[Ansteorra] Shield being sold on Ebay. (Was various other subjects)

[Leslie Snipes]

I agree that emails to the seller of these eBay items should be polite and that the fair market value of any item is what a willing seller and buyer agree to.  However, the discussion of Caveat Emptor and that the seller is "covered" by putting a big disclaimer on the listing page concerns me.  I've sold and regularly buy on eBay and that's not quite what their rules require.  "Listings must not misrepresent items. 
Sellers need to make sure that their listings accurately represent the item being sold..." (emphasis as in the original)
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-ov.html
 
Sellers on eBay have a responsibility to do some due diligence before listing an item.  When a listing starts changing, it's a clue that the seller probably didn't do their due diligence to start with.  Like many eBayers, it annoys me because eBay works largely on trust and faith.  But I figured he was getting buried in emails so I didn't bother to add one more.
 
Pandora

Leslie S. 713-795-0811

--- On Thu, 7/23/09, Alasdair MacEogan <alasdair at bmhanson.net> wrote:


From: Alasdair MacEogan <alasdair at bmhanson.net>
Subject: Re: [Ansteorra] Shield beign sold on Ebay. (Was various other subjects)
To: "Kingdom of Ansteorra - SCA, Inc." <ansteorra at lists.ansteorra.org>
Date: Thursday, July 23, 2009, 12:01 PM


While I do find this thread quite amusing, one thing I would like to throw out for thought.  By the revised description and info I would guess that the seller has gotten quite a few emails from SCA folk about this item (and the helm also I would suspect)  Probably quite a few rude or harsh ones as well.

Remember that there are any number of ways he could have legitimately come into possession of this item.  I suspect he bought a lot from a dealer in which this was but one item.  Could have ultimately started in an estate sale for a SCA member that has passed, etc.  Yes it is drastically overpriced, but it is his choice to try and sell it at that price.  No one is being forced to purchase it.  As long as he is not really misrepresenting it and the item was legally obtained, I say more power to him.  An item's true value is not just in the materials used to make it.  An item is truly worth what you can get someone to pay for it.

Emails to him correcting his information as to its probably source as a SCA item, etc are a good thing.  It allows him to clarify and make sure he represents the item as it is.  Rude or accusatory emails are not really warranted.  Remember that while yo may not be an "official" representative of the SCA, you are still likely representing the SCA to him.  He may see all the messages and say, "The SCA is a group of jerks."  If all the contact he has with the SCA is those messages then that is what the SCA is to him.  He does not care if you are an officer or an individual.

Just food for thought...

Alasdair
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