EBAY restricting more firearm related items

lgsracer · July 30, 2007, 02:35 PM

http://www2.ebay.com/aw/core/200707....07-07-30094109

July 30, 2007 | 10:00AM PST/PT

Matt Halprin

Hello everyone…In mid-August, we will be updating our Firearms, Weapons and Knives Policy to place more restrictions around gun-related items. Once these changes take effect, we will prohibit listings of any firearm part that is required for the firing of a gun. This includes items like bullet tips, brass casings and shells, barrels, slides, cylinders, magazines, firing pins, trigger assemblies, etc. Please read the Firearms, Weapons and Knives Policy for more details on our current policy.

As you may know, eBay does not allow the listing of any items which are regulated by individual states or the federal government; however, there are still a large number of firearm-related parts that are legal and are widely available in retail stores. These items have also historically been allowed on eBay.

After learning that some items purchased on eBay may have been used in the tragedy at Virginia Tech in April 2007, we felt that revisiting our policies was not only necessary, but the right thing to do. After much consideration, the Trust & Safety policy team – along with our executive leaders at eBay Inc. – have made the decision to further restrict more of these items than federal and state regulations require.

This new update continues to encourage safety among our community members and brings our policies in the U.S. and Canada in closer alignment with our existing policies in other markets around the globe.

Sincerely,

Matt Halprin
Vice President, Trust & Safety

Manedwolf · July 30, 2007, 02:37 PM

Quote:

brings our policies in the U.S. and Canada in closer alignment with our existing policies in other markets around the globe.

Like the UK and China? :barf:

Gee, maybe they better stop selling baseball bats, too, those are used in killings quite often! And car parts! Cars kill people!

Trapper L · July 30, 2007, 02:41 PM

Yet another reason to not visit Ebay. It's a great place to get ripped off anyway and Ebay doesn't care about you getting screwed out of your money, just don't sell anything gun related. Now there's a top quality institution.

jclayto · July 30, 2007, 02:43 PM

Can anyone here actually claim to be surprised?

If he had bought his shirt that day off ebay, would they quit selling shirts after learning one of their shirts was used in the tragedy?

Good PR move for ebay though, I am sure they will get great applause from the left side.

rellascout · July 30, 2007, 03:00 PM

I sold my Ebay stock because of their firearms policies. In the end they have every right to restrict what is sold via their site but as consumers we have the choice not to purchase things there.

I still use Ebay and even paypal but I personally drew the line at owning stock. I wrote them and asked them to consider changing the policy but when it was clear it was going the other way I sold.

PeteQuad · July 30, 2007, 03:00 PM

Who cares what they do - there is already a proliferation of auction sites around firearms (gunbroker and the like). So those sites will get the profits instead

.

Also, what's a bullet tip?

jclayto · July 30, 2007, 03:08 PM

Just curious, does anyone know if gunbroker.com has any affiliation with ebay (not that ebay would admit if they do)

I have always thought there are many distinct similarities with the layouts etc.

Samurai · July 30, 2007, 03:09 PM

I'm strangely comfortable with this. If you want a gun, buy it from a gun store, from people who know about guns, who aren't going to sell you a gun that'll blow up in your face, and who are accountable to numerous state and federal agencies for their business practices!

To me, buying a gun is like adopting a child. I WANT government scrutiny over the process, because I WANT to know what I'm getting and who I'm getting it from. (That's why I don't do business in the big department stores anymore. I need my gun dealers to specialize!)

Just my $0.02.

Manedwolf · July 30, 2007, 03:11 PM

Samurai, they never sold guns.

However, a lot of people were using it to find a better market for things like empty brass in odd calibers, slide parts for rare-parts guns like Star semiautos and the like.

lockedcj7 · July 30, 2007, 03:49 PM

This actually makes me mad as hell. I've bought and sold thousands of dollars worth of firearm related items. I've been able to get good deals on hard-to-find items and gotten better prices for the things I've sold than if I took them to a flea market.

I'll be sending my angry letter off to E-bay as soon as I can get it written. ETA: and here it is.

I was dismayed to read about the upcoming changes to your firearms related category. I am a U.S. Army veteran and a responsible gun owner. Over the years, I have used E-bay to buy and sell thousands of dollars worth of related items. I have gotten good deals on hard-to-find parts and have gotten better prices for what I've sold than I could have gotten by selling locally. I sincerely hope your organization reconsiders these changes.

It is true that the U.S. has less restrictive gun control laws than many other countries but public, mass shootings have occurred recently in Australia, Germany and Japan just to name a few. Each of those countries has much more restrictive gun control than we do. Many other industrialized nations have higher rates of firearms ownership, less restrictive gun laws and yet, still have extremely low crime and suicide rates. Guns and widespread availability are not the problem. I refer you to the scholarly articles of Gary Mauser Ph.D. and the books of Gary Kleck Ph.D., noted economist and criminologist respectively.

It is naive to think that these changes will have any effect whatsoever on crime or the availability of shooting accessories and reloading components. The fact that Mr. Cho purchased magazines through E-bay is simply a reflection of his age and the ubiquitous nature of your site in our culture. He could have just as easily purchased them at the same store where he bought one of the guns. In fact, so-called "high-capacity" magazines are legal in Virginia and he would have had even more destructive potential had he not used E-bay.

If these changes do take effect, E-bay will be of little utility to me and I will be closing my account.

Sincerely,

FirstFreedom · July 30, 2007, 04:11 PM

Quote:

As you may know, eBay does not allow the listing of any items which are regulated by individual states or the federal government

Interesting.... I could have *sworn* I'd seen clothing listed on ebay. Federal gov't sets flammability standards. They are liars and, well, and :barf: :barf: :barf:

However, this is on the whole a good thing. The revenues that they are shutting themselves off of will go instead to places like auctionarms & gunsamerica, which are more pro-gun than ebay.

DRD · July 30, 2007, 07:03 PM

Manedwolf,
I've been with Ebay since early in 1999 and when I first signed up they had a firearm section but shut it down within a few months.

Bigfatts · July 30, 2007, 07:32 PM

Through the years I've been able to find numerous gun related items on Ebay I couldn't find anywhere else. My Tiger Sights for example. I just fired off an angry letter myself. Not that it will do much good. I'm getting ready to close my account.

nobius · July 30, 2007, 07:38 PM

I was getting ready to post this here, but was beat to the punch. Here is my letter to ebay. I recommend everyone, whether you do business with tthem or not, write them a similar one:

Quote:

Re:***Message from Matt Halprin – New Listing Restrictions on Gun Parts

Effectively immediately upon the conclusion of my current auctions, I will be closing my Ebay account.

The restrictions placed on items that may be illegal or require FFL transfers is one thing and completely understandable.

However, your new policies are an insult to law-abiding gun owners and sportsmen that obviously (used to) frequent your site. With the exeception of one auction, everything I have bought and/or sold on your site is now on your "blocked" list.

I am an avid hunter and competition pistol and rifle shooter, as well as a veteran of the US Army. I was using your (up till now) fine service to procure replacement parts, competition parts, reloading components, and reloading tools. Now this is no longer possible.

I realize that me closing a relatively low volume account is not going to negatively affect your business. However, I will be printing this announcement and posting it at both my rifle and hunting club. I will be linking to it from my blog. I will be sending it to as many firearm enthusiasts as I possibly can. Our money will probably not throw you in to the arms of bankruptcy, but hopefully your bonuses won't be quite so large. Thank you so much for alienating so many customers.

Wildalaska · July 30, 2007, 07:45 PM

What a wondcerful letter.

Im sending one myself

WildwhatajokeAlaska

Manedwolf · July 30, 2007, 07:46 PM

But of course, people can still buy crac...er..."water pipes" and hash...er..."hookahs"...

Whatever.

oldironman · July 30, 2007, 07:52 PM

I'll just copy/paste my other post
It sure doesn't seem to bother the dumbasps that car parts bought online go on cars that drunk drivers or other idiots kill with. You could associate a whole slew of things on there with death. It actually just shows their truE colors - that they are purely anti-gun, so we must do our very best to spread the word. EBAY IS ANTI-GUN!!!!

EBAY IS ANTI-GUN!!!!

**4V50 Gary** · July 30, 2007, 07:55 PM

Boycott Ebay & their underling, PayPal. They're anti-gun so what should any of us support them?

FirstFreedom · July 30, 2007, 08:04 PM

Because, godsakes, WA might think you're a "joke", without explanation. The horror....the horror.

nobius · July 30, 2007, 08:07 PM

It may get my auctions cancelled, but I just updated both of them with eBay's announcement with a call to write their customer service.

oldironman · July 30, 2007, 08:08 PM

This is ok though:
http://search.ebay.com/search/search...rpr=2&frpp=200

and this
http://search.ebay.com/search/search...e=search&fgtp=

What hypocrites.

Wildalaska · July 30, 2007, 08:09 PM

As a Power Seller, I called ebay too

WA

Manedwolf · July 30, 2007, 08:15 PM

What about knives and swords? LOTS of those on there. Like 30,000 listings for them.

oldironman · July 30, 2007, 09:32 PM

Okay, so now I forgot. Who is our back-up internet auction site?

Lurch37 · July 30, 2007, 10:50 PM

Somebody here with some typing skill and the gift of the word should type up a generic letter we here could copy and paste and email to ebay. I never know what to say in these situations.

July 30, 2007, 02:35 PM	#1
lgsracer Member Join Date: March 25, 2007 Location: Bayou La Batre AL Posts: 54	EBAY restricting more firearm related items http://www2.ebay.com/aw/core/200707....07-07-30094109 July 30, 2007 \| 10:00AM PST/PT Matt Halprin Hello everyone…In mid-August, we will be updating our Firearms, Weapons and Knives Policy to place more restrictions around gun-related items. Once these changes take effect, we will prohibit listings of any firearm part that is required for the firing of a gun. This includes items like bullet tips, brass casings and shells, barrels, slides, cylinders, magazines, firing pins, trigger assemblies, etc. Please read the Firearms, Weapons and Knives Policy for more details on our current policy. As you may know, eBay does not allow the listing of any items which are regulated by individual states or the federal government; however, there are still a large number of firearm-related parts that are legal and are widely available in retail stores. These items have also historically been allowed on eBay. After learning that some items purchased on eBay may have been used in the tragedy at Virginia Tech in April 2007, we felt that revisiting our policies was not only necessary, but the right thing to do. After much consideration, the Trust & Safety policy team – along with our executive leaders at eBay Inc. – have made the decision to further restrict more of these items than federal and state regulations require. This new update continues to encourage safety among our community members and brings our policies in the U.S. and Canada in closer alignment with our existing policies in other markets around the globe. Sincerely, Matt Halprin Vice President, Trust & Safety

July 30, 2007, 03:09 PM	#8
Samurai Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2001 Location: Knoxville, TN Posts: 901	I'm strangely comfortable with this. If you want a gun, buy it from a gun store, from people who know about guns, who aren't going to sell you a gun that'll blow up in your face, and who are accountable to numerous state and federal agencies for their business practices! To me, buying a gun is like adopting a child. I WANT government scrutiny over the process, because I WANT to know what I'm getting and who I'm getting it from. (That's why I don't do business in the big department stores anymore. I need my gun dealers to specialize!) Just my $0.02. __________________ - Honor is a wonderful and glorious thing... until it gets you killed! - Why is it that we fire 1,000 rounds and know that we need more practice, but yet we punch a bag 10 times and think we know how to fight? - When in doubt, train, train, train...

July 30, 2007, 03:49 PM	#10
lockedcj7 Senior Member Join Date: February 15, 2007 Posts: 1,215	This actually makes me mad as hell. I've bought and sold thousands of dollars worth of firearm related items. I've been able to get good deals on hard-to-find items and gotten better prices for the things I've sold than if I took them to a flea market. I'll be sending my angry letter off to E-bay as soon as I can get it written. ETA: and here it is. I was dismayed to read about the upcoming changes to your firearms related category. I am a U.S. Army veteran and a responsible gun owner. Over the years, I have used E-bay to buy and sell thousands of dollars worth of related items. I have gotten good deals on hard-to-find parts and have gotten better prices for what I've sold than I could have gotten by selling locally. I sincerely hope your organization reconsiders these changes. It is true that the U.S. has less restrictive gun control laws than many other countries but public, mass shootings have occurred recently in Australia, Germany and Japan just to name a few. Each of those countries has much more restrictive gun control than we do. Many other industrialized nations have higher rates of firearms ownership, less restrictive gun laws and yet, still have extremely low crime and suicide rates. Guns and widespread availability are not the problem. I refer you to the scholarly articles of Gary Mauser Ph.D. and the books of Gary Kleck Ph.D., noted economist and criminologist respectively. It is naive to think that these changes will have any effect whatsoever on crime or the availability of shooting accessories and reloading components. The fact that Mr. Cho purchased magazines through E-bay is simply a reflection of his age and the ubiquitous nature of your site in our culture. He could have just as easily purchased them at the same store where he bought one of the guns. In fact, so-called "high-capacity" magazines are legal in Virginia and he would have had even more destructive potential had he not used E-bay. If these changes do take effect, E-bay will be of little utility to me and I will be closing my account. Sincerely, __________________ To a much greater extent than most mechanical devices, firearms are terribly unforgiving of any overconfidence, complacency or negligence.

July 30, 2007, 07:52 PM	#17
oldironman Senior Member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Location: Houston, Tx Posts: 155	I'll just copy/paste my other post It sure doesn't seem to bother the dumbasps that car parts bought online go on cars that drunk drivers or other idiots kill with. You could associate a whole slew of things on there with death. It actually just shows their truE colors - that they are purely anti-gun, so we must do our very best to spread the word. EBAY IS ANTI-GUN!!!! EBAY IS ANTI-GUN!!!! __________________ Kill or be Killed

July 30, 2007, 07:55 PM	#18
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,855	Boycott Ebay & their underling, PayPal. They're anti-gun so what should any of us support them? __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

July 30, 2007, 02:41 PM	#3
Trapper L Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2006 Location: South Texas Posts: 804	Yet another reason to not visit Ebay. It's a great place to get ripped off anyway and Ebay doesn't care about you getting screwed out of your money, just don't sell anything gun related. Now there's a top quality institution.

July 30, 2007, 02:43 PM	#4
jclayto Senior Member Join Date: February 14, 2005 Location: Anderson, SC Posts: 600	Can anyone here actually claim to be surprised? If he had bought his shirt that day off ebay, would they quit selling shirts after learning one of their shirts was used in the tragedy? Good PR move for ebay though, I am sure they will get great applause from the left side.

July 30, 2007, 03:00 PM	#5
rellascout Junior member Join Date: September 2, 2004 Posts: 2,435	I sold my Ebay stock because of their firearms policies. In the end they have every right to restrict what is sold via their site but as consumers we have the choice not to purchase things there. I still use Ebay and even paypal but I personally drew the line at owning stock. I wrote them and asked them to consider changing the policy but when it was clear it was going the other way I sold.

July 30, 2007, 03:00 PM	#6
PeteQuad Senior Member Join Date: March 9, 2007 Posts: 198	Who cares what they do - there is already a proliferation of auction sites around firearms (gunbroker and the like). So those sites will get the profits instead . Also, what's a bullet tip?

July 30, 2007, 03:08 PM	#7
jclayto Senior Member Join Date: February 14, 2005 Location: Anderson, SC Posts: 600	Just curious, does anyone know if gunbroker.com has any affiliation with ebay (not that ebay would admit if they do) I have always thought there are many distinct similarities with the layouts etc.

July 30, 2007, 03:11 PM	#9
Manedwolf Junior member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Posts: 3,266	Samurai, they never sold guns. However, a lot of people were using it to find a better market for things like empty brass in odd calibers, slide parts for rare-parts guns like Star semiautos and the like.

July 30, 2007, 07:03 PM	#12
DRD Member Join Date: June 5, 2001 Location: NW of Chicago Posts: 55	Manedwolf, I've been with Ebay since early in 1999 and when I first signed up they had a firearm section but shut it down within a few months.

July 30, 2007, 07:32 PM	#13
Bigfatts Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 2005 Location: Lutz Posts: 1,528	Through the years I've been able to find numerous gun related items on Ebay I couldn't find anywhere else. My Tiger Sights for example. I just fired off an angry letter myself. Not that it will do much good. I'm getting ready to close my account.

July 30, 2007, 07:45 PM	#15
Wildalaska Junior member Join Date: November 25, 2002 Location: In my own little weird world in Anchorage, Alaska Posts: 14,172	What a wondcerful letter. Im sending one myself WildwhatajokeAlaska

July 30, 2007, 07:46 PM	#16
Manedwolf Junior member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Posts: 3,266	But of course, people can still buy crac...er..."water pipes" and hash...er..."hookahs"... Whatever.

July 30, 2007, 08:04 PM	#19
FirstFreedom Junior member Join Date: May 31, 2004 Location: The Toll Road State, U.S.A. Posts: 12,451	Because, godsakes, WA might think you're a "joke", without explanation. The horror....the horror.

July 30, 2007, 08:07 PM	#20
nobius Member Join Date: July 8, 2007 Location: Upstate, SC, USA Posts: 73	Tee-hee It may get my auctions cancelled, but I just updated both of them with eBay's announcement with a call to write their customer service. __________________ http://www.conserv-eral.blogspot.com "I aim to misbehave" - Captain Malcolm Reynolds

July 30, 2007, 08:08 PM	#21
oldironman Senior Member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Location: Houston, Tx Posts: 155	This is ok though: http://search.ebay.com/search/search...rpr=2&frpp=200 and this http://search.ebay.com/search/search...e=search&fgtp= What hypocrites. __________________ Kill or be Killed

July 30, 2007, 08:09 PM	#22
Wildalaska Junior member Join Date: November 25, 2002 Location: In my own little weird world in Anchorage, Alaska Posts: 14,172	As a Power Seller, I called ebay too WA

July 30, 2007, 08:15 PM	#23
Manedwolf Junior member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Posts: 3,266	What about knives and swords? LOTS of those on there. Like 30,000 listings for them.

July 30, 2007, 09:32 PM	#24
oldironman Senior Member Join Date: May 28, 2007 Location: Houston, Tx Posts: 155	Okay, so now I forgot. Who is our back-up internet auction site? __________________ Kill or be Killed

July 30, 2007, 10:50 PM	#25
Lurch37 Senior Member Join Date: August 6, 2006 Location: Middle of Nebraska Posts: 944	Somebody here with some typing skill and the gift of the word should type up a generic letter we here could copy and paste and email to ebay. I never know what to say in these situations. __________________ I reject your reality and substitute my own.