From Vile's autob :
People have often asked me what I did with all the money that came into my possession. A little impromptu party we gave offers a good example of how the cash melted away. We often entertained on a lavish scale.
(In that case, the 2 day long party blew up about $25k in the roaring twenties)
[ But, considering the meticulous planning that went into some of his schemes - you really wonder why he failed with the hotel business. At one point, Vile decided to put his savings into a legitimate business (to his wife's delight). ]
Perhaps I should have known then that my hotel venture was jinxed. I did change the name again, this time to the Hotel Martinique. One of my early projects was a landscaped roof garden. I had big plans, but perhaps I didn't know enough about the hotel business.
The hoodlums often staged parties and became noisy. The permanent guests, who paid their bills on time, eyed them distastefully and began to move out. As these people vacated rooms, more criminals moved in; thugs of various descriptions, safe-crackers, and robbers. Some I knew by sight and many I did not know at all.
Before I realized what was happening the underworld was regarding the Martinique as a hide-out. I soon learned I was expected to cover up for criminals whose only relation to me was that we had both operated outside the law.
( He even got victimized by simple bad-cheques. I can't help feeling for the man. But, considering his genius - as he puts it - his grasp of foreign affairs, domestic troubles and human nature - why couldn't he succeed at something so relatively simple? Here's my answer - which I first heard in "The Science of Wealth" - there is no task from which people shirk as much as sustained purposeful thought. You have to think things through in your mind. A thought - literally any thought - becomes an animal in your mind - it lives in a bunch of neurons and tries to gain your attention. But, in the course of your life, you have trained your mind with all the thoughts you have entertained thus far - so, this new thought - legitimate or otherwise, will have severe competition - unless it is a matter of life and death. So, you can see how it was with Vile - there was no hope from the beginning since his mind would tire easily from honest labour. Pity. The second or third time a man tries to go straight and fails. Atleast he lived to be a 100)
Friday, March 29, 2013
Thursday, March 28, 2013
A Vile Understanding of Human Nature
Vile was acknowledged as a master study of human nature - he could size almost anyone up in a few minutes :
The same group was on hand, going through the same motions. McHenry, like Hotchkiss, was very much impressed. But there was a difference between the two men, Hotchkiss frankly admitted he didn't know his way around gaming circles. But McHenry was the type that would today be called a "wise guy." He looked upon everything with a knowing eye.
The same group was on hand, going through the same motions. McHenry, like Hotchkiss, was very much impressed. But there was a difference between the two men, Hotchkiss frankly admitted he didn't know his way around gaming circles. But McHenry was the type that would today be called a "wise guy." He looked upon everything with a knowing eye.
It Don't Make Sense Mr. Vile
How do you spend $1000 in a single evening? Here he only mentions half that figure, but at other places in the book, he does mention a k.
I RETURNED TO MY FAMILY IN CHICAGO. I HAD ACCUMULATED SOME money, but I got rid of it even faster than I got hold of it. When I spent an evening at one of the gay spots, it was not unusual for me to spend $500. This was in the days when the average worker considered $500 fairly good pay for six months' work.
I RETURNED TO MY FAMILY IN CHICAGO. I HAD ACCUMULATED SOME money, but I got rid of it even faster than I got hold of it. When I spent an evening at one of the gay spots, it was not unusual for me to spend $500. This was in the days when the average worker considered $500 fairly good pay for six months' work.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Another Name for Jail
You have to love Vile's style. One wonders, is it peer pressure, or are Jews raised to be perfectionists? :
For two months I carpeted Chicago with deeds to lots in the
Elysium Development Company. I even gave lots to two detectives
who later rose to prominence in the police department. Both men paid
the recording fee before they discovered that the land was practically
valueless. Both were furious and if there had been anything they
could have done about it, I would have found free lodging promptly.
But I had not taken money from them: they had not been compelled
to have the lots recorded. So far as the law was concerned, I was clean.
__
According to the Tribune, he told one judge: "The dastardly fabrications of the metropolitan newspapers, the reprehensible conduct of journalists to surround me with a nimbus — er — a numbus of guilt, is astonishing." Yet in his "Autobiography of a Master Swindler," he acknowledged his chosen profession, even as he bemoaned its decline. "There are no good confidence men anymore," he wrote, "because they do not have the necessary knowledge of foreign affairs, domestic problems, and human nature."
Weil was, in his own way, civic-minded. In 1928, doing time in the Leavenworth, Kan., federal prison, he sent letters to Chicagoans appealing for funds so fellow inmates might properly celebrate Passover. He signed the letter: "Joseph Weil, president Jewish congregation."
For two months I carpeted Chicago with deeds to lots in the
Elysium Development Company. I even gave lots to two detectives
who later rose to prominence in the police department. Both men paid
the recording fee before they discovered that the land was practically
valueless. Both were furious and if there had been anything they
could have done about it, I would have found free lodging promptly.
But I had not taken money from them: they had not been compelled
to have the lots recorded. So far as the law was concerned, I was clean.
__
According to the Tribune, he told one judge: "The dastardly fabrications of the metropolitan newspapers, the reprehensible conduct of journalists to surround me with a nimbus — er — a numbus of guilt, is astonishing." Yet in his "Autobiography of a Master Swindler," he acknowledged his chosen profession, even as he bemoaned its decline. "There are no good confidence men anymore," he wrote, "because they do not have the necessary knowledge of foreign affairs, domestic problems, and human nature."
Weil was, in his own way, civic-minded. In 1928, doing time in the Leavenworth, Kan., federal prison, he sent letters to Chicagoans appealing for funds so fellow inmates might properly celebrate Passover. He signed the letter: "Joseph Weil, president Jewish congregation."
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Before They Used Log Scales
Interesting read - Jos Vile's autobiography. I love the matter-of-fact style of writing from those days
http://archive.org/stream/yellowkidweilaut00weil/yellowkidweilaut00weil_djvu.txt
Obviously a scanned job - how fitting Vile should get ripped off in death after ripping off so many in life.
The part I find funny is the ridiculously large sums people bet on horses in those (?) days. He talks of the scams he ran in his early days when he went from farmhouse to farmhouse and conned folks out of about $3 a time. Then, at the races, he could make $10,000 in a day from an unwary stranger who walked in with his eyes open. Well, it wasn't every day obviously. But, think about it, even I don't bet that kind of money almost a hundred years later - maybe he hasn't done a good enough job of explaining how wealthy the people he swindled were - coz he does mention that some of them became his friends later after forgiving him and continuing to thrive in their legitimate businesses.
Then, all of a sudden :
With my chauffeur, I motored to Gray's Lake and attended the
picnic. During the height of the festivities there was a plea for con-
tributions to some charitable institution. The justice of the peace, a one-
armed man, made a strong exhortation for funds; then the hat was
passed. I contributed twenty-five dollars.
Of course, everybody wanted to see the man who had given twenty-
five dollars — a considerable sum in the rural areas.
That's the key word - rural.
http://archive.org/stream/yellowkidweilaut00weil/yellowkidweilaut00weil_djvu.txt
Obviously a scanned job - how fitting Vile should get ripped off in death after ripping off so many in life.
The part I find funny is the ridiculously large sums people bet on horses in those (?) days. He talks of the scams he ran in his early days when he went from farmhouse to farmhouse and conned folks out of about $3 a time. Then, at the races, he could make $10,000 in a day from an unwary stranger who walked in with his eyes open. Well, it wasn't every day obviously. But, think about it, even I don't bet that kind of money almost a hundred years later - maybe he hasn't done a good enough job of explaining how wealthy the people he swindled were - coz he does mention that some of them became his friends later after forgiving him and continuing to thrive in their legitimate businesses.
Then, all of a sudden :
With my chauffeur, I motored to Gray's Lake and attended the
picnic. During the height of the festivities there was a plea for con-
tributions to some charitable institution. The justice of the peace, a one-
armed man, made a strong exhortation for funds; then the hat was
passed. I contributed twenty-five dollars.
Of course, everybody wanted to see the man who had given twenty-
five dollars — a considerable sum in the rural areas.
That's the key word - rural.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Joseph Vile's Conversion
She and her mother were devout members of the Sacramento Congregational Church in Chicago. With them I attended services every Sunday. The minister had a forceful delivery, using a clever choice of
words to sway his audience.
This set me to thinking. I said to myself, "Joe, you are not capable of hard physical work. You're too fraiL Whatever you accomplish in life must be done through words. You have that ability. You can
make words beautiful and scenic. What marble is to sculpture, what canvas is to painting, words can be to you. You can use them to influence others. You can make them earn your living for you."
That minister must have been psychic. He must have realized that my heart had not been given over to God, but that I was seeking a career to further my own ends. However, he gave me a list of books to read.
First was the Bible. I read through it, then the other volumes he had recommended. I supplemented these with books of my own choice. I studied the lives of Moses, Buddha, and Mohammed. I secured a copy of the Catholic Encyclopedia and read that.
The net result was that I lost all desire to become a pulpiteer. There were so many inconsistencies I could not reconcile that I became an iconoclast. I arrived at these conclusions: Man has all the bestiality of the animal, but is cloaked with a thin veneer of civilization; he is inherently dishonest and selfish; the honest man is a rare specimen indeed.
And the best part : (Don't you love such an honest man?:)
However, my reading firmly convinced me of the power of words.
I felt that its proper use could lead me to fortune. In that I was to be
right. The use of words led me to many fortunes.
words to sway his audience.
This set me to thinking. I said to myself, "Joe, you are not capable of hard physical work. You're too fraiL Whatever you accomplish in life must be done through words. You have that ability. You can
make words beautiful and scenic. What marble is to sculpture, what canvas is to painting, words can be to you. You can use them to influence others. You can make them earn your living for you."
That minister must have been psychic. He must have realized that my heart had not been given over to God, but that I was seeking a career to further my own ends. However, he gave me a list of books to read.
First was the Bible. I read through it, then the other volumes he had recommended. I supplemented these with books of my own choice. I studied the lives of Moses, Buddha, and Mohammed. I secured a copy of the Catholic Encyclopedia and read that.
The net result was that I lost all desire to become a pulpiteer. There were so many inconsistencies I could not reconcile that I became an iconoclast. I arrived at these conclusions: Man has all the bestiality of the animal, but is cloaked with a thin veneer of civilization; he is inherently dishonest and selfish; the honest man is a rare specimen indeed.
And the best part : (Don't you love such an honest man?:)
However, my reading firmly convinced me of the power of words.
I felt that its proper use could lead me to fortune. In that I was to be
right. The use of words led me to many fortunes.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Nicht Jeden Dieben Sind Dumm
1. A friend of a friend left their car in the long-term parking at San Jose while away, and someone broke into the car. Using the information on the car's registration in the glove compartment, they drove the car to the people's home in Pebble Beach and robbed it. So I guess if we are going to leave the car in long-term parking, we should not leave the registration/insurance cards in it, nor your remote garage door opener. This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.
2. GPS.
A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard. When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen. The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.
Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it... Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know
where you live if your GPS were stolen.
3. MOBILE PHONES
I never thought of this.......
This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet, etc., was stolen. 20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.' When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.
Moral of the lesson:
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....
b. And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.
c. Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you.
What does this mean for the common man? Pretty soon, laws will be passed that turn low-income communities into open prisons - there'll be surveillance everywhere coz that's where the bums live. Too bad.
2. GPS.
A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard. When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen. The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.
Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it... Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know
where you live if your GPS were stolen.
3. MOBILE PHONES
I never thought of this.......
This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet, etc., was stolen. 20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.' When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.
Moral of the lesson:
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....
b. And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.
c. Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you.
What does this mean for the common man? Pretty soon, laws will be passed that turn low-income communities into open prisons - there'll be surveillance everywhere coz that's where the bums live. Too bad.
The True Root of All Evil
From Joseph Weil's narrative :
During this time, I met a beautiful girl. I called on her regularly
and, before long, we were engaged to be married.
One day I took her to meet my folks. My mother looked her over
and approved. She called me to one side.
"Joe," Mother whispered, "she is a beautiful girl. But she is a
girl for a rich man. She should not be a poor man's wife."
"And I'm not going to be a poor man!" I replied. "I will give her
everything she wants."
Having seen my parents struggle for their existence — my mother
got up at five in the morning to open the store — I knew that such
a life was not for me. Further, I had seen how much more money
was being made by skulduggery than by honest toil.
During this time, I met a beautiful girl. I called on her regularly
and, before long, we were engaged to be married.
One day I took her to meet my folks. My mother looked her over
and approved. She called me to one side.
"Joe," Mother whispered, "she is a beautiful girl. But she is a
girl for a rich man. She should not be a poor man's wife."
"And I'm not going to be a poor man!" I replied. "I will give her
everything she wants."
Having seen my parents struggle for their existence — my mother
got up at five in the morning to open the store — I knew that such
a life was not for me. Further, I had seen how much more money
was being made by skulduggery than by honest toil.
Saturday, March 23, 2013
The Pressure to Succeed
He grew up in Borough Park, Brooklyn, where his father ran a fruit stand. He was educated in a yeshiva, where he spoke Yiddish, and received the equivalent of a high school education. He was born and raised Jewish. He did not learn English until he was in his late teens. He began doing construction work as a young man and established a plumbing supply company.
Sholam Weiss (also spelled Shalom Weiss; born April 1, 1954), is a former American businessman and convicted felon. In 2000, he was convicted of multiple fraud and money laundering counts and sentenced to 845 years in prison for looting the National Heritage Life Insurance. It was believed to be the largest insurance failure in history at the time, with over $450 million in losses. Weiss fled the country at the end of his trial and was a fugitive for one year. He was subsequently extradited from Austria.
Sholam Weiss (also spelled Shalom Weiss; born April 1, 1954), is a former American businessman and convicted felon. In 2000, he was convicted of multiple fraud and money laundering counts and sentenced to 845 years in prison for looting the National Heritage Life Insurance. It was believed to be the largest insurance failure in history at the time, with over $450 million in losses. Weiss fled the country at the end of his trial and was a fugitive for one year. He was subsequently extradited from Austria.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
The One Millenium Manager
What's the opposite of the One Minute Manager - a resource that gives you the basics of good leadership?
Ans : The idiot manager of course - Alec Ferguson - the goose. How stupid do you have to be to not see that the reason you're not winning is that your people don't want *you* to win? That's United's problem. And I should know. I've seen United transformed from a community to a corporation. Gone are the days when the heart and soul of their squad was recruited from their own youth training grounds. It's pathetic.
Ans : The idiot manager of course - Alec Ferguson - the goose. How stupid do you have to be to not see that the reason you're not winning is that your people don't want *you* to win? That's United's problem. And I should know. I've seen United transformed from a community to a corporation. Gone are the days when the heart and soul of their squad was recruited from their own youth training grounds. It's pathetic.
Cox Conley and Brown
Reading (listening to) "The Invisible Gorilla" right now. Talking and driving is a much more serious and widespread problem than we thought. No more of that for me. We look but see because we aren't looking for what we should see..
One I finished yesterday is "The Power of Slow" by Carl Honore. Try slowing down for better results. Do a gear-check; avoid multi-tasking - give each task 100% of your attention. Are you performing this task at the right pace? In the gym - take 20 seconds instead of 6 to lift the weight and your workouts can be shorter and your recovery faster and gains greater. His aha moment came when he saw an ad for 1 minute bedtime stories and thought how ridic that was. His 3 year old had caught him pruning bedtime stories before. Living in London, he cites examples of speed-yoga and even a drive-through-funeral to show what we've gotten to. In community and relationships, you can't speed things up - you have to take the time to get to know people.
One I finished yesterday is "The Power of Slow" by Carl Honore. Try slowing down for better results. Do a gear-check; avoid multi-tasking - give each task 100% of your attention. Are you performing this task at the right pace? In the gym - take 20 seconds instead of 6 to lift the weight and your workouts can be shorter and your recovery faster and gains greater. His aha moment came when he saw an ad for 1 minute bedtime stories and thought how ridic that was. His 3 year old had caught him pruning bedtime stories before. Living in London, he cites examples of speed-yoga and even a drive-through-funeral to show what we've gotten to. In community and relationships, you can't speed things up - you have to take the time to get to know people.
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