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Ebay Sales And Greed
I have a lot of trouble with the word “greed”. The dictionary defines it as “An excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth”.
Meandering around the web, I found a religious site that proclaims, “Your punishment in Hell will be: You’ll be boiled alive in oil. Bear in mind that it’s the finest, most luxurious boiling oil that money can buy, but it’s still boiling.” I think they were serious.
There is a natural human desire to grow, to learn, to expand. That desire for “more” explains every achievement of the human race, from the macro of space to the micro of the atom. Is it OK to expand in knowledge or experience or determination – but not to expand in terms of money and rewards?
And the dictionary mentions more than one “needs or deserves”? If I ride a motorcycle to work, but would like to have a car for the winter months when it’s cold and snowy, does that fit the definition of “need”? And as for exactly who deserves material wealth, well the mind boggles at even trying to figure that one out.
And where do we draw the line? If you want to make $5,000 a month in your online business that’s OK – but if you want to earn $7,000 you’re a greedy scumbag who will burn in hell throughout eternity?
Perhaps the best way to figure out greed is what a judge once said about pornography: I can’t define it but I know it when I see it.
Here is an auction that is an amazing example of greed. Currently, there are some cards called Starz Behind Barz which are selling well on the net. Modeled after the famous Iraqi Most Wanted cards, they are definitely fun to see. Some of the stars who have had problems with the law surprised me:
* Al Pacino? One of my all time favorite actors? Say it isn’t so.
* Frank Sinatra? Maybe he really did have mafia connections?
* Keanu Reeves? Must have been The Matrix trying to frame Neo?
* The picture of Nick Nolte actually shocked me. I’ve seen Most Wanted posters with better looking faces.
These entertaining cards sell for $6.95 each, with discounts for multiple retail purchases, as well as an affiliate program that further lowers the cost.
Yet, look at this auction:
Amazing, isn’t it? This really goes beyond greed and into Maximum Stupidity. This seller needs to get clear on why people buy on auction sites. There are only two basic reasons:
1. The item is unique or difficult to find
2. Price
If the Starz cards were rare or one-of-a-kind, then the seller could get away with his $55 price tag. The first set of Iraqi Most Wanted cards sold for $3,000! The second set was bid up to $2,000. Yet, within a brief time, you could buy them on eBay for under $5. Why? Because they were no longer unique. The Starz cards have already sold 30,000 decks. How unique is that?
The second reason someone might buy is if the price is low. This seller is assuming that buyers don’t do their homework, but in fact most folks do check prices. This seller’s price is about 800% more than the Starz Behind Barz website itself. The most this auction seller can hope for it to take advantage of the ignorance of a buyer or two. Pretty shabby way to do business.
This is one time when greed is really, really easy to see. And it surely didn’t pay off, which is heartening to see.
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