[Qcwa] Re: Russian Ham family in Need?

[qcwa@mailman.qth.net]

Hello all.

There are several web sites which list how to sort through emails to separate 
the true from urban legends and outright scams. The following is simply my 
opinion FYI from a lifetime of years of dealing with people who prey on the 
good spirit of us all.

This email seems to match urban legends and scams: no authority, an emotional 
appeal, unrequested email, a subtle request for money, unsubstantiated by any 
data which which would seem obvious to the careful reader (no ham call?), 
severe illnesses or deprivation, and of course a subtle implication that the 
usual channels are hard hearted. 

Same kinds of scams go on today with the Travelers (no connection with the 
Insurance Company) bilking older folks out of thousands of bucks for false 
house repairs just here in Oklahoma annually, according to our Daily 
Oklahoman newspaper this morning.

The following are only two actual stories from my professional work of people 
who sought to use others.

When I was pastor of a church here in Oklahoma City from 1971-78 we had an 
annual visitor who limped into our office every year about the same month. He 
claimed each year to have received a severe burn to his leg within the past 
four weeks or so (every year, same tale, same leg). He limped severely, had 
his leg all bandaged up and showed the bandage, begging for money just to 
help him get something to eat. 

After the first year we checked with local service groups, other authorities 
and local churches. The pastor who had preceeded me laughed and said the same 
fellow had been following the same route for about fifteen years with the 
same speech. All year long he would just go from church to church. At least 
he did use a clean bandage each year.

Next year when he returned to go through the same speech as last year, we 
simply told him what we had found out. We listed other churches he had hit, 
and asked him if he would wait for us to call the local police to come by to 
verify his need. He turned red, blustered, began to shout and accuse us of 
not being truly caring about people,  and then stomped out. As he walked 
angrily down the sidewalk outside our church, his limp had disappeared. 
Apparently he had been mysteriously healed just by being in our office!

Each year we received many calls around Thanksgiving for "I want to tell you 
about a neighbor of mine who is in dire straights and is going hungry and 
wondered if you  might provide them a Thanksgiving basket."  We discovered 
two neighbors in a duplex were calling for each other to each of the nearly 
thousand churches in OKC metro area! Then when some responded positively, 
they would "We want to save you the problem of having to bring it out to us" 
by coming by to pick it up. And then they would sell it to get money for who 
knows what.

I do not want to be callous.There are legitimate needs. There are also 
legitimate channels to protect us all from those who would scam us. That's 
what we used to separate the "professionals" for those in true need. I truly 
appreciate your concerns for those in need.

73   Raymond Perkins    W5VPU


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