Gifting coins

[RedShoesGirl]

Gifting a coin is more like a handshake and a thank you. Someone thought enough of you to give you something as a token of friendship. It's a sentiment that carries absolutely no notion of money whatsoever. So why turn that kind act into a matter of money at all?

 

If you really don't want it anymore, throw the hunk of metal in a drawer, or in the garbage, or give it to someone who does want it. It didn't cost you anything, so why make it cost someone else?

 

It's not an issue of legality...it's an issue of morality.

 

Why can't you do what you want with a gift? A gift is a gift...yours to do with as you wish.

 

It has nothing to do with "morality" at all...once the GIFT is given, the deal's done. End of story.

 

I'm sure you've kept EVERYTHING that's been given to you, no matter how much you've hated it, right?

 

You've never sold anything of that nature, right?

 

It's just a hunk of metal...it's not a relationship, friendship or whatever. The people are what matter...not that hunk of metal. Any relationship that is damaged because of that was weak to begin with.

 

but you have also said

 

"It's all an academic discussion for me...I have gotten a lot of way cool coins from a lot of folks and wouldn't get rid of them short of disaster."

 

so, if they are just a hunk of metal to you, why not get rid of them before the disaster. they don't mean anything, right? because it is only the people that matter.

 

i think you are not really invested one way or the other in the argument but are simply trolling for controversy, an academic discussion.

 

and i, for one, won't argue any longer with a troll.

 

rsg

[+ArtieD]

Okay...fine...I'll grant you the "it's not just a hunk of metal" ideal that some people believe in...it sounds like a fair assumption.

 

My position, I guess, is that a) the coin holder is the total possessor and there are situations that trump any verbal trade agreement.

 

Past that, the arguments are academic to me.

[+Kealia]

And I'll agree that the minute my family is in need of something (food, money, etc.) this hobby gets put last on the priority list to meet their needs. If that means selling my Moun10Bike V1 to do it, so be it.

 

I don't think we're as far apart on this as you think we might be.

 

This is straying a bit off topic but: I find it hard to believe that with all the posessions people have that coins are always the first to go and raising the most money - but that's for another thread.

 

 

RedShoesGirl - carfeul, the mods don't allow personal attacks. You're likely close to toeing the line there.

[+ArtieD]

so, if they are just a hunk of metal to you, why not get rid of them before the disaster. they don't mean anything, right? because it is only the people that matter.

 

i think you are not really invested one way or the other in the argument but are simply trolling for controversy, an academic discussion.

 

and i, for one, won't argue any longer with a troll.

 

rsg

 

It's an academic discussion because in theory this is what it is to me...in practice I would not because I really enjoy my coins and all the people that have given many of them to me.

 

Disagreement is not trolling...it's merely debate and discussion. Calling someone a troll is usually the first gambit of someone who cannot make their point effectively.

 

So, if you'd like to try again, I will be waiting.

[+LadyBee4T]

When I give a gift coin, it is just that - a gift. Usually those are given to people that I feel a bond with.

 

If I see later down the road that they sold the gift I gave them, then they fall off my gift list. I will still trade with them, and they are still my friends, but when I gift a coin it is a token of friendship.

 

I agree wholeheartly with this statement Joni You worded it well. There are currently two coins I gifted that are on ebay right now. I gave them away and they can do what they want with them since they are theirs. However, those actions do have reprecussions as I won't be giving them any more coins....

 

Thing is how hard is it to just be honest and contact the giver or whomever and ask about selling it or trade the coin(s) for something to sell. I've seen it done respectfully here before.

 

If you truly need the money, why should you have to? The giver should respect that fact and not raise a stink.

 

I think what others have been trying to say here is that it is a matter of respect which goes both ways.

 

This is straying a bit off topic but: I find it hard to believe that with all the posessions people have that coins are always the first to go and raising the most money - but that's for another thread.

 

I think that you are making a MAJOR league assumption here. I have been selling many things that are important to me other than coins to raise the money that I need. Some of my coins will also be sold soon. Since these things are sold on craigslist you don't know about those. I assume that others have done this also.

 

I treasure the coins that have been gifted to me. I have been told with a lot of them to do with as I please--no conditions attached. But in any event those gifted coins along with the mystery coins would be the very last ones to leave my collection.

[+joranda]

Gotta disagree A&T.

 

On the one hand, you ARE free to do what you want with a gift as long as you realize that there are reprecussions to your (general) actions.

 

One may be that the giver stops giving you gifts. That's what most are saying.

 

It's NOT a hunk of metal, that's the point some of us are trying to make. Look at almost any coin sale thread. The maker of the coin usually puts something personal into it - it's representative of the designer, right (whether or not it's caching related is another story). Giving that coin and receiving that coin is a symbol of the friendship.

 

You boiling it down to "it's just a hunk of metal" is the same as saying that a wedding ring is just a "hunk of metal", too. Both represent more than their simple materials.

 

And no, I'm not bringing a wedding ring into the discussion to elicit emotional responses. It's the same analogy you are making and I disgree with it.

 

If that's the way you want to boil it down and that's all they mean to you, so be it. Others think differently and place value on the symbol.

 

Well said. Anyone who thinks it's just a hunk of metal don't need any gifted coins. There should be a feeling about the gifted coin besides it's just a hunk of metal and I'll get rid of it when I want to.

[+joranda]

And I'll agree that the minute my family is in need of something (food, money, etc.) this hobby gets put last on the priority list to meet their needs. If that means selling my Moun10Bike V1 to do it, so be it.

 

I don't think we're as far apart on this as you think we might be.

 

This is straying a bit off topic but: I find it hard to believe that with all the posessions people have that coins are always the first to go and raising the most money - but that's for another thread.

 

 

RedShoesGirl - carfeul, the mods don't allow personal attacks. You're likely close to toeing the line there.

But how many times do we hear that the reason someone is selling a mystery coin is for all kinds of hardships I stead of the real reason. "Financial gains".

[+pghlooking]

But how many times do we hear that the reason someone is selling a mystery coin is for all kinds of hardships I stead of the real reason. "Financial gains".

I think you have nailed it right there. I have seen it time and time again where someone cries about how they hate to do this but have no choice to sell such and such coin. Then the next week they are buying hundreds of dollars worth of coins from another place. The community for the large part keeps quiet about this, or prefers not to believe this is going on, or whatever. It's un-PC to actually call them out about it, and even though they are taking advantage of the nice gesture of someone, the whistleblower is made out to be the bad guy.

 

As for the actual gifting of a coin and whether it should have strings attached or not...Well that is a case by case situation and last I checked no one made anyone take a coin that had anything attached to it. Whether you agree with the practice or not, if the person accepts the agreement when they take the coin, then they should abide by it. If they can't then returning it, trading it, gifting it, or releasing it are many other options, and none of these will causse you to go back on your word(if that means anything to you).

 

Someone said these people need the cash quick and don't have the time to trade it away. Last I checked the eBay auctions were for several days and most of these coins are easily traded, so they could have the other coins there and auctioned off almost as quickly. Who wouldn't send a few coins to me today for a Moun10Bike, and then I could sell those. It doesn't hold water to me.

[+joranda]

But how many times do we hear that the reason someone is selling a mystery coin is for all kinds of hardships I stead of the real reason. "Financial gains".

I think you have nailed it right there. I have seen it time and time again where someone cries about how they hate to do this but have no choice to sell such and such coin. Then the next week they are buying hundreds of dollars worth of coins from another place. The community for the large part keeps quiet about this, or prefers not to believe this is going on, or whatever. It's un-PC to actually call them out about it, and even though they are taking advantage of the nice gesture of someone, the whistleblower is made out to be the bad guy.

 

As for the actual gifting of a coin and whether it should have strings attached or not...Well that is a case by case situation and last I checked no one made anyone take a coin that had anything attached to it. Whether you agree with the practice or not, if the person accepts the agreement when they take the coin, then they should abide by it. If they can't then returning it, trading it, gifting it, or releasing it are many other options, and none of these will causse you to go back on your word(if that means anything to you).

 

Someone said these people need the cash quick and don't have the time to trade it away. Last I checked the eBay auctions were for several days and most of these coins are easily traded, so they could have the other coins there and auctioned off almost as quickly. Who wouldn't send a few coins to me today for a Moun10Bike, and then I could sell those. It doesn't hold water to me.

 

I'll send you several coins for a Moun10Bike coin! I know, you was just stating a fact.

[+WWC-World's Worst Cacher]

I try not to post opinions with my moderator account, but this one hits home.

 

I'm going to use the Volunteer coins as an example. I send these out as "gifts" or a way to say "thank you" for something that the recipient has done for me or more likely the coin forums/community in general. I would hate to see these being sold for profit.

 

I realize that there are things out of my control. Once the coin is in the recipient's hand, I can't physically control what they do. I can hope they honor the intent that the coin was given, I can contact eBay and try to close the auction since I keep ownership of the coin (according to this site anyway), and I can cross that person off my list of future gifts if they choose to profit from the gift.

 

In the end, I won't lose sleep over what happens, but I will take notice.

 

Hey you never sent me one . . . . guess that is not likely to happen is it

[+0R0B0RUS]

Okay, I definitely see that a gift is a personal thing. I would never knowingly put up for sale one of the few gifted coins I own. But what about all those "gifted" coins we all got from our secret santa's and the easter turkey and valentine's bunny, etc.? Gifts or trades? Of course, trades are a whole different matter, some trades are treated like gifts and some trades are treated like purchases. Purchased coins can be traded or sold at my disgression. But frankly, I would find it hard to give up ANY of the coins in my collection.

[+tsunrisebey]

 

As for the actual gifting of a coin and whether it should have strings attached or not..

 

I heard if I showed up at GCF, you would have a gift coin for me No strings attached right? So I can sell it?

[+pghlooking]

 

As for the actual gifting of a coin and whether it should have strings attached or not..

 

I heard if I showed up at GCF, you would have a gift coin for me No strings attached right? So I can sell it?

Actually I will give it to you at GW6 instead. Maybe it will lure you into GCF.

[+MustangJoni]

Okay, I definitely see that a gift is a personal thing. I would never knowingly put up for sale one of the few gifted coins I own. But what about all those "gifted" coins we all got from our secret santa's and the easter turkey and valentine's bunny, etc.? Gifts or trades? Of course, trades are a whole different matter, some trades are treated like gifts and some trades are treated like purchases. Purchased coins can be traded or sold at my disgression. But frankly, I would find it hard to give up ANY of the coins in my collection.

 

I think of mission coins as trades. You give away coins and get coins. I've gotten some really great coins in missions, but if I got an extra of one I already had, or one that didn't appeal to me, I wouldn't think twice about trading it away.

[RedShoesGirl]

And I'll agree that the minute my family is in need of something (food, money, etc.) this hobby gets put last on the priority list to meet their needs. If that means selling my Moun10Bike V1 to do it, so be it.

 

I don't think we're as far apart on this as you think we might be.

 

This is straying a bit off topic but: I find it hard to believe that with all the posessions people have that coins are always the first to go and raising the most money - but that's for another thread.

 

 

RedShoesGirl - carfeul, the mods don't allow personal attacks. You're likely close to toeing the line there.

 

okey dokey, i understand. i'll be good.

[+Trucker Lee]

I think that once you own a coin, you are free to do what you want with it. But it is not always so simple, and feelings can and do get hurt.

 

Should a gift be conditional?

 

If a gift is conditional, was it truly given? To gift means to make an item the property of another, to make it conditional is like a lein on a house or car, to dispose of it you need the mortgage holder's permission and signiture.

 

Tadpole makes a good point about hurting feelings, many will feel slighted. After all, they offered you the gift as a token of esteem, love, or compassion. To sell it is to say that you value the money more.

 

I have been gifted a couple of coins, and in that they cost me nothing, I do not feel I can sell them for any reason without good cause. One, the gifter said do with as I please, but that does not change my feelings about this.

[+007BigD]

My thoughts on the matter are:

 

I believe a gifted coin such as a personal or a special coin that was intended to be a "special gift" should be just that..."SPECIAL" It was intended to provide a relation to whomever gave it to them to either reflect back to the occasion or just admire such a great gift from a friend.

 

But I also beleive there could be stipulations that can easily vary from person to person. Like if someone traded or sold one of my regular coins I gave away in a cointest or forked over one at an event...No Biggie Id say! Its just a regular coin and they may not even really like the particular coin anyways if they won it!

 

But If I was to create a nice coin to trade, gift etc. and I gave it to someone and intended it to ba a Special coin for them to have, I would hope they would not sell it or even trade it. It was gifted as a special token and meant to be so...Especially if I asked them to keep it and not sell it.

 

Now I guess value comes into play here somewhere...Of course if its a XLE, Blem, or any other coin that may be more rare than others, that puts it in a whole differnet catagory to the collectors who have recieved the coin...Such as if I gifted an XLE next to an RE, The RE may not even be worth as much monetary wise, but it should be in the same boat...right?- Its not always.

 

I really think morals come into play in such a ordeal...Why would anyone give a coin away to someone who is just gonna make a profit from it??? They woulda much rather gave it away to someone who would appreciate it for the gift and "special coin" it was intended to be. Gift it to someone else if anything!

Its just not right for the person who gifted the coin out of kindness.

 

Think of it as selling your grandfathers pocket watch or somethin of the sort...Not quite on the same level as geocoins or lame clothes for your birthday, but still- Its special for you...Not the guy you sold it too!

 

There's many ways too look at it, and many ways you can go about stipulating which coins are special...In the end, your heart should tell you which coins are special to you and have been gifted to you. I think some just see things not as sentimental as other do is all.

 

Heck...Ive gifted 2 mystery coins I got 2 of!!! I coulda easily sold em or traded em, but everyone knows and I know thats just not what you do- Its not the intention of the coin. Call me lame...But I call it morals!