This week Zacharias's organization released the preliminary report of the outside investigators they hired and those more serious accusations have now been confirmed. He owned two spas and had a pattern of exposing himself to his employees, touching them inappropriately, and propositioning them for sex. These are the actions of a sexual predator. The early report hints at other abuses that they are still investigating and the full report should be out by February.
So, I have to take back what I said. His scandals weren't minor. He was dishonest and predatory, abusing the power he had over his employees, humiliating and traumatizing them. I apologize for minimizing their pain. In light of this information, I now do have doubts about his sincerity. The abuse, denial, and coverups suggest that he probably didn't believe everything he was saying on his speaking tours. It stings to realize that I spent so much time listening to someone who was so dishonest. I already considered much of what he said to be mistaken, but I didn't feel lied to. Now I do.
Here is the preliminary report.
]]>]]>A mixture of gullibility and cynicism had been an outstanding characteristic of mob mentality before it became an everyday phenomenon of masses. In an ever-changing, incomprehensible world the masses had reached the point where they would, at the same time, believe everything and nothing, that everything was possible and that nothing was true. The mixture in itself was remarkable enough, because it spelled the end of the illusion that gullibility was a weakness of unsuspecting primitive souls and cynicism the vice of superior and refined minds. Mass Propaganda discovered that its audience was ready at all times to believe the worst, no matter how absurd, and did not particularly object to being deceived because it held every statement to be a lie anyhow. The totalitarian mass leaders based their propaganda on the correct psychological assumption that, under such conditions, one could make people believe the most fantastic statements one day, and trust that if the next day they were given irrefutable proof of their falsehood, they would take refuge in cynicism; instead of deserting the leaders who had lied to them, they would protest that they had known all along that the statement was a lie and would admire the leaders for their superior tactical cleverness. (Hannah Arendt, On the Origins of Totalitarianism, pp. 38)
In 1984, Ronald Reagan put a policy in place relating to foreign aid. The rule says that when an overseas aid organization accepts funding from the US government, it has to agree to not even mention abortion as an option when giving counseling and medical care to locals. Reagan announced the rule in the capital of Mexico, so it's come to be known as the "Mexico City Policy." It's also often referred to as the "global gag rule" since it bars these organizations from even talking about abortion with the the people they're helping.
Since then, the policy has been rescinded by every Democratic president and then reinstated by every Republican president. This might make for a confusing landscape for grantees, but it also provides researchers with a great opportunity to study the effects of this on-again, off-again rule. The results my surprise many Republican voters.
A new study from Stanford University, released last week by The Lancet Global Health, shows that the gag rule has led to a 40% INCREASE in the abortion rate in Africa. In other words, the Mexico City Policy, which was intended to reduce abortion, actually caused MORE abortions. Withholding funding from aid groups that teach poor families about all their family planning options has led to a decline in contraception use and a corresponding increase in the number of abortions.
Voters who consider themselves "pro-life" first and foremost have had to put up with an increasing amount of nonsense from the politicians they support. Many have been willing to hold their nose and vote for nominally anti-abortion politicians who are pro-war, pro-death-penalty, corrupt, incompetent, and wholly owned by billionaires as long as they still favor restricting abortion. I was a voter like this in the first presidential race I was able to vote in: 2000. Nothing mattered to me as much as the fact that Bush was going to work toward outlawing abortion.
I began to snap out of it when I saw the GOP charging toward war in Iraq, cheered on by evangelical Christians. As the American and Iraqi casualties piled up and the basis of the war was shown to be a lie, I realized that these decisions weren't made by people who valued life like I thought they did. In time, I also saw that the measures they took to restrict abortion were not helping. Study after study has shown that the best ways to cut the abortion rate are expanding access to contraception, providing accurate sex education, and maintaining a safety net that protects families from abject poverty. Nothing else works. Not bans. Not restrictions on clinics. And certainly not voting for people eager to take bodily autonomy from women.
Opponents of abortion rights are frequently accused of attempting to control women. In my experience, this accusation is often unfair. When I was an anti-abortion voter, I sincerely thought that the GOP's policies would reduce abortion. I don't think I was aware of details like the Mexico City Policy, and I certainly didn't know it was so counterproductive. If I had known that it made the problem worse and if I'd still supported it, then questioning my motivations would have been fair game.
So, the facts are clear: The Mexico City Policy has led to more abortions, not less. Voters who claim to want to reduce abortions now have an important choice to make. Do you want to continue supporting a rule that makes the problem worse, or do you want to learn from this 35-year experiment and start supporting solutions that actually help?
Read about the Stanford study here. You'll find a summary there as well as a link to the full study, but that's behind a paywall. I snagged a copy through my college's access to the journal, so get in touch with me if you'd like to take a look.
]]>Whether you call them multi-level marketing, network marketing, or direct selling, they're basically pyramid schemes. The simplest pyramid schemes run like this: I start a club and ask five friends to join. They pay me $100 each. Then they all recruit five of their friends to join and collect the $100 entry fee from the new members and so on. Each entry fee is split between the guy who collected it and the guy who recruited him, siphoning the money toward the top of the pyramid. Those of us that got in early make major bank, but everyone else just loses money because the recruiting can't go on forever. In fact, this scheme would burn through the entire population of the Earth in only 14 levels.
Pyramid schemes like that are illegal, but multi-level marketing schemes (MLMs) side-step the law by tacking on a product to this structure. What the product is doesn't matter all that much. It helps if the product is disposable, vague, and overpriced. It's essentially a money-laundering device. So, instead of charging an entry fee to join a pyramid club, MLMs charge a "start-up fee" to buy an initial stock of the product. That fee triggers commissions for the seller who recruited you and the seller who recruited them, etc., on up to the top of the pyramid.
MLMs offer bold promises of financial independence by highlighting people from the tiny fraction of members in the top levels of the pyramid who are making a profit. But, according to a report by the Consumer Awareness Institute, 99.6% of MLM sellers never make a profit. They lose money. Many continue sinking money into "start-up fees" and monthly autoship minimum orders until they have a garage full of unopened boxes and tens of thousands of dollars of debt. The high-pressure sales tactics required by MLMs also leave friendships in tatters.
How can you recognize the signs of an MLM? Here are a few red flags to watch for:
MLMs usually involve a product that has big promises attached to it, but little scientific research. Weight loss gimmicks like pills, vitamins, shakes, and "body wraps" are common. But cleaning products, kitchen knives, essential oils, candles, makeup, jewelry, and leggings have also been used to launder money through pyramid schemes. Examine the evidence behind the product. Is it backed up by scientific research? Or is it modern-day snake oil? Is the product actually as unique and affordable as the MLM claims? Or can you find similar products online for much cheaper? Hint: If multiple levels of upline sellers are taking a commission from every sale, then the product is probably overpriced.
It's a big red flag if sellers make a significant portion of their income by recruiting other sellers. In a legitimate business, multiple sellers in the same area see each other as competitors and market saturation is carefully avoided. So, if you're working as a salesman and spending much time recruiting other salesmen, you're probably in a pyramid scheme. You might be ripping off your own friends and family.
Another hallmark of the shadiest MLMs is that most of the product is sold not to the general public, but to other sellers in the MLM. If you're making a profit because you recruited people who have garages full of unused product and none of you are selling much to the public, then you're in a pyramid scheme. If showing the slightest interest in a product prompts the seller to recruit you as a competing salesman, then take it as a clue that this isn't actually about selling products.
If someone is trying to recruit you for an MLM, ask questions like "How much profit does the average rep make in their first year?" and "How much of my own money do I have to spend to become profitable?" and "What percentage of sellers make no profit?" The companies often put out income disclosure statements. These tables invariably show that only the top levels of the pyramid bring home a profit. Even so, these disclosures are misleading. They use tricks like only including "active distributors" in their numbers (excluding much of the overwhelming majority of people who don't make any money) and showing gross income numbers rather than profit. $500 in income is not so impressive once you subtract the $1,000 in expenses and fees that you paid. The financial numbers MLMs disclose are terrible. But dig a little deeper and they get even worse.
If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Everyone would love to make easy money from home, lose weight without life changes, and be their own boss. That's not the way the world works. If someone is recruiting you with big promises, ask yourself if they stand to benefit from you believing a false promise.
Like cults, MLMs tend to be led by charismatic leaders, discourage dissent, drive a wedge between group members and their families, and attack outside critics. Clips from MLM conferences (see video below) include scenes reminiscent of religious revival services. Recruiters try to be your main source of information while discouraging independent research. They'll put words in your mouth by giving you copy-and-paste posts for your social media. They'll expect absolute loyalty to your upline seller and evade any questions you ask about the business model.
If the recruiter pushes you to make snap decisions to join, upgrade your membership, or buy big batches of product, be wary. If the sellers say something is selling out at midnight, it's not. Don't let yourself be lied to. If they suggest you take out credit card debt to cover the start-up costs, run in the opposite direction as fast as you can.
If a company engages in one or more of these tactics, beware!
Selling for an MLM is neither a job nor a small business. You're not an employee and have none of the wages, benefits, or protections that come with real jobs. But you're also not a small business owner since you don't make decisions about products and prices and you're not building anything of value that would survive your departure from the MLM. At best, you're a local affiliate of a global marketing company. At worst, you will be left with serious debt and a damaged reputation.
Is the government protecting people from scams like this? Not very well. FTC investigations take a long time and generally lead to relatively meager settlements and slaps on the wrist. Companies slightly adjust their business model and carry on. This multi-billion dollar industry employs an army of lobbyists that includes former FTC commissioners. The Trump administration is stuffed with MLM profiteers like Betsy DeVos (Amway), Ben Carson (Mannatech), and (formerly) Carl Icahn (Herbalife). Trump himself has been a paid endorser of two different MLMs: ACN and Ideal Health. In the best of times, MLMs are hard to regulate. In a context or agency capture and regulatory cutbacks, MLMs are allowed to run wild. If the government fails to protect us, then we need to protect each other.
Below I've compiled an incomplete list of some popular MLMs. Each company name is a link to a story from a former seller explaining why they left.
Advocare
Amway
Arbonne
Beachbody
doTERRA
Herbalife
It Works!
LuLaRoe
Mannatech
Mary Kay
Nu Skin
Young Living
MLM's Abysmal Numbers - The key chapter in a report from the Consumer Awareness Institute. This is the source of the stat that 99.6% of MLM sellers end up losing money overall. Plenty of info there about how they arrived at that number.
Multilevel Marketing: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - A funny takedown of a dangerous industry. I've embedded it at the bottom of the page. If you don't have time to read up on the issue, watch the video.
The Perils of Multi-Level Marketing Programs - Texas Public Radio.
Multilevel Marketing: The Day Job that Doesn't Pay - from Truth In Advertising, a non-profit watchdog organization.
Elle's Younique Story - A first-hand account of what it's like to join an MLM.
Legging Company, LuLaRoe Accused of Misleading Consultants - Valley News Live.
r/AntiMLM - a Reddit page filled with horror stories from MLM victims, funny memes, and grousing about how obnoxious the "huns" are on social media.
The 10 Ugly Truths MLMs Don't Want You to Know - on Talented Ladies Club.
Why Joining An MLM Will Ruin Your Life - by Eliza Romero.
Betting on Zero - a documentary on Netflix about some efforts to fight back against MLMs.
How MLMs are Hurting Female Friendships - From The Washington Post.
Drew Brees Has a Dream He'd Like to Sell You - An ESPN investigation into Advocare, a vitamin company will loads of paid endorsers from professional sports.
The Dream - A professionally done podcast exploring the history of MLMs.
Sounds Like MLM, but OK - A more casual podcast that describes itself as "dedicated to discussing the buffoonery behind Multi-Level Marketing."
The Truth About Plexus, Advocare, ItWorks!, and other MLM Health and Weight Loss Products - Sarah Moran, a registered dietitian nutritionist, looks at several weight loss products sold through MLMs.
How to Spot a Pyramid Scheme - A short animated video explaining how MLMs work and how to spot red flags.
Direct Sales: The Truth About Selling From Home - An article from Parents magazine including interviews with victims and experts.
The 5 Fatal Flaws of Multi Level Network Marketing - Good breakdown of why the MLM business model is unsustainable, regardless of the product.
Here's the video from Last Week Tonight with John Oliver:
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