Beg-and-Switch Revisited

[ladislav]

If borrowing money and not paying back is the mother of all scams, the father of all scams is Beg-and-Switch, aka, money repurposing.
It is also quite simple. They ask you for money for some noble and legitimate purpose which is meant to make you feel like a hero, and then, upon its receipt, use it for parties, travel, gambling, etc.
A GF's brother who has just graduated from a Merchant Marine school calls you to ask for a loan to get a visa to enable him to travel. Is is P 15,000 only.
You feel that the reason is very good and it will make you look good in the eyes of your GF's family. He gets the money and then gives it to his aunt to pay off her gambling debt. And she can buy a new cellphone on what is left.
Or, your GF asks you to help her pay her electric bill. Then, when you send her the money, some time later you find out that it never got paid. The money was used for other needs, often trivial.
When you confront them, they are the ones who get angry at you and start yelling, and calling you all kinds of names. You get scared as you are in their country, and now you are the bad guy.
Ok, ok, never mind. And you sheepishly shrink away.
The Beg-and-Switch fake needs, in the degree of their "frequency", appear to be:

School tuition.
Work clearances ( called "requirements")
Hospital, dental, pharmacy and other medical bills ( in advance or after the treatment)
Rent and utility payments.
Bail bonds.
Funeral costs.

Sometimes, the lady asks several people for the same thing, and make a pretty good income. It's like a canvassing job, basically.
The dead give away is that the amount is always rounded up to the nearest two or three zeros. They need P 6000, they need P 700. It's never a realistic looking number like, say P 752.65
The way to combat Beg-and-Switch: you agree to help, but you say you will make it easier for them and pay the establishment directly.
Ask for the name of the school, hospital, dental clinic, etc and tell them that you will send the money directly there after you call them or email them. You look for their number, don't ask the begging party to give you one. Otherwise, they will just give you some aunt's number and she will pretend to be the Dean or the nurse.
In case of rentals/ utilities, tell them you will go there directly, will look at the rental bill or you will go to the electric company and ask for the real bill.
The Beg-and-Switchers usually shrink away after that and disappear.
0 Comments

[Jackfruits]

Yes I think Philippines is the most wrong country on this planet to look for love. Western women are better then this. I have learned my lesson. My mom was right