April 3rd - April Goat v2.0 "A Goatly Reboot" and "What Is This Madness?"
6April Goat v2.0 “A Goatly Reboot”
The April Goat has been more like a goast than a goat. That darned @ruouttaurmind got goated, then went MIA!
Most humble apologies to all. A family emergency came up on Thursday morning, and I had to make an unexpected trip out of town on Thursday afternoon. After all the chest pounding and crowing I did on Friday proclaiming April “the month of Galactic Goat-Sheep”, I submitted a phoned-in performance for the first couple of days. I’m back home now, and moving forward.
So I’ve uploaded the Goat v2.0 update, and I’m pressing CTRL-ALT-DEL and doing a Galactic Goat-Sheep reboot. Barring unwelcome family developments, I should be a present goat for the remainder of my servitude. Thank you all for your patience as I find my goat footing. Let’s all see where this goes!
“What Is This Madness?”
While I was out of town, my roommate signed for a piece of registered mail. Unless it’s a check from Publisher’s Clearinghouse, registered mail seldom contains good news, innit.
With much trepidation, I unsealed the envelope, and was greeted by a summons to appear at a hearing in Justice Court. But for what?
First a brief background. Back in October I whined on ad nauseam in the forum after being the victim of a home burglary. Many, many items were stolen, much damage done, no insurance coverage for the loss (another story for another day).
In February, I was contacted by a police detective. Apparently one of my stolen items turned up in a local pawn shop. Of course I was excited! Sure, it was only a single item, but the wheels of justice were churning, and better to get back something rather than nothing.
“Where do I have to go to claim the item?” I asked. “Hold the phone” the detective said. It turns out, in my state, once a stolen item is identified at a pawn shop, the law makes provision for the pawn shop to demand an ownership hearing.
In other words, the pawn shop has the right to make a claim on the stolen property because they gave value to come into possession of it. Yes, my state has given pawn shops the potential to keep my stolen property, and leave me with a NOTHING! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?!?!?
Apparently I have to go to a hearing and prove why the court should grant me possession of the stolen property, leaving the pawn shop to suffer loss of the value they paid to obtain the stolen property.
It seems the “pawn shop lobby” successfully rallied state legislators to buy into the concept that pawn shops provide a community service, and are unable to shoulder the financial burden of monetary loss suffered when they are required to return stolen property. I guess the legislators agreed, and enacted this asinine law protecting the pawn shop interests ahead of the theft victims!
“Pawn shops provide a community service. We provide emergency funding for families in need. Without the service of a pawn shop, financially burdened families might have their utilities disconnected, their car repossessed, or worse… their children may go hungry. The service we provide puts much needed cash in the hands of those looking to avoid state and federal assistance programs, and support themselves.” Or at least that’s how it was explained to me by a representative of a local pawnbrokers association.
My assertion: It’s a cost of doing business. If you don’t like the cost, find a different line of business. If necessary, protect your interests by holding pawned merch in escrow until the stolen items database search is complete, then release funds after 30 days or whatever. “No consumer in need can wait 30 days for funding” was the response. “We would lose all our business with that model” he said.
So in a couple of weeks I’ll be heading off to court to prove an item that I purchased, which belonged to me and was taken from my home in a burglary should be returned to me.
I’m curious to hear your perspective on this. Particularly anyone with experience in the pawnbroker trade. But please, everyone else opine about the strengths and detriments of this odd law.
- 7 comments, 49 replies
- Comment
I never knew there was a pawnbrokers’ lobby. I never imagined such a concept. It’s like the ‘Rattlin’ Bog’ song: they’re the tick.
On that louse there was a tick,
A rare tick a rattlin’ tick,
And the tick on the louse,
And the louse on the hair,
And the hair on the worm,
And the worm on the feather,
And the feather on the bird,
And the bird in the egg,
And the egg in the nest,
And the nest on the limb,
And the limb on the branch,
And the branch on the tree,
And the tree in the hole,
And the hole in the bog,
And the bog down in the valley-o.
@OldCatLady The very idea of a “Pawnbroker’s Lobby” seems almost absurd!
What could their motto be? “To gouge and pillage”? “Playing the game with no fear of reprisal”?
I wish the government would pass legislation protecting my business from any potential loss.
Puzzling.
@ruouttaurmind
That’s a fun puzzle.
@PlacidPenguin Hey! Good to see you back on here!
Unfortunately I stole the image from Pintrest, so I don’t know the source of the puzzle.
@ruouttaurmind
I found a DIY 3D Goat thingy.
(eBay is offering me a $25 gift card if I sell anything, so I may buy this thingy.)
@PlacidPenguin I’ll have to check my eBay offers! I have a handful of items queued up to sell, but keep putting it off because of eBay seller fees, PayPal fees, and shipping costs. But a $25 gift card would surely offset much of my fee-fear.
@ruouttaurmind Nice rebooty.
That pawn shop situation is fucked up.
@ruouttaurmind
Did you get the offer?
@PlacidPenguin I did not. I’ll check again in the morning. It would be awesome to clear out at least a couple items (Ring Video Doorbell Pro, iPod, RunCam Action Camera). Quick, easy sales, but without an offer, the commissions are 2-steep!
@ruouttaurmind
Got an email offering a $10 gift card when I sell something.
I dunno if I could get this AND the $25 gift card though.
$25 gift card - List by 8th, sell by the 18th.
$10 gift card - List by 14th, sell within 2 weeks.
@PlacidPenguin Dang. I’ve got to check my notification options in My eBay and make sure I’m still signed up for Seller offers.
@ruouttaurmind
Sold an item 5 days ago, received $25 coupon a little ago. Buying $25 eBay gift card now.
Edit: Apparently I can’t use it to buy a gift card. Turns out they changed the rules.
@PlacidPenguin Yup, back in October IIRC. Can’t use eBay bucks to buy them anymore either.
It seems they’ve also discontinued the eBay Bucks incentive program (occasional promotions to "spend X dollars, earn X percent extra eBay Bucks). I did well with the last volley of offers through Q4-2016. I earned over $100 in bonus Bucks.
Purchases now earn a smaller percentage as well.
With all the new policies, they’ve really neutered the eBay Bucks program.
@ruouttaurmind
I got a few of the increased eBay Bucks offers recently.
Don’t make many purchases on eBay though.
But I am glad that they removed the $5 minimum for coupons.
@PlacidPenguin I frequently check the “featured deals” and occasionally find something I can use. In September I bought an iPad Pro at 8% bonus Bucks. After it was stolen in October I used a November 10% bonus Bucks offer. I managed to max out that offer, then used the Bucks to do some holiday shopping.
@ruouttaurmind
Do you use any cashback site in conjunction with eBay?
@PlacidPenguin I don’t. I use PayPal Credit to make my purchases, mostly because of the dollar amount in involved (0%, 6 mos SOC).
I understand having to prove ownership of an item, which I’d imagine at times could be rather difficult, but actually giving the pawn shop rights to an item proven stolen is just plain fucked up. If I didn’t get my item back I’d be tempted to walk into that shop, ask to see something expensive, ‘accidentally’ break it, turn around and walk out.
@cinoclav Most curiously, burden of proof falls on me. They do not have to prove any kind of claim to the item. 100% of burden of proof falls on me. Odd law, isn’t it.
@cinoclav I like the way you think…
@cinoclav @mikibell
Don’t they tend to have security cameras though?
@PlacidPenguin “Lovely collectible piece of china.” “Oops, must have a little too much lotion on my hands. Sorry 'bout that. Buh-bye.”
@ruouttaurmind Mostly yes. There’s obviously something to be said for preventing anyone from walking into a pawn shop and claiming something there was stolen from them. The most ruthless type would go so far as to quietly see something they like and file a false police report stating it was stolen with plans to return to the shop and ‘discover’ their stolen item there. Yeah, people suck and nothing would surprise me.
@cinoclav You make a good point. However, if the police report was filed months prior to the “stolen” item turning up in the pawn shop, it sort of precludes that particular scam.
Of course there is still the potential to file a false police report claiming theft, then waiting a cool-off period, and having a friend pawn the item. Then, when the stolen item appears in the police database, making a claim. The perpetrator then gets to keep the merch AND the cash??
@ruouttaurmind Right, but like I said, nothing would surprise me. Thieves know how to work the system in their favor. I’m actually surprised the police even bothered with checking their database and found something of yours. Many, many years ago my apartment was broken into and about $1000 worth of stuff was stolen. The police basically told me it was gone, they didn’t have time to go looking for every item that’s reported stolen. I cared less about my television and microwave oven than I did about my record collection.
@cinoclav In my state, there is a database of stolen items. For any item with a serial number, police are required to enter a record into the database. When a pawn shop purchases an item, the item must be checked against that database, and the item must be held in escrow for 30 days before it can be offered for sale (giving police time to check the database, and respond if there’s a hit).
So police record keeping and checking is compulsory.
@ruouttaurmind They probably figure that only people with legitimate losses would have the balls to show up in court.
@sammydog01 Dunno… My dad, a retired police officer who spent many years as a burglary and fraud detective, has shared numerous stories about criminals who must have had jewels the size of the Hope Diamond! Some of the scams and thefts were just unbelievable!
Ick. Unfair.
@f00l IKR? It seems… dunno, counter intuitive to logic and reason.
I was under the impression that they were supposed to check items against a stolen list and then not buy them if the item appeared on the list. If your police report was prior to the pawnshop buying the item maybe you have more rights? I’d see what attorneys give free 1/2 advice and ask them.
My kid pawned some of my stuff and in this state they gave it back to me, although they lost very little money.
What state is this?
@Kidsandliz Arizona. The pawn shop must verify identity of the seller (which they did in this case). They can then purchase the item, and enter the transaction into the database, then there’s a waiting period while the wheels of justice churn.
Prior to this stupid legislation, if an item came back as stolen, they were required to hand it over to the police, who would return it to the rightful owner.
In my case, the police were able to locate the person who sold the stuff to the pawn shop, but were unable to establish any kind of link to the burglary. They claimed the stolen item was purchased at a yard sale, or a guy on a corner, or out of a van or whatever.
Doing a google search for you I found this:
“The Patriot Act requires you to have valid ID when transacting with a pawn shop.”
so through that either the person who pawned it stole it or someone the thief knew pawned it so hopefully the cops will then be able to arrest the thief or put the pawnshop out of business if they broke the Patriot Act.
Also looks like a number of states make you prove it is yours in court. In some states if you win they have to pay your attorney fees. Other states the law is ambiguous.
@Kidsandliz
When the police were at my house investigating the burglary, I got the serial number from the item from the original manufacturer’s box (which also contained my purchase receipt). I showed the box to the police officer, he wrote down the serial number, and that was that.
This all occurred on October 12th. By mid-January it was clear to me (I thought) nothing would find it’s way back to me, so in an uncharacteristic fit of housekeeping, I tossed out the box, accessories, user manuals, etc. Only a couple weeks later the detective came knocking.
So I’m in a difficult position to prove the item is rightfully mine. I have attempted to reach out to the police officer that was on-scene, but he won’t provide an affidavit because he can’t recall conclusively that I showed him a box for that specific item. I’ve tried my credit card company for a copy of my statement covering the period when the item was originally purchases, so I’m waiting to see how that goes. Now I’m pouring over photographs to see if I can find any with the stolen item pictured. Anything I can do to establish a sense of truth.
@ruouttaurmind If the cop wrote down the serial number and you can get a copy of that, then that should be enough I would think.
@Kidsandliz The police report lists the S/N, but has no indication of the source of the S/N. Without any purchase receipt, and with the cop not willing to testify he saw the original box… my case is weak.
But… I’m hoping for the best. May justice prevail for the goat!
@ruouttaurmind And I just read the serial numbers for many things are not unique… good luck. This sucks big time.
@ruouttaurmind
Where did you purchase whatever? If you got it from ebay or retail, a receipt can prob be generated. I know many stores keep receipts available for years and years.
@f00l Target. I already visited and asked. No way. Nothing older than 12 mos according to the Customer Service lady.
@ruouttaurmind
If they have your email address, you could have the receipt in email somewhere. Esp if you used a Redcard.
@f00l Discover card in November 2012. Sux that I kept all the boxes and packing and manuals for 5 years and only tossed that stuff a few weeks ago. Literally days before the detective visited.
The inevitable irony of fate.
@ruouttaurmind
No email receipt?
@f00l Sorry, I forgot to mention… it was 2012. It was a crazy, wacky, wild time. The Billboard charts were dominated by the likes of Adele, Carrie Underwood and Selena Gomez. The talk of TV was Mad Men, Breaking Bad and Boardwalk Empire…
And the bulk of retail sales were still conducted inside brick and mortar stores.
Nope, no email. I had a paper receipt taped to the box I threw away.
@ruouttaurmind is it perhaps password protected or contain something that only you would know about – scratch, dent, etc?
@mikibell The item in question is a gaming console. Although my user account was set up on the system, gaming consoles aren’t as secure as an iPhone, and very easy to do a factory reset. I can hope my account information is still on the system, but in court there will not really be a way to determine that I’d guess.
@ruouttaurmind
If your gaming console had an online account, the account provider might have a record of the associated seeial # registered to your account.
@ruouttaurmind bummer
@f00l I was able to get the S/N for my stolen iPad Pro from Apple, so I figured I’d give it a shot with the Wii U. Nintendo wasn’t at all helpful. I know I registered it when I purchased it, but Nintendo claims they are unable to access that info.
I’ve asked Discover for a copy of the credit card statement showing the purchase transaction at Target, and I’ve located a photo of my dogs in front of the TV which shows the Wii U in the background. I’ll take what I have to court and have faith that justice will prevail.
@f00l it’s not like i’m creeping on you really, but yea, i guess it kinda is - i think you means serial, unless you are talking about circus performers, then seeial is quite riot
/image quite right
/youtube quiet riot
/giphy seal like
@Yoda_Daenerys
I’m quite accomplished at typing badly.
I think my cure is currently beyond the reach of autocorrect.
That sucks. If a pawn shop buys a stolen item, they shouldn’t have any claim on it.
My opinion: Pawn shops are a pretty scummy way to make money anyway. They take advantage of people & the few times I’ve been to one, they have overpriced used crap for sale.
I really have no idea how they actually make enough money to stay in business, if they keep their business legal…
@daveinwarsh I live in a pretty major metro city. There are a huge number of pawn shops here, and some have decent quality merch at reasonable prices. Though I refuse to do business with them (and most especially now!) because of the questionable origin of their merch.
Hey kids! Pawn court is tomorrow (Thursday) at 10am. I’ve got my fingers crossed and I’m hopeful. Best possible scenario is the pawn shop doesn’t send any representation and I prevail by default.
/giphy hopeful
@ruouttaurmind
Be thinking of you at court and hoping …
@f00l Thank you!