HOW GULLIBLE ARE YOU

Con artists depend on people being gullible.
For example:
Would you buy a black garbage bag - supposedly filled with laptops and mobile phones – from a street vendor, without opening the bag to verify it’s content?

What about receiving a phone call from someone who claimed to be a genie with supernatural powers?
Would you cough up moola to avoid being cursed?
Believe it or not, some people, many people, fall for these scams.

German police recently arrested one of two British men suspected of selling bags that they said held laptops and mobile phones but which in reality contained potatoes.

And in Bangladesh, police have arrested dozens of swindlers who conned people out of money by calling them on mobile phones and pretending to be genies with supernatural powers.
Claiming to be genies that had descended from the sky, they would tell people to send money to a specific location, threatening a family tragedy if they disobeyed.

So you are sure you are not that gullible?
Right?

What about high tech corporate scams?
The bottled water industry for example, is worth more than R1.7-billion a year in SA alone, with an expected average annual growth of 25 percent for the next decade.
It is anticipated that during the 2010 World Cup we may see as much as 568 million litres of bottled water consumed!

Yet, it has been scientifically proven that bottled water is far from a healthy or environmentally friendly alternative.
According to in-depth research conducted by the Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC), many kinds/brands of bottled water contain bacteria contamination and synthetic chemicals.

In addition to this, it has been proven by scientists that a chemical contained in plastic water bottles, Bisphenol A (BPA) — an endocrine disruptor — leaches out into the water.
These poisonous toxins have been linked to birth defects, heart disease, diabetes and cancer, as well as behavioural and reproductive problems.

But these findings, and they have been published many times, does not stop you from falling for the hype of ‘a healthier alternative’ does it.

You may not be that gullible, but have you ever tried spelling ‘Evian’ backwards?

Kader Khan
Editor
info@yummie.co.za