Government files lawsuit against Lend America & Michael Ashley

[George.]

You guys and your pom-poms..
If a guy has a Funny Car, he can get away with murder, and it's OK because he signed an autograph and you're in love forever because he's a swell guy... Barf...

QUOTE]

My statment about the good he has done has nothing to do with the fact he has a funny car which by the way he no longer has. It has to do with all the charitable things he has done to help people in need. He has sponsored several events that raised many dollars for familys, groups, children in need etc He sent one funny car to the Barrett Jackson auction and gave the proceeds to help someone or something. To be honest I didn't at first really care for him but his actions spoke louder than words and he won my admiration. I still don't always pull for him or his cars depending on whose in the other lane but that doesn't take away from the fact he's top drawer in my books. By the way I've never asked for a hero card or an autograph.

This has nothing to do with Mike, but this is how I feel about charity:
Charitable contributions in general always revolve around tax write offs. Don't let that confuse you with someone who really cares. If I had a profit that was in need for a deduction, I'm looking to give..
You get the deduction, and you look like a hero.
The Govt knows this and that is how some great and extraordinary efforts can get funding.
I'm not star struck with well-to-do people who donate. Once you are in to the upper tax brackets, you search hard for donations because better to give to people rather than the Govt. It's the people who make very little, where there is no PR or tax motivation other than to help people, that's what humbles me. There are not many "Mother Teresas' in the world.

That said, I certainly hope Mike is found to be innocent.

 

[Professional Fan]

This has nothing to do with Mike, but this is how I feel about charity:
Charitable contributions in general always revolve around tax write offs. Don't let that confuse you with someone who really cares. If I had a profit that was in need for a deduction, I'm looking to give..
You get the deduction, and you look like a hero.
The Govt knows this and that is how some great and extraordinary efforts can get funding.
I'm not star struck with well-to-do people who donate. Once you are in to the upper tax brackets, you search hard for donations because better to give to people rather than the Govt. It's the people who make very little, where there is no PR or tax motivation other than to help people, that's what humbles me. There are not many "Mother Teresas' in the world.

That said, I certainly hope Mike is found to be innocent.

George, the only part of your comment I can come close to agreeing with is that it is tougher and more of a sacrifice for people that make "very little" to support a charity.

You fail to consider a number of things:
1. No one is in the 100% tax bracket. Thus, regardless of how much money you make only a percentage of the amount contributed is financed by a tax deduction-the rest of the donation comes out of your pocket. The tax deduction is more of a benefit to higher income people of course but there still has to be a philanthropic desire.
2. Support of charities varies widely among higher income people. As a CPA working in the tax area for a large firm, I was sometimes embarrassed as how little some of my wealthy clients gave to charity but also pleased to see some of my clients supporting charity in a really significant way.
3. Many people, myself included, do not seek publicity for what we do. I have run a charity auction for my Rotary club for the last 23 years which has raised about $500,000 all of which went to charity. If you attended our auction you would not even know who was running it as I keep a very low profile and don't need to be on the stage or be recognized. I am also a significant contributor of items to the DRAW auction but no one attending the auction, other than the DRAW people, know who I am. I'm not patting myself on the back here-just making a point that many people who support charitable causes do not do it for publicity or the tax writeoff but do it because it is the right thing to do. The tax writeoff is a benefit for sure, just not the primary reason for the charitable effort.

 

[mw6789]

George, the only part of your comment I can come close to agreeing with is that it is tougher and more of a sacrifice for people that make "very little" to support a charity.

You fail to consider a number of things:
1. No one is in the 100% tax bracket. Thus, regardless of how much money you make only a percentage of the amount contributed is financed by a tax deduction-the rest of the donation comes out of your pocket. The tax deduction is more of a benefit to higher income people of course but there still has to be a philanthropic desire.
2. Support of charities varies widely among higher income people. As a CPA working in the tax area for a large firm, I was sometimes embarrassed as how little some of my wealthy clients gave to charity but also pleased to see some of my clients supporting charity in a really significant way.
3. Many people, myself included, do not seek publicity for what we do. I have run a charity auction for my Rotary club for the last 23 years which has raised about $500,000 all of which went to charity. If you attended our auction you would not even know who was running it as I keep a very low profile and don't need to be on the stage or be recognized. I am also a significant contributor of items to the DRAW auction but no one attending the auction, other than the DRAW people, know who I am. I'm not patting myself on the back here-just making a point that many people who support charitable causes do not do it for publicity or the tax writeoff but do it because it is the right thing to do. The tax writeoff is a benefit for sure, just not the primary reason for the charitable effort.

Absolutely correct. I heard for years, you should keep your house financed to use the interest as a tax write off. As a very highly paid tax attorney once asked me about home interest--would you spend $1.00 to save a quarter? Of course not. His point was a dollar spent on interest would save a quarter in taxes for most folks (figuring a 25% tax bracket)--and the smart thing to do was pay off your mortgage and pay the taxes. Amazing how many intelligent folks dont understand the concept.

 

[Jim]

His point was a dollar spent on interest would save a quarter in taxes for most folks (figuring a 25% tax bracket)--and the smart thing to do was pay off your mortgage and pay the taxes. Amazing how many intelligent folks dont understand the concept.

People understand the concept but many become so fixated on not paying taxes that they will spend more money than they save to avoid paying taxes.

Another example: I once worked with a guy who would only invest in tax-free bonds so he would not have to pay interest. Tax-free bonds usually pay lower interest rates than taxable bonds. When we showed him that he would end up with more money by buying taxable bonds and paying the taxes, he did not care. He was willing to make less money for himself as long as he did not have to pay anything in taxes.

Jim

 

["Chuck"]

Ive been coming in here and reading this post over the course of the last few weeks and I have found more negative comments posted on course of opinion than on facts. Now I'm not coming in here to light the board on fire or claim I know Mr. Ashley but I will say this about the man....He is one of the most charitable and honest men I've ever met and as a former employee of his he did nothing but make sure that I was well taken care of and all of my needs were met. And if you ask anybody else who knows him or works for him they will tell you the exact same thing. Its just not in this man to act maliciously or with ill intent. I believe all will come out good in the end of this messy situation for him.

Thats my worthless two cents on this.

 

[Gary Stroud]

I have nothing but good to say about Mike Ashley.

Mike has always been a great suporter to Drag Racing and any venture I have personally taking in this sport I love so much.

Best of luck Mike this will all be behind you soon and we will see you at the track Buddy.

 

[Toby]

Its nice to see a testimonial from someone that has worked for Mike. I will have to say, from watching and once in a while posting here, you will drive yourself nuts trying to appease everyone. LOL

Ive been coming in here and reading this post over the course of the last few weeks and I have found more negative comments posted on course of opinion than on facts. Now I'm not coming in here to light the board on fire or claim I know Mr. Ashley but I will say this about the man....He is one of the most charitable and honest men I've ever met and as a former employee of his he did nothing but make sure that I was well taken care of and all of my needs were met. And if you ask anybody else who knows him or works for him they will tell you the exact same thing. Its just not in this man to act maliciously or with ill intent. I believe all will come out good in the end of this messy situation for him.

Thats my worthless two cents on this.

 

[Husky]

Good Morning,

I thought I would make one post just to state the facts. The lawsuit is packed full of lies. The company closed 12000 loans for the period and employs 600. We have a zero tolerance policy against loan fraud. The lawsuit alleges 40 loans with fraud in them. We take this seriously. However, there is no evidence to prove we knew about the fraud. With 600 employees and 12000 loans during the period we do our best to prevent loan fraud and it is a big task. The evidence provided by the government was nothing more than unbacked overeaching allegations. There is one agent in the IG office that hates me and is on a vendetta. He attacks me every couple of years unsuccessfully. As you probably already know the government lost in court yesterday. Right over might. Give me the benefit of the doubt in this one. This is our taxpayer money at work. Wasting time and money.

Sorry you're spending money on lawyers when you could be spending it on racing fuel. I've met some of these little "Napoleans" and they can cause a lot of havoc, even when they have nothing to hang their hats on, which is a PITA!
Good Luck.

 

[Bill]

There's no way there is jail time even if proved guilty in which this case is diifferent because you only need 51% of the jurors to vote guilty. It's most likely what Mike says about this being a BS case. If the government had the goods on him they would file criminal charges. Read the fine print, this is a weak case.

Think about this, Evan is still walking around free as a bird. Now he may not have any money but he's not wearing an orange jumpsuit. There's a big time deal going down here in Chicagoland powersports industry that's going to hit $100M and should be front page news within the next couple of weeks. It's been under investigation for a year and a half so these kinds of things take a lot of time to investigate. I'm sure they were looking at Madoff for a couple of years before they lowered the boom on him.

Mike is going to come out of this deal OK other than lighter in the wallet and a little more jaded about our government.

 

[Evan Knoll]

Evan Knoll here, Mike is a great friend and business and family man!!!!
What happen to me is alot like what the GOVERMENT is trying on Mike and thats bull-crap but i and he will survive the good Lord is so i beleave testing us and THE TRUTH WILL REVAIL alot of new finding's on both sides are going to be PROOF on how our GOVERMENT and a few OLDER EMPLOYE'S conducted there-self's. But Iam not going to to say anymore yet BUT SOON I WILL. But please remember what Mike braught to the sport he loved and still love's Mike is a great man and friend to so many. I will be doing interview's when the time is wright and i hope very soon. GOD-BLESS, Evan Knoll.

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

I look forward to your interview sir, and wish the best to both you and Mike.

 

[George.]

Just a hunch here.
Probably.... not the endorsement or comparison Mike was looking for....

 

[none]

Just a hunch here.
Probably.... not the endorsement or comparison Mike was looking for....

Now that's the kind of wisdom that can't be taught in the classroom.

 

[none]

Finally obliged to depart, even a king cannot take his
wealth and his companions along,
But wherever he goes or stays, the results of his actions
will follow him, inseperable as a shadow.


If sand is poured in the donkey's ear, he will shake it out.
If gold is poured into the donkey's ear, he will shake it out.
(The ignorant cannot tell the difference between what is
wholesome and unwholesome).


Having drunk the country's water, one should obey the
country's laws.

If the inner mind is not deluded, the outer deeds will not
be wrong.

Just some interesting sayings I came across. Make application if you will.

 

[Angelo]

This has nothing to do with Mike, but this is how I feel about charity:
Charitable contributions in general always revolve around tax write offs. Don't let that confuse you with someone who really cares. If I had a profit that was in need for a deduction, I'm looking to give..
You get the deduction, and you look like a hero.
The Govt knows this and that is how some great and extraordinary efforts can get funding.
I'm not star struck with well-to-do people who donate. Once you are in to the upper tax brackets, you search hard for donations because better to give to people rather than the Govt. It's the people who make very little, where there is no PR or tax motivation other than to help people, that's what humbles me. There are not many "Mother Teresas' in the world.

That said, I certainly hope Mike is found to be innocent.

George, if you had a clue you would be dangerous, before judging someone, a smart approach would be to know them. Mike has lost more than you could ever dream of having because he was denied due process. A clear case of "Big Brother" taking his ball and going home because the rules were working against him.

As for charity, again, you clearly do not know the man! Mike has given more to those "truly" in need than you will earn in a lifetime. Most of his donations are given anonymously because he would prefer not to be recognized, however, when you donate a car that you drive in the US Nationals, a car that wins the race and is then auctioned on national TV, it's hard not to get noticed.

You may not be able to process what I've said here, so I'll make it simple; Mike is a great man who does great things for many people and he got "Royally Screwed" by the US Government because one sad, angry civil servant had a hard-on for him about something that happened 20 years ago!

 

[NYNitro86]

George, if you had a clue you would be dangerous, before judging someone, a smart approach would be to know them. Mike has lost more than you could ever dream of having because he was denied due process. A clear case of "Big Brother" taking his ball and going home because the rules were working against him.

As for charity, again, you clearly do not know the man! Mike has given more to those "truly" in need than you will earn in a lifetime. Most of his donations are given anonymously because he would prefer not to be recognized, however, when you donate a car that you drive in the US Nationals, a car that wins the race and is then auctioned on national TV, it's hard not to get noticed.

You may not be able to process what I've said here, so I'll make it simple; Mike is a great man who does great things for many people and he got "Royally Screwed" by the US Government because one sad, angry civil servant had a hard-on for him about something that happened 20 years ago!

During the short period he was racing pro mod in the USSC with his Pontiac Trans Am and his Beretta. Before Disappearing for awhile until the end of the 90s.

 

[squid]

George, if you had a clue you would be dangerous, before judging someone, a smart approach would be to know them. Mike has lost more than you could ever dream of having because he was denied due process. A clear case of "Big Brother" taking his ball and going home because the rules were working against him.

As for charity, again, you clearly do not know the man! Mike has given more to those "truly" in need than you will earn in a lifetime. Most of his donations are given anonymously because he would prefer not to be recognized, however, when you donate a car that you drive in the US Nationals, a car that wins the race and is then auctioned on national TV, it's hard not to get noticed.

You may not be able to process what I've said here, so I'll make it simple; Mike is a great man who does great things for many people and he got "Royally Screwed" by the US Government because one sad, angry civil servant had a hard-on for him about something that happened 20 years ago!

there is two sides to evey story and then the TRUTH

 

[Randy]

Now that's the kind of wisdom that can't be taught in the classroom.

I agree.

Imagine that. Evan Knoll is hanging out and posting here. And the same group that tried and convicted Evan Knoll has tried and convicted Mike Ashley, too. Whadd'ya know.

Things that make you go "Hmmm."

RG

 

[Mike]

Randy, I dont remember Evan committing any crime. At least I dont think being a friend is a crime.

 

[Randy]

Randy, I dont remember Evan committing any crime. At least I dont think being a friend is a crime.

Check the archives on Nitromater. Evan was excoriated here by a significant number of folks.

.