24 Oct 2008
In many countries, consumers are protected from "bait and switch frauds" relating to both products and services. I offer from my own personal experience that the Brahma Kumaris general "service programmes" are just that. Bait and switch frauds and I was engaged in doing just that. Bait and switch frauds are used to switch their "consumers" to a different a different product at a much higher prices. In the case of the BKs, the "bait" is simple "peace of mind", "self management" or "values education" courses etc; the switch was full blown religious cult inducement at the price of the minds and wallets of followers. A cult based on the veneration of their leaders.
Please bear in mind, this is no joke. There are an unknown number of Brothers today "surrendered to the Brahma Kumaris" who hand over all their wages to them and it would partial apply to most BK followers. Do we know how many individual do this ... or even how much the Brahma Kumaris annual income is? I have never seen the later accounted for, ever.
With the on set of an era of trademarks and 'Brahma Kumari commercialisation', let's call it "Kumercialization", do consumer laws not now apply to them equally? It might be a bit of a shock to the Sindhi mentality, that their consumers have rights.
The law includes that, "no statement or illustration should be used in any advertisement which creates a false impression of the grade, quality, make, value, currency of model, size, color, usability, or origin of the product offered, or which may otherwise misrepresent the product in such a manner that later, on disclosure of the true facts, the purchaser may be switched from the advertised product to another" ... like selling their practise as "Ancient Raja Yoga" when it only started post-1950. Even though the true facts are subsequently made known to the consumer, "the law is violated if the first contact or interview is secured by deception".
Bait and switch is a form of fraud.
The party putting forth the fraud lures in consumers by advertising services at an unprofitably low price ("Free of Charge"), then offers the consumer a different product. The goal of the bait-and-switch is to convince some consumer to purchase the substitute high priced goods as a means of avoiding disappointment over not getting the bait, or as a way to recover sunk costs expended to try to obtain the bait. I have personally seen Janki Kripalani joke about this.
In the United States, courts have held that the purveyor using a bait and switch operation may be subject to a lawsuit by customers for false advertising, and can be sued for trademark infringement by competing manufacturers, retailers, and others who profit from the sale of the product used as bait. Likewise, advertising a service as a "limited offer" but changing it afterwards is too ... like advertising Destruction and the limited time frame of Confluence Age.
Bait and switch is also a technique used in politics and law making with bills that propose minor changes in law with simplistic titles (the bait) being used to pass substantially changed the wording (the switch) at a later date in order to try to smooth the passage of a controversial or major amendment.
Please bear in mind, this is no joke. There are an unknown number of Brothers today "surrendered to the Brahma Kumaris" who hand over all their wages to them and it would partial apply to most BK followers. Do we know how many individual do this ... or even how much the Brahma Kumaris annual income is? I have never seen the later accounted for, ever.
With the on set of an era of trademarks and 'Brahma Kumari commercialisation', let's call it "Kumercialization", do consumer laws not now apply to them equally? It might be a bit of a shock to the Sindhi mentality, that their consumers have rights.
Bureau of Consumer Protection wrote:"Bait advertising" is an alluring but insincere offer to sell one product or service which the advertiser in truth does not intend or want to sell. Its purpose is to switch consumers from buying the advertised merchandise, in order to sell something else, usually at a higher price or on a basis more advantageous to the advertiser. The primary aim of a bait advertisement is to obtain leads as to persons interested in buying merchandise of the type so advertised.
The law includes that, "no statement or illustration should be used in any advertisement which creates a false impression of the grade, quality, make, value, currency of model, size, color, usability, or origin of the product offered, or which may otherwise misrepresent the product in such a manner that later, on disclosure of the true facts, the purchaser may be switched from the advertised product to another" ... like selling their practise as "Ancient Raja Yoga" when it only started post-1950. Even though the true facts are subsequently made known to the consumer, "the law is violated if the first contact or interview is secured by deception".
Bait and switch is a form of fraud.
The party putting forth the fraud lures in consumers by advertising services at an unprofitably low price ("Free of Charge"), then offers the consumer a different product. The goal of the bait-and-switch is to convince some consumer to purchase the substitute high priced goods as a means of avoiding disappointment over not getting the bait, or as a way to recover sunk costs expended to try to obtain the bait. I have personally seen Janki Kripalani joke about this.
In the United States, courts have held that the purveyor using a bait and switch operation may be subject to a lawsuit by customers for false advertising, and can be sued for trademark infringement by competing manufacturers, retailers, and others who profit from the sale of the product used as bait. Likewise, advertising a service as a "limited offer" but changing it afterwards is too ... like advertising Destruction and the limited time frame of Confluence Age.
Bait and switch is also a technique used in politics and law making with bills that propose minor changes in law with simplistic titles (the bait) being used to pass substantially changed the wording (the switch) at a later date in order to try to smooth the passage of a controversial or major amendment.