Man Accused of Selling Golf Ball Finders As Bomb Detectors 131
CNET reports that a British businessman named Jim McCormick is facing charges now for fraud; McCormick "charged 27,000 pounds (around $41,000) for devices that weren't quite what he said they were." That's putting it mildly; what he was selling as bomb detecting devices were actually souped-up (or souped-down, with non-functional circuitboards and other flim-flammery) golf-ball detectors. The Daily Mail has some enlightening pictures.
Anyway (Score:4, Insightful)
People are dying in wars because of reliance on these devices. He needs to go to jail...or the gas chamber.
daily mail? seriously? (Score:4, Insightful)
wtf is the Daily Mail doing here? It is a tabloid.
The "article" had more information about his stupid home than anything about his shady business practices or how no one noticed anything wrong with these devices.
Broader context (Score:5, Insightful)
the broader fraud in my eyes is the concept that western systems of bid & contract and multi-party democracy can work anywhere. Maybe its true on a long-enough timeline, but we're seeing short-term consequences in terms of bidding that isnt fair, contracts not based on good principles of business and knowledge (above all things capitalism requires good knowledge and assessment of the options), 'multi-party systems' that just formalise existing factions on tribal, cultural and religious lines.
What this guy did if accurately reported is shameful, criminal and wrong. I hope he'll be made an example of. I don't imagine it will make much difference on a larger scale. All thats unusual is he got caught.
Re:Title not entirely accurate (Score:5, Insightful)
This was not a case of people believing in magick. This was a case of someone taking a fake product, slapping fake certification labels on the outside, fake circuit boards on the inside, adding bogus 'smart cards', and selling it as a high-tech piece of hardware. It was a scam, but in this case there was active deceit that didn't need to rely on people's belief in 'dousing'; he relied on people's faith in technology and their unwillingness to crack open the case. This would have never fooled a person with the Maker Mentality. :)
You expect me to believe... (Score:4, Insightful)
...that a military unit purchased bomb detectors never having tested their validity?
Re:You expect me to believe... (Score:5, Insightful)
actually, the DoD and NASA and similar organizations buy totally bogus devices all the time, in order to test them. Someone gets someone in Congress excited about their state of the art, super whizbang technology that will "save soldiers lives" (an alternate form of "think of the children"). The folks in DoD already know that the device is a crock (they've seen more non-functional bomb detectors than you can imagine), BUT.. they procure 1 or 10 for testing and evaluation. And eventually write a report that says "nope, don't work at all" so that Congressman who was beating them up in a hearing about "why are you not procuring Acme Corps guaranteed Roadrunner detector to save our soldiers"
Unfortunately, ACME corp, when they get the order for the test units, sends out press releases and changes their website. "Tested by DoD" (carefully omitting the results of the test) and "DoD procures research, test, and evaluation units of Model XYZ "LifeSaver" unit. Jake Blowhard, CEO, says "This is the first of several planned acquisitions that we hope will save the lives of our sons and daughters in dangerous war zones, as well as providing skilled middle class manufacturing jobs here in East Podunk."
And so it goes
Re:Title not entirely accurate (Score:5, Insightful)
This was not a case of people believing in magick. This was a case of someone taking a fake product, slapping fake certification labels on the outside, fake circuit boards on the inside, adding bogus 'smart cards', and selling it as a high-tech piece of hardware. It was a scam, but in this case there was active deceit that didn't need to rely on people's belief in 'dousing'; he relied on people's faith in technology and their unwillingness to crack open the case. This would have never fooled a person with the Maker Mentality. :)
I would agree with you in principle, were in not for the fact that the only bomb-detection equipment I could find on the web which did not require some form of direct contact with the bomb was a dog.
So yes, this was the agencies who purchased the detectors believing in "magick" [SIC].
Re:Not news. (Score:4, Insightful)
Alot of those people are in charge of important stuff like your tax money.
It's worse. They're in charge of military decisions.
I believe dowsing works, I believe that family might have explosives, i believe we should call in an air strike.
Ask yourself this, do you feel safer with the guns in the hands of people who believe in magic?
Re:They are not even golf ball finder (Score:4, Insightful)
Our schools (and parents) do a crappy job of educating people on BS like this. Any _reasonable_ person would know it's a scam. But, I've met a lot of people who think dowsing works. Many believe in ghosts. If we started teaching kids about pseudoscience and the philosophy of science in grade school, there would be a much smaller market for snake oil salesmen.
Re:Anyway (Score:4, Insightful)
He sold a divining rod. Is it really any different to people selling alternative medicine, or prayer?