The Hobby Boards

Alright, self promotion time..

I just did a video on something that's been on my mind for some time, which is the hobby "negativity" label we've seen used these last few years. A term coined by certain influencers and perpetuated by others to label content creators or collectors who call out fake cards, fake autos, shady breakers, address and talk about hobby drama, etc..

I go into this in detail in my video so I figure i'll let that do most of the talking, but ultimately I don't think we need the divide and should all be calling out unwanted behavior so we can make the hobby better for everyone. I'm interested to get everyone's thoughts on the topic.

I watched this last night while getting ready for bed, but just watched again now and gave a like/comment for support.

I agree the term is a load of BS given from those who just don't want to be criticized. It's an easy way to dismiss words/actions that are being called out without providing any actual substance to the conversation.
It means absolutely nothing and has zero actual meaning.

Similar to the constant complaining and copout about "fake news" or "woke":
Oh someone said something I don't like or don't agree with or makes me look bad? That's "Hobby Negativity/Woke/Fake News"

I think there's a bigger problem with actual shady behavior (scams, misrepresentation, market manipulation, et cetera) in this hobby than with unfounded accusations leveled at people in order to gain clout.

Individual influencers make for better content than soulless corporations, because they're human beings with emotions and are far less likely to have armies of lawyers and PR people to smooth over any failings.

We should pay more attention to the soulless corporations than individual human influencers, though, because the sins of Fanatics are potentially far worse than anything some guy with a YouTube channel could commit.

Back in the day it was 'you're a jealous hater' 'you're poor' 'you're a conspiracy theorist even though you posted evidence a 5 year old could understand' etc. now it's 'hobby negativity' what will these parasites come up with next.

The worst are the ones that actually masquerade as genuine hobbyists and do a good job at it. Most, if not all of them would not be into sports cards if they couldn't make money from them, they're just a bunch of blood suckers.

FrankAZHP wrote: ↑Fri Jul 21, 2023 12:50 pm I watched this last night while getting ready for bed, but just watched again now and gave a like/comment for support.

I agree the term is a load of BS given from those who just don't want to be criticized. It's an easy way to dismiss words/actions that are being called out without providing any actual substance to the conversation.
It means absolutely nothing and has zero actual meaning.

Similar to the constant complaining and copout about "fake news" or "woke":
Oh someone said something I don't like or don't agree with or makes me look bad? That's "Hobby Negativity/Woke/Fake News"

Appreciate the view man! I too agree it's more of a diversionary tactic. I feel there's some accountability that needs to take place when you're out there portraying yourself as an expert at something. If people question that and your response just blow it off by calling them negative, that's the wrong approach IMO.

Lamplighter42 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 21, 2023 4:52 pm I think there's a bigger problem with actual shady behavior (scams, misrepresentation, market manipulation, et cetera) in this hobby than with unfounded accusations leveled at people in order to gain clout.

Individual influencers make for better content than soulless corporations, because they're human beings with emotions and are far less likely to have armies of lawyers and PR people to smooth over any failings.

We should pay more attention to the soulless corporations than individual human influencers, though, because the sins of Fanatics are potentially far worse than anything some guy with a YouTube channel could commit.

Yeah I agree with this. One thing to consider as well is lot of the larger influencers are (or will be) in bed with Fanatics, so when anything controversial does happen they'll likely be keeping their mouth shut. It's going to be up to the content creators who aren't sponsored to inform the masses.

AbraCalabro wrote: ↑Sat Jul 22, 2023 11:50 am Back in the day it was 'you're a jealous hater' 'you're poor' 'you're a conspiracy theorist even though you posted evidence a 5 year old could understand' etc. now it's 'hobby negativity' what will these parasites come up with next.

The worst are the ones that actually masquerade as genuine hobbyists and do a good job at it. Most, if not all of them would not be into sports cards if they couldn't make money from them, they're just a bunch of blood suckers.

I can't remember where I saw it, but someone on IG had pointed out how a lot of the bigger names in the space likely don't even really like cards. They got into it because there was money to be made. Now they're trying to find things they do like to keep that income stream and a lot of it comes off as being pretty unauthentic.

There are very few guys out there that I can listen to or watch as it feels like the majority if them have agendas or something to sell..even a guy like Packman who's content I used to enjoy..with him being a breaker and shilling for whatnot and arena club isn't as enjoyable. It's fine..make your money..but for me personally it's just a turnoff. Guys like Kyle with his Wax Museum Podcast are few and far between.. authentic collectors sharing the thoughts/experiences about the hobby. Wish there was more of it out there

ChrisP57 wrote: ↑Sun Jul 23, 2023 11:35 am There are very few guys out there that I can listen to or watch as it feels like the majority if them have agendas or something to sell..even a guy like Packman who's content I used to enjoy..with him being a breaker and shilling for whatnot and arena club isn't as enjoyable. It's fine..make your money..but for me personally it's just a turnoff. Guys like Kyle with his Wax Museum Podcast are few and far between.. authentic collectors sharing the thoughts/experiences about the hobby. Wish there was more of it out there

That's exactly why I like their content as well. I'm so sick of seeing nothing but breaking and flipping content. Personally I have zero interest in how someone flips cards, or seeing case breaks where 1 in 80 people get some big hit from a current product. I do understand that we are not the norm though as most people don't want to go see collectors just collecting for the fun of it. I've done 199 videos on my own channel now and in none of them have I tried to sell anyone anything. It's literally just me getting stuff for my own PC and enjoying stuff. I'm fully aware that if I did content that was breaking, or flipping, I'd get 10x the views and attention, but I won't sacrifice what I enjoy and what I want just to get views and subs. Even guys I used to watch like PackerCards87 and 50CheddarBob I don't watch anymore, as it's always promoting their breaking brand and is no longer a guy opening packs and collecting for fun. Ehh what can you do?

If speaking the facts and asking valid questions make someone negative, then maybe it is because the person just want to MANIPULATE the voice. I think the best example I can quote, when you did a video asking IF Geoff had made any money from trading sports cards. You are very caution, you have a solid methodology, you use Geoff's video for info (so like every scientific discovery, it is neutral, these were just what happened. You have not done a lot of interpretation that can be positive, negative or neutral) and then you told us how you track the market price and so on. So how can Geoff replied? (I suppose this was how he did so) The best he can do is to say something like, you just see a tiny bit of the entire picture, he has been doing way MORE trading that he does make a huge load of money. Then, assuming this is REAL, it begs the question:

Why doesn't he give this info at his boardcast?

This leads to way more question then answers.

And I see most of the collector whom ask questions are going at these direction. They ask the question not because they feel there is something wrong about different issues. As I suggested on your video, it is more or less a sales team and accounting team mindset, both are NECESSARY and should benefit the hobby. But the sad thing is like in a company, there are many politcs between departments and people might point out things purely for their personal gains.

I believe what is MORE towards the negativity is that, where do these bring us? Like I hate how BGS graded my card, I have provided evidence showing their centering standard can be extremely inconsistent. Then what is next? I guess this is the real problem. Like we know grading company failed to authentic backdoor cards, so can we MAKE them better? What I mean is, a lot is said, but what ELSE can we do? I know it sounds very extreme but to me, this is the real issue. I have no answer to this and I suppose if there are a bunch of people think like this, we can figure out something. Like I suppose this forum is setup because we see blowout is non sense? (I am not sure) But this is a right direction, we might not be able to fight head to head with those big company but at least we are not bitching daily and going back to them. (Like I will never grade with BGS again no matter what and I tell everyone at my shop grade with BGS = waste of money)

ChrisP57 wrote: ↑Sun Jul 23, 2023 11:35 am There are very few guys out there that I can listen to or watch as it feels like the majority if them have agendas or something to sell..even a guy like Packman who's content I used to enjoy..with him being a breaker and shilling for whatnot and arena club isn't as enjoyable. It's fine..make your money..but for me personally it's just a turnoff. Guys like Kyle with his Wax Museum Podcast are few and far between.. authentic collectors sharing the thoughts/experiences about the hobby. Wish there was more of it out there

Check out The Mangini Collection on youtube.

You know the “content” (I hate even using the word) is good when you’re drawn in despite it being a sport and era you don’t necessarily have an interest in. Guy has a pure passion.