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Scammers at the Farmers' Market: How to Make Sure You're Supporting Local Farmers
Be educated, be vigilant, know what's in season!

Apparently, the popularity of farmers' markets is just too much temptation for some unscrupulous vendors.

NBC Los Angeles' news team decided to do some checking around at local farmer's markets, and paid visits to the farms where the vendors claimed they grew the food they were selling. In some cases, they found fields full of weeds or dry, empty fields. The vendors were selling vegetables and fruit they had bought wholesale, and were selling it at premium prices at local farmer's markets, claiming it was locally grown and organic.


(Click on URL above to read full article)

Los Angeles is full of the immoral, the unscrupulous, the scammer, the thief, the liar, the grifter, the con artist, the sociopath. This is normal business practice in L.A. It only makes news and then one thinks it is not common - no, it is how everyone in California acts.

Unfortunately Socal begins most USA trends and this way of being and acting will sweep the USA soon enough.

globetrotter wrote:Los Angeles is full of the immoral, the unscrupulous, the scammer, the thief, the liar, the grifter, the con artist, the sociopath. This is normal business practice in L.A. It only makes news and then one thinks it is not common - no, it is how everyone in California acts.

Unfortunately Socal begins most USA trends and this way of being and acting will sweep the USA soon enough.

And China's not? Chinese and business ethics are widely known to be a contradiction in terms.

"And China's not? Chinese and business ethics are widely known to be a contradiction in terms."

So do I live somewhere that costs 60X times more to live or do I live somewhere cheap, ethics being the same?

Personally I have encountered no unscrupulous behavior here. In Los Angeles it happened all the time. My last landlady was a lying con artist. Time Warner stole my deposit. I could go on.

Since I have lived in Socal, China appears little different in business dealings. I bought a motorcycle, many repairs for free. I just drive up and they fix it as I wait. Cell phone, no scam, cheap, no contract. Train tickets, no problems. I am very very street wise, savvy, a good negotiator and I can smell bullshit at 100 meters in any language. No rip-offs or such, if I think something is too expensive I walk.

Now if I were shipping a crane to Dubai, that could be an issue. But me, personally? No problems so far. Contract honored to the letter in full.

globetrotter wrote:Los Angeles is full of the immoral, the unscrupulous, the scammer, the thief, the liar, the grifter, the con artist, the sociopath. This is normal business practice in L.A. It only makes news and then one thinks it is not common - no, it is how everyone in California acts.
Unfortunately Socal begins most USA trends and this way of being and acting will sweep the USA soon enough.

You'd probably enjoy this article from Larry:
http://www.irvinehousingblog.com/blog/c ... pathology/

There was a book published in 2000 called "The Millionarie Mind" by Thomas Stanley. In the book, he cited that American millionaires preferred to buy older homes (73%) vs. new construction (27%), and the average value of their homes was:

Networth (in millions) / Average networth / Average house value
$1 to under 2.5 / $1,470,553 / $220,796
2.5 to under 5 / $3,392,416 / $354,043
5 to under 10 / $6,809,409 / $545,499
10 to under 20 / $14,045,501 / $779,444
20 and more / $58,229,024 / $1,073,980


Compare that to what people who made far less were buying in 2005-2006 with liar loans. ;p

Farmers markets here have become a hangout for those who think "organic foods" they could buy in the stores, are no longer good enough. I guess they see no problem paying $5 for 3 peaches. Despite the 22% unemployment, there are those who are still above it all and like to flaunt their wealth, I guess.

Globetrotter, how do you prevent getting ripped off there? Any signs, tips and clues to watch for?

Should you always bargain down as low as possible?

One time my mom went to China with a Taiwanese tour group. On the bus, the driver stopped in the middle of nowhere and demanded everyone give him $100 per person, or else he wouldn't continue driving. Taiwanese being humble and submissive and non-conflict oriented, gave in. Everyone gave him $100 each.

If I was there, I would have grabbed the driver and threatened to throw him out the bus and drive it myself. I would have done the melodramatic American thing. f***ing asshole.

Highly recommended:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk2nWRm2 ... re=related[/youtube]



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