2009 is going down as the year of the Ponzi schemes. And I'm reminded of a simple, but very clever, variation on the theme:
A Texas rancher, hit hard by the economy, told his banker he had a plan for paying off his $1000 note.
"I'm going to auction off my dead horse," said the rancher.
"That's crazy," said the banker. "Nobody will pay you for that."
A week later the rancher came to the banker's office and laid down a pile of bills on his desk. "The dead horse auction worked after all," said the rancher. "I sold 500 tickets at $2 apiece for a profit of $998."
"But didn't anyone complain?" asked the banker.
"Only the guy who won," replied the rancher. "So I gave him his two dollars back."
