Don't Get Scammed

Don't get scammed. I just got another robocall, a term I recently learned. It's a phenomenon I have become all too familiar with. At least 3 times a day I get such a call. The last one started out, "Hello, my name is Alice, and I am with account services. I'm calling about your credit card account." I don't know anybody named Alice, and credit card companies don't make those kinds of calls. So I quickly hung up the phone.

Every day on television, the news tells us of another victim of scamming. Someone called and got to them for a lot of money, promising a free vacation, or a tax refund, or some other "get something for nothing" nonsense. On another newscast, a tree trimmer came to the door, struck a deal to trim some trees, and asked for money up front--then left with the money, having done no work on the trees. Unfortunately there are dozens of these stories happening every day of the week. It's part of the world we live in.

It's hard for me to understand why people fall for such things. But because they keep doing it, the scammers keep multiplying. More every day.

People used to be honest. My dad taught me to give an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. "Tell the truth" my mother always told me. "Don't lie."

My teachers at Benton Elementary School told us students to never cheat. "Stop looking at someone else's work," Mrs. Whitaker always said.

I have a friend who failed a term paper while attending Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas because the instructor said it appeared to be a copy of another student's work. "It is not honest and it is not passing either," he was told. I hope he learned his lesson.

Cheating and lying have been going on since Adam and Eve. Today people still cheat and lie. According to an article in National Geographic magazine recently, everybody lies. I hope that's an exaggeration. The writer of the article cited a neurological study that seemed to prove his point.

I try to be honest with people. I am a professional writer of books and articles about faith, hope, and love. I want to tell the truth, and be honest and authentic in everything I write. I wouldn't consider writing any other way. My mother used to say "Don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you read." She meant to say "Be careful."

So here's my advice: 1. When you get a phone call from someone you don't know, don't give them any information about yourself or your family. And never send them money! When they start asking questions, hang up. 2. If someone comes to your door and offers to trim your trees or repair your house, don't do anything just yet--take the time to find the best person for the job. You'll be glad you did. The best way to hire a good and reputable worker is to use a professional network like Home Advisor. You could also use a professional who has done excellent work for your best friend.

Note: Gene Allen Groner books, biography, and daily messages of peace and love can be seen on his Author Page at Amazon  https://www.amazon.com/author/genegroner.

Don't get scammed. I just got a robocall, a term I recently learned, but a phenomenon I have become all too familiar with. At least 3 times a day I get such a call. The last one started out, "Hello, my name is Alice, and I am with account services. I'm calling about your credit card account." With that, I hung up.

On television daily, the news tells us of another victim of scamming. Someone called and got to them for a lot of money, promising a free vacation, or a tax refund, or some such nonsense. On another newscast, a tree trimmer came to the door, struck a deal to trim some trees, and asked for money up front. They then left with the money, having done no work on the trees.

It is hard for me to understand why people fall for such things, but because they keep doing it, the scammers keep multiplying. More every day.

People used to be honest. My dad taught me to give an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. Tell the truth, my mother told me. Don't lie.

My teachers at Benton Elementary told us students to never cheat. "Stop looking at someone else's work," Mrs Whitaker said.

I have a friend who failed a term paper while attending Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas because the instructor said it appeared to be a copy of another student's work. Therefore not honest and not passing, either.

It is a thing as old as the earth, I guess. People still lie. According to an article in National Geographic magazine recently, everybody lies. I suspect that is an exaggeration. The writer of the article cited a neurological study that proved his point.

I try to be honest with people. I am a writer of books and articles. I must tell the truth or nobody will read my stuff. My mother used to say "Don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you read." She may have been right, who knows? But the thing is, I believe what I write is the truth, and I hope you do too. So I will keep on writing and ignore those studies about lying. I know I'm not doing it.

(note: you can read Gene's daily postings at ggroner.blogspot.com and see his books for sale at https://www.amazon.com/author/genegroner).