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Posted By: davidcycleback

Jason, what you say is correct. Scammers require the ignorant to make their money, because the knowledgeable identify the scams and scams. A seller of the Brooklyn Bridge requires a rube to do business. And a seller of a AAA graded shard of paper requires a buyer who knows precious little about grading companies and the baseball card hobby.

There's nothing wrong or errant with being ignorant about baseball cards or Hollywood posters or silver coins if you aren't buying the material. Albert Einstein and Grace Kelly led full and exciting lives while being ignorant about baseball cards. Of course, neither collected baseball cards so their ignorance didn't matter. J. Paul Getty became a billionaire while never knowing the difference between a Topps and a Bowman. Of course his money was put into oil not sports memorabilia.

Now, if Albert Einstein said he was interested in starting buying baseball cards, I'd recommend he buy a Standard Catalog, give the list of reputable and unreputable graders and sellers and tell him to start with inexpensive purchases. "And remember, Albert," I'd say. "This is baseball card buying not Princeton nuclear physics. Do your homework."