I grew up in Amway-Land. Amway was founded in a garage in or near Grand Rapids, Michigan. Its founders were two Dutch Calvinists (did someone mention Calvinism???) named Rich De Vos and Jay VanAndel. They made many millions of dollars on their venture. They are huge contributors to the Republican Party. They lobby on behalf of corporate polluters. They are a virulently anti-union, family-owned, privately held corporation (read, their books are not open to scrutiny). Big Mick can probably contribute tales about the anti-union stuff. Half of the public buildings -- museum, concert hall, etc. -- in Grand Rapids are now named after either Van Andel or De Vos. (When I go home to visit my Dad, I joke about the time they'll just rename the city after one or the other of them.)

The thing about Amway that I find so personally distasteful is the way their higher-level distributors (the "diamond" and "platinum" guys) paint a "streets paved with gold if only you'll sign on" picture for the newcomers -- who are almost invariably working class folk who are desperately looking for a way to supplement an inadequate income. Their promises, as so many have commented earlier in this thread, are empty. And they have an insidious way of blaming the failure of the system on the people who fail to achieve the promised affluence. The Amway sales culture has a particularly pernicious resemblance to a nasty religious cult -- people who sign on are pressured not only to buy product, and to recruit their friends and relatives, but to listen to inspirational tapes by DeVos, attend inspirational retreats, read inspirational books by DeVos, etc. If you don't buy into the whole package, then you're dubbed a failure who really wasn't serious about tapping into the promised land. So in addition to your inadequate income, you're saddled with the stigma of being labeled an Inadequate Person.

I consider Calvinism to be one of the ugliest of organized religions: unforgiving, judgmental, and quick to blame anyone who doesn't fit in or follow its program to the letter. It does not surprise me at all that Amway sprung in its perverted way from this church.

I echo all of those above who said: STAY AWAY!