[seanofjapan]

I hate them.

Its not just the destruction of history, though I am generally in the "I'd rather the whole thing be preserved" camp.

For me the things are just tacky anachronisms. I don't feel any history when I look at them because the card they are housed in (which makes up the majority of the item) is a modern, glitzy piece of plastic that screams "modern" at you. The fact that they have a wood chip or tiny shred of clothing that may (or may not for all I know) have at one point been part of something that was used by Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb or somebody just gets totally lost in the shiny glare of the foil embossed plastic they put these things in. When I hold one or look at one, I don't feel like I'm looking at history, I feel like I am looking at something extremely modern (which I am, memorabilia cards obviously didn't exist until 20 years ago).

I contrast that with the feeling I get when I have an old tobacco card in my hand. When I look at one of those, I feel like I am looking at history. This is the actual thing that someone had 100 years ago, in the same form that they had it. It doesn't have foil or faux vintage graphics stamped on it. Its real. I like it.

I should note that I don't feel the same about memorabilia cards of contemporary players. They aren't anachronisms with them - this is how some cards of players in this day and age are made and it feels quite natural. It also helps that you don't have the same preservation issues to worry about since they can easily create game used stuff for them.

100 years from now, these cards aren't going to be appreciated as anything but pieces of early 21st century ephemera, regardless of what era the player depicted actually played in. If I want a piece of Ruth or Cobb history I'll spend money on a period card of them from their playing days. Even though they may never have touched the card in person, it is a way closer connection to the time in which they played than a wood chip in a shiny piece of plastic is.