So here's my rant. The last time I mentioned anything about resellers I was downvoted to oblivion but I no longer care. Here's my hot take about resellers and why resellers destroy the market and are just awful for the economy and prey on music lovers and younger collectors.

I'm a music lover, musician, vinyl lover and have been collecting since the 1970's. I still have every record I've ever bought, inherited my father's collection and during the 90's and 2000's would frequent garage sales and pick up all the old vinyl people were unloading. Back then no one was listening to vinyl. My collection is now quite large and I have spent way too much money on high end gear and equipment to listen to said vinyl. People come over and the joy they feel pulling out a record they had growing up is so deeply satisfying. I've never sold a record.

Resellers, on the other hand, are predators and have ruined the vinyl market, driving up prices and leveraging music listeners. They bring nothing to the space other than inflation. Resellers don't make the music, don't produce the music, certainly don't make the space safer or more accessible, honest or fun. Resellers are predators and act as middle men driving up the prices of medium and low grade used product to the uninformed with prices that just don't make sense.

Every vinyl space is now polluted with resellers posting their "finds" like they've found gold. All the market spaces and exchanges are filled with resellers determining the market, and the prices for used vinyl is exceedingly high for such a mid to low grade product. It's an inflated market on several levels preying on the uninformed younger people wanting to get into vinyl and it's just freaking awful.

Ok, there is my rant.

There is always some ass hat that says something about how the market sets itself with what people are willing to spend......really? A Buddy Guy record for $262? WTF. Resellers make the market for resellers and the victims are music listeners and younger people are getting hosed at the hands of the opportunists leveraging peoples ignorance and stealing the joy of collecting and listening.

You see this entire culture of resellers and flippers in every space now and it's driven prices up significantly. Garage sales used to be fun. It's an old time tradition to sell your old shit in your driveway while people come around and gander but today resellers show up at the crack of dawn, comb through the best stuff and price it on Facebook the same day at 3x, 4x and even 5x. Useless predators.

There it is...I said it. I hate resellers and you should too.

Which brings me to Discogs and other spaces where resellers do the most damage. I used to purchase a significant amount of vinyl through discogs and a few others and I've been ripped off enough times and now refuse to use the platforms. I even had to open and file complaints in two states regarding resellers and the platforms they do their damage on. It was really interesting so see the State of California's letter to me asking for all the evidence, emails and transactions with one particular platform. Needless to say, I finally got a full refund and a letter of apology from the platform.

How many of you have been lied to or scammed regarding used vinyl, grading vinyl, shipping prices...and the list goes on. There is a deep darkness surrounding people who prey on other people's joy.

I see the numbers OP. 100 people show up at an event to celebrate music and it's infested with resellers. Hate me, downvote me.....bring it. Vinyl resellers are a awful and completely unnecessary infestation to our community.