EC ed

Thanks Steve! While I'm on the Crippen EC 8.0s, here's another recent pickup:

Couple of new (last month) symmetric 8.0 Crippens for ya': Perhaps my favorite issue in the hobby:

Exactly...that's why I initiated the refund request to start with...the principle of the thing. (thumbs u

More recently, I sent a package to a boardie in the Northeast via USPS, and I put sig. confirmation on it (which, online, cost me $2.45). Same story...the boardie let me know that, although he appreciated the sig. confirmation, his mailman didn't require a signature, but just left it on his doorstep unattended. I went to USPS.com and submitted an online refund request for the $2.45 for "requested service not provided." A few days after submitting that online refund request, a supervisor from my local P.O. called and left me a message (I guess the central USPS system routed my request back to my local P.O.). Her message was essentially "not sure what the problem is, looks like the package was delivered - you need to call the local post office at the recipient's location if you want to discuss this further." It's hard to make them understand that yes...I paid $8 for USPS to deliver the package, which you did...I appreciate that. I also paid $2.45 for USPS to provide a service (sig. confirmation) that was not provided, so I would like a refund for that component. Try finding someone in USPS that will acknowledge this, admit it, and take accountability for it. As you can imagine, it's like talking to a brick wall. Of course, it's not worth $2.45 to escalate this - and that's what they're counting on.

They seem to be doing this more and more lately. True story: a couple months ago I bought a comic from a guy in Florida. He sent it to me (in Atlanta) via USPS sig. confirmation. On the day of scheduled delivery, no one was home at my house. Midway through that day the seller messages me and says 'I see you got the book, hope you like it." I went online (from my office at work) and put in the tracking number, and it said something like "item delivered...signed for by J. Carri." Of course, I don't know anyone even close to that name. I get home later in the afternoon and sure enough, the package was sitting on my doorstep, in the rain of course. The following morning, I go to my local P.O. to speak with a supervisor. I showed her the tracking info, and I suggested that we get to the bottom of what happened there, since clearly no one at my residence signed for that package when it was left on my doorstep. She (the supervisor) said..."Oh, J CARRI must be the mail carrier..her name is Jacki Carrizosa" (or something like that) I said "So, you mean to say that my mail carrier herself signed for my signature required package and just left it there on my porch?" She (the supervisor) said "Yes, it looks that way...we've told them that they're not supposed to do that. I'll tell her again." I'm not joking

This scares me to death when selling. Just declare your own sales thread rules that will make you comfortable. Something to the effect of "I'll not sell to anyone I'm not comfortable selling to." Then, when the spit & vinegar types come along, just say "no, thank you."

Not at all. :shrug: I'm heating up the other direction I'm weary of new buyers full of spit and vinegar who want a pound of flesh without even bothering to wait for a response from a seller who may or may not have made a mistake, and can't be bothered on their to even do the barest of research to understand the rules or even post questions in the right forum. Its not like someone left a dead rat in your daughter's salad at Applebee's, no one is going to die because you were missing 7 out of 20 comics and 5 of the ones you got had bent corners. People who select 'drama' as a first reaction to these kind of things....well they're more likely to go on 'lists' here than sellers who occasionally make mistakes then rectify them. Since I do not know the details I did not want to comment, but I surely agree with you. That must be how they roll on Facebook and Twitter. edit: millenials.

That must be what they're doing on Facebook and Instagram these days...although I wouldn't know.

HusTruck Wait...didn't we strike him completely from the record...as if he never existed?

I feel another round of "what should be the purpose of the HOS" discussion getting queued up. Where's Jeffro?

Sounds like PL nomination #2 is on the horizon. Let's just hurry up and get 3 in the books so we can move to HOS nomination under the "multiple offender" clause.

I think it's a fine place to do it, for reasons Revat outlines...

Agreed...hard to find fault with the underlying sentiment. A good reminder, though...if I ever get it in my head to start a board charity thread, STEP 1 will be running the idea by Sha before doing anything else If it passes the "Sha test," I know it's been well-vetted...and maybe she'd even help with logistics if the cause is just ( )

Excellent.

I agree that this does not seem to be a well-conceived charity thread.

Thanks, gentlemen!

Thanks to a small stack of books I recently acquired from our very own cheetah ( again....and again ) , I filled in some TOUGH missing holes and I can now post up a couple complete run group shots: The Internationals: Let's just keep it going all the way through the Crime Patrols:

Common sense seems to be in short supply these days. You know, he just rolled in here from eBay/Facebook/Instagram/wherever and wants to apply the same flippant behavior here that apparently goes on there. RUDE AWAKENING TIME.

Yes, it's rip67vdub. Please nominate him to the Probation List so that we can begin his case file. That behavior doesn't fly here. You are correct - the principle is important.

Chris just bought another stack of raw books from me - always a complete pleasure to deal with. Thanks again!

I agree that it's hard for PayPal to tell the difference, because they can't know the reality by observing transaction volume.

To keep pounding on this for a bit...so, how do we tell when we cross the threshold from collector to business? Well, the IRS reporting rules provide one method (with my answers concerning my comic activity in red): FS-2007-18, April 2007 The Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers to follow appropriate guidelines when determining whether an activity is a business or a hobby... In order to make this determination, taxpayers should consider the following factors: Does the time and effort put into the activity indicate an intention to make a profit? No Does the taxpayer depend on income from the activity? No If there are losses, are they due to circumstances beyond the taxpayer’s control or did they occur in the start-up phase of the business? No Has the taxpayer changed methods of operation to improve profitability? No Does the taxpayer or his/her advisors have the knowledge needed to carry on the activity as a successful business? Arguable Has the taxpayer made a profit in similar activities in the past? No Does the activity make a profit in some years? Basically No Can the taxpayer expect to make a profit in the future from the appreciation of assets used in the activity? Maybe The IRS presumes that an activity is carried on for profit if it makes a profit during at least three of the last five tax years, including the current year Nope See there, I'm a "hobbyist," not a "business." So, are comics that I sell considered "goods?" Depends how you define "goods." I'll stop now...you get my point...I need to go spend some time on the activity on which my income DOES depend

As I allude to above, the missing link that would reconcile this apparent contradiction is the definition of "goods or services." IF those terms were defined as "objects or services purchased from a business or merchant," then there is no contradiction, because your friend is not a business or merchant. Is this what they really mean by "goods and services"...it sure would reconcile a few things if so. Of course, they leave us guessing, because they don't define "goods and services."