It Started with Mink Oil

About a century ago, a man started a business selling mink oil. People who wanted jobs as salesmen had to pay him $81. When they sold jobs, they got to keep $27 of the $81 paid by their customers, and gave $54 to the first man. When the people who’d bought jobs from them sold jobs, they got to keep $18 of the $54 their customers gave them.

So, if a salesman sold just three jobs, he’d get his $81 back. If each of his customers sold just three jobs, he’d get $162. And if each of those sold just three jobs, …

And, to simplify matters, there wasn’t any mink oil.

There was, however, jail time for the salesmen when the government found out about the business. They said it was fraudulent selling jobs selling non-existent mink oil.

Next came a company selling soap. The salesmen are told to sell jobs, not soap, but there really are boxes of soap, which makes the whole thing legal. The power of exponential increase (3x3x3x…) means that many people eventually get corralled and offered a job as a soap salesman salesman. This happened to me back home about 20 years ago.

I was told they had a great computer program that I really had to see, and I can’t resist looking at great computer programs. I never saw a computer program: I was just told of the money I could make selling jobs selling soap.

Today I was introduced to a Dubai company that is theoretically selling air filters, water filters, and juice machines. Or, more practically, selling jobs selling air filters, water filters, and juice machines.

I’d been asked to drop by and look at their computer system, but, of course, I never got to see a computer system, only an air filter, a water filter, and a juice machine. It made me feel right at home.