Future testimonials
08/26/98
Dear Gary:
First, let me thank you and your associates for setting up Gary's World. I hope you will continue it for the benefit of others, as long as there is a Wade Cook. Let me summarize as briefly as I can why I believe something should be done to limit the outrageous misrepresentations Wade Cook Seminars makes to consumers who know little if anything about the stock market.
Sometime in July of 1997, I heard Wade B. Cook on a Fresno radio program soliciting listeners to call 800-872-7411 to obtain a video about strategies for profiting in the stock market. I called the 800 number for Wade Cook Seminars and requested a copy of the video entitled "180 Degree Turnaround Cash Flow Seminar." As part of the deal, I was given five days access to W.I.N. I still have a copy of this video, which is one of several utilized by Wade Cook Financial Corporation (WCFC) to market seminars, services and products. The video sent to me represented:
that the seminar instructors for Wade Cook Seminars are experts on the strategies for making money in stocks and stock options;
that the Wall Street Workshop seminar teaches these strategies effectively to others;
that testimonials show that these strategies can be used successfully, with very little capital;
that I could set up a stock trading account with my IRA funds;
that at the Wall Street Workshop the instructors were averaging nine to eleven stock option trades that provided a return greater than 300%;
that by attending the Wall Street Workshop I would gain sufficient knowledge to enable me to apply these stock and stock option strategies successfully; and
that the Wall Street Workshop package offered to me was worth great deal more than the $3695 price, because it included the following:
1) a two day seminar teaching the stock and stock option strategies promoted in the video;
2) one day of instruction on business entities, called the B.E.S.T. seminar (Business Entities Skills Training);
3) six months of access to W.I.N;
4) a home study course called "Zero to Zillions."
On September 24, 25, and 26, 1997, I attended a Wall Street Workshop in Sacramento and was encouraged by its instructors to purchase a subscription to the I.Q. Pager for $1695, a product the instructors recommended as essential to the success of the stock and stock options strategies taught at the seminar ("use a credit card, if necessary"). The I.Q. Pager is a stock market information service provided by INFORMATION QUEST, INC. that provides to subscribers selected news of stock splits, stocks rising or falling sharply and related stock market information. I purchased the I.Q. Pager and put it on my credit card.
While at the Wall Street Workshop I was also encouraged to purchase the High Octane Options Seminar from Wade Cook Seminars, for $695, as a follow-up to the Wall Street Workshop. On October 27, 1997, I attended the High Octane Options Seminar and was encouraged to purchase seven Special Reports written by Steve Wirrick, ##701 to 707, for $109. We were not able to review the reports before receiving them in the mail, but they were touted as containing important strategies for success in trading stock options.
During this period, from about August 12, 1997, through about February 2, 1998, I utilized the services and products provided by Wade Cook Seminars and relied upon their misrepresentations in making investments in stocks and stock options. As result of this reliance, I suffered losses of more than $54,000 in capital, not including interest and related fees. During the same period, I lost more than $6,000 in my IRA savings, which I had converted to a trading account at the suggestion of Wade Cook Seminars. AND I PAID MORE THAN $6000 FOR THE PRIVILEGE!!!
On about April 3, 1998, I read a company press release for WCFC posted on the internet, which combined earnings for WCFC and its subsidiaries, like Wade Cook Seminars. At page two, it reported income for 1996 of $40,724,515, only $92,711 of which was earned from trading securities, comprising about .228% of its total income. The same press release reported income for 1997 of $104,907,650, with losses of $804,493 from trading securities.
Wade Cook had no reasonable grounds for believing that the misrepresentations made to me in the video and at the workshops were true. Further, the company withheld the important basic information:
it is not possible to learn how to make intelligent decisions on how to invest in the stock market or stock options in just a few days, weeks or even months;
the strategies taught at the workshop were structured to induce the purchase of additional products and services provided by Wade Cook Seminars, WCFC and Information Quest, rather than to teach myself and others how to become successful traders in the stock market;
that I would not be able to do most of the trades taught at the Wall Street Workshop and placed on W.I.N., because brokers in the industry require substantial financial resources before they allow persons to perform the straddles and spreads that are given as examples;
that having substantial cash equity is a prerequisite to investing in the stock market and stock options;
that Wade Cook Seminars uses instructors to teach the Wall Street Workshop who have inadequate or limited experience, both in the market and in teaching;
that I and others would probably never be able to discern from the numerous trades posted on W.I.N. the few trades, if any, that were likely to realize a profit.
On about April 21, 1998, I returned the I.Q. Pager purchased from INFORMATION QUEST, seeking a refund. On about May 5, 1998, I returned the other products purchased from Wade Cook Seminars and WCFC seeking a full refund in the amount of about $6094. It is now the last week in August, and it appears I will have to file a civil complaint in order to recover amounts paid to Wade Cook and related entities.
Stuart MacGregor
smacgr19@idt.net
3505 E. Weldon Avenue
Fresno, Ca 93703
|
