[wptw]

Originally posted by GPhiBLtColonel
Prove that statement wptw....in MANY cases that I have personally experienced, the badge mean a lot to the collectors mainly because they have it and a member does not -- the thrill of the chase and winning means more than the beauty and significance of the badge to the collectors I have come across...

Well, that's difficult to prove. You and I are bound to have different experiences with collectors because I know them as colleagues and friends and share a common interest with them, and you know them as perhaps more of an adversary (as your feelings about collecting are quite clear). So it's not surprising you and I would have differing impressions of them. Which of us do you suppose knows their intentions and feelings about collecting better? You, who have communicated with them via email? Or someone like me who has talked for hours with them about collecting, hunted for badges together, eaten meals with them and drunk a beer or two? Hint: Probably me.

Also, I know which ebay usernames are pin collectors and which are dealers. You do not. So it's likely that at least some of your unpleasant experiences were with dealers and not collectors. I certainly don't dispute that many collectors have made rude responses. That's a conditioned response to a long pattern of harassment, and while I don't endorse it, I also don't think it's indicative of an “ I have it and you don’t ” acquisitionist attitude.

You would have us believe that collectors are spending all this money just to spite you and make sure you don’t get your badge back? That’s absurd.

In fact, I happen to know a badge collector just recently committed to helping YOUR rescue organization find loose badges. The collector in question is not a spiteful person, but is currently considering rescinding that offer.

Hint: It’s me.

-- but do not say collectors know what the badges mean -- because they really do NOT! If they truly knew what the badges meant, they would not be collecting them..

Actually, I said the badges mean a lot to us. I didn’t say collectors know what the badges mean.

But since you brought it up, I have to point out that your statement is actually wrong because a few collectors do indeed know what the badges mean. Hint: Me again. And I still collect. Knowing the meaning of the badge actually enhances my appreciation of them.

The rest I have "met" act like self righteous thugs who if they were a country, would be Switzerland which took and kept holocaust victims money for themselves after WW2....

You’re comparing badge collectors to the people who exploited holocaust victims? Wow congrats, that's smashingly inappropriate. I really hope you just stink at picking metaphors, because otherwise, that’s just offensive to everyone.

If this is how you generally communicate with collectors, then hmm… I wouldn’t expect the tone of their responses to improve very much.

wptw