A question from Yahoo! Answers:

Why is MLM so offensive to people?

and Why is so socially acceptable for millions of americans to retire broke from a job?

MLM is offensive to people because it overpromises and underdelivers. Income distribution within an MLM organization is extremely uneven; very few people succeed beyond their wildest dreams, while the majority can’t make the ends meet. The outcome is in many cases determined by how early a person joined the organization; additionally, recruiting new members often pays better than actual selling. MLM promises an escape from “working for the man”, while in reality you simply work for a different man (actually, two: your “sponsor” and the MLM company), but you are not even getting a regular paycheck in exchange.