History of the Decline and Fall of Ebay- Chapter 3

Someone asked me why, exactly, I feel it necessary to write this self-indulgent screed detailing Ebay's recent idiocy and probable suicide. Isn't it a waste of time, they asked, pointless, a gnat buzzing a rhinocerous? Okay, maybe they have a point. Speaking strictly for me, however, I find gnats annoying in the extreme. Nor am I alone in spreading the world about Ebay and their treatment of those who helped build the site. There are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of gnats out there, gnats like me buzzing and making a lot of noise and flying up their nostrils and...well, you get the idea. And if all we turn out to be is irritating, I can live with that.

If my personal experience counts for anything, however, then for every seller Ebay loses they also lose a buyer. Maybe it's no big deal not having my stuff on the site, although I think my stuff is kind of interesting. This year I have sold off my personal collection of old metal fantasy figures that I bought to play Advanced Dungeons and Dragons back in the late 70's, most still in the bag because I never actually got around to playing AD&D with them. Those were scooped up fast. I have sold a large number of odd, rare, damaged and just plain cool books, my stock in trade. I have sold a sweater. That's right, one of those things you wear in cold weather. I sold off a large stack of my old SFF paperbacks, mostly Ace doubles that I have owned for decades. Beer collectibles, Furbies, you name it, I have a pretty decent eye for picking off things like that and I had learned my market fairly well. And that was always the key to Ebay, knowing your market. It was work to research what would and would not sell, what the price should be, when to post your stuff, hard work, but it was worth it.

And, of course, that's all gone now. If you want to swim in the Ebay sewer, be my guest. Just don't expect me to join you.

So what is it, exactly, that Ebay has done to upset me so much?

To be continued...