As we've mentioned before, Eric Jackson of The Panama News picked up our story about the Ku Klux Klan chief and convicted coup plotter James McQuirter being a principal of the Panama-based Emerald Passport MLM scheme. What's more, he expanded the cast of characters with one Jim Rivas, who is a sort of an MLM guru who hops from scheme to scheme. Rivas was BIG in Emerald Passport, and served as the example for others on how anyone could accumulate pyramids of wealth and fame and women if they were only smart enough to follow the leader. But Mr. Rivas is not amused to see his involvement with the KKK Grand Wizard plastered on the web, and threatens to sue!
Jackson used two photos to illustrate how big Mr. Rivas really was, and to prove that Panamanian figures were admiring him and posing for pictures with him.
One is a photo of Rivas with Justine Pasek, the former Panamanian Miss Universe, and the other depicts Rivas with Alonso de la Guardia, a real estate dealer who served as president of Emerald Passport until he got scared.
This now has very much upset Mr. Rivas, or so it seems, and he has written a lengthy and rambling email to Eric Jackson to complain and threaten legal action if the libelous smearing defaming whatever statements are not immediately removed plus of course the pictures which are stolen.
As seems to be the rule with Emerald Passport, Mr. Rivas contradicts himself about his exact role in the scheme, at one moment stating that he was an "independent distributor" and then claiming that "I resigned my position in February 2007". It's interesting to note how those who vehemently defend the scheme are making these attempts to hide their exact relationship with it. In what other company would one come across so many "independent distributors", "occasional marketing consultants" and "ceremonial presidents", we wonder?
Anyway. As usual in these cases, Rivas doesn't really point out why anything published in The Panama News is untrue, so we guess the man is just barking.