[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Al C.risafulli

I still prefer the Ramones, though I think "London Calling" is the greatest rock and roll record of all time.

Peter, if I remember this correctly, I think there was a lot of derision around the idea that one person could organize a meeting to "clean up the hobby," particularly one who had a collection filled with high-grade, graded cards. But if you remember, the response to that Thanksgiving Day thread was pretty dramatic, very similar to what's happening today, and Jim had great intentions.

At the time , there was a lot of talk from a variety of guys with a variety of ideas, just like there is today. I remember being skeptical that anything could be accomplished, but being flattered to have been asked - and subsequently being surprised to see a representative from an auction house and a grading company involved with a meeting that I thought was intended to be some collectors discussing what could be done.

At that meeting, and also today, my feeling has been the same: if collectors want the hobby clean, they will stop doing business with bad actors. Stop consigning, stop bidding, stop buying. If there's no money in it, the bad guys will leave the hobby or clean up.

-Al

Al. a decade after this meeting, I guess the conclusion is inevitable -- collectors as a whole don't really want the hobby clean. Even less so now that so many are investors. And as a whole (with some notable exceptions such as yourself), the industry doesn't want to clean itself up either. I should just give up my own meager efforts because the windmill is going to win. Thanks for the perspective, sobering but necessary.