Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Is that friend sitting on a huge pile of easily sellable childrens toys? Thats the difference.
Given Archon's example - would it matter if he were? I think the difference here is this person isn't begging. He's not painting a portrait of dire straits or need. The page is just there for people who want to help a helpless situation.
That said it doesn't fit the OPs question, but it does illustrate that GoFund me isn't always about ebegging.
That said the OP is just sore that his sick friend has something he wants. This thread isn't about whether or not you should sell your games before starting a GoFund me. It's about getting a bunch of people to agree to a "no shit" hypothetical to make the OP feel less guilty about being a somewhat shitty friend.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe be instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
Personally, if I didn't want to sell any games I'd get a bank loan, or ask my brother, or put it on my credit card. But that's dumb when you have cash in video games sitting at home.
I'm not sure I understand how people have a video game collection and NOT medical insurance. I mean, get the medical insurance first, get yourself settled, and then buy video games?
"
I suppose I could imagine how somebody finds out they have worse insurance than they thought they had, in terms of max out-of-pocket expenses.
Or perhaps they are faced with "bad timing" of major expenses straddling two years (so getting hit with the max out-of-pocket across two calendar year, when the total treatment time would have easily been contained within a single year)
I am blessed with excellent insurance coverage, but I know there are way worse plans out there, where expenses could balloon quickly.
BUT, I would say that I have a hard time appreciating the mentality of having or accumulating a collection of expensive items without having:
1) a sufficient emergency fund
2) having a sufficient pool of "traditional" investments
3) having access to decent lines of credit (that would provide for immediate expenses while you liquidate collectibles for a good price, in a less hurried way)
I mean, if friends and family contributing to a "GoFundMe" helps them feel involved and helpful, great.
But "pay it forward" and after you liquidate whatever covers the amount, donate it to somebody that is genuinely in need, or an affiliated cause to the problem.
EDIT: the "pay it forward" portion is assuming you already had life insurance on the parent that gets potentially terminally ill -- if not, I'd put it in college accounts for the kids (and still liquidate all of my collectibles, because that sort of event changes one's priorities, IMO)
I guess my argument is when someone creates a GoFund me they are presenting an illusion of hardship. Which is dishonest if they have assets of value which could be easily liquidated. That's on the receiver and everyone here agrees that's wrong.
But when the receiver is upfront about not needing the funds and people want to give anywhere - because they care, or its their friend. That's on the giver to decided. In that situation the financial situation of the receiver is no one's business.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
I think the language we use about this is important.
I don't know about others in the thread, but when I read "sell of their personal belongings", I see that as extraordinarily strong language that implies the person is suffering a great indignity (i.e. a bankrupt that is literally selling their furniture, their appliances, their family heirlooms, and anything else of value).
But we're talking about collectible toys, that people transact in, as a hobby or investment, with acquisitions coming and going with no loss of dignity or face.
I personally think "the context" about liquidating collectibles (of any kind), is about looking at the situation and using it as a lens to reassess and refocus whether that hobby is really the best place to tie up capital, if you have somehow made yourself too illiquid to cover unforseen financial emergencies.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Is that friend sitting on a huge pile of easily sellable childrens toys? Thats the difference.
Given Archon's example - would it matter if he were? I think the difference here is this person isn't begging. He's not painting a portrait of dire straits or need. The page is just there for people who want to help a helpless situation.
That said it doesn't fit the OPs question, but it does illustrate that GoFund me isn't always about ebegging.
That said the OP is just sore that his sick friend has something he wants. This thread isn't about whether or not you should sell your games before starting a GoFund me. It's about getting a bunch of people to agree to a "no shit" hypothetical to make the OP feel less guilty about being a somewhat shitty friend.
Haha, why is the OP a shitty friend for pointing out the hypocrisy in keeping high priced "collectibles" in 20+ years old plastic and circuit boards over the health of a family member or major life event?
Asking for money while you sit on a hoard of easily liquitable video games makes you a shitty friend.
Edit: Daria, I've seen what you've said about the context, and I agree. I missed that part/you were typing as I was typing, haha.
It would be in everybody's best interest for the friend to sell the game to the OP. Everybody wins!
Originally posted by: arch_8ngel
Originally posted by: AirVillain
To the OP: sell.
Personally, if I didn't want to sell any games I'd get a bank loan, or ask my brother, or put it on my credit card. But that's dumb when you have cash in video games sitting at home.
I'm not sure I understand how people have a video game collection and NOT medical insurance. I mean, get the medical insurance first, get yourself settled, and then buy video games?
"
I suppose I could imagine how somebody finds out they have worse insurance than they thought they had, in terms of max out-of-pocket expenses.
Or perhaps they are faced with "bad timing" of major expenses straddling two years (so getting hit with the max out-of-pocket across two calendar year, when the total treatment time would have easily been contained within a single year)
I am blessed with excellent insurance coverage, but I know there are way worse plans out there, where expenses could balloon quickly.
BUT, I would say that I have a hard time appreciating the mentality of having or accumulating a collection of expensive items without having:
1) a sufficient emergency fund
2) having a sufficient pool of "traditional" investments
3) having access to decent lines of credit (that would provide for immediate expenses while you liquidate collectibles for a good price, in a less hurried way)
I mean, if friends and family contributing to a "GoFundMe" helps them feel involved and helpful, great.
But "pay it forward" and after you liquidate whatever covers the amount, donate it to somebody that is genuinely in need, or an affiliated cause to the problem.
EDIT: the "pay it forward" portion is assuming you already had life insurance on the parent that gets potentially terminally ill -- if not, I'd put it in college accounts for the kids (and still liquidate all of my collectibles, because that sort of event changes one's priorities, IMO)
Good points about the insurance, noted.
Also good points in bold, haha.
And I agree about the friends helping part. I think that would be nice. From the OP, sounds like the people set up their own GFM. If my friends and family did it for me I'd probably be humbled and happy with their support, but I wouldn't ask for it. There's a difference. A BIG difference.
And I like the Pay it Forward thing. The person who had a friend fighting to geth their child back but stoped half way and bought a TV and video games... that's nuts.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe be instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
Of course context matters.
Let's consider the context. We all know that Archon is a big spender. He's spent many thousands of dollars on this and other hobbies. And you're right, no one can ask him to sell his belongings to cover his wife's medical expenses. But based on his collecting history, I'd venture to say that Archon could have afforded the medical expenses without selling a single cart. And speaking contextually, the GoFundMe money would have been better served elsewhere.
With that said, games are not necessarily the most liquid of all investments. So if I need to raise money to pay for cancer treatments for a loved one, am I going to be able to find a buyer for my 50K+ collection in a timely manner? Not necessarily. This brings me to my final thoughts: sell the collection, use GoFundMe as a backup plan, if needed.
While I know it's not always the case (as we've seen a lot of collectors over the years get in over their heads, financially), "the right answer" is that a person probably shouldn't have a $50k+ collection of ANYTHING without having at least that much saved and invested in more liquid things, as well.
(the sole exception would be if you were met with the "windfall" of having snagged it all super-cheap and then prices rose and distorted your situation -- in which case the "right answer" is to sell some of it and diversify at a pace that gets the best price, while you're aren't under-the-gun)
I'd sell my stuff if I really had to in an emergency, I've already done it once. I eventually rebought most of the items I sold that I missed. I've never asked for money from anyone and would only do so as an absolute last resort. Hell, I'd even take out of my 401K before I'd ask other people for money.
I'd sell my stuff if I really had to in an emergency, I've already done it once. I eventually rebought most of the items I sold that I missed. I've never asked for money from anyone and would only do so as an absolute last resort. Hell, I'd even take out of my 401K before I'd ask other people for money.
If you're ever faced with this dilemma... look into what accounts and assets are protected from bankruptcy before you do something rash and touch something that would survive writing off debt.
I had the impression that primary residences and retirement accounts are shielded from things like lawsuits, for instance.
Not saying you should then default to asking other people for money... but that traditional avenues of taking on debt, or simply not paying accrued bills, may simply cause the loss to blow back on the provider/loan-holder in a way that it can't be pursued.
(i.e. you decide what "value" your credit score has, and whether you'll need a loan in the next 7 years...)
Also, for what it's worth, the GoFundMe is not always started by the receiving party. As a stubborn male, I also have too much pride to accept someone else's money when I could be liquidating assets. However, if I was in dire need of money and my friends / colleagues / family were willingly starting one on my behalf, I would not refuse their help.
We did this with a colleague recently, his 3 year old daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. Only the inner circle knew at first, but eventually a work email went out and we raised several thousand dollars for him in a week. I don't care what he spends it on, I know it is unfathomable to watch your own daughter have to live through that. It's been about a year and she's improved, but he's had countless ER trips to Children's Hospital thru the ghetto of Baltimore and all sorts of horror stories that no father should ever have to live thru.
As I stated, raising money for weddings, divorces, car repairs, etc. is silly to me. But when you have life altering diseases your life will NEVER be "normal" again. For some people the best way they can cope is to continue the hobbies they love in some capacity, whether it is collecting, golfing, playing sports, etc. It's not that every single penny or every single second of your life should be spent battling disease... all most people want to do is try to live as "normal" of a life as possible. Don't be so quick to criticize.
I would do both to ensure i get some adequate funds as soon as possible. Usually, especially if it involves medical treatment, most collections are not enough to put a significant dent in it. So a gofundme page is necessary.
In the right situation I would rather see someone start a GFM than try to sell off their material possessions. I would want to contribute to that person feeling as comfortable as possible in a stressful situation. I would want to help them avoid the additional stress of organizing, listing, and shipping possibly hundreds of items to pay for things.
Its funny you brought this up. Just this past week a friend of mine created a GoFundMe for their wedding. He has a substantial collection of hard liquor, over 100 bottles of some of the finest. He also smokes a lot of weed as well as other mind altering chemicals.
My instant thought was, what a fucking joke.
Everyone is doing it in this day and age though, so maybe I need to start a GoFundMe to complete my collection. Who wants to sponsor me?
A GoFundMe for a wedding sounds tacky as fuck.
OTOH, I wouldn't mind kicking in cash to pay for a wedding in-leui of a wedding gift.
The biggest problem with GoFundMe is that it is flooded with 99% junk that drowns out the actual inpecunious people in dire need. No one can call any of them out because "How dare you question them. They are going through -insert tragic event here-." You're automatically the douche bag.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours.
Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
Eh... I paid like $65 to help get a book made that I would eventually have paid that money to buy anyway. I'd say that's a bit different. It was going to a direct good or service I was interested in. If it had just been Pat asking for money to help with a situation, I probably wouldn't donate.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
Who is Ian and what is the background on his GoFundMe page?
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
No, but this is amazingly coincidental irony. It looks like this thread went up about 3 hours before his Gofundme.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
No, but this is amazingly coincidental irony. It looks like this thread went up about 3 hours before his Gofundme.
Thats what I want know to arch. Is Ian a member here?
Well, his name comes up as the top result on GoFundMe right now, if you type in "Ian" as your search.
I guess he is the guy from whatever "Completely Unecessary Podcast" is. (which I've seen mentioned before)
Reading through it, it does sound like an unfortunate situation.
That is, a case where the person doesn't have health insurance, for whatever reason, and is now coming to grips with the reality how expensive medical care is without it.
(and it also reads like he got unlucky with his initial set of physicians, since when my wife had potential gall bladder complaints, they didn't do any further tests, they just scheduled the surgery for that Friday and went ahead and removed it -- that is, extraction of an organ that you can fairly easily live without was less expensive and easier than pursuing definitive diagnostic)
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I look at kickstarters as a glorified preorder system. While there's a lower tier donation option, the bulk of the tiers are for different levels of physical product.
Comments
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Is that friend sitting on a huge pile of easily sellable childrens toys? Thats the difference.
Given Archon's example - would it matter if he were? I think the difference here is this person isn't begging. He's not painting a portrait of dire straits or need. The page is just there for people who want to help a helpless situation.
That said it doesn't fit the OPs question, but it does illustrate that GoFund me isn't always about ebegging.
That said the OP is just sore that his sick friend has something he wants. This thread isn't about whether or not you should sell your games before starting a GoFund me. It's about getting a bunch of people to agree to a "no shit" hypothetical to make the OP feel less guilty about being a somewhat shitty friend.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe be instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
To the OP: sell.
Personally, if I didn't want to sell any games I'd get a bank loan, or ask my brother, or put it on my credit card. But that's dumb when you have cash in video games sitting at home.
I'm not sure I understand how people have a video game collection and NOT medical insurance. I mean, get the medical insurance first, get yourself settled, and then buy video games?
"
I suppose I could imagine how somebody finds out they have worse insurance than they thought they had, in terms of max out-of-pocket expenses.
Or perhaps they are faced with "bad timing" of major expenses straddling two years (so getting hit with the max out-of-pocket across two calendar year, when the total treatment time would have easily been contained within a single year)
I am blessed with excellent insurance coverage, but I know there are way worse plans out there, where expenses could balloon quickly.
BUT, I would say that I have a hard time appreciating the mentality of having or accumulating a collection of expensive items without having:
1) a sufficient emergency fund
2) having a sufficient pool of "traditional" investments
3) having access to decent lines of credit (that would provide for immediate expenses while you liquidate collectibles for a good price, in a less hurried way)
I mean, if friends and family contributing to a "GoFundMe" helps them feel involved and helpful, great.
But "pay it forward" and after you liquidate whatever covers the amount, donate it to somebody that is genuinely in need, or an affiliated cause to the problem.
EDIT: the "pay it forward" portion is assuming you already had life insurance on the parent that gets potentially terminally ill -- if not, I'd put it in college accounts for the kids (and still liquidate all of my collectibles, because that sort of event changes one's priorities, IMO)
But when the receiver is upfront about not needing the funds and people want to give anywhere - because they care, or its their friend. That's on the giver to decided. In that situation the financial situation of the receiver is no one's business.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
I think the language we use about this is important.
I don't know about others in the thread, but when I read "sell of their personal belongings", I see that as extraordinarily strong language that implies the person is suffering a great indignity (i.e. a bankrupt that is literally selling their furniture, their appliances, their family heirlooms, and anything else of value).
But we're talking about collectible toys, that people transact in, as a hobby or investment, with acquisitions coming and going with no loss of dignity or face.
I personally think "the context" about liquidating collectibles (of any kind), is about looking at the situation and using it as a lens to reassess and refocus whether that hobby is really the best place to tie up capital, if you have somehow made yourself too illiquid to cover unforseen financial emergencies.
Well like i said earlier, it isnt always about "begging for money". Sometimes its about giving people who want to help in a helpless situation a way to do that.
For instance. Last week a close friend of ours lost their 13 year old daughter to congenital heart disease. And many people in our circle are completely obliterated over it and there is Fuck-all-nothing we can do. The family is not in dire straights. If nobody gave them a dime, they would be able to pay for their daughters final expenses just fine. But because so many of us wanted to help, a gofundme was started, and now we get to do alleviate something from the family in a very direct way.
Is that friend sitting on a huge pile of easily sellable childrens toys? Thats the difference.
Given Archon's example - would it matter if he were? I think the difference here is this person isn't begging. He's not painting a portrait of dire straits or need. The page is just there for people who want to help a helpless situation.
That said it doesn't fit the OPs question, but it does illustrate that GoFund me isn't always about ebegging.
That said the OP is just sore that his sick friend has something he wants. This thread isn't about whether or not you should sell your games before starting a GoFund me. It's about getting a bunch of people to agree to a "no shit" hypothetical to make the OP feel less guilty about being a somewhat shitty friend.
Haha, why is the OP a shitty friend for pointing out the hypocrisy in keeping high priced "collectibles" in 20+ years old plastic and circuit boards over the health of a family member or major life event?
Asking for money while you sit on a hoard of easily liquitable video games makes you a shitty friend.
Edit: Daria, I've seen what you've said about the context, and I agree. I missed that part/you were typing as I was typing, haha.
It would be in everybody's best interest for the friend to sell the game to the OP. Everybody wins!
To the OP: sell.
Personally, if I didn't want to sell any games I'd get a bank loan, or ask my brother, or put it on my credit card. But that's dumb when you have cash in video games sitting at home.
I'm not sure I understand how people have a video game collection and NOT medical insurance. I mean, get the medical insurance first, get yourself settled, and then buy video games?
"
I suppose I could imagine how somebody finds out they have worse insurance than they thought they had, in terms of max out-of-pocket expenses.
Or perhaps they are faced with "bad timing" of major expenses straddling two years (so getting hit with the max out-of-pocket across two calendar year, when the total treatment time would have easily been contained within a single year)
I am blessed with excellent insurance coverage, but I know there are way worse plans out there, where expenses could balloon quickly.
BUT, I would say that I have a hard time appreciating the mentality of having or accumulating a collection of expensive items without having:
1) a sufficient emergency fund
2) having a sufficient pool of "traditional" investments
3) having access to decent lines of credit (that would provide for immediate expenses while you liquidate collectibles for a good price, in a less hurried way)
I mean, if friends and family contributing to a "GoFundMe" helps them feel involved and helpful, great.
But "pay it forward" and after you liquidate whatever covers the amount, donate it to somebody that is genuinely in need, or an affiliated cause to the problem.
EDIT: the "pay it forward" portion is assuming you already had life insurance on the parent that gets potentially terminally ill -- if not, I'd put it in college accounts for the kids (and still liquidate all of my collectibles, because that sort of event changes one's priorities, IMO)
Good points about the insurance, noted.
Also good points in bold, haha.
And I agree about the friends helping part. I think that would be nice. From the OP, sounds like the people set up their own GFM. If my friends and family did it for me I'd probably be humbled and happy with their support, but I wouldn't ask for it. There's a difference. A BIG difference.
And I like the Pay it Forward thing. The person who had a friend fighting to geth their child back but stoped half way and bought a TV and video games... that's nuts.
Look bro, what you and your wife are going through--I can't even imagine. I was genuinely happy to hear that she got through her surgery.
But starting a GoFundMe page for her medical expenses, all the while sitting on a pile of collectibles... Hell, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that during this time you were actually adding to your NES library.
Maybe be instead of that you could have asked your friends to make donations in her name to breast cancer research. Or maybe you could have directed them to a GoDundMe page of someone who actually needed the help.
Again, man. All the best to you and your family. Truly. But I can't agree with your actions here.
I've seen the community rally together to give money without asking that the reciever sell off their personal belongings first.
That said the difference is the community initiated the fundraising and not the reciever. BUT I've seen it where people want to give so they convince the reciever to setup the page so they have an organized avenue to do so. Context matters.
Of course context matters.
Let's consider the context. We all know that Archon is a big spender. He's spent many thousands of dollars on this and other hobbies. And you're right, no one can ask him to sell his belongings to cover his wife's medical expenses. But based on his collecting history, I'd venture to say that Archon could have afforded the medical expenses without selling a single cart. And speaking contextually, the GoFundMe money would have been better served elsewhere.
With that said, games are not necessarily the most liquid of all investments. So if I need to raise money to pay for cancer treatments for a loved one, am I going to be able to find a buyer for my 50K+ collection in a timely manner? Not necessarily. This brings me to my final thoughts: sell the collection, use GoFundMe as a backup plan, if needed.
While I know it's not always the case (as we've seen a lot of collectors over the years get in over their heads, financially), "the right answer" is that a person probably shouldn't have a $50k+ collection of ANYTHING without having at least that much saved and invested in more liquid things, as well.
(the sole exception would be if you were met with the "windfall" of having snagged it all super-cheap and then prices rose and distorted your situation -- in which case the "right answer" is to sell some of it and diversify at a pace that gets the best price, while you're aren't under-the-gun)
I'd sell my stuff if I really had to in an emergency, I've already done it once. I eventually rebought most of the items I sold that I missed. I've never asked for money from anyone and would only do so as an absolute last resort. Hell, I'd even take out of my 401K before I'd ask other people for money.
If you're ever faced with this dilemma... look into what accounts and assets are protected from bankruptcy before you do something rash and touch something that would survive writing off debt.
I had the impression that primary residences and retirement accounts are shielded from things like lawsuits, for instance.
Not saying you should then default to asking other people for money... but that traditional avenues of taking on debt, or simply not paying accrued bills, may simply cause the loss to blow back on the provider/loan-holder in a way that it can't be pursued.
(i.e. you decide what "value" your credit score has, and whether you'll need a loan in the next 7 years...)
We did this with a colleague recently, his 3 year old daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. Only the inner circle knew at first, but eventually a work email went out and we raised several thousand dollars for him in a week. I don't care what he spends it on, I know it is unfathomable to watch your own daughter have to live through that. It's been about a year and she's improved, but he's had countless ER trips to Children's Hospital thru the ghetto of Baltimore and all sorts of horror stories that no father should ever have to live thru.
As I stated, raising money for weddings, divorces, car repairs, etc. is silly to me. But when you have life altering diseases your life will NEVER be "normal" again. For some people the best way they can cope is to continue the hobbies they love in some capacity, whether it is collecting, golfing, playing sports, etc. It's not that every single penny or every single second of your life should be spent battling disease... all most people want to do is try to live as "normal" of a life as possible. Don't be so quick to criticize.
Its funny you brought this up. Just this past week a friend of mine created a GoFundMe for their wedding. He has a substantial collection of hard liquor, over 100 bottles of some of the finest. He also smokes a lot of weed as well as other mind altering chemicals.
My instant thought was, what a fucking joke.
Everyone is doing it in this day and age though, so maybe I need to start a GoFundMe to complete my collection. Who wants to sponsor me?
A GoFundMe for a wedding sounds tacky as fuck.
OTOH, I wouldn't mind kicking in cash to pay for a wedding in-leui of a wedding gift.
The poll really needs a "Why not both?" option.
A GoFundMe for a wedding sounds tacky as fuck.
OTOH, I wouldn't mind kicking in cash to pay for a wedding in-leui of a wedding gift.
There are less tacky ways to handle it than a GoFundMe page, IMO.
(though extravagant/expensive weddings are often tacky in their own right, to begin with)
Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
Eh... I paid like $65 to help get a book made that I would eventually have paid that money to buy anyway. I'd say that's a bit different. It was going to a direct good or service I was interested in. If it had just been Pat asking for money to help with a situation, I probably wouldn't donate.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
Who is Ian and what is the background on his GoFundMe page?
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
No, but this is amazingly coincidental irony. It looks like this thread went up about 3 hours before his Gofundme.
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I had no idea Ian launched a FundMe page until I saw your post. Is that the reason why this thread got started? God, I hope people here aren't throwing out the "GoFundMe'rs suck" simply because it's related to Ian/Pat.
No, but this is amazingly coincidental irony. It looks like this thread went up about 3 hours before his Gofundme.
Yep, it looks like you're right.
Thats what I want know to arch. Is Ian a member here?
Well, his name comes up as the top result on GoFundMe right now, if you type in "Ian" as your search.
I guess he is the guy from whatever "Completely Unecessary Podcast" is. (which I've seen mentioned before)
Reading through it, it does sound like an unfortunate situation.
That is, a case where the person doesn't have health insurance, for whatever reason, and is now coming to grips with the reality how expensive medical care is without it.
(and it also reads like he got unlucky with his initial set of physicians, since when my wife had potential gall bladder complaints, they didn't do any further tests, they just scheduled the surgery for that Friday and went ahead and removed it -- that is, extraction of an organ that you can fairly easily live without was less expensive and easier than pursuing definitive diagnostic)
You all must have the fact Ian has raised more than $13k in 12 hours. Couldn't the same go for kickstarters? Pat has tons of stuff he could have sold to fund his book, but a lot of people here were more than happy to back it.
I look at kickstarters as a glorified preorder system. While there's a lower tier donation option, the bulk of the tiers are for different levels of physical product.