Month: February 2009

A Politician Finally Talking Sense About Bailouts and Stimulus Funds

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Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker had an opinion piece on the bailout madness in today’s Wall Street Journal. His legacy is holding the line of property taxes for Milwaukee County property owners. (i.e. He felt that we were already paying too much when he won the office several years ago, and has seen to it that we did not have any increases.)

I agree with his entire opinion piece, but here are some of the best parts (b0ld added by me):

Read moreA Politician Finally Talking Sense About Bailouts and Stimulus Funds

CNBC Ask the Experts: Bankruptcy or Debt Settlement?

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Run on over to CNBC’s site for the personal finance show On the Money… I’ve answered a viewer “Ask the Experts” question about filing bankruptcy versus going through the debt settlement process. Bankruptcy often sounds attractive because it wipes out much of what you owe, but it’s not always the best option and you may … Read more CNBC Ask the Experts: Bankruptcy or Debt Settlement?

Report on Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

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A report on Prepaid Legal by expert Robert FitzPatrick, nationally recognized by both law enforcement and the private sector, where he concludes:

“Pre-Paid Legal Services Inc. is not a direct-selling company but a bogus ‘business opportunity’ scheme in which money is transferred from hundreds of thousands of consumers who are falsely lured to invest time and capital, only to inevitably lose money and quit the scheme year after year, to the benefit of a handful of company owners and recruitment promoters. Pre-Paid Legal is an ‘investor Ponzi scheme’ in which funds gained from the fleeced consumers are also used to manipulate Pre-Paid’s share price which further enriches a handful of company owners at the cost of the company as a whole.”

Read moreReport on Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

Watch For Bailout Fraud on the Horizon

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Written by Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, CFF

If you thought that the $50 billion Ponzi scheme allegedly perpetrated by Bernard Madoff is big, get ready. The amount of fraud that is sure to arise out of all the federal government bailout activities will dwarf that by many multiples.

How do I know? The sheer magnitude of the bailout activity, coupled with the almost non-existent oversight of the funds, creates an environment ripe for fraud. Those in the position to perpetrate the fraud know that their chances of being caught are slim, and the chances of being severely punished are even slimmer.

Read moreWatch For Bailout Fraud on the Horizon

New Lennar Analysis: 72% chance of bankruptcy

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Barry Minkow and the Fraud Discovery Institute have just released a new report on Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) by a Wall Street expert. Their press release summarizes the opinions of the expert:

The Fraud Discovery Institute, Inc. released late this afternoon a new 16 page report completed by Wall Street analyst Reggie Middleton. Mr. Middleton was the analyst who predicted in 2007 that Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) was in serious financial trouble because of the way they handled their off-balance sheet transactions.

Read moreNew Lennar Analysis: 72% chance of bankruptcy

Obama’s promises of transparency were lies

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I suspect this comes as no surprise to most of my readers. In fact, Barack Obama was lying when he said that his administration would be transparent with consumers… offering them the chance to see exactly how bailout dollars were being spent.

The site recovery.gov was touted as a place for taxpayers to go see how their money was being spent. They were going to be able to see what was stimulated… and give their feedback.

Read moreObama’s promises of transparency were lies

Steal Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars From Wisconsin, and All They’ll Do Is Politely Ask You to Give It Back

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No, that headline isn’t created for any sort of shock value. It’s the simple truth. If you steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from the State of Wisconsin through a (welfare) child care program, all they’ll do is ask you politely (three times) to give the money back.  If you don’t, they’ll leave you alone forever.

Sounds like a good business opportunity, doesn’t it?

Read moreSteal Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars From Wisconsin, and All They’ll Do Is Politely Ask You to Give It Back