My take is that there is an unwritten etique (and occasionally a written
one) in most environs. For example, you don't go into a bar for the first
time and start pushing people around who have been coming there for 20
years. Just not acceptable and the outcome is usually bloody.
In the case of Dr.T. this is one of those gray areas. For the short time he
was active on this list he not only contributed to this "community" but gave
a tremendous source of entertainment for us as he is one of those
thousand-mile-per-hour guys that stirs stuff up and gets a lot of things
which were hidden away in closets out in the open and traded around. It's a
gray area because he did, uh, disappear and now has reemerged with stuff to
sell. At a glance it appears to be self-serving.
I'm less bugged about the ebay thing than the fact that this list has become
the AG-Moose-Chuck-Nathan-Jan-Bill-NSURET show and we really don't have near
the conversations and content that we used to. When Dr.T. arrived, it gave
the list a massive boost which we so desparately needed. Frankly, I'd prefer
not reading my own posts, but not many of us stir the pot with new content.
So, if he posts after months and months of silence with a For-Sale post
saying he's ootah-heah, it can be seen as a slap in the face, but I
personally see it as a nice courtesy as one of our own (more or less) is
making stuff available. Just the fact he's using Ebay doesn't make him a bad
person.
I WOULD have preferred that he announce his equipment availability directly
to us first, but that does get a little tricky. I know that I want to get
the maximum amount of money for things I sell and, yes, I do use Ebay too.
(non Olympus items). A good case in point for me was the $20
box-o-grubby-parts purchase I made. In it were a couple of fantastic Kodak
lenses. I don't think I mentioned them here on the list as to being for sale
because first of all, you all knew I scored the whole mess for $20, and it
wasn't Olympus. Ebay, is, for the most part a "fair market value" arena
whereas selling direct on the list means that I run the risk of asking too
much or too little. If I ask too much, half the crowd here will grow an
attitude. If I ask too little, I've wasted money.
The choice to use Ebay is a personal choice which imposes costs on the
seller, not the buyer. He has chosen to use Ebay and not only swallow the
additional costs, but deal with the random nature of the buyers. Within this
list, very few deals have gone sour through the years. But I also recall
that even the most generous of souls, Tom Scales, who sold direct on this
list was despised by several even though his prices and policies were beyond
fair.
So, there is no right answer to this whole thing.
Like I said before: Thank you, George, for letting us know as well as coming
back to say hi.
AG Schnozz
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