# Lateral Thinking Puzzles - third time is best! **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 18, 2023, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214 "2023-07-18T13:39:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/81 "2023-07-20T17:23:14Z")
Did he actually deliver product to customers? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/82 "2023-07-20T18:20:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Was the trolling in the reviews or comments section of the site where the product was sold? **NO** , though I’d keep sniffing down the review section of his online business and how it plays in. > [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > Was the trolling in the form of a followup email? POSSIBLY, BUT ALSO ON THE PHONE > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Did he actually deliver product to customers? YES, though sometimes counterfeit. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/83 "2023-07-20T19:23:12Z")
Was this some sort of insult generator or hotline? ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/84 "2023-07-20T19:27:23Z")
Was he accusing complainers of lying about the product? ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/85 "2023-07-20T20:15:51Z")
In his trolling did he make direct threats to harm people? Were the people he was threatening the same people who would buy his product? Did he troll specifically so that other people would propagate his trolling which would lead them to his site? Was he and his site the target of his own trolling? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/86 "2023-07-20T20:36:52Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Was this some sort of insult generator or hotline? **NO** , just a glasses place. > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Was he accusing complainers of lying about the product? **I assume so, and their intentions. And about payments. Really everything he could.** > [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > In his trolling did he make direct threats to harm people? > > **YES** , eventually including sexual assault threats as well. > > Were the people he was threatening the same people who would buy his product? > > **YES** > > Did he troll specifically so that other people would propagate his trolling which would lead them to his site? > > PROPAGATE is not the right word, but you might want to pursue the online business model and why trolling, which is obviously a weird thing to do, would be something he would do. > > Was he and his site the target of his own trolling? > > **NO** , just customers. Let’s just say this is a very bizarre man and if he could keep himself contained, he might have been “mad like a fox”, but ended up not being like a fox at all. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/87 "2023-07-20T21:09:25Z")
Was he relying on the victims of his trolling telling other prospective customers… something? Was he relying on prospective customers stumbling upon the trolling independently somehow? Would the victims of his trolling have known that there was a connection between their treatment and the product they’d bought from him? Was his reason for targeting his customers specifically (rather than targeting anyone else) anything other than that he had easy contact information for his customers? Did Igor’s scheme actually work (for a while, at least: I assume it stopped working once he got arrested)? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/88 "2023-07-20T21:52:46Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Was he relying on the victims of his trolling telling other prospective customers… something? > > **YES** > > Was he relying on prospective customers stumbling upon the trolling independently somehow? > > **YES** - same as your first question, I think. > > Would the victims of his trolling have known that there was a connection between their treatment and the product they’d bought from him? > > **YES** > > Was his reason for targeting his customers specifically (rather than targeting anyone else) anything other than that he had easy contact information for his customers? > > **YES** - they were his customers and he trolled them over payments, refunds, and complaining about counterfeit glasses. > > Did Igor’s scheme actually work (for a while, at least: I assume it stopped working once he got arrested)? > > YES, quite well I think. I would emphasize Igor lucked his way into all of this. “Scheme” is too thoughtful. More like a maniac that things worked out for…for awhile. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/89 "2023-07-21T03:56:57Z")
Did the people who bought from him expect to get scammed? Did people suggest to others go to his site in hopes that they would get scammed/abused? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/90 "2023-07-21T10:39:50Z")
Did people find his trolling funny? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/91 "2023-07-21T12:17:19Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Did the people who bought from him expect to get scammed? > > **NO** - though they could have suspected… > > Did people suggest to others go to his site in hopes that they would get scammed/abused? > > **NO** - quite the opposite > [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > Did people find his trolling funny? NO, they did not. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/92 "2023-07-21T20:35:33Z")
You say he lucked into this. Did he fail at what he was directly trying to do, while succeeding in some unintended way? Did his legal complications benefit him somehow? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/93 "2023-07-21T22:01:50Z")
> [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > You say he lucked into this. Did he fail at what he was directly trying to do, while succeeding in some unintended way? > > Initially, then he realized it was working and upped his trolling. > > Did his legal complications benefit him somehow? > > NO I can reveal the answer tonight around 8PM. I think you are all about 85% there. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/94 "2023-07-22T00:10:11Z")
Answer: Igor trolled because despite what you might think, negative reviews INCREASED his business. Any publicity is good publicity. He stated how much he hated the idea of “the customer is always right” and so he slammed any criticism, practiced awful interactions with customers, and even called their credit card companies pretending to be them. He openly threatened people who complained. He posted: **“Hello, My name is Stanley with [DecorMyEyes.com](http://DecorMyEyes.com),” the post began. “I just wanted to let you guys know that the more replies you people post, the more business and the more hits and sales I get. My goal is NEGATIVE advertisement.”** You can read an entire article here: > **[A Bully Finds a Pulpit on the Web (Published 2010)](https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/28/business/28borker.html)** > > Vitaly Borker welcomes customer complaints, saying they vault his business higher in Internet search results. Vitalay Borker did go to prison for numerous types of fraud, though he is out now. Rumors are he has started again? He was arrested in 2022 for more fraud. It’s unclear his status. Here is his Wikipedia: > **[Vitaly Borker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitaly_Borker)** > > Vitaly Borker (born 1975 or 1976 in the former Soviet Union), known by pseudonyms "Tony Russo", "Stanley Bolds" and "Becky S", is an American convicted felon, who has twice served federal prison sentences for charges arising from how he ran his online eyeglass retail and repair sites, DecorMyEyes and OpticsFast. Customers who complained about poor service and misfilled orders for high-end designer eyewear were insulted, harassed, threatened (sometimes physically) and sometimes made the vic When ... ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/95 "2023-07-22T17:22:34Z")
**They say Mary plugged her phone in before she laid down to sleep. This was not true, but why would it be unusual?** ---
**Author:** ![Jegpeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jegpeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jegpeg)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/96 "2023-07-22T17:27:00Z")
Is “they” a specific group of people? Was it said to be plugged in to the mains electricity to charge it? Is Mary human? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/97 "2023-07-22T17:28:28Z")
Is “they” a specific group of people? **No** Was it said to be plugged in to the mains electricity to charge it? **No** Is Mary human? **Yes** ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/98 "2023-07-22T17:56:15Z")
Morbid thought: is Mary dead? (I’d bet money that, if COLUMBO episodes were still being made in this cellphone-soaked era, we’d see a guy commit an seemingly perfect murder and leave no obvious clues while arranging the body in bed — plugging in her phone for the night like he figures she would, and like the audience figures she would, and like the first cops to arrive figure she would — before our hero eventually makes eyes bulge with an innocuous, _well, sir, it’s unusual that they keep sayin’ she’d plugged in her phone there before layin’ down to sleep, because she never did that._) ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/99 "2023-07-22T18:14:17Z")
**Yes, Mary is dead.** ---
**Author:** ![Jegpeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jegpeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jegpeg)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/100 "2023-07-22T19:31:13Z")
Is the question why would it be unusual to plug her phone in before she went to sleep? [alternative why would it be unusual ot be untrue?] Is Mary dead because she didn’t plug her phone in? Did Mary have a disability or illness? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214.md?page=6)