[MattyC]

I say no: the shady dealings of some are just reflective of the human condition. The Cards themselves remain pure and good, a connection to excellence on the field, to pleasurable memories and history. The Cards are what we own-- and once in our collections, they have nothing forever to do with the unethical out there.

There is corruption on Wall Street, and yet the bell rings everyday-- and will until the comet hits.

There's corruption in sports, and yet teams show up, fans show up, and new players and fans are being born every second.

Corruption in politics, and yet elections every year.

It's just part of the human condition. It is by no means specific solely to this one little hobby.

But there are just as many, if not more, good people than scumbags out there. It is just in human nature to notice and spend time on the bad over the good. Just look at the news; ten bad stories for every uplifting one. But that ratio belies how it is in reality. I've met far more great, helpful, stand-up guys in this hobby than I've met scumbags. I've seen guys go out of their way to educate, help track down a card, help wise others up so as not to be ripped off, seen guys refund and make good on deals gone sideways, seen guys complete big deals when they could've taken the cash given on trust and ran. But those stories we all have just don't get the press, understandably, as much as the misleading scans or shills or incompetent graders.

There is a natural and understandable tendency for us to want-- even expect-- our hobby to be immune to the crap we see elsewhere in life. This is because to so many of us, our collections are a sanctuary, a refuge, an oasis, a connection to a simpler, happier time than adulthood. But this expectation is just a touch of idealism and willful naïveté on our part, is all. It's easy and again so understandable, why we want it to be free of corruption and scumbaggery. But as MBMiller said, once we mix adult humans and money, we know what virus will eventually manifest. This just makes our hobby real, at least until you get the card in hand and into the collection-- then it is all good and there is no corruption. Just collector and card.

But then we have to leave the sanctuary and re-enter the real world to go in search of the next card. And all that is just proof of how much enjoyment our collections bring us; they spoil us and make us want every aspect of collecting to be as pure and pleasurable.

So anyways my worthless opinion is no, we're okay.