TRIGGER MORTIS! The Scalper’s Disease.

As with every hobby or even everything in life there is always a good side and an ugly side, that we have to live and contend with from time to time. It is quite prevalent on the internet because everyone has a right to speak and to an opinion whether that opinion is right or wrong. Invariably arguments turn abusive, and bullies usually win the day, mostly due to the frustration of their opponents who tire at the endless barrage of one liners like ‘oh look who’s triggered’ or gif’s of Michael Jackson eating popcorn.

In the scale model collecting world or specifically in the Hotwheels collecting world the ugly side are called Scalpers.

The Hotwheels Scalper

A Hotwheels scalper is a person who goes around buying up all the popular castings in bulk from as many places as they can find, create a demand and then release their stocks at a higher price to make a profit. Interestingly a dipstick study shows that this is done mainly in North America and Asia. Hopefully we will soon have raw data on this statistic. In Europe and Africa the hobby is more helpful and caring.

However, the argument is heating up and a lot of collectors who are tired of being taken for a capitalist ride and are starting to voice their anger against scalpers. Which of course, scalpers who are already destined to take advantage of people and situations immediately become defensive and react by becoming bullies and now moving into baiting people with their pictures so that can feel some sort of insipid control over destabilising people’s emotions and feeling proud about it.

Trigger Mortis

I started of the day in the usual way, going through interest groups checking what’s new and crack-a-lacking when I came upon this post.

It’s on a very popular and influential Diecast group page and as you can see the person making such a statement is a moderator on the group as well. Bullies love positions of power. This is a perfect example of Trigger Mortis. This gentleman wants to intentionally upset people which he knows he will definitely do AND is quite proud about it, probably telling his friends how many people he managed to ‘trigger’ today including having a blog post written after him as well.

AS much as he has every right to be this way publicly, I am quite disappointed that he wields a certain amount of power in the group being a moderator and if this is how he feels towards other people then can he be objective as a moderator?

Kind reminder NOT ALL WHO BUY BULK AND SELL ONLINE ARE SCALPERS. The ones who buy everything, gloat and then raise the roof on the prices are scalpers. There are others who run a decent business connecting collectors with hard-to-find stuff at super decent prices they are Hot wheels Angels.

No Cure for Cussedness

Unfortunately, it is a problem that was created by collectors decades ago and is one that will be impossible to eradicate. In fact, we may get ahead of COVID-19 or Cancer before we beat scalping and trigger mortis. Its actually too expensive and big of a problem for even Mattel to solve. But we can live with it by taking precautions.

Social Distancing: As much as you would like to correct the world’s problems starting with scalpers, it’s not worth it. They are not going to change. Distance yourself from these people and the negative vibe your anger is not worth it save it for the QC issues.

Sanitize your mind: As much as you and I love Hot wheels we can also let go needing to be the first or have the entire variation set, there are plenty of new brands offering way cooler stuff for the same price of a bloated super treasure hunt, or even a popular main line. Besides I have learnt if you are patient enough, what you want will come to you at a great deal or price.

Limit Groups: Start a Wish list in your group not a fight leave that up to the scalpers. The wish list will allow collectors to pitch and help other collectors find what they are looking for at more stable prices, there are plenty who are dying for what are peg warmers in other countries. C’mon people let’s get together and do this.

Vaccinate your mind: be pre-disposed to the fact that these guys and girls are out there, they have a right to be there but like there are plenty of them, there are also plenty of you, so when you feel like your being triggered do a search for some good old MEMES on scalpers and have a laugh. As Michael Jackson once sang “You are not alone”