PSA Response from President Steve Sloan

[barrysloate]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Barry Sloate has more experience than almost anyone here and has complete integrity. Read what he wrote about the extent and duration of this problem. Please Dave you are spinning in a contrafactual manner. I have been collecting since the outset of TPG and I absolutely agree with Barry this is a massive, pervasive problem. All the major industry participants know it too. I have had countless conversations confirming this over the years. Countless. With dealers, major auction houses, knowledgeable collectors, people who know the card doctors. There is nothing at all new about this, just a few items where some guys adept at searching were able to find before photos. It's a speck compared to what's out there.

Appreciate the kind words Peter but let me say a few things. First off, I have no idea how many altered cards are circulating in holders. We are all speculating, I think, about just how pervasive this problem may be.

However, I have been involved in the hobby for 35 years and I have heard so many stories, some of them entirely under the radar and never made public, that I have to assume that based on these examples the number has to be substantial. I don't attend shows and don't converse much with other dealers and collectors. And I have to also assume they know hundreds of examples too, since everybody in the hobby is well aware of the problems with graded cards.

So whether it is 1000, 5000, or 10,000 cards, I have no idea. But do I think the industry has a major problem to deal with? Absolutely. We're not talking about a few outlier examples, this is a major hobby black eye.

Of course, we also don't know how this will all play out, but we're going to find out.