Hi Sean,
I don't thing they will immediately die off. I am hopeful advancing med tech will not only prolong life, but also improve it. Regardless, many baby boomers are already paring down/selling their collections or handing them down, as this board has suggested.
There is more information now than ever, we affectionally call it "big data." You can see how many members are in facebook groups, how many podcasts or apps are being downloaded, online bid volume trends, what cards are being liked, tweeted or instagrammed. What did we have before? card convention attendance counts? Definitely more information now than ever. The issue is how to find it and do you want to pay up for it.
Regarding where the next generation will choose to spend their money, I do agree with you. There is a change from homes, extra cars and purses towards experiences like dining out and travel. Definitely a shift in preferences, but we haven't been mainstream anyways after the junk bond, whoops I mean junk card rally and collapse.
Not to bring in finance, but random walk applies to efficient market hypothesis, not stocks, so it applies to all assets and not just stocks. Stocks are a key example illustrating an efficient market. Whether or not they really are is not the debate (because if they were, I wouldn't have a job).
WRT historical value, I have never seen Ruth play, but I enjoy learning his history and appreciate his cards. So I believe there is enough intrinsic value in his cards for me that I am willing to pay up (my discretionary income for). That aside, I don't think relative value and willingness has been decreasing, we have seen record breaking after record breaking auction prices.
Great debate. Cheers!
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