I was the subject of a con, perfectly formed, to con me out of $1710.
Walking down the street to a seminar, I was hailed by a man in a car at Columbus Ave and 76st, New York City. He wanted to know how to get to Kennedy Airport. I was glad to help (I had 5 minutes to spare). He spoke with a wide Italian accent, and, like every New Yorker, I was anxious to be helpful to a foreigner.
I gave him directions. They were incomplete. He didnt care — he was very appreciative, and from the car window he asked me whether I understood him. I said I did, and that his English was good. He began to speak of his profession — fashion representative - "You're a 42 Long!" "Please take these bags from the back seat, and sit with me in the front." I cant be sure how he did it, but I accepted his invitation to sit in his car. (He could drive me to my seminar, I figured.) There was something he said that made me believe that he wanted to give me the 42 Long in return for giving him directions. Greed was
involved. Something for nothing?
He indicated early in the conversation, that he no longer needed these samples. And that they were a burden to his getting on the plane. I wasnt listening.
And then he proceeded to show me his stuff. I'm not interested in fashion, or clothing, but the prospect of getting something valuable for free kept me in the car. The word Armani kept coming up. I saw myself leaving the car in a minute or two, with this gift, and even expected that I could ask him to drive me to my destination.
As he showed me an item, he asked, in turn, about my wife, my daughter, my son, — their shapes. Each of the items he showed me would, miraculously, fit each of them.By this line of questioning, he made me think that he was about
to give me it all. 6 items. It certainly helped that he confided to me, early on, that it would be a lot of trouble to take these items on the plane with him, as excess baggage. (Why argue?)
He asked me, as he showed me each item, to judge the quality. I am no judge of quality, but that wasn't what I thought I was doing. The situation was so absurd, I resorted to yesing him. Humoring him. Smiling inwardly, secretly. Happily agreeing with him that, no, the black leather jacket wasn't worth $ it was worth $3000, as he said. I thought there was no harm in agreeing with him. I was very wrong.
Because I was being imprinted with a value for these goods. I had no need to exercise judgement. I saw no need to do so. I was going to be given these goods, whatever their actual worth. So what if he needed me to appreciate how valuable they were. I could do that. But we had now established a value for these goods (without any critical thinking), so, when the conversation turned to an area that needed more critical judgement, I never bothered to re-evaluate or reconsider the value that had been established. (This by the way, is perfectly explained in the book: "Thinking Fast and Slow" by David Kahneman.)
He then began to present me with a sob story. This made me uncomfortable, but I had to stay for it, because there was now a 10 minute history. He lost all his money in Atlantic City. He teared up. He showed me an empty wallet, with credit cards that he said were maxed out. He showed me a rental car bill for $1710, that he couldn't pay. (In retrospect, all I saw was the tip of the bill). He had to make his plane, and would I help? Time was important he implied.
Because he was giving me all these clothes, worth more than $10,000 ('You wont sell it, will you?'). Could I give him the money for the rental car. He was conveniently parked just across from a bank, but I told him that I couldn't get that much money out. That didn't deter him. (It should have deterred me, because either I was going to give him enough money to pay the bill, or, I wasn't.)
So greed led me to the bank. I was going to help this guy out, but I decided to stop when the ATM stopped at $1000. Some sense was breaking through. I knew I could get more. But I told him that was the limit. He asked if I had any money in my wallet. There went another $100.
As he drove away in his dirty, gray, old, mini Van, I was still thinking that I had not 'bought' these clothes. I had been given these clothes. And I had given him money to help out. Oh, how I wish I had caught on as he was driving away. His license plate was clearly visible.
It wasn't till I got home, and began to actually touch the items that I began to suspect that there was something wrong. The labels weren't Armani, a name that he had constantly thrown around. They were AC. Made in Italy. Guaranteed Genuine. Genuine what? No materials were mentioned. Googling turned up no Italian clothing line associated with AC. As I looked closer, even my eye could detect that this was cheap stuff made to look expensive at a glance. Pleather, I was told later, not leather. Imitation suede.
I can afford to be taken for $1100. I don't need $10,000. I have 11 years of education beyond high school. I am a big time skeptic. I am greedy as charged. But I'm also the kind of person who will do others favors. I have given $20 con artists their money many many times, hoping, that maybe this time, it wont be a con. It always is.
But this was the first time that I was conned, that I didn't know it over an hour. A perfect con. And boy do I feel like an idiot now.
0 comments