March 20, 2014

Kevin Trudeau: My Wish is Judge Ronald Guzman's Command


The Fortune Teller by George de la Tour

Apparently Kevin Trudeau, creator of "Your Wish Is Your Command", has been thinking magnetic thoughts about prisons and orange zip jumpsuits. Just this week, Trudeau's vibrational brain frequencies delivered what he really wanted deep down inside his inner wisher: ten years in jail.

Now some folks say Judge Guzman's sentence is unfair; but holy hell people, this is quantum physics and you can't argue with the law (of attraction). This just in from ABC News: 
"Addressing the judge earlier in a 10-minute statement, Trudeau apologized and said he's become a changed man. He said he's meditated, prayed and read self-help books while locked up at Chicago's Correctional Center. "I have truly had a significant reawakening," said Trudeau, who was dressed in orange jail clothes. "If I ever do an infomercial again, I promise: No embellishments, no puffery, no lies." 
Kevin's spiritual transformation and self-helped-mindfulness didn't mesmerize nor persuade Judge Guzman who, disbelieving Trudeau's bullshit-humility stated,
"Since his 20s, [Trudeau] has steadfastly attempted to cheat others for his own gain. Trudeau is deceitful to the very core." ~Judge Guzman
I considered posting Trudeau's picture on this blog and then decided to treat myself with loving-kindness. The pocket-picking painting titled Fortune Teller will have to capture Trudeau's conscience instead. There's a 20/20 John Stossel video about Trudeau at the bottom of my post and a link to Trudeau's impudent reaction. For people who've dealt with narcissists and anti-social personalities, Trudeau will keep you in stitches during his "word salad" dialog (you might throw shoes at John Stossel---depending where you peg him on the celebrity narcissism continuum). 

I know people love love LOVE Kevin Trudeau and praise him as a savior of American truth and liberty, fighting the good fight against the FDA and pharmaceutical industry. They adore him so much in fact, that they'd sell their souls to save his, or embarrass themselves in court. (see embedded quote below) That's how pathological people affect other people. We love 'em or hate them, depending on where we are in the process of being scammed.
"An elderly supporter suddenly stood in the front row of the audience and bellowed, “Judge, I am a former U.S. congressman!” before being ordered to sit down. Ed Foreman, 80, of Dallas, was ordered to leave the courtroom. He refused, and when security officers tried to stand Foreman up, he went limp and was eventually carried out as other spectators shouted in protest. 
“You are not entitled to disrupt the proceedings,” Guzman told the remaining audience members, some of whom sobbed loudly. “I urge you to simply keep quiet and listen.” ~Chicago Tribune
Trudeau recently posted on his Facebook page:
"[I] Had a great nights sleep after the sentencing! Mandela got 28 years, I was blessed to get only 10." ~Kevin Trudella Trudeau
When it comes to loving or hating these folks, don't overlook the impact of cognitive dissonance when people invest money in his books, newsletters and expensive club membership. The more money they invested, the more defensive they'll be, insisting their money was well spent. That is why the costs of Inner Sanctum memberships are high. Nobody wants to admit being conned 'cuz then they'd be a loser. Sometimes your ego just can't take another hit. 

I have waited years for just one Law of Attraction huckster to reap the rewards of their moral banktruptcy, hoping legal repercussions would reign back wannabee predation, rather than ending up in the slammer, too. I think justice for Trudeau will best be served if in addition to his ten-year sentence, he's fed a 500 calorie a day diet accompanied by daily injections of pig urine. If he complains about feeling sick after a month of lettuce and pig pee, he could have some herbal tea made from dandelion weeds picked fresh from the prison courtyard. Dandelions cure whatever ails you which is an amazing secret medical doctors don't want you to know. (Ssshhh...remember you heard it from me first. The added bonus to reading my blog is that it won't cost you $39.95 with an additional $39.95 for shipping and handling . It won't cost your self-respect either.)

You might wonder why I dislike this man so much, too. I'll tell you. About ten years ago, my relatively stable American life fell apart, as in a nuclear family explosion. The anxiety and fear of losing status and stability fosters an atypical desperation for miracles and saviors. When gurus make promises that seem a little too good to be true, our reasoning ain't as sharp as it used to be. It's not stupidity that makes us "marks". It's fear. In a state of panic we react instead of thinking clearly. I know what it means to be vulnerable and that is why it's important for society to protect one another from people who have no limits (i.e.: no limits on what they can justify doing to and taking from others).

The majority of the time we don't fall for schemes selling false hope. We reason carefully before signing our names to $150 dollar monthly newsletters. But if there's one chance in a bazillion we can cure our anxiety and stop the slip-slide into homelessness, we might be desperate enough to "suspend disbelief" and listen to (or read) their words enough times to charm ourselves. I had a difficult time grounding myself in a terrifying reality and thinking critically (some might question that even today). That is why hucksters like Trudeau are concerning. It's important to advocate for those who might be in the same place I was ten years ago rather than spouting arrogant cliches such as, "A sucker is born every minute."  

Several years ago, my family installed a new television in our kitchen cuz you know how fun it is to cook while watching the History channel---aliens, Nostradamus and apocalyptic stuff. Well, one afternoon during the recession when people were losing homes and jobs, I watched a program called "Your Wish Is Your Command." In the middle of chopping portabellas I had to stop cooking (you know it's serious when that happens) and sat myself at the table with a pen and notepad. I scribbled notes throughout Trudeau's infomercial lasting half an hour as I recall---long enough for people to "suspend their disbelief". With a straight face, Trudeau told people they'd be LOSERS if they didn't buy his products. "Do you want to be a loser?" he'd ask, "because anyone who loses out on this amazing deal IS a loser!"  And I'm thinking---hummm, who's the target audience here? People who are sitting at home watching afternoon TV and worrying about how long that home will be theirs to sit in? There wasn't a trace of duplicity in his words or his body movements which seemed to me, intentionally coordinated to reinforce his unquestionable integrity. There wasn't even a second of hesitation or guilt calling people "losers." He was as believable as the guy who convinced me to marry him. ;-P

Although I really hate prosperity being defined as materialistic gains, it's not against the law. On their own, most people choose friends over money, honesty over financial gain. But creating a community of wealth winners keeps people focused on "the sell", lessening community values and personal conscience. Maybe my opinion will offend people but it seems to me that people who get rich like Trudeau, make choices morally responsible people won't. Unless of course, they outsourced their conscience to a circle of winners.

What we do not need in an increasingly disconnected society, is more focus on individual rewards at the expense of community trust. Sure, people didn't lose as much money buying Trudeau's pie-in-sky products as they did losing retirement savings to white-collar-psychopaths. The thing that is worrisome about people like Trudeau (and there's an army of 'em marching towards prosperity) is that they view other human beings as "stepping stones" on the path to their unlimited success. If they can't see any limits in their futures, our legal system will have to show them.

It's true that far more serious financial crimes have been committed against the American people which might turn Trudeau into an easy scapegoat. He'll play the card of "the victim" because it attracts rescuers to come to his defense. Trudeau isn't a descendant of a wealthy political family shielding him from punitive legal action but to me, that makes hucksters like Trudeau even more problematic. People can't identify with our royal 1%. They can identify with someone like Trudeau who uses his high school diploma to insist he's "one of us".  He's not. The VAST majority of people would never make the choices Trudeau has made and continues to make.

I've edited this post to add an excerpt from James Randi's Educational website. A woman  named Cherry Theresa wrote an article about being "conned" by Trudeau when she was struggling with health issues:
"[Trudeau] emotionally sets up his readers that he’s on their side and is just as angry as they are about being mistreated. “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore”... It makes him seem like he is this fearless advocate who is willing to go to jail to spread the truth to the public. And I bought that hogwash completely. I equated him to civil rights leaders who technically broke laws and went to jail, but were doing the moral thing and history has shown what they did was right and very brave. Boy, do I feel stupid now. The things many of the civil rights leaders did were valid and the law was wrong. In Trudeau’s case, the laws are actually out there for good reason and for our protection, not to harm us. But I didn't realize that then." ~Cherry Theresa 




If you can stand watching another video, Kevin Trudeau responds to John Stossel HERE. As is to be expected with personality disorders, Trudeau attacks John Stossel for being evil, accusing Stossel of only doing the interview for the money. He says Stossel's investigation was A Scam because Stossel is in bed with pharmaceutical companies (and the dreadful FDA).

The video below is a sure-pick-you-up on a lonely afternoon in the kitchen when you need a good laugh about the Law of Attraction, Quantum Physics and "scientists" like Trudeau: 


And when you've finished with your science class for the day, reflect on Trudeau's admonition. "Money" he says, "is not a four-letter word." He counsels Christians to feel good about equating prosperity with $$$ cuz God wants prosperous Christians. Broke, poor Christians can't help anybody.
"Jesus wasn't broke." Trudeau says in the video. "He never wanted for anything. Jesus had a ministry and one of those guys was a treasurer. Remember---Judas was “the treasurer.” Poor people don’t need treasurers. [Jesus and his disciples] never wanted or had a lack of anything. Now Jesus didn't develop a net worth but in terms of his surroundings, if you look at scripture scripturally, he rode in on Palm Sunday on a donkey.  
Trudeau continues, "Now, to put it in perspective, most people think about donkeys as a lowly form of transportation, “Ohhh, he was on a d-o-n-k-e-y.” What you don’t know is that a donkey was the Rolls Royce of transportation at the time. It's like the Pope-Mobile. He wasn't riding in like a pauper; he was riding in like a KING. You’ll also notice when he was crucified, it’s said that they couldn't share his robe. Remember he had a cloak? It’s said that the Roman soldiers cast lots to see who would get the cloak. The word cloak refers to a one-piece garment. This is a mink coat at the time. A one-piece garment, a cloak, Nobody had that! It was too expensive! Here our poor Jesus, our p-a-u-p-e-r, was riding in on Palm Sunday in a Rolls Royce and wearing the most expensive piece of clothing at the time, a one-piece cloak which couldn't be SHARED." 
And now, I am truly speechless.

Hugs all,
CZ


Resources

Whirled Musings A fantastic blog writing about New Wage Gurus. You'll love Cosmic Connie whether you subscribe to "woo" or not.

Kevin Trudeau on Wikipedia  This page has an excellent synopsis of Trudeau's "legal troubles", a sign of anti-social personality disorder. He is not being prosecuted for writing misleading books which is protected by First Amendment Rights. He's being prosecuted for "thumbing his nose" at the court orders.

Cognitive Dissonance on Wikipedia "Dissonance is aroused when people are confronted with information that is inconsistent with their beliefs. If the dissonance is not reduced by changing one's belief, the dissonance can result in restoring consonance through misperception, rejection or refutation of the information, seeking support from others who share the beliefs, and attempting to persuade others."

Cherry Theresa's article, "How I was scammed by Kevin Trudeau"









12 comments:

  1. OK, he makes me want to hurl. But think of all the Wall Street Hedge Fund managers who bilked people of billions over the last decade, and bankers who sold sub-prime mortgage loans, who have never even been charged with any crimes. Sigh.Of course I'm glad this guy is heading to slammer, which is where he belongs. He's an obvious Sociopath. But our justice system is so broken.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agreed, CS. When public faith breaks down, people like Trudeau step in. That people compare him to civil rights leaders has been head-spinning but that's what happens when people lose faith in public institutions and distrust authority figures.

      People argue about Trudeau's sentencing and ten years seems harsh although he could have served 20-25 if I'm remembering correctly.

      Delete
  2. Oh, and yeah, Judas was a greeeeaaaatttt Treasurer, wasn't he? :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That video was "over the top." Especially the baseball cap and his Limbaugh-mouth-movements (tongue pressed against his cheek). He must have studied media scumbags to mirror their success. If people saw him on the streets of Switzerland in his dapper dos and woolen ascot, they wouldn't identify with him the same way. Trudeau didn't go for the single big fish to fund his "empire." He went for the minnows and boy did he cast his nets on the right side of the ship. ;-P

      I must say Trudeau's interpretation of Jesus the king, wearing a mink coat and driving a Rolls Royce, was a first for me. And Judas cooking the books for Jesus's Swiss bank account? That was the best laugh of the day! That people take this guy so seriously kinda worries me about the human race.

      Delete
  3. You know, these hucksters (and I've seen them in action near and dear too, the snake oil shit), all have that wide-eyed, uber intense I"m-so-sincere" intensity. The way he talks, they all sound like that, from televangicals to Cindy Crawford's beauty secrets. It's always the raised eyebrows, intense unwavering eye contact, bulging eyeballs. It's like they're trying to hypnotize people.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ha! You have seen that wide-eyed uber intense gaze, staring at your face to see if you're buying their story. Even the mere flicker of an eyebrow ratchets up the "sell."

      I've lived a fairly average life as far as trusting people to be 'who' they proclaim to be---trusting institutions to be honest. So when I'm feeling repulsed by the hard sell and questioning people's motives, you know most people are right there with me.

      The trick is empowering ourselves to think critically rather than distrusting everyone and everything. The trick is learning how we're manipulated and conned and paying attention to our 'feelings' about someone. As mentioned in my PuppyGate post, people defend indefensible behavior if they LIKE someone. Kevin Trudeau (and others of his ilk) are enormously likable. Similar to my PuppyGate 'friend' who made $$ selling shark oil in a MLM. Watching Trudeau make his sales pitches and then seeing him claim victimhood is a great example of pathology-in-action. I think most of us writing about NPD can learn a lot about our involvement with narcissists by watching Trudeau. The longer he talks, the more you WANT to believe him. He can certainly cry a good sob story!

      I WANTED to identify with a "down home" average guy who struck it rich and now the fat-powers-that-be are "taking him down" so we should all defend him and send money in his fight for truth-and-justice. Luckily, I didn't invest in Trudeau's "stuff" so it was easier for me to see him as a con-artist. It's hard to admit someone you like (or has benefited you in some way) is taking advantage of your trust.

      Delete
  4. Oh crap. I just lost my entire comment. Well, I had some dealings with Trudeau many years ago. My sweet working class husband bought a few books and some 'investment material' all for the price of $139.00....and we were raising a young child at the time. I hit the roof. He never opened the boxes and I threw out everything a few years later.

    Kevin Trudeau is worse in my estimation than the Bernie Madoff's of the world. He spreds his net over the hopeful, desperate, working class and middle class who are waiting with open mouths for some 'get rich quick' scheme. I remember working in a factory where Reverend Ike held sway on the radio (this was in the 70's) and people were encouraged strongly to send in their rent money to Rev. Ike, and he would send them a prayer cloth. "Just rub your bills with this cloth and your bills will get paid!". I heard the groans and the anger when they weren't.

    There is a video or article, I can't remember which but I saw it a couple of weeks ago. It was the selling of Trudeau's mansion in California. "You too, can have a piece of the Magic of Kevin if you buy a piece of his estate" or so went the advertisment. His "European antiques' were not...they were reproductions from the Toscano company in California that make resin reproductions, many trolls, gargoyles, and baaaaaad tapestries. Fraud here, too.

    Well, I'll leave the donkey/cloak story to those who know better. But! That is very, very interesting...an interseting twist of a story. And sooooo damn self-serving.

    Ten years ain't enough for this guy.

    Lady Nyo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I saw the same article about Trudeau's mansion but hey, don't be too cruel about Toscano. I love their stuff and have sculpted a few gargoyles myself (that was twenty years ago back when my art professor deemed me "a bit eccentric for a Doris Day lookalike." haha...I don't really look like Doris Day but there's something about my demeanor that's unmistakably "gender appropriate." Guess that's why narcissistic men were attracted to me. Little did they know that underneath those dainty freckles and white gloves was a feminist in the making. Am I off-topic? ;-P

      I sincerely appreciate your comment, LadyNyo because you had direct experience with Trudeau. And I've never heard of Reverend Ike so I'll spend an afternoon reading about his version of "prosperity." Ever notice how prosperity gurus are the ones who get rich and the rest of us lose a bit of our souls in the bargain?

      I considered posting about my experience with a multi-level marketing scheme way back when Amway was first introduced to "religious people." We were a gold-mine market because each person in the congregation knew at least a few hundred people. Snagging that ONE person who'd sell to all their friends and family would make a fortune. The lower-level "new" recruit would lose a goldmine of friends I can tell you because I never contacted my long-lost friend after she started drawing circles on a piece of paper. I assumed she was interested in rejuvenating our high school friendship and felt immediately conned by her pretense when what she actually wanted was $1500: Me working for Her. It got to the point I'd ask people when they wanted to visit, "Are you selling Amway because if you are, I ain't interested." I never invested in Amway if you're wondering so even twenty-five years ago, my con-artist antennae were good enough to protect me from the next person leveraging our friendship for the MLM she bought into: Primerica.

      Trudeau's story about Christ riding in like a KING was a fine example of his inability to understand symbols, metaphors, parables. He (as many narcissists do) interpreted everything literally; "riding in like a KING" meant mink coats and a RollsRoyce. For something to be of value, it must be measurable and quantifiable. Something as meaningful to human beings as becoming "rich in spirit" would be a preposterous and incomprehensible notion. Thus the interpretation of KING as being wealthy. Prosperity as having money.

      Delete
  5. Oh! Narcissistic behavior abounds all over. In my neighborhood, there is a 32 year old woman (who says her mother bought her a contract for Elite modelling when she was 16) who has 5 daughters and not a husband to be found. This woman heard I was an author, contacted me and told me that she bought a contract for a book from Authorhouse....for $1000.00. She still owed $200.00 on it, but she wanted to write a book. However, she hasn't written a word. And she says 'she needs a curator". What? I bet her children could have used that $1000.00 for better reasons.

    There are scam merchants all over, but there are also narcissistic people who buy into these things and then defend them to the end. And laziness and narcissitic behavior at times goes hand in hand. As does opportunism.

    Still shaking my head over Trudeau but there is a blight on this nation and it's called by many names.

    LN

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree that narcissists would be sitting ducks for Get Rich Quick Schemes. They also lack empathy which means they wouldn't hesitate leveraging their friendships to make a few bucks. But I also think people who are 'not' narcissistic can be manipulated when they are desperate. Some people (like your neighbor), are looking for a shortcut, for someone to recognize their hidden talents and bring them the fame they believe they deserve. It seems to me that these people are hoping to bypass the hard work of refining one's talents, facing failures and tolerating inevitable rejections. They can "buy" a contract and sit back in their daydreams expecting success to come to them. Hey, they have a contract, right?

      I wonder if it's "Narcissism" that prevents people from admitting they made a mistake? I can say for sure that when we're taken advantage of, it's incredibly shaming. Most people are more than ready to point snarky fingers and call us suckers. If someone has unstable self-esteem, Defense and Pretense may be a better option than total disintegration. I try to put myself in Trudeau's 'true believers' shoes and imagine why I would continue to defend a man with one of the longest rap sheets I've ever seen on Wikipedia.

      Our culture breeds magical thinking by ignoring the reality of our inequality. To say any of us could be Presidents is a "blight on this nation" because it requires a certain degree of callousness towards the disenfranchised. It also sets people up to blame themselves or consider themselves failures if they aren't rich or famous celebrities. Whenever someone is promoted as having achieved success, it's measured by their net worth. The other values that bind a society together and make it safe for our children to grow up in, become "optional."

      Thanks for your comments, LadyNo. I so appreciate people's willingness to talk about their personal experiences with con-artists like Trudeau.

      Hugs
      CZ

      Delete
    2. Nah ...she was one of that website, Smart Asses. She saw a woman that she hadn't yet 'used'...and with 5 daughters all under the age of 16 (and the last one only a few months old) she emailed me saying that 'her daughters needed a 'mentor' and it looked like I would be a good one. hah! since I already knew a bit from the local gossips there about her manipulations of other people in the neighborhood...i saw it coming. Talent? All of us are given talents. But actualizing them is through our encounter with opposition and Hard Work. Something she was not interested in doing. Of course, any woman with 5 children should be attending to them, and not spending money on a contract to someday write a book. This was outrageous. She still thought she could be a model, but this (after 5 children) is more magical thinking.

      I saw narcissistic tendencies in the emails and conversation I had with her, but I think she is more a straightout sociopath. There were some warning signs from the very beginning. And I see a lot of these people in Atlanta because life here drives people crazy. The false values and the incredible violence takes its toll.

      Actually, since I was a subsitute teacher way back when in the local elementary school....so many black children were told that 'they could be anything they wanted." The problem was this was empty. The issue of hard work and attending school...not dropping out at 13 was not actually mentioned. People thought that these children labored under racism and therefore had to be 'built up.' Yes, but the values of education were not pushed. Many of their parents could care less. They were drug addicted, etc..and had little hope for any decent sort of life. They themselves were on a treadmill and couldn't get off. They didn't know any way of doing so.

      It's hard work and the graduation percentage was very low. Now, I think Georgia is ahead of Mississippi, but not by much and that is the bottom of the pile in graduation rates.

      I only write this because the values in our society, as we see nationally and locally, stink. The emphasis for black children to 'make it big' is sports....basketball, mostly. The sciences and literature are still orphans here in Georgia. I just write from my experience of 45 years in the South and generations of my neighbor's kids. And working class white kids have it no better. My son, regardless of the advantages we threw at him, also is part of this syndrome. He has squandered his life so far on crap. his future looks bleak from here.

      We are a nation that is fueled on myths. And making it big through the Lottery or criminal acts seem to be the standard.

      At least from where I sit.

      LN

      Delete
  6. I wish you would write about Amway. Part of the Great American Con. Like a Ponzi scheme I would suppose.

    Those with the least amount of education, hope and future fall prey to these schemes. I live in a part of Atlanta where my neighbors across the street lost their house because they gambled what little money they had on the Lottery. And of course they could never put the links together that these things aren't something that get you rich and comfortable for the future: they just impoverish you further. They lead to craziness and more govt. welfare.

    Rev. Ike: Somewhere recently I came across an article stating that he "wasn't the worse of the worst.:" That he instilled something called the "benefits of the Black Community" in Blacks as a people. Yeah, right. Rev. Ike with his 4 x 4 inch prayer cloths, cut with those scissors that make a vvvvvv around the outside of the cloth? I heard the cries of people who lost whole paychecks hoping to lessen their personal burden.

    And our paychecks were the hand to mouth version.

    I blame this crap on a society that lauds bling and wealth above morals and hard work. The fantasy lands people see on TV (and in the Trudeau's world of scam sell....boy do I want to smack him a good one!)
    drive black teens here in Atlanta to kill a 'brother' and steal his collection of designer sport shoes....drive a man just this last week to kill his wife, because she was getting her PhD. and 'he figured she would leave him as soon as she did."

    I was shocked (and shouldn't be, but I have my own vein of Doris Day somewhere deep inside...) when people at Trudeau's "Everything must go!" sale said that they wished they could buy his mansion and everything in it and keep it for when he would get out of prison."

    Geez.

    And I believed he lived in Switzerland or somepart of France? and played the European gentleman. I bet his neighbors had little idea how he made his millions.

    I'm not religious, but I believe that Christ rode in on a humble ass. A donkey was no chariot. Nore was it a white stallion. I don't believe in Heaven or Hell, but if their was a Hell, I hope that Trudeau and Rev. Ike are changed to a bench to talk about their lives above for eternity. They deserve each other.

    LN

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...