Some years ago the Baltimore Sun decided that it would no longer take ads for guns or any item associated with guns. They decided that the sale of guns in newspapers was contributing to the gun violence in Baltimore and they were being proactive in doing their part to help. These many years later the number of people killed by guns in Baltimore is nearing record levels and there has been little reduction over the years since the Sun decided to be civic minded. They seem to have missed the part about criminals not obeying the law and somehow figured that people who commit street crime read the paper…
Now enter eBay. They have decided that they will not sell gun parts in order to make us safer:
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
Matt Halprin is from Trust and Safety. I don’t trust him and he certainly can’t keep me safe. eBay has decided that since the mentally deranged kid at Virginia Tech might have used gun parts he bought on their site that they must put an end to the violence and make us safer. Would Matt and the rest of the safety patrol stop allowing cell phones to be sold if they found out some Muslim terrorist group was buying them to make bomb detonators? Will Matt and the safety squad stop selling deep fryers, hot dog machines, and any other item that cooks food in an unhealthy manner so as to save us from the plight of heart disease (which by the way kills more people than guns do).
I have to wonder what motivates a company to take such a stance. Perhaps it is their desire to help mankind but more likely they are either anti gun or got bad press over the VT issue, or both. In any event they are not very sincere about the safety and trust issue. Search eBay for porn, pot pipes, bongs, and vibrators. I realize that several of these items are not dangerous but some of them are and encourage breaking the law through drug use. It is difficult to believe the trust and safety guy when his site allows items that are not suitable for children to see (safety) or items that will allow, and even encourage, people to break the law (trust). eBay is concerned about its reputation because of VT so I hope some drug user does not get high using an eBay purchased bong or pot pipe and then watch some eBay purchased porno while using eBay purchased penis enlargement items and then sodomize someone with a vibrator. eBay would have to remove a lot of things after that.
So while eBay is removing the gun related items to make us safe, trust them to continue allowing truly questionable items. Just another reason I will never shop on eBay. I hope all gun owners will avoid it as well.
Big Dog Salute to BK
Sometimes unrelated trackbacks to Outside the Beltway, Perri Nelson’s Website, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, The Virtuous Republic, Rosemary’s Thoughts, The Random Yak, DeMediacratic Nation, Adam’s Blog, Right Truth, Shadowscope, Webloggin, Stuck On Stupid, Leaning Straight Up, Cao’s Blog, The Amboy Times, The Bullwinkle Blog, Conservative Cat, Conservative Thoughts, Pursuing Holiness, third world county, Allie Is Wired, Pirate’s Cove, Nuke’s news and views, The Pink Flamingo, Planck’s Constant, Wyvern Dreams, Dumb Ox Daily News, Right Voices, Gone Hollywood, and Public Eye, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.