA +1 415 853 6600 +1 415 864 7013
Patrick_A_Townson@cup.portal.com (05/31/88)
Jeff Beadles asks about selling your autograph through the mail; asking
folks to send a dollar and a SASE, etc....
You may solicit *anything you like through the mail* -- anything -- provided
the substance or item is otherwise legal. In other words, you cannot sell
cocaine or heroin by mail order, simply because you can't sell it or possess
it otherwise.
The key to a lawful mail order solicitation is --
Make no promises you do not intend to keep.
Make no false representation about what it is you are selling.
If collecting for charity, (even yourself as the recipient), do not
misrepresent how the money is to be spent.
In other words, say as little as possible about your product or service if
it is at all shady. The less you say, the better off you are.
A couple mail order programs which made large amounts of money for their
proprietors in the past were --
Save A Soul Mission - The party who thought this one up went down to
his local mission (in this case, it was Pacific Garden Mission here in
Chicago.) He requested, and was gladly given, 'gospel tracts' by the box full.
Thousands of them, for free with his promise to the administrators of PGM that
he would distribute them. He then ran ads in various publications, notably
the supermarket checkout line type, offering, "Gospel tracts for your friends
and neighbors. Help bring a lost soul to Jesus. Send $1.00 or more love
offering to help our work, and recieve a sample of our tracts by return mail."
His post office box was soon overflowing with letters (and one/five/ten dollar
bills) saying 'god bless you for the work you are doing, etc'. He soon began
getting those pink notices from the box clerk telling him to call for the
overflow mail at the window. For each and every correspondent, he reached
in this big cardboard box full of gospel tracts, took out a half dozen and
stuffed them in the return envelope.
Eventually the Postal Inspection Service ordered some gospel tracts to show
the Assistant United States Attorney in the community, and an indictment
resulted. The guy got off -- albiet it was a little expensive for him using
an attorney -- because he had never made any claims whatsoever, and all his
advertising had never used the term 'sell' or 'for sale'. He asked for only
donations, and sent back what he promised he would send. Sleazy, yes; legal,
also yes.
Then there was Sweden International - ah yes!
The gist of this scam which stayed marginally within the law was the proprietor
promised a listing of 'Swedish women who want American men for friends, lovers,
etc...'
Using ads in various softcore porn publications, he asked for one dollar to
receive basic information about the 'club'.... and he recieved plenty of
inquiries -- several thousand, they tell me -- which received a very nice
mailing back in reply.
Using a return address of Sweden International/PO Box xxxx/Evanston, IL 60204
USA, the promotion talked of all these women. Please note the use of the
abbreviation "USA" on the end of your mailing address is hardly needed if
you are within the country, but it lended an international appearance to the
club. Prospects were told wonderful things about women from Sweden who wanted
to tour this country with an American guy as their escort. All the prospective
sucker (oops, I mean new member!) had to do was send in $20.00 to receive a
list of the names and addresses. He'd be free to write a letter to any or
all, and cut his own deal with them.
Of the thousands of replies sent out, a substantial number wrote back and
included their twenty dollar bill. If they sent a check, then they waited
until their check cleared, but in any event, what each and everyone of them
got back was a list of Swedish women *who lived in Sweden*.
Enclosed was a list of hints for 'how to write and form a new pen pal
friend', and a source for a good Swedish/English translation book. The postal
inspectors got after him also, but got nowhere...its all in the wording of
the ad.
You ask 'how did he get the names of women in Sweden, and permission to use
their names?'. Good question. He had earlier run advertisements in a couple
of lonely hearts type publications in Sweden itself, asking women to provide
their names if they wanted American males to correspond with.
Some of these guys doing mail order have brass bedsprings to be sure.mesard@bbn.com (Wayne Mesard) (06/02/88)
From article <6081@cup.portal.com>, by Patrick_A_Townson@cup.portal.com: > The key to a lawful mail order solicitation is -- > Make no promises you do not intend to keep. > Make no false representation about what it is you are selling. > If collecting for charity, (even yourself as the recipient), do not > misrepresent how the money is to be spent. So if JJ *really* is a college student and *really* is in financial straits, then he didn't break any laws. Otherwise, it's mail fraud. Right? Now ask yourself, folks: What do you think the odds are that either of the those assertions is true? That number again: Postal Inspector Lincoln, NE 68505 -- unsigned *Wayne_Mesard(); MESARD@BBN.COM BBN Labs, Cambridge, MA "Republicans know they're not smart. What they do is try to get attention." -Mass. Senate President William Bulger.
root@uisc1.UUCP (Super user) (06/03/88)
In article <25292@bbn.COM>, mesard@bbn.com.UUCP writes: > > So if JJ *really* is a college student and *really* is in financial > straits, then he didn't break any laws. Otherwise, it's mail fraud. > Right? IF JJ specifically stated that he would use the money for his college education, and ONLY for his college education, and it's fraud ONLY if he had the intent not to do what he specifically stated at the time he stated it AND that you can prove it (not only the action or lack thereof, but also the intent). I don't have the original beg-letter handy; if you think it's important enough, go for it. > Now ask yourself, folks: What do you think the odds are that either of > the those assertions is true? Sorry, but juries do not convict based on mathematical odds, they convict on proof and evidence. But let me throw one small monkey wrench into your mathematical odds. All JJ has to do to meet those requirements is to go down to his local community college and enroll in one class. He is then a student. In fact, he could enroll in a mail-order college to meet the requirements. As for being in financial straights, I'd hate for you to prove that someone is or is not in financial straights. Just what criterion to you use? In comparison to David Rockefeller I was, am, and will always be in financial straights. I don't think that what JJ did was right (morally). Most probably it was a scam, especially if the identity that I just read is really his. But I find the viciousness and the willingness to put this guy away for life, preferably without parole, which I see on this net rather unfortunate. Other than post a few messages, to all of which you have a choice to "Just say no," what has this guy ever done to you? If you just ignored his messages and didn't send any money, he would just go away.
olapw@olgb1.oliv.co.uk (Tony Walton) (06/07/88)
PLEASE - I've seen enough of this article in all.all.all.all.....
Don't re-post it.
Thank you.
--
Tony Walton, OEM/VAR Division, British Olivetti Ltd., 154-160 Upper Richmond Rd,
LONDON, SW15 2FN. Tel: (+44) 1 789 6699 Telefax: (+44) 1 785 6670 Telex:27258
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