Collecting Cards....Materialistic?

yanksfan09 · #1 05-12-2009, 06:33 PM

Looks like a 50/50 split on opinions so far...... I feel that their is some difference even though it can be "technically" viewed as materialistic. I don't know...

HRBAKER · #2 05-12-2009, 06:37 PM

It's "patriotic" to buy baseball cards. Oops, sorry, that was pay taxes wasn't it. Nevermind.

Is it materialistic to spend some of your disposable income on something that brings you enjoyment?

Is it a hobby, or are you accumulating things just to accumulate them? I guess you could say having anything more than what you need is materialistic. I wouldn't let it bother me too much.

Oh, and btw I am one of the "older generation" who got the ICE reference.

barrysloate · #3 05-12-2009, 06:46 PM

They sell used shoes on ebay? Kind of funky.

Brian Van Horn · #4 05-12-2009, 07:25 PM

Yes, it's materialistic.

As for the shoe analogy, I guess you could say I have over 1600 pairs, but not many match. What's a collector to do?

donmuth · #5 05-12-2009, 07:40 PM

Two of my other hobbies, coin collecting and metal detecting, are constantly getting assaulted by the historians and archeologists claiming that private collectors do extreme damage to their ability to research things through coins and relics. Never mind that there is no possible way all the coins and relics can be reclaimed from the earth by archeologists and other scientists before they literally crumble into nothingness - private collectors are many times the only means to preserve these artifacts and pass on the knowledge they have gained from their study.

We (the baseball card hobbyists) should just be glad that baseball cards haven't garnered the attention of those same type of militant "scientists". Some day we may get that kind of attention and they will start introducing legislation, from the local level up, to ban private collectors from searching for and possessing "historically significant" baseball cards.

Just imagine!

fkw · #6 05-12-2009, 07:42 PM

I think most VINTAGE collectors are materialistic, always wanting the best of the best.

this is WORTH that, this is WORTH this.....

To me, Id rather have a card that no one else has (or very few do), than a high grade T206, R319, 1952 Topps, etc. card thats worth far more (but exists in numbers like 1,000- 3,000+ examples).

I have always liked the rarer stuff over high grade high $$, but then again I could never afford some of the stuff many of you buy anyways.

Even though Im smalltime as far as collection worth, I can say I do have 20+ cards that no one else has and thats the only way I can brag about my collection.

PS. Leon has my dream collection

Brian Van Horn · #7 05-12-2009, 07:52 PM

Frank,

Amen.

I don't have many high grade cards, but I like and tend to collect the harder to find cards as you know from some of our past transactions. It's still another form of materialism.

ethicsprof · #8 05-12-2009, 07:59 PM

Collecting T206s and some types is a fascinating hobby which in large part has been an academic
avenue, not unlike other academic trajectories that i've enjoyed over the years. Admittedly, there is something that i truly love about the mysteries and histories(rhyme intended but superfluous) of the cards which was in place
in my other academic studies over the years.
I never thought of any of the areas ,including the hobby of vintage cards, as
materialistic. They were just downright autohypnotically absorbing.
And some, such as the cards, still are.

best,
barry

Peter_Spaeth · #9 05-12-2009, 08:19 PM

Getting gratification from possessions of course is materialistic. But so what?

slidekellyslide · #10 05-12-2009, 08:23 PM

Personally I don't view my collecting as materialistic. I realize that if I take myself out of the equation then much of the stuff I buy would fall in value because there are not many collectors buying the same stuff I do. I've seen many of the Nebraska Indians items fall in value simply because I don't bid on it unless I don't have it. As far as mainstream cards go like N172 or Cracker Jacks I don't care much for high grade cards unless I can get them really cheap. It's more about filling a hole to me than getting the best of the best. I'm pretty sure that my collection will be passed down to my son...and if not it will probably go to the State Historical society so I am really not overly concerned with value.

Mark · #11 05-12-2009, 10:07 PM

Like just about everyone on the board, I am far more interested in getting a rare card than an expensive one. At the same time, I probably have two or three cards that were not at the top of my want list but which I bought because I knew they were highly sought after (expensive). Fortunately, I don't do that too often.

rhettyeakley · #12 05-12-2009, 06:45 PM

Being materialistic is a human behavior, so I wouldn't call having old baseball cards being materialistic.

That being said, as human beings we should exercise moderation in all things. The moment baseball cards (or material things) become the center of our lives, we are then guilty of being materialistic.

So, I guess I would have to say no, but it also depends on how one is approaching their collecting.
-Rhett

Edited to add:
The way I like to think about it is along these lines...

If someone VERY close to you was dying, and the only thing that could save them is you giving up your collection, if at that moment you need to think it over for even a moment, you are probably guilty of a bit of materialism.