Who Was Flim-Flamming Who ??

 

Note:  Before I go into the details, I want to let you know that I am going to cut back on the number of Blogs I have been churning out of late and focus more on the Book I have been working on – off and on – in regard to Investing.  I will certainly do a Blog in regard to the final Presidential Debate and then of course, one on the Day after the November 6th US Election.  G.

Now For The Flim-Flam:

I received a telephone call the other morning and it went something along the following lines:

Ring, Ring

Hello?  (me)

Caller – “Sir I am pleased to tell you that you have won $3.5 million dollars.

Me – “That is indeed great news – how so?”

Caller – “Your 6/49 win.”

Me – “That is even better news since I do not play 6/49.”

Caller – “Well you won anyway.”

Me – “Great, where do I pick up my $3.5 million?”

Caller – “Not to worry, we will deliver it to you”

Me – “That’s even better – when?”

Caller – “Later Today”

Me – “Why this is great service – what time later today can I expect you?”

Caller – “An hour or so after you send us $75, we need this money to cover the cost of the delivery.”

Me – “Well that is most reasonable, are you sure $75 is enough for all your trouble – I could pay more if you want.”

Caller – “No, $75 is fine”

Me – “Okay, I have that much on me right now so I look forward to seeing you in an hour or so".”

Caller – “You do not pay the delivery person directly, rather you need to get a Money Gramm and send it to the name and address I am going to give you in Sault Ste. Morie.

Me – “Sault Ste. Morie?”

Caller – “Yes Sault Ste. Morie.”

Me – “Just confirming.”

Caller then gives me a name and address in Sault Ste. Morie.

Caller – “How long will it take for you to send the money gramm?”

Me – “Could be a problem – I live in a rural area and do not know where the nearest money gramm centre is”.

Caller – “Go to your nearest Post Office”

Me – “Good idea – there in one close to where I live, so it should only take me 30 minutes - 45 at the most”.

Caller – “That’s great, I will call you back in about an hour to confirm it has been sent”.

Me – “And then I can expect to receive the 3.5?”

Caller – “Absolutely.

I then immediately call the Ottawa Police to let them know this transaction was going down – so to speak.

Ottawa Police – “We really do not get into this type of fraud – you need to call the Province’s Special Fraud Squad Office”  - (I am given their number).

I then place a call to Ontario’ Special Fraud Squad Office (OSFSO) – it is a minute past noon, and I get the following recording: “we have all gone to lunch, call back after one p.m.”  I guess they expect fraud to take time off for lunch as well.

I call back at a minute after 1 p.m. – (the 6/49 fellow had yet to call be back).  I get the following recording “all of our secret* agents are on the phone with others like you who are being scammed…your call is important to us …”   (Note * I confess the word ‘secret’ is my own).

Anyway, I wait, and I wait and wait, 45 minutes go by and no secret agent has been available to take my pressing call – all the while – every 20 seconds or so a recording triggers advising me of all of the fraud cases that the OSFSO does not deal with (e.g. employment fraud).

Finally, my call gets answered.

I explain to the nice chap what has transpired and when I finish, he tells me that there is nothing they can do – other than to document my complaint.  He does suggest I might want to let the Money Gramm folks know about their service being abused.

I tell the dear chap if he believes Money Gramm needs to hear from someone – it best be him and not me.  (I figured at this point I had done my duty).

Before I hang up though he explains briefly to me how the scam works – Victim buys the money gramm and sends it off to the name and address provided him, – the scammers then go into their nearest money gramm office and intercept the payment. 

The agent then tells me – by the bye – that the scammer is physically located in Jamaica.  The agent knows this because he recognizes the exchange of the telephone number I have provided to him.

I thank him and await the Scammers call.

As if on cue, the phone rings – Scammer “did you send the money gramm?”

Me – “well I got to the Post Office and they did not have money gramms – so I sent a money order.

Scammer – “where did you send it”

Me – “to the name and address you provided to me”

A Pause

And then this …

“You LyAAAAR” …”You –(blank) - LYYAAAAR”

Me – “Does this mean I should not expect the $3.5 million”

Scammer – “Yes”

Me – Oh, by the way, how is the weather there in Jamaica.

Scammer – “Not too bad”.

I hang up.

As I saw it …

‘K. D. Galagher’

 

 

ELVIS Has Left The Building …

 

Or at least, our esteemed leader Dalton McGuinty has and, like Elvis, he left by the Back Door.

You dear reader can well imagine that I am not surprised by this cowardly act, but I am most disappointed.

McGuinty, as I have categorized on numerous occasions, has single headedly brought this once Proud Province to its knees.  That he now sneaks off into the sunset with his healthy Premier’s Pension in tact, is a slap in the face to all those who put their trust in him.

When the time came for him to face up to his misguided and costly initiatives, he caved. 

Some Leader.

Moreover, with his Prorogation of the Legislature, he has effectively neutered the Opposition in its attempts to cast light on his many scandals, most notably the recent one involving the shutting down of the Two Power Plants days prior to the last Election.

The fact is, the Tories and NDP were getting too close on this important file; talk had begun about the need to call in the Cops.

The Voters of this Province, on three separate occasions, voted McGuinty in – so I am not overly concerned about their welfare.  They are reaping what they sowed.  And the fallout will continue for some time to come, regardless of who becomes the new Lib Leader or which Party wins the next election.

I am just saddened by the fact that the guy who created the mess will not be around to witness, first hand, the extent of the damage.

As I see it …

‘K.D. Galagher’

 

 

 

The Most Important Freedom We Have …

 

IS THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH… all the other freedoms pale in comparison.

But Sadly, we in Canada do not have it.

This week past, saw a supposed pastor, Terry Jones, denied entry into our country because he has a tendency to burn Korans.  Not a nice person, but not so un-nice that we can be denied our right to hear what he says, whether we agree with him or not. 

This is what Democracy is based upon.

The only time a person should be thwarted in his or her efforts to speak and be heard, is if they are directly calling for death or injury to someone or some group.  For instance, “all Martians should be burned in the street.”

And dear reader, we have laws that deal specifically with those types of situations, they are adequately – indeed perhaps too adequately, encompassed in our country’s criminal code.

What we do not need are Kangaroo Courts a.k.a Human Rights Tribunals, stamping out Freedom of Speech in their Zeal to Cleanse the Mouths and Minds of Society.  The right to say and hear what other people think is the fundamental thing that separates Democracy from Dictatorship.

Recently, we saw and heard the spectacle of the President of Iran delivering his annual address to the United Nations. His rants, said more about how  vile he and his administration is, than his silence could ever portray.  This, then, is the value of retaining the United Nations – but I digress.

But now here in Canada, we have a guy denied entry into our country for burning books.

I could try to pull at your heart strings and tell you about the thousands of our soldiers who have died for our Freedoms and indeed they did, but in the scheme of the things that is not the issue here.  True, those dead soldiers made it possible for us to Live in Freedom, but it is up to Those Of Us Among The Living to see that our Freedom Survives.

So What To Do?

First, in the case of Terry Jones, we need to know who exactly made the decision to turn him back at the border and on what supposed authority. Given the importance of this, once it is known, I would send the bureaucrat or politician packing.

Second, we should demand that the Human Rights Tribunals be all disbanded.

Third, we need to tell our fellow citizens that if they are not prepared to think for themselves, then sooner or later, someone will step and do their thinking for them.  

In Canada, and indeed around the Western World, this can already be seen happening.

As I see it…

‘K.D. Galagher’