[ISUKappa]

But you can't really compare badges to handbags--apples and oranges so to speak.

People who find selling badges on ebay morally offensive do so because those badges mean something deeper to our members. It's not just a pretty piece of jewlery that anyone can buy, it's a bond that connects the hearts of hundreds of thousands of members over hundreds of years and they are only available to those in your org. It's a privelage and an honor to wear your badge. That's the thing many people don't understand.

Finding products morally offensive because of their product content or place/mode of production is a completely different vein. If you have the money, anyone can buy a Kate Spade bag or Prada shoes. Not everyone can respectfully and properly wear the badge of membership to a GLO.

I know that's how some people make their living, and if it's done with respect to the org and the buyers, then I'm okay with that. I don't agree with it but I obviously can't tell them to stop. And those who sell badges from estate sales or auctions or flea markets are almost guaranteed to make a profit--usually a large one at that. Never have I said it was wrong--just that I don't appreciate those types of sellers.

Along with making sure people are made aware to make clauses for their badge upon their passing, we also need to teach our members smarter ways to bid when badges do go up for sale on online auctions. The easiest thing: Don't. Leave it to the groups assigned to take care of those things. If you have a personal connection to the item, let your HQ or a member of that group know and let them work out negotiations with the seller. They have more experience and most likely a (hopefully) good reputation and will be able to work with them easier.