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Thread: What really happened to Decipher

  1. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by tonyg View Post
    Not really. People will take the risks for the rewards. Plus those with lots of money can always buy their way out of being punished.

    Look at the drug trade. In many countries dealing in illegal narcotics is a capitial crime, but the trade is so insanely lucrative that people take the risk.


    Not that I'm conding what the guy did. Just pointed out that capital pu7nishment isn't a deterrent when the stakes get this high.

    Now if we wanted to stop embezzling, we would need to simplify the tax codes and make it harder to hide the money. Here's a company that "lost" something like $9 million dollars. How can that have happened? You7d think that someone would notice a loss like that-even if someone is trying to cover it up. So either no one was keeping an eye on the money, inclduing the account that they hired 9 years ago, or there are just too many ways to cover up.

    At least this guy is being procesuted for a cime, unlike all those executives who have run compnaies into the ground while giving themselves massive bonuses.

    Actually, running a company into the ground while giving yourselves big bonuses isn't actually illegal. That's part of the problem.

    Of course, nobody in Congress is ever going to change that... otherwise people might start looking into trillion-dollar deficits vs. Congressional perks, and where would that get us?

    Also, Congress is never going to voluntarily simplify the tax code. Complex codes = rich lawyers, and Congress is mostly lawyers. The lawyer lobby is WAY stronger in Congress than the NRA or AARP, or similar groups.
    "It's hard being an evil genius when everybody else is so stupid" -- Quantum Crook

  2. #32
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    Quote Originally Posted by First of Two View Post
    Actually, running a company into the ground while giving yourselves big bonuses isn't actually illegal. That's part of the problem.
    That's my point. At least this guy was charged with embezzling. He will be punished. Now the punishment might not mean that much if hes got 5 or 6 million bucks tucked away in a bank account in Switzerland or the Cayman Islands, but what he did is considered stealing from the company.



    Of course, nobody in Congress is ever going to change that... otherwise people might start looking into trillion-dollar deficits vs. Congressional perks, and where would that get us?

    Also, Congress is never going to voluntarily simplify the tax code. Complex codes = rich lawyers, and Congress is mostly lawyers. The lawyer lobby is WAY stronger in Congress than the NRA or AARP, or similar groups.
    Since most politicians (and not just Congress) have backgrounds in either Law or Big Business, I think that there is little incentive for them to change things. Kinda rememinds me of the late Roman Republic.


    As for simplication idea. Yeah, you hit on part of the reason why we have this problem. If the law was simple then we wouldn't need lawyers (or accountaints). Thus we have an over complex tax and legal codes.

    It strikes me a rediculous to expect a population not to break laws if they have no idea what 90% of the laws are.





    But back to the topic, whle what this guy did was bad, and has caused hardship for Decipher and it staff, and contibuted to the dropping of the RPG line, I still say that we can't blame this all on him. SOmeone at Decipher should have noticed millions of dollars disappearing.

  3. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by tonyg View Post
    Not really. People will take the risks for the rewards.
    I didn't say it would stop it altogether; I said there'd be a lot less of it. No doubt the fact that that being in the drug trade could cost you your life keeps a lot of people out of it, even though there are still people who do it. Same thing with actually using drugs. We'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

    Best,

    T.

  4. #34
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    Quote Originally Posted by Taliesin View Post
    I didn't say it would stop it altogether; I said there'd be a lot less of it. No doubt the fact that that being in the drug trade could cost you your life keeps a lot of people out of it, even though there are still people who do it. Same thing with actually using drugs. We'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

    Best,

    T.
    Fair enough. We aren't too far apart on this. We both think the behavior is slimy. We just diagree on the solution. Personally I view this who thing as just another mark against modern business ethics (ior lack thereof), not to mention sheer greed.
    Last edited by tonyg; 04-01-2009 at 12:38 PM.

  5. #35
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    Well there is your proof

    Saruman lives! lol.

    That is sad... I had just pulled out the books yesterday thinking what wasted potential...
    the roads goes ever on..... so buy a volvo!

    "don't tell the elf"-Gimili at the Hornburg LOTR TTT

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  6. #36
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    Talking

    Quote Originally Posted by tonyg View Post
    Not that I'm conding what the guy did. Just pointed out that capital pu7nishment isn't a deterrent when the stakes get this high.
    If you ask me, capital punishment (i.e., sanctioning the termination or ending of a life) is humane. Though one can argue that in the final moment one would feel pain, be it from a guillotine or lethal injection (just another term for euthanasia). But it is just a moment.

    I favor corporal punishment. Just the sound of a man screaming like a little girl for over an hour while his genital is being twisted far more than it can handle ... is like sweet music to me.

    I know, I know. We don't sanction torture. America needs to be run by Klingons.
    Anyhoo, just some random thoughts...

    "My philosophy is 'you don't need me to tell you how to play -- I'll just provide some rules and ideas to use and get out of your way.'"
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    "Min/Maxing and munchkinism aren't problems with the game: they're problems with the players."
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  7. #37
    Quote Originally Posted by REG View Post
    I know, I know. We don't sanction torture. America needs to be run by Klingons.
    Ah, a world where the defense in corruption hearings consists of poison for the prosecutors...
    Portfolio | Blog Currently Running: Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek GUMSHOE Currently Playing: DramaSystem, Swords & Wizardry

  8. #38
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    As opposed to right now, where what we have is Government According to Dr. Sevrin.

    "It's hard being an evil genius when everybody else is so stupid" -- Quantum Crook

  9. #39
    Quote Originally Posted by First of Two View Post
    As opposed to right now, where what we have is Government According to Dr. Sevrin.
    So you guys are stealing the Russians' spaceships with the power of music?
    Portfolio | Blog Currently Running: Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek GUMSHOE Currently Playing: DramaSystem, Swords & Wizardry

  10. #40
    Personnally, I believe the act to be horrible. Embezzlement is a crime that hurts more than just the company. People lose jobs, sometimes with a black mark against them. For instance, a man loses his job and tries to get a new one. Everywhere he applies, he is told no. Reason, he worked for so and so company where embezzling happened. The place may think that the man "may have had" something to do with it.

    I feel horrible for the 90 employes of Deciper, and prey that they get their feet back under them.
    <a href="http://gameknot.com/#chabitrane">Play chess online</a>

  11. #41
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Tatterdemalion King View Post
    So you guys are stealing the Russians' spaceships with the power of music?
    No, we're paying the Russians to let us ride.

    The power of music is our new solution for combatting the jihadists.
    "It's hard being an evil genius when everybody else is so stupid" -- Quantum Crook

  12. #42
    Quote Originally Posted by First of Two View Post
    The power of music is our new solution for combatting the jihadists.
    Spock is a jihadist?
    Portfolio | Blog Currently Running: Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek GUMSHOE Currently Playing: DramaSystem, Swords & Wizardry

  13. #43
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Tatterdemalion King View Post
    Spock is a jihadist?
    No, he's obviously Chinese.
    "It's hard being an evil genius when everybody else is so stupid" -- Quantum Crook

  14. #44
    Well, that explains a lot! I haven't checked this forum in a while, and now I am glad that I came back!

    The guy is a big, fat, jerk! He cost a lot of people jobs, and freelancers did not get the money that they were due because of him. 1.5 million could have kept Decipher going for a while! The worst thing was that he used his own family to rape the company

  15. #45
    Quote Originally Posted by Landorl View Post
    The worst thing was that he used his own family to rape the company
    This is why you never go into business with your family.
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