I work in the Fisherman’s Wharf area, and in order to get there I have to ride the F-Market/Wharves historic streetcar line. These streetcars are a very popular tourist attraction to people visiting San Francisco, so when they aren’t crowded, they’re packed like a can of sardines. Even when I’m on a bus or subway that isn’t packed, I’m always cautious of my surroundings and sure to hold my backpack or purse in front of me, away from wandering hands. So it comes as somewhat of a surprise to me when I see these tourists, a lot of them speaking in accents that makes it obvious they’re from another country, so busy looking at maps or the city around them that the pockets on they’re backpacks are awfully vulnerable to a pickpocket’s swift and sneaky hand.

Photo Courtesy of www.framingthedialogue.com

I started noticing this more when I was on the streetcar going to work during Fleet Week. Streetcars were filling to the rim with passengers, so much that it was difficult to even turn your body without needing someone else to move theirs. As we passed the Ferry Building and other sights, the driver began his announcement in a surprisingly chipper voice for such an early morning.

“Hellooooo folks! This is an especially busy weekend, which means a packed bus, obviously! This is when you should cautiously care for your belongings, wallets and purses. Pickpockets are a problem on this car, and during this busy weekend they are a menace! If you do see someone reaching into the pocket of someone else, please make some noise and let it be known that there is a pickpocket on the bus! Don’t just sit there and watch a fellow tourist getting robbed, or else karma will come back to you. Thanks!”

Each time he made this announcement I watched people bring their belongings closer to their chests. But there were still the people that didn’t seem to care about their out-in-the-open pockets, which likely included wallets, cameras and other valuables.

I wish I knew why people don’t take more caution when on public transit, especially during busy times of the year. In this article, San Francisco police advise bus riders on how these thieves are getting away with it, and also expresses passenger frustration about pickpocket schemes.

It’s not just passengers being targeted, though, but Muni drivers, which you can read about in this SFWeekly article.

I am not a pickpocket by any means (I’m not only a strong believer in karma, but also just think theft is plain wrong, duh), but I can see how a lot of these thieves get away with it. People don’t pay enough attention to their things, especially their wallets and money. Even if you ride the bus every day, please read, and exercise, the Muni Safety guidelines to avoid theft as well as safety while riding Muni. Just because you know what you’re doing while riding, doesn’t mean you can trust everyone else riding with you.

Also: Learn how to avoid pickpockets by making your own pickpocket protector!

So a lot has happened since we last talked. Yeah, been so busy that I haven’t had the time to sit down and type up a blog….

So Friday, my Dad got into a fight with his boss about policy and his boss told him he was fired. He told me by Monday. (I thought he just got off early and took Monday off). Which sucks. I admit I was really scared and was already coming up with all the ways we could help my Dad out… especially in staying where we live now. By Thursday his work called him up and told him to come to a meeting and said that he’d better come or he was really fired. (Ordinarily Dad wouldn’t even be freaked out because he has 28 years seniority… heck the CEO was hired the same time… he could literally have any job in the place)

So he came and he got his job back… unfortunately he’s not getting paid vacation for those 4 and 1/2 days that he wasn’t there…. So there goes school fees and such… if you don’t realize the extent of missing a week… it means that My Dad gets at least $700 less dollars… So it’s going to be tight…. but much better than it could’ve been I’m happy.

This experience has really taught me something… (more than to make sure that I have more than 6 months pay saved up just in case I ever get fired in the middle of a crappy economy) It’s taught me that I need to trust in the universe. I’ve been talking about all the possibilities I have and how I haven’t gone for any of them (besides writing). Fact of the matter is, I just need to get out there in the world…. and than I’ll find out what I’ll do when I get there.

With every oppression comes the ability of freedom, with every freedom comes choices, with choices come the world.

I’m not claiming that I’m an expert on oppression or anything. I just have to let  you folks know something about my past. That may help you realize how I could understand this stuff. 

I had a mom that was deadset on a stepford family… and decided to use less than kosher means to achieve it. Fact is: I was beaten as a child.

I learned lessons about life that many people will never learn. I learned diplomacy and patience through these crazy happenings. But I also learned, that with every that opresses comes with something to undo it.

I had an awesome Dad… I didn’t know him until after my mother left… mostly because she insisted on doing the finances and was stealing money from my father… enough that she convinced my Dad that he needed to work 2 full-time jobs… He only had 6 hours a day and those were for sleep…. I admit that I put more weight on my Dad than I have ever put on a person.

He was the key, he could get us away from my mother… he was going to save us. (Realize that at the time I knew nothing about him… except that when I was having growing pains he’d let me sleep in their room.) He had to.

So we took a chance… when they were trying to settle the divorce after my mother had claimed that my father had beaten her…. Ironic isn’t that? We testified… well my older brother testified because he was the only one who was legally old enough to testify…  but we testified against her and hoped that the system would allow us to be set free.

My mother was oddly sweet during that time… sucking up to us. My Dad (although he was kicked out and wasn’t allowed to see us… I later found out, that he was sending my mother money to pay for all of the bills… to make sure that we got taken care of) was also nice… but a legitimate niceness… the kind where it’s literally just because the person is only nice because they’re that good of a person. We were put into fantastic hands.

But the point is, we were oppressed. (I do realize that some kids must have had worse childhoods than we did… and I sincerely pity the heck out of those kids because… although I got it through the last time and was even optimistic after… I don’t think I could do it ever again and come out whole… much less if it were worse.) and we were given a key that would free us… if we just used it. (There’s something weird about being abused… you’re embarrassed about it… and cops never believe children… that’s one thing that I know for sure now.) We were allowed to choose my Father, who luckily was awesome… I don’t know what we would’ve done if he sucked too. Probably go to an Aunt or to our Grandma.

Anyways you can trust in the universe to give you something to achieve anything that maybe related to your happiness. So go out and do something! I promise you, there is a way to anything that you are meant to do. You can always decide on the meaning of your life.

Wow, that blog went into an entirely different direction than I was hoping.

So I was busy with worrying and changing my philosophies and such to post a blog.

Not to mention Warped Tour which although we had to leave before bouncing souls (who had came to our town afterall) it was awesome. I met Big D and the Kids’ table… all of them really down to earth and we got to talk to them and they gave us their autographs. Their show was by far, the best of the day. I went into the ginormous skanking pit. So much fun. They played most of my favorite songs, “LAX, Shining On, Hell on Earth, Noise Complain…etc”. I did not get hurt one little bit… or even fall in the mosh pits (which I admit I was a bit afraid of) unfortunately I was too shy to ask the singer something that I’ve been wondering for a while… if he had ever been in drama because he sure acts like it. But anyways… it was awesome… I did get another sunburn… I really ought to just avoid the sun before I get skin cancer. BTW: Bathing your sunburn in Vingar… makes it go away stat.

I babysat the night before until like 1 a.m…. hadn’t slept the night before that.. and woke up at 7:30… (Because if we didn’t come on time we wouldn’t get in for free) and bought a Big D Patch, Micky Ds (Because we had vendor passes and could leave anytime we wanted and come back) and a shirt (Skate 4 Cancer… it was a cool shirt and I thought it was a good cause) for $10. Not half bad, eh? But yeah, by the end… although I was loving it… I was tired, thirsty, sunburned, and my arms really hurt. Can I just say I didn’t believe anything about musicians drinking a butt load? I do now… we got this one sack of glass bottles (luckily it was a heavy duty bag) and I had to carry it across the fairgrounds and I think moving a body would’ve been easier.. it was only from one band too. I definitely got some new muscles because of it.

I’ve also babysat a buttload in the past little while… (Especially considering that I have like $50 and on average only get 10 bucks)

But yeah, it’s been super swell. Don’t forget that the universe will take care of you, if you take the chances it gives you.

Yours Truly,
♥Aspiringtobesomeone

When you turn off an appliance, it goes into “stand-by mode” the product will continue to consume electricity even when switched off. Sometimes, appliances in stand-by mode use as much power off as when they are turned on!  For example, computer printers are one of the big energy wasters, some of them drawing 11.5 watts when idling. Some TVs and video cassette recorders draw almost as much, while set-top cable boxes can draw twice that many watts when the box is turned off.  Such appliances are energy vampires that are stealing your money.

A large number of electrical products – from air conditioners to VCRs – cannot be switched completely off without unplugging the device or turning it off at a power strip. These products draw power 24 hours a day, often without the knowledge of the consumer.  This mode is called “stand-by power,” but it makes these products “energy vampires.”

According to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, in particularly inefficient designs, the stand-by power use can be as high as 15 or 30 watts. For a single appliance, this may not seem like much, but when we add up the power use of the billions of appliances in the United States, the power consumption of appliances that are not being used is substantial.

The study found that the average California home pays between $50 and $70 every year to keep those little red lights burning, the clocks ticking and the electronics humming while the appliances go unused. Eliminating this standby or “leaking” electricity could save households between six and 26 percent on an average monthly electricity bill.

The federal government’s webpage on this topic is http://standby.lbl.gov/

I suggest  you call or write your Congressman and the Whitehouse and demand an end to these energy vampires that are stealing your money.

I am in no way advocating the use of this technique.

But I would be interested to hear if anyone has actually pulled something like this off.

OK, here’s the deal.  Another mental hospital in NC has lost its federal funding. DUH!!! This news runs right along side the article about the current gov’s wife flying around overseas and otherwise spending money that belongs to NC taxpayers (not to mention the juicy State job she got with a outrageous salary… )

I’m a community shrink in NC. Of course I had to write a comment – I kept this one brief:

“I agree, codeblue. It’s not rocket science.  It’s a matter of compassion versus greed. Sad, no, despicable but true. The mentally ill, the staff at the hospitals & MH workers in the community get the shaft while the administration dances in the aisles of their airplanes and says let them eat pork. I’m sooo angry with the current administration that I, a hardened Democrat & mental health professional, voted for (AAKKKHHH!!) the Republican for Gov. The devil’s having snowball fights! We can only hope that the whirlwind of coming political changes (and the clear breeze of reason Obama represents) will drop a house on the Wicked Weasleys of the North (Carolina)…”

(((Multiple Sighs)))

Alas, this debacle didn’t start this year – or last year – or even last decade. It’s the tragic consequence of a nation-wide decision peyote-chomping pot-smoking morons made in the 1970s.  In a massive group hallucination, it was revealed to them that mentally ill people shouldn’t be in hospitals.  They should be free!   Free! Free! Free!~ (Oh sorry…) The local communities would open wide their collective arms and embrace these poor oppressed beings, providing them with care and love and housing and doctors and medications and caseworkers and therapists…and dance ring-o-round-the -rosey and sing happy songs.

Quite a hallucination, Huh? Why did they think these people were in the hospital to begin with?  Granted, there were some who were unfairly warehoused, who really weren’t that severely ill or left in back wards.  This was NOT true for the vast majority of patients. NC was blessed with a system of state mental hospitals that were some of the most humane in the country.  Dix was a shining example.  It became a community in itself.  Patients worked a farm, providing them with productive lives and occupations well suited to their situations.  They also ran the kitchens, recreational programs and pretty much opperated at whatever level they were able.  All this in a setting of supervision and stability.

Then came the wonder drugs!  Lithium. Thorazine. More antipsychotics. More drugs for bipolar illness.  Shazaam!!  Another group hallucination – if we just give these patients medications, they’ll all be better and they can be normal and they can just see a doctor once a month and any child can grow up to be president of the united states and tinker bell and the tooth fairy are our friends…..  Yeah. Right.  Of course.  Why didn’t any one think of that before?  I love the tooth fairy!!  He tastes like chicken….

They missed the part about what happens when you evict people from the only home they’ve known for decades.  They missed the part where the patients have to get and actually take their medications.  They missed the part about no jobs in the community, no doctors, social workers, case managers, housing…..  Some of the more clear-thinking in the pack saw the need for mental health care in the communities (’cause believe me, there weren’t none!) and worked to set up the community mental health centers. North Carolina did a great good job of this (in terms of what was actually done, anyway). Although totally inadequate to fill the entire gaping hole of need, the young idealistic psychiatrists and therapists provided as much care as they could to as many people as they could reach.  Case managers often had to drive miles out into the country to pick up indigent patients without transportation (none of those in NC, are there??), they held group sessions for patients when there weren’t enough docs to see them all individually.  There was substance abuse treatment.  In the best cases, there was coordination with other services for the patients, such as voc rehab and/or developmental disabilities.

They had their fingers in the dam.

Nothing went right in this misbegotten scheme from the very beginning. Disoriented people “liberated” from their “imprisonment” wandered into communities no more prepared to take care of them than to launch a rocket to Mars. Communities recoiled in horror that “those people” were returning. They all rushed to provide housing and jobs and transportation and love… OH. Wait. That’s the wrong fairy tale….

More homeless. More slumlords. More slave-wage laborers. Aunt Mitzi returned to being locked in the back room. Medication?  Doesn’t that cost money? Why should they take it? Insight does not mix well with mental illness! Alcohol, pot, cocaine – all readily at hand and, boy, are they better than that Haldol!! Crime, violence, drug addiction. …  all the fault of those crazy people they let back into the community, right?

Throw more money at the problem.  Funny how none of it seemed to get to the people who could actually use it.  The administrations of the mental health authorities swelled like a young man in lust….  Only the most dedicated mental health professionals (along with others who couldn’t find jobs elsewhere) would work in the system because the pay sucked – but the bore-o-crats were well paid on state employee scales, with state health plans etc.

Meanwhile, growing numbers of homeless appeared in the parks and on the sidewalks of the cities. In the rural areas, the poorer they were, the more squalid the circumstances and the further from any services they lived.

Enter the hallway bully, NC State Government.  Look! Look! A pot of money!  What can we do with this pot of money? Oh! Oh! It belongs to the mental health system!  Too bad!! Give us your lunch money!!  Look!  Over there!  A bird!!  Ten million dollars?  What ten million dollars??  Not an isolated incident.  Just part of the hemorrhage.  The dam was leaking in too many places.

Meanwhile, where was the housing?  Where were the jobs?  Where was the transportation? HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHa!!!!….sorry, I had to stop before I peed my pants…..

The hospitals became dumping grounds for those too ill or too addicted to lay quietly on the sidewalk. (The following is based in about a thousand true stories) After Joey knifes Uncle Bud in a paranoid rage , well, then maybe we’ll have the cops take him to Dix before they take him to prison. Can’t commit them unless they are dangerous to themselves or others.  The week before: What’s that you say?  Joey said he was hearing voices?  Said they we’re telling him there were demons hiding in people?  Well, has he done anything?  No?  Well we can’t commit him; there’s no proof he’s dangerous.  Oh, sorry Uncle Bob…

Hmmmm…Now where’s that hallway bully?  Oh, look, there’s a bird.  Public mental health system?  What public mental health system?  No.  You must have been hallucinating.  We can’t afford a public mental health system … Look! Look! See the private companies who want to “take care” of all the poor!  See no services provided unless they are reimbursed by medicaid. See the happy corporate CEOs stuffing all that money in their pockets. See companies pull out of the mental health business after the public system was dismantled because they can’t make enough money exploiting the misery of the mentally ill. See people lose their jobs. OH! OH! There’s a crisis!  We must do something! ….

Silence.

Sound of water flowing through the total breach of the dam.

We know what!!  We’ll take better care of our mentally ill by reducing the number of beds in the mental hospital! We’ll take better care of our mentally ill by reducing the number of beds in the mental hospital! We’ll take better care of our mentally ill by reducing the number of beds in the mental hospital! If we repeat it enough times, won’t it become true?  Oh, the hospitals we already have aren’t adequate already? Eh?  Did you say something?  Speak up!  We can’t hear you!  Oh, it’s just those mental health advocates. Oh, wait!  There’s a voice: No more money until you fix what’s broke! Who’s that?  OOOOO NNNOOOOO!  It’s Uncle Sam! The only one the hallway bully is afraid of….

We be smoked. They figgered out we been employ’n high school drop outs t’ cares fo’ our crazy folks. They figgered out we couldn’t give a crap about thos crazy ‘uns.

What?  Who died?  Look! There’s a bird!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_oGW-5HunI  – part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzHcF2J0MG0 – part 2

I love what she says about her boyfriend/husband and that she took responsibility for her own actions. She is a great role model! I can’t wait until 11.11.08!!!

If I walked up to you and said give me your motorola razr for free so i can sell it in China for triple its value, what would you say?

If Resellular walked up to you and said give us your phone, we’ll recycle it for free, but they sold it in China for triple the value, What would you say? How would you feel?

Well, sadly this is the truth. Another Corporate power house taking advantage of the American people and in time of need, no less. They take your cell phones for free and sell them in developing countries such as China, Africa, and South/Central America. Making 60 Million dollars a year and giving the American people ZERO doesn’t look like recycling to me.

Recycling should be beneficial to everyone, good for the environment, people get money, and recullular gets their stupid share too. Instead we have a money hungry corporation stealing money from the American people and causing more polution problem else where in this fragile world. What’s china gonna do with the phones when their done, Brazil, Mexico? their gooing to go straight in the garbage! Isn’t that the problem that we have now??

They’re not fixing anything, they’re just making it worse!

Today, Yahoooooo-ooooo published an article by Live Science with the same title as this blog. Fred came up with his own version to help save our fragile planet:

1. Don’t Change light bulbs. If you never change your light bulbs, you don’t have to worry if they are energy star efficient or not! Non-working light bulbs consume the least amount of energy of any light bulb on the market!

2. Drive like a racecar driver. Instead of driving differently or driving a hybrid. Everyone should just drive faster. By driving faster, you’ll be on the road less, meaning you will have less time to pollute! If you drive an SUV, fill it up with kids or something. If you are transporting a lot of people, an SUV is a great way to get around town. Of course, if you don’t have a lot of kids, just load it up with as much stuff as possible so that you don’t feel guilty driving an SUV.

3. Turn your A/C off when you are not at home. This is particularly important during the winter. Fred means, honestly do you really need the A/C on when it is 30 degrees outside? Also, have your office implement the same policy. Fred was freezing his ass off last November when they didn’t turn off the A/C in the office at work.

4. Eat out more often. This one has a double bonus that I’ll share in just a moment. However, think about how much energy you will be saving if all you need to put in your refrigerator is beer. Eh! Think about that one. Now for the double bonus: Walk to the restaurant. Bonus #1: You aren’t driving, using up all that gas and polluting. Bonus #2: You are getting exercise, making your body more efficient!

5. Turn off your hot water heater. Let’s face it. Hot water is a luxury. There are starving, unbathed children in Africa who don’t have hot water. You can live without it too!

6. Plant trees near your treadmill. Sure, you could run outside, but that would just put more carbon dioxide into the environment. Run on your treadmill instead. Sure, it requires electricity, but that comes from coal burning plants that aren’t anywhere near your house, so you don’t have to worry about it now, do you? Use a tree near your treadmill and it will thrive off of your carbon dioxide produced during exercise.

7. Purchase some solar panels. You don’t have to use them. Just buying them will show that you are thinking green. But if you do use them, make sure that you put your energy back onto the power grid so that you can get more money back on your energy bill, keeping the price of energy increasing while you get fat off of your solar panels and complain about the government stealing all your money.

8. Grow stuff in your backyard. If you don’t have a backyard, get some hydroponics equipment. I’m not talking about the wacky tabacky folks. Grow some tomatoes or something. If you can afford a cow, you might as well get one of those too!

9. Make sure that you only buy recycled products because we all know that recycled must mean that it is better for the environment. Of course, how exactly do they get the ink out of the old paper, and how much energy does it take to melt the plastic bottles to make recycled bottles doesn’t matter, right?

10. Don’t do anything. If you sit around at home and play with your dogs, you’ll be doing more for the environment than any of the stuff listed above. Be smart. Protect the Earth because although the Earth has been around for 4.5 billion years and been pummeled by meteor after meteor and lost the entire mass of the moon after a massive collision, us ants known as humans are capable of turning it into a barren wasteland!

By Matt Taibbi (Rolling Stone, November 29th 2007)

Jag har under senaste tiden last massor av artiklar om valet och da sarskilt de som skrivs for Rolling Stone Magazine, min favvotidning har!

Det som ni far lasa har nedan ar glimtar av en artikel om Mike Huckabee. Read and enjoy!

Mike Huckabee is a charming, funny economic populist who seems to genuinely care about the poor. He’s also a full-blown Christian kook.

…Huckabee represents something entirely new – a cross between John Edwards and Jerry Falwell, and ordained Southern Baptist preacher who actually seems to give a shit about the working poor.

But Huckabee is also something else: full-blown nuts, a Christian goofball of the highest order. He believes the Earth may be only 6,000 years old, angrily rejects the evidence that human beings evolved from “primates” and thinks America wouldn’t need so much Mexican labor if we allowed every aborted fetus to grow up and enter the workforce…

He says “We shouldn’t allow a child to live under a bridge or in the back seat of a car” True true! I completely agree, however - how is HE going to achieve that?

…As a governor of Arkansas, he outraged Republicans with his plan to expand health coverage for children, his embrace of refugees from Katarina and his support for subsidized higher education for the children of illegal immegrants…

…”He identifies with ordinary people,” says Max Brantley, editor of the Arkansas Times (one of Huckabee’s most ferocious critics)…

…For all his political waffling in other areas – Huckabee has flip-flopped on a host of earthly political issues, from taxes to local control of school boards – he leaves absolutely no doubt about his commitment to religious wackowood. George Buch and John Ashcroft were religious in a scary way, but the rational among us could always take heart to that, deep down, the Bush administration was more cynical than messianic. But it doesn’t take much exposure to Huckabee to see that this former understudy of a Texas televangelist is deadly serious about the God thing…

…In the first Republican debate in New Hampshire, Huckabee, apparently unaware thet human beings are primates, responded to a question about evolution by saying “if anybody wants to believe that they are the descendants of a primate, they are certainly welcome to do it.”…

He also said ( @ a appearance at the Prestonwood Baptist Church near Dallas)  …”if you’re with Jesus Christ, we know how it turns out in the final moment,” he said ”I’ve read the last chapter in the book, and we do end up winning.” Winning??

He continues …”Being the president isn’t about picking who goes to heaven and who goes to hell” BUT then he says …”I believe Jesus is the way to heaven”…

…”Science changes with every generation and with new discoveries, and God doesn’t,” he says. “So I’ll stick with God if the two are in conflict” Huckabee’s well-documented disdain for science was reflected in the performance of the Arkansas school system when he was governor; one survey gave the state an F for it’s science standards…

…when he talks about religion, he gets weirdly combative and obnixious, often drifting into outright offensiveness…

…He said he would oppose gay marriage “until Moses comes down with two stone tablets from Brokeback Mountain saying he’s changed the rules.” And he recently scored a rare offend trifecta, simultaneously pissing off immigrants, Jews and the pro-choice crowd when he ludicrously claimed that a “hollocaust” of abortions had artificially created a demand of Mexican labor.

Huckabee also has a knack for getting caught with his fingers in the cookie jar. In his first year as governor, Huck used a $60,000 taxpayer fund for personal expenses like dog food, pantyhose and meals at Taco Bell…

…Huckabee has also been accused of paying himself as a consultant to his own senatorial campaign…

…Huckabee is a sincere, ideologically in-tune champion of a massive and frustrated conservative demografic. The fact that he is succeding in spite of his obvious and undisguised lunacy is a testament to the desperation of the voting public, which is so hungry for a candidate who actually responds to its needs that it may be willing to overlook extraordinary levels of kookiness…

…Make no misstake, Huckabee can win this thing. None of his rivals can claim to represent the Christian right. His biggest problem however is money…

…Charm only goes as far if you’re full-bore nuts. Huckabee may be able to get away with saying he’s not a primate, but he’d better nod scream it…

Tro/tyck vad ni vill, men han ar inte mitt val av kandidat i alla fall!!

Online schemes operating out of Nigeria that have defrauded victims out of tens of millions of dollars have become so pervasive that the U.S. government has given the West African country until November to take steps to decrease such crimes or face sanctions.

Financial fraud is now reportedly one of the three largest industries in Nigeria, where the anonymity of the Internet is being used to give crime syndicates a windfall.

In 1980 the US Secret Service took a proactive approach to combating Nigerian organized crime by establishing and maintaining task forces throughout the United States whose main focus was the investigation of financial fraud committed by Nigerian nationals and their accomplices.

Membership in these task forces included representatives from the United States Customs Service, Nigerian Crime Initiative (NCI), the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Nigerian Organized Crime Task Force (INOCTF), the United States Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Nigerian National Police (NNP), the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, bank investigators from the private sector, as well as numerous state and local law enforcement agencies and other Nigerian federal law enforcement agencies. This diverse membership is indicative of the multitude of crimes being perpetrated by Nigerian criminals.

There are so many scams coming out of Nigeria that in June 2000 the US Secret Service established a permanent office in Lagos!

Here are some links and quotes that go into greater detail:

1. FBI – http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/orgcrime/africancrim.htm
Nigerian criminal enterprises are the most significant of these groups and operate in more than 80 other countries of the world. They are among the most aggressive and expansionist international criminal groups and are primarily engaged in drug trafficking and financial frauds.

Nigerian groups are famous globally for their financial frauds, which cost the U.S. alone an estimated $1 billion to $2 billion each year. Schemes are diverse, targeting individuals, businesses, and government offices.”

2. Nigeria – The 419 Coalition Website – http://home.rica.net/alphae/419coal/
“A Five Billion US$ (as of 1996, much more now) worldwide Scam which has run since the early 1980’s under Successive Governments of Nigeria. It is also referred to as “Advance Fee Fraud”, “419 Fraud” (Four-One-Nine) after a formerly relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria…”

3. Interpol – http://www.interpol.int/Public/FinancialCr…erianLetter.asp
“For more than 16 years, private individuals, as well as organizations and commercial companies, have been receiving unexpected communication through letters and faxes but mainly through e-mails from senders claiming to be Nigerian or African citizens and promising high profitable business. According to the relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria it is referred to as 4-1-9 Fraud.”

4. Crimes of Persuasion – http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/Nigeri…erian_busts.htm
“One investigation resulted in the seizure of 11,460 Nigerian advanced fee fraud letters mailed via the Hong Kong Post Office, which represented 95% of the incoming mail from Nigeria. The addresses had been sourced from local and international telephone directories and various business publications.

In May of 1996, pursuant to PDD-42, a federal law enforcement interagency working group was created to develop a domestic law enforcement strategy regarding Nigerian organized crime. The proposed enforcement effort of the strategy became known as the Nigerian Crime Initiative (NCI).

DEC 1997 – Douglas Arthur Cole a.k.a. Peter McGrath a.k.a. William H. Miles whose ring may have been responsible for up to $20 million in fraud worldwide was convicted of 22 counts of 419 related charges in the US District Court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

In 1998, then-Attorney General Reno approved the recommendation of the working group to establish the Interagency Nigerian Organized Crime Task Force (INOCTF).

On January 12, 1999, the Secret Service began a cooperative effort with the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, and the Nigerian National Police (NNP). The purpose of this effort was to provide operational, investigative and training assistance to the NNP and other Nigerian federal law enforcement agencies.

SEP 2000 – The United States Secret Service is said to have carried out 150 investigations into financial crimes in Nigeria leading to no fewer than 220 arrests since January, last year.

On January 5th, 2001 the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Mr. M. R. Rasheed was charged in a US Federal District Court with lying under oath and providing false testimony regarding his direct involvement in setting up secret offshore accounts and trusts.”

5. Nigeria Police Internet Resource Unit – http://www.nigeriapolice.org/419.htm
“Advanced Fee Fraud is a criminal offence defined and punishable under section 419 of the Nigeria criminal code.”

6. Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria – http://www.nigeriaembassyusa.org/fraud.shtml
“The publicity campaigns by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria have proved successful in sensitizing the public about the menace of advance fee fraud and the falsehood of claims that easy money could be made in Nigeria.”

7. US Postal Inspector – http://www.usps.com/websites/depart/inspect/pressrel.htm
“Inspectors announced they have seized and destroyed over two million Nigerian advance-fee fraud letters at the JFK Airport Mail Center since March 30, 1998. The letters, often referred to as “419″ letters after the Nigerian statute that makes them illegal, were found to have counterfeit Nigerian postage, and they promoted fraudulent business proposals.

Lee Heath, Postal Inspector in Charge of the New York Division, warns that American consumers are being scammed to the tune of $100 million annually by international con artists, who send the letters primarily from Nigeria and other West African countries.”

8. Florida Computer Crime Center – http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Fc3/nigerian.html
“There are several variations of the Nigerian Scam that criminals may use to exploit their victims. Here are some examples: Fake lottery winnings, Beneficiary of a Will, Bogus Cashiers Checks, Donation Solicitations, Fake Web Site, Modeling opportunities, American Soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq, fake items sold on auction sites, credit card fraud, bank fraud, check kiting, various types of insurance fraud, entitlement fraud, false identification, passport & visa fraud, marriage fraud to obtain U.S. citizenship, vehicle thefts, the counterfeiting of U.S. currency, and the counterfeiting of corporate checks and other obligations.”

9. Attorney General – http://www.ago.mo.gov/newsreleases/2001/042701.htm
“Nigerian scam bust uncovers new victims — including one $3 million victim — and money trail to Cayman Islands.”

10. Department of Consumer Affairs – http://www.scconsumer.gov/press_releases/m…gerian_scam.htm
“…many businesses are getting some very curious mail from the country of Nigeria. There is an organization of con men from this country operating numerous swindles throughout the United States…”

11. The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command – http://www.mccoy.army.mil/vtriad_online/09…am_09-22-06.htm
“…released an advisory warning Soldiers and family members of a so-called Nigerian Fraud Scam or advanced fee fraud, using unsolicited faxes, electronic-mail or letters. The advisory also warns of the criminal implications for Army personnel who actively facilitate the scheme.

The Nigerian Scam starts with someone from Nigeria, or another country, making unsolicited contact with unsuspecting victims requesting their help in disposing of gold or money recovered in Iraq, or oil revenues from Nigeria or Russia, or lottery winnings from some oversees location.”

12. State Department – http://www.dfi.wa.gov/consumers/alerts/nigerian.htm
“The Nigerian Advance Fee Scam continues to draw in victims even though it’s been around for a long time. View the U.S. Secret Services’ website for tactics Nigerian scam artists use to lure victims.”

13. US Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria – http://www.state.gov/www/regions/africa/naffpub.pdf
“According to the Metropolitan Police Company fraud department in London, some 3000 AFF letters are mailed or faxed worldwide; primarily form Nigeria.”

14. Snopes.com – http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/nigeria.asp
“Nigerian fraud costs its victim anywhere from a few thousand dollars up to hundreds of thousands.“

15. Fraud.org – http://www.fraud.org/scamsagainstbusinesse…ps/nigerian.htm
“you will be asked to pay a never-ending series of fees or expenses before the funds can be transferred to your account. Unfortunately, the millions never materialize.”

16. FTC – http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/nigeralrt.shtm
“Nigerian advance-fee fraud has been around for decades, but now seems to have reached epidemic proportions…”

17. The Dallas Morning News – http://metrocolumnistsblog.dallasnews.com/…rian-fraud.html
“Release Feb. 27, 2008 – Special Agent in Charge Robert E. Casey Jr. issues warning to the public of a new tactic on the Nigerian Fraud Letters.”

18. MSNBC – http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3078489
“Hundreds of victims have recently fallen…”

19. Fox News – http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,232500,00.html
“Victims still falling prey to Nigerian email scams”

20. Internet Crime Complain Center – http://www.ic3.gov/crimeschemes.aspx#item-3
“In most instances, the money is sent to locations in West Africa (Nigeria).”

21. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance_fee_fraud
“The 419 scam originated in the early 1980s as the oil-based economy of Nigeria declined. Several unemployed university students first used this scam as a means of manipulating business visitors interested in shady deals in the Nigerian oil sector before targeting businessmen in the west…”

22. Bestfrauds.com – http://www.bestfrauds.com/money-swindle3.html
“Online schemes operating out of Nigeria that have defrauded victims out of tens of millions of dollars have become so pervasive that the U.S. government has given the West African country until November to take steps to decrease such crimes or face sanctions. Financial fraud is now reportedly one of the three largest industries in Nigeria, where the anonymity of the Internet is being used to give crime syndicates a windfall.“

23. This is a link to the US Department of Justice site showing another 36 links discussing Nigerian scams.

24. Here is a link to the US Secret Service site showing another 91 links to Nigerian scams.

The United States Secret Service (USSS) and the United States Postal Service are primary U.S. law enforcement agencies in dealing with these types of scams. U.S. citizens or residents who have suffered a financial loss and want to report a scam may forward unsolicited e-mails to the USSS at 419.fcd@usss.treas.gov. U.S. citizens and residents who have suffered a financial loss are instructed to contact the nearest field office of the Secret Service by telephone.

Recently a Star Search Casting member posted an email they received to the community forum because they had concerns that the email was a part of a scam. The email was from the Byron Sanders Advertising Agency, a company that sells advertising, marketing and public relations services and claims to help rising stars get media exposure through major television networks, the Internet and print advertising.

The company is listed as the Byron Sanders Marketing Media Management Agency with the Better Business Bureau. The company is based in Dallas, Texas and is not a BBB accredited company. The company has an unsatisfactory record with the BBB due to failure to respond to a complaint. In the last 36 months, two complaints have been filed against the company – one of which has been closed.

This information doesn’t necessarily mean that the company is involved in a scam. Most companies that have been involved in scams have a far greater number of complaints within that span of time. However, there are several red flags. The first is that due to the nature of the industry that the company is in – advertising, marketing and public relations – it’s somewhat suspicious that there is limited information about the company on the web. If a company claims to be able to promote you, then you’d definitely want to go with a company that is able to promote themselves. For example, Ken Sunshine has worked to promote actors such as Ben Affleck, Justin Timberlake and Leonardo DiCaprio. A Google search for Ken Sunshine’s name returns over 20,000 records, while a search for the Byron Sanders Advertising Agency returns only six results.

Secondly, the company claims to be the “greatest advertising agency in the world…” however the company is not a member of the American Association of Advertising Agencies. Lastly, in the email that was sent to one of our members, the representative asked them to email them back and state how much money they were willing to invest in promoting themselves. Reputable advertising and public relations agencies are not “name your price” businesses. These companies work for specific fees, on a project-by-project basis, or on a monthly retainer.

For aspiring actors, singers, dancers and models, there will be a time where you will need the assistance of public relations and marketing professionals to help you boost your career. However this point generally comes once you’ve found an agent and have booked one or more significant jobs. Additionally, your agent or manager at that time can pair you with a marketing and public relations agency with a great reputation and a strong track record.

For more information on entertainment-related Internet scams, log in to http://www.StarSearchCasting.com each day and check out our Scam Alert.

When we’re investigating recent scam activity, we often find that new scams are really just revised emails that are being circulated by the same scammers over and over, simply using a different name. Many parents are discovering that this same tactic is used by agencies offline as well. More and more parents are learning that companies who have been investigated for fraudulent activity are now changing the names of their companies to avoid detection. This tactic now requires parents who are researching reputable opportunities for their child actors, models, dancers and singers to dig even deeper to make sure that the agencies and industry professionals that they work with truly have their children’s best interest at heart.

StudioKidz was an agency in California that recruited children for acting jobs, often in stores such as Wal-Mart and Target.  The agency was accused of charging exorbitant fees for classes and training. Later it was discovered that the agency didn’t have a license and therefore was never able to legally book acting jobs for any of their clients. When parents began to report the agency to consumer action agencies, the owners decided to change their name to TVKidz so that parents who looked them up online wouldn’t come across the large number of complaints that had been filed against them.

However, it wasn’t long before parents begin to discover that TVKidz was the same agency as StudioKidz, which prompted the owner to change the name of the company again to CommercialKidz. Additionally, she even changed her own name. A watchdog group who has been following the agency’s activities has now found information that suggests the owner may even have a previous criminal record.

So you see, you can never be too careful when it comes to researching agencies or industry professionals who have expressed an interest in you or your children. It’s unfortunate that there are so many individuals out there that lay in wait to take advantage of those new to the industry. However it’s important that instead of being discouraged, that we simply do our homework each and every time and stay focused on our goals.

Be sure to log in to http://www.EliteCastingNetwork.com each day to review our Scam Alert. We will continue to keep you posted on the latest scam information affecting the entertainment industry, as well as strategies you can use to make sure you don’t become a victim.

We recently posted an email from a scammer who claimed to be a representative of a modeling agency called Agency Ghost Inc. Here are a few excepts from the email he’s been distributing:

“I am Frederick N Dawson a representative of a modeling company situated in Bristol, United Kingdom. Your picture hads been selected for a billboard advertisment/and local advert here at heathrow airport.Your pictures had been accepted by the Agency Ghost Inc

You will receive a check payment for the contract.You will deduct 15% of the check payment for using your gorgeous pictures for billboard advert; and proceed to sending the balance over to your appointed Agent via western union Money Tranfer for Legal Documentation of the deal and “Comp card”.This payment will also be used as “Sign up fee” with the agent

We awaiting to receive four picture of you.The photos required is basically for a Coca cola advertisment bill board at Heathrow airport in london..Let us know your decision ASAP.”

There are several elements in this email that alerted members that this was a scam:

- It is highly unlikely, if not impossible, that an agency would use one of your personal photos for an advertising campaign – no matter how great you look in it.

- A reputable agency would not appoint you to send funds to a third party from your earnings.

- Reputable agents do not require sign up fees.

I bet you’re really excited to get your career underway in 2008. Maybe you’re determined to get an agent this year, or maybe you want to book your first gig. But whatever your goals are, be sure that you don’t sacrifice good judgment in an effort to seize an opportunity that may not be authentic.

If you have questions this year about the validity of any of the emails that you receive, be sure to post them to the community forum so that you can get feedback from the Elite Casting Network staff and other members. Also be sure to log in everyday to your ECN account at http://www.EliteCastingNetwork.com and check out our Scam Watch to stay informed about the latest entertainment industry scams.

It was really easy to do, really it was.

Back in the ‘olden days’ things were a little looser than they are now. In fact, I would say they were a LOT looser. You couldn’t get away with those kinds of things now. The police will now have you in jail, or if you are a kid, you’d be taken away from your home and be slapped into foster care faster than you can blink an eye.

Back then was a different time. My mother would come home early in the morning (code word, partying all night long) and be sick until two the next afternoon (code word, hung-over). About two thirty, she would sort of wake up and give me a dollar to go down to the corner store and get her some cigarettes. I started doing this when I was about seven or eight, old enough to walk down to the store by myself.

The clerk knew my mother from high school. All I had to say was, “Can I get a pack of Virginia Slims for my mom?” and she would give them to me, just like that. Then I’d walk back down to my house and give her the cigarettes. She’d take a couple of drags and it would be enough to wake her up. She’d still be groggy, but it helped with the disposition. She wouldn’t be so likely to snap at me or hit me with a broom.

When I was about eleven, I had the brightest of bright ideas. I decided that I would see if I could get a six pack of beer out of the lady at the corner store. We didn’t have very much money, but I made a little by returning cans and bottles. Every now and then I would find a quarter on the ground and would scoop it up so fast. Sometimes my teacher, Mrs. Glass, would give me a dime for doing errands for her. I hid all of it in an old tin and hid the tin in a heating vent in my room. It wasn’t long before I saved up six dollars.

It was a really nice spring day when I took my six dollars and a bottle opener and went down to the corner store. My mother was at work at the bar. I walked into the store and asked for a pack of cigarettes, just like usual. The clerk seemed busy stocking cigarettes, so I thought the time was ready to slip in my extra purchase. So I casually added, “Can I get a six-pack? My mother said to bring it right back.” I held my breath. I thought maybe the clerk would be onto me and she would say no.

Lydia (I think her name was Lydia) turned away and put a six-pack of Schmidt beer on the counter. It was my mother’s favorite, and she and I both knew it. Then she totaled my purchases, put everything in a bag and said, “Five forty-nine,” and took my dollars, and gave me fifty-one cents in change.

I almost couldn’t believe it. Well, I could, sort of. After all, I’d been going there for years buying cigarettes. I thought I was so cool!

I took my brown bag and headed off to the river. Like I said, it was a really nice spring day. There were caves by the river, where we would go to play and hang out. My favorite cave was a really small one, where only two kids could fit. It was above most of the bigger ones that were closer to the shore.

The caves often made noises when the wind blew through them. Legend had it that the Indians thought there were spirits in the caves. The bigger ones would emit a very low moaning and it was very creepy. I guess bootleggers used the caves back in the day to store their whisky, or at least that’s what my granny said. The noise was fearsome and people would stay away. My little cave made a sound more like a lady sighing. I used to call it the Whispering Cave. Most people couldn’t even climb to it. You had to be really spry and small just to climb to it.

The big caves often had rats and other critters in them. I didn’t like hanging out in the big caves much. Besides, the bigger kids who were teenagers would hang out in them and party. It wasn’t a good mix. I liked my little cave much better. Besides, no one else could climb up. Either they were too fat or too lazy to try it.

I climbed up and sat down. The sun was just starting to go down a bit, so it was shining brightly right into my cave. I popped the top of my first beer and drank it. About half way down, I lit one of the cigarettes and took a couple of draws. I didn’t like the cigarette as much as I liked the beer.

I can’t remember, but I think I stayed there all night.

And that’s how it all started.