181–190 of 264 posts
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Cost of a police investigation, prosecution, and then housing them in jail for what? 2 years ? Public shaming is much cheaper
If you could guarantee someone would go to jail, that would be priceless. Unfortunately I don’t think they would.
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Don't worry, they've mostly moved on to selling crypto and NFTs for the most part... I haven't seen a car parked in my local mall for ages, there's a bitcoin ATM parked in that space now. There's a certain breed of huckster that even if they designated a prize winner, it would be one of their family members. The most important part of managing scams is to expose them, and cite the names involved so that they need to…
> The most important part of managing scams is to expose them, and cite the names involved so that they need to pick a different line of work. Or we make these scams illegal. Sending scammers to jail is much more effective than finger wagging.
Even if it is slightly a grey area, you then have a lawyer fight which costs a ton of cash and then even if found guilty, what are you realistically going to do to someone who pretended that you could win a car to market their timeshares? life in prison at $100K/year to the tax payer?
> There are other types of car giveaways run by more legitimate parties (charity raffles, event promotions) that do deliver the goods — but if you win, you’re liable to pay a hefty gift tax. I don't think it's a gift tax, but ordinary income tax. A coworker won a living room sofa set on a game show, and the staff were waiting with a 1099 for her as soon as she stepped off the stage. The IRS says you need to pay tax b…
Oprah's famous "You get a car! And you get a car! And everyone gets a car! " show landed each audience member who got a 'free' car with a $6000 tax bill. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/oprah-gives-away...
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Oprah's famous "You get a car! And you get a car! And everyone gets a car! " show landed each audience member who got a 'free' car with a $6000 tax bill. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/oprah-gives-away...
Could they have offered to pay the tax? Or would that then trigger more tax, creating some kind of infinite loop of gifts and taxes?
With a 25% tax rate and car value of $28,500; to make it a tax-free gift Oprah should've paid an additional $9,500.
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> The most important part of managing scams is to expose them, and cite the names involved so that they need to pick a different line of work. Or we make these scams illegal. Sending scammers to jail is much more effective than finger wagging.
But you are assuming what they are doing is illegal. Just because the car isn't winnable might be misleading but that doesn't make it a crime if the defendent claims that they never said that you could win the car, they could also claim that the Ts and Cs describe the real scenario. Even if it is slightly a grey area, you then have a lawyer fight which costs a ton of cash and then even if found guilty, what are you r…
These sorts of sales tactics should just be illegal and criminal. If your sales pipeline requires exploiting human cognitive failures (ie., "boiler room sales tactics") then you're scamming people. A business exists to provide a service people want, not to scam people into something they dont. The gov. provides limited liability protections to businesses, not to scams.
I think we're far enough into our understanding of human psych now to say "here are the fault lines", if your business principally (, systematically, essentially, ...) uses them to make money, it's illegal.
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Did you offer a way to enter without requiring a purchase since you are not a charity? If you did not I am quite surer you violated lottery laws. [1] [1] https://gleam.io/guides/no-purchase-necessary
"We researched it and contracted a sweepstakes company who helped us run the sweepstakes legally."
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I would disagree. There are several sections of STEM where there really isnt much for you. What are you supposed to achieve with a bachelors in physics?
It might differ between countries, but I've found that physics is one of the most valued degrees. It's a demonstration of problem-solving skills that are very desirable for a variety of jobs (e.g. software development).
My PhD was sure a very nice to have, but never a life changer.
Would I do it again? Probably yes because of the tremendous joy research brought me (and free time for parties!).
Did I recommend it to my kids? No, they are better off with me specific studies.
That reminds me, did anybody win the Coinbase money from the Super Bowl ad?
- https://www.vox.com/the-goods/22925225/super-bowl-ads-money-...
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I would disagree. There are several sections of STEM where there really isnt much for you. What are you supposed to achieve with a bachelors in physics?
> What are you supposed to achieve with a bachelors in physics Start an internet payment, space exploration, electronic vehicle, tunnel boring, or direct brain-computer interface company. The mean ROI on a bachelors in physics is probably the highest in STEM. Apparently, they're also popular on Wall Street
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"We researched it and contracted a sweepstakes company who helped us run the sweepstakes legally."
The reason I asked is because almost every sweepstakes I see on youtube/instagram/tiktok violates this so I am not ever sure all these "sweepstakes companies" know the rules.