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Secret Service Interrogation of Wozniak (2002)
- dalke 12y agoWhile not obvious, this is the $2 bill Secret Service interview from around 2002. The page says the last modification was February 19, 2002 6:09:39 PM. His Wikipedia page suggests that his youngest was born ~1988, the story takes place "About 3 years ago", and refers to a 12 year old daughter. Thus, a (2002) addition to the headline would not be remiss. I thought it was a new interview, and wondered if it was somehow related to his Australian citizenship process.
- vishaldpatel 12y ago$7500 pays for at least two more interviews with the Secret Service.
- timothya 12y agoHere's a video of Woz showing his pad of $2 bills and talking about this story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ1TIYxm1vM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ1TIYxm1vM
- thomble 12y agoIn this video, Woz never states that his pads assembled from sheets of legitimate, uncut 2 dollar bills. He implies that he pays a local printer to create the pads from scratch. The reactions from the host and the audience seem to reflect that, as well. What's going on here?
- vilhelm_s 12y agoHe is having fun making literally true, but intentionally misleading, statements. Just like he did with the Secret Service agent.
- kiba 12y agoTrolling an LE agent doesn't seem to be a good thing to do.
- spiritplumber 12y agoIt is a very good thing to do in that it restores a balance of power.
- S4M 12y agoIf it were me, I'd be afraid the security agent would chose to be a dick and put me in jail for 24 hours for whatever motive he could think of. Also, the fake ID thing is pretty risky.
- raldi 12y agoWhy? It's his real name and his real picture. What law is he breaking?
- DanBC 12y ago(I agree that he probably didn't break any laws. The ID thing is awesome, really funny.) "Laser safety officer" is a lie, and lying to federal officials is not legal.
- raldi 12y agoHow is it a lie? Poof, I just created "The raldi-DanBC Club" and as President I hereby bestow upon you the title of Laser Safety Officer.
- tedunangst 12y agoIt's generally illegal to impersonate an police officer, or other government official. Laser Safety Officer is a stretch, but consider Food Safety Officer ("I taste everything that comes out of the kitchen!"). This is where those fuzzy "reasonable person" tests start showing up, much to HN's dismay, where every legal problem should be decidable by a python script.
- endgame 12y agoWoz is a master troll.
- andrewstuart2 12y agoI don't think he implied that he had the printer create them. He mentions that he paid a printer, who he knows through a friend, to cut the sheets, perforate them, and gum them into pads. You can see this better if you watch the video timothya linked.
- anon4 12y agoI assumed he meant he had a friend at the local mint who could get him uncut sheets and perforate them.
- maxerickson 12y agoYou can just order the uncut sheets: http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/2currencysheetsbeptestsheet.aspx http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/2currencysheetsbeptestsheet...
- phkahler 12y agoHe's trolling. He stresses that he had a "printer" make the pads for him. It is implied that the content of the pads was printed, when it was not. Everything he says is true but you are meant to believe these are fakes that "meet government specifications". Of course they do, the government made them, but that's not what he wanted the audience to think.
- fsniper 12y agoThe quality of the comments on YouTube? They are really so bad I wanted to puke. They believe Woz is so rich so that he could get over with "illegal tender", even secret service approves "his own printed tender". Is this really the US general public's comprehension level?
- hueving 12y agoNo, someone posted a comment about the abysmal rating system on youtube that promotes crap. There are no downvotes. This imbalance promotes one-sided views because people like to upvote stuff they agree with. The comment section becomes a nightmare of extreme opposites arguing and every sane person is driven out.
- fsniper 12y agoBut this "people upvote stuff they agree with" is also leads to, upvoted and visible ones (which are over the fold) are mostly agreed with stuff. So general public mostly agrees with that.
- Ensorceled 12y agoModerate views tend to get a "agreeable nod" and not an upvote.
- tajen 12y agoI mostly read HN, but my understanding is in some counties of the US, it's a regular occurrence that poker games at home with money involved are considered contraband and a SWAT team comes and kills the dog (Don't make fun of the detail - The dog story is here because it's the only way to get public emotion about it, therefore newspapers report dog stories first). The SWAT team could even mistake the address and there are no reimbursements for damages, even if no illegal activity was carried. Obviously we only hear about the few worst cases. Therefore would it be a stretch to imagine that any non-high-profile citizen carrying a pad of $2 bills could be suspected of illegal activities? To avoid a "SWAT inspection" don't you have to be either Steve Wozniak or in the right neighborhoods of US?
- raverbashing 12y agoActually it provides a very nice image of the pad, I though it was more like a checkbook, but it's 4 bills (cut from a big sheet) with the topmost glued lengthwise (and they probably added perforations to make it easy to tear) I wonder what's the padding between the notes, not too big I guess
- leoc 12y agoPeople use those dollar-bill sheets as wrapping paper: http://www.luxuo.com/super-rich/uncut-sheets-of-real-dollar-bills.html http://www.luxuo.com/super-rich/uncut-sheets-of-real-dollar-... .
- vitd 12y agoThere's something weird about paying $55.00 for 32 $1.00 bills, though. I mean, I can understand shipping and handling, but a 71% markup seems a bit much.
- ealfert 12y agoBuy the uncut sheets straight from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving and Printing at http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/ http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/ The $100 Currency Sheets are _beautiful_ because it is so colorful. http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/100currencysheets.aspx http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/100currencysheets.aspx The markup is much lower on the $100 4-Sheet since it costs $480 for $400 of spending power. Or reduce the markup further by buying 16-Sheet for $1,800. Then cut them up into smaller sheets of 4 each. Markup then is only $50 (or 12.5% over face value) per final 4-sheet.
- lostlogin 12y agoIve never heard anyone describe any US currency as colourful before! (I looked and they do have a bit more colour).
- leoc 12y agoWell, it's like buying a commemorative coin from the US Mint: you're getting a nice-looking novelty or collector's item for a price that's even higher than usual (seigneuriage ftw) above the cost of production etc.
- therein 12y agoI don't understand how he didn't get into trouble for what he did. Why wasn't Secret Service able to prosecute him?
- shubb 12y agoWhat did he do? I'm reading this and understanding that he bought real dollar bills as sheets, then had them perforated so they were easy to tear off...
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- nmrm 12y agoHe did nothing illegal, but (admittedly) acted a bit dodgy with the wrong (or right, if you want a good story) sorts of people.
- bgc 12y agoWhat he did is not illegal but perhaps not very smart as the uncut sheets of currency that are for sale by the BEP cost (significantly) more than the face value of the actual money that you're getting. The only reason USSS got involved to begin with is because the casino security officer was (rightly) suspicious of some guy in the casino ripping bills off a pad and feeding them into a slot machine...
- nulltype 12y agoI didn't get the impression he put them into a slot machine, it seems unlikely it would accept 2 dollar bills. Also, I don't have a lot of casino security experience, but if a guy rips bills of a pad, it seems more likely he is joking around instead of counterfeiting. If you were counterfeiting currency you wouldn't want it on a pad, that's not very realistic at all.
- tedunangst 12y agoAssuming no counterfeiter also comes up with the "it's so outrageous it must be legit" theory.
- shaunxcode 12y agoI really like this phrase: "It's hard to separate rights from reality"
- jakejake 12y agoYou can buy your own uncut currency sheets here http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/2currencysheetsbeptestsheet.aspx http://www.moneyfactorystore.gov/2currencysheetsbeptestsheet...
- d23 12y agoWow, that's expensive. $8 worth of bills is $22.50! Seems like it shouldn't be more expensive to get a set of bills that are less processed.
- hurin 12y agoIt probably amounted to a real crime. I had my driver's license as well. But you only live once and only a few of us even get a chance like this once in our lives.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- david927 12y agoI've always admired Woz but it's lines like this that make me love him.
- mmorearty 12y agoThat is awesome. He has a lot more guts than I do. It's one thing to play a clever prank on a friend. It's quite another to play a clever prank on a casino security manager. And the secret service? Wow.
- 4ad 12y agoHaving so much money helps a lot.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- CamperBob2 12y agoHe did stuff like this long before he was wealthy. Calling the Pope with a blue box, and so forth. If anything, most people stop kicking legal hornets' nests once they have something to lose.
- mrbill 12y agoMy grandmother did the same thing with bound "pads" of $2 bills for years, gave them (in a checkbook-style holder) as Christmas gifts. I don't think the serial numbers were in order, though, as she got the $2 bills from a local bank.
- igonvalue 12y agoThe real travesty is the last paragraph: > Well, as we were eating I glanced up at the Keno board and Sara had won $7500. > The downside of this is that Sara gained $7500, I lost $7500, the government gained $7500 and the casino lost $7500. You see, I had to fork out the $7500 to my daughter and collect the winnings myself. But about half the winnings would be paid by me on my taxes as income, and other half of $7500 would be paid as gift tax for giving the winnings to my daughter (I'd already transferred the maximum yearly tax free gift of $10,000 to each of my kids).
- joosters 12y agoCould you please explain why?
- fsniper 12y agoIt's already explaind by Woz. He collected the money into his account. So that $7500 is taxable as income. He lost nearly half of it now. (Balance=savings + 7500 - 7500/2 tax) Then he transfered $7500 to his daughters account. Up to here, He lost ~7500/2 to taxes. (Balance=savings - 7500/2 tax) And this transfer process is also taxable as a inheritance/gift payment. Another tax paid by his savings. (Balance=savings - 7500/2 tax - 7500/2 gift tax) Happy government, Happy daughter, neutral Woz :)
- joosters 12y agoSo where's the travesty then? Is the complaint that enabling underage gambling is tax inefficient?
- reitzensteinm 12y agoThere's a difference between tax inefficient, and a 100% effective tax rate.
- joosters 12y ago
- raverbashing 12y agoSo, "because it's funny, huh!?" People should know that there's a time for serious business and a time for jokes. Talking to LE or even a Casino Security is not one of them. How would you feel if you went to a doctor and he acted humorously and dismissively of your complaint (and it looks serious)?
- Ensorceled 12y agoHow is the example of the doctor even relevant? Woz didn't seek out these people to prank them, they came to him with unwarranted suspicions. I don't want to live in a world where talking to "Casino Security", not sure why they get capital letters in you world, about a matter where you have done nothing wrong "is serious business". They wasted his time, he wasted theirs. It all balanced out.
- raverbashing 12y agoThe example of the doctor is relevant because the doctor is downplaying someone who has a legitimate query. While you've done nothing wrong they have a job to do, and I didn't write it with capital letters because I overestimate them. Woz just needed to answer "I buy the sheets from US Mint and glue them together", not go on a diatribe that although technically correct might be not so obvious Of course a sense of humour is important, it's more important to know when to use and what are its limits. Or feel free to call fire in a crowded theater and tell it's a joke.
- mikeash 12y agoUnlike your doctor and theater examples, Woz's behavior here wasn't harming anybody. What's the problem?
- raverbashing 12y agoI might as well stand in front of someone's house and begin taking pictures in a suspicious manner. I'm not harming anybody and it's perfectly legal. And then when the owner asks me about it I answer "this is legal, I'm not doing anything wrong, I have nothing to say, now go away", then be surprised when the owner calls the cops.
- curiously 12y agoholy crap I just have a renewed respect for Wozniak. He is a true thug.
- kybernetyk 12y ago>We covered each of my friends' names and phone numbers because I couldn't remember which one had gotten the $2 bills gummed and perforated for me. That's not cool.
- TazeTSchnitzel 12y agoSo because Woz failed to give straight answers to the Casino man and joked around, he got a visit from the Secret Service. Because Woz failed to give straight answers to the SS man, he spent 40 minutes under interrogation. Moral of the story: don't joke about if someone asks you about whether you are committing a crime?
- monocasa 12y agoOr, do if you're out of fucks to give.
- rwmj 12y agoWhy does the US govt sell uncut sheets of bills? Are they just for fun or is there a legitimate use for them?
- andrewpi 12y agoJust for fun.
- marcosscriven 12y agoThe idea of legal tender not being recognised reminds me of a situation here in the UK. The Bank of Scotland prints its own notes, but are rarely in circulation in the rest of the UK. Somehow it's mildly amusing passing over a Scottish fiver to an unsuspecting checkout assistant in London, and the ensuing suspicion.
- DanBC 12y agoA minor point: that's not what legal tender means. http://www.royalmint.com/aboutus/policies-and-guidelines/legal-tender-guidelines http://www.royalmint.com/aboutus/policies-and-guidelines/leg... The shops are free to reject the note, and possibly to lose your custom.
- marcosscriven 12y agoThanks for the correction, interesting.