This.World.Sucks. (Rant: Warning - Heartbreaking)

[matcom]

Mrs Matcom works for a bank. She heads up the Fraud Dept. She just got home with the following story:

89 Y.O. customer (house-bound, no husband, 1 daughter who doesn't speak to her) calls looking for her banking info (routing numbers, etc..)

Mrs Matcom asks why she needs all this info (its unusual).

Lady says she won the lottery and needs the info for transfers. Mrs Matcom says CONGRATULATIONS! Did you win the Massachusetts lottery? Lady says no. She received an email telling her she won $1.7 Million in the SPANISH LOTTERY. Mrs Matcom asks her if she bought a Spanish Lottery ticket. Woman says no. Of course the letter states that in order to get her windfall, she will need to agree to pay $24,000 in "fees". But HEY! It's $1.7 MILL afterall! That is PEANUTS!

After more conversation and woman sending the letter to Mrs Matcom, Mrs Matcom has to break the news that this is a scam. Woman breaks down. Turns out that woman wanted to win because she thinks that if she can give her daughter a large sum of money, her daughter will "love her again" and talk to her.

Now, it gets better. Mrs Matcom pulls a banking history. Woman has been LIVING off of credit card advance checks. They send her cards, she sends in cash advance checks. That is how she lives. $42,000 in CC DEBT! Mrs Matcom drives out to her home to get more information (so she can notify social services, elder services, police). Turns out that woman is bored as hell and called a 900 # PSYCHIC LINE. That was 2 weeks ago. THEY got her for almost $300.00. Guess what they told her!

They told her that she could expect "a large sum of money 'windfall' within the next MONTH that would change her family life for the better!"

Mrs Matcom broke her poor old heart and saved her thousands at the same time. WHY does that not make her/I feel better?

I.FUCKING.HATE.PEOPLE.

:cry:

[MercutioATC]

1. I'm an athiest and I still like to think there's a special corner of Hell

for those people.

A HOT one.

[ewagner]

2. Hats off to Mrs Matcom

She may have broken this poor old lady's heart but she probably saved her from something much worse..........

Mrs Matcom is a Saint....

[redqueen]

3. That's awful

But honestly, it could be worse.

I try not to hate people, though... I hate the greed that infects them. I hate their susceptibility to it... (not talking about the old lady here... talking about the predators capitalizing on her naivete).

[VelmaD]

4. You are married to a wonderful woman, matcom

I'm sad to say that most people would not have taken the time to go to the woman's house adn find out if they needed to call social services. This world wouldn't suck so bad if more people cared about each other that much.

Give her a bug hug from me. :hug:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

5. Horrible...thank goodness for people like Mrs Mat who still give a shit

[TEXASYANKEE]

6. Hooray for Mrs. Matcom!

The world needs many more just like her!!!

[Beetwasher]

7. Dude, Your Wife Is A Friggin' Saint!

It's unusual for someone to take a personal interest and go as far as she did in helping the woman. I.FUCKING.LOVE.PEOPLE. Because there are people out there like you and your wife!

[madmax]

8. Give this to Mrs. Matcom

:hug: :loveya: :grouphug:

[RhodaGrits]

9. When all these people who have been scammed like this

default on their credit card debt.... look out. It's going to happen soon. With the low interest rates being offered by the feds thanks to Greenspan et al... they've been throwing money at people.

The credit card debt is bad enough but when the banks start calling in the mortgages as the real estate bubble bursts like the internet bubble went splat - you are going to see a lot of people with 100% financed homes being foreclosed on. They won't have any more compunction about taking their assets than the brokerage houses had raising the margin requirements and liquidating stocks.

It is going to get real ugly.

The little people like this woman are going to be the ones hurt. All they did was take what was "offered" - they didn't see all the strings. They were stupid but the ones that will keep their money are evil.

[bigwillq]

10. Now I need a Kleenex

Seriously, people who run scams like that need to be locked away for a long time and even that won't help.

What a sad story. But please temm Mrs. Matcom that although she was put in a difficult situation, she did the right thing.

[DS1]

11. People that prey on the eldery need some old school action

[wryter2000]

12. Thank goodness for Mrs. Matcom

She may have saved that old lady from bankruptcy or worse. A social worker should hook her up with a senior center so she won't be lonely.

[supernova]

13. Hooray for Mrs Matcom!

Dispite having to deeply disappoint this very lonely lady, it was better for her in the long run to have her savings in tact.

I would feel very lucky if someone at my bank cared enough to follow up that much with me.

[nini]

14. Stuff like this just pisses me off..

these poor seniors with no one watching out for them.. Thank God she called and asked for that info and Mrs. Matcom took the time to really help her.




urgh :mad:

[SheilaT]

15. The truly sad thing about this story

is that this 89 year old woman who lives alone is sufficiently isolated that no one is looking out for her. Mrs. Matcom is truly a saint. But how many other people like this woman are out there, being scammed?

There is a huge down side to the "rugged individualism" aspect of our culture.

[matcom]

16. EVERYONE!!!! PLEASE SEE THIS POST!!!!!

Mrs Matcom and I have been INSPIRED!!!!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x1549989

[Jo March]

17. Mrs. Matcom is a wonderful saint

She is the best. This made me feel better when I read that she went to the old woman's home. That takes a real concern for another person's welfare.

This woman does need some help. Being bored and calling a #900 is bad, way bad and a sign that the woman needs friends and family watching her.

I feel for people like this but I am also HAPPY that Mrs. Matcom was there to help. God sends people like her, I believe. She is an angel on earth.

[Amaya]

18. Mrs. Matcom = great person.

Wish there were more honorable people like her. Sadly, there are some seriously fucked up people in this world.

I'm privileged to know you both.:)

[matcom]

19. can i kick this too?

thanks :D

[onebigbadwulf]

20. Uh oh... the Spanish lottery isn't real?

...there goes my car.

[Deja Q]

21. Money is the root of all evil. (some jerkwad added a prefix 'the love of')

If our society was ever meant to induce a participatory society, it sure as hell blew it. Big-time.

We need a big-ass paradigm shift.

[alphafemale]

22. I'd wonder if the 900 # Psychic Line "windfall prediction" and the scam

are connected? You could be close to nailing the lousy grifters.

[THUNDER HANDS]

23. awww

poor old lady. Your wife is cool, man. :thumbsup:

[skygazer]

24. It's always those who can least afford to lose it

The elderly, the poor, the uneducated. Predators suck! The things they will do to their fellow man!

[Ilsa]

25. We need more people in the world like Ms. Matcom.

She exemplifies compassion, not that crap Shrub spews while he cuts people's support off at the knees.

[blondeatlast]

26. Buy Mrs. M a GREAT bottle of wine--she deserves it.

And a blessing for that poor dear woman.