My Collecting Commandments And Absolute Damnation

The first Absolute Football case break has been posted on blowout, and I think this may be the first year where I wont even buy a single or pack even. To borrow from Mario, the set pretty much breaks all of my commandments of card design, especially in the content of the set. Ill go over a few of them here in the context of the pictures posted by the user.

Thou Shalt Not Use Rainbow Foil Board

I talked earlier on how awful the use of rainbow foil and mirror board has become. Absolute is ENTIRELY printed on it. Every card. Every single fucking card. The cards look ridiculous in a bad way, almost making the practice of "collecting a rainbow" a new thing entirely. The condition of the cards out of the packs are obviously going to be the same as last year, something that everyone thought was a huge drawback to this set.

Thou Shalt Not Obscure The Player On The Card

There is no worse practice in cards than when a player is hidden by needless additions to a card. In this set, there are MANY examples of players being more than 50% disrupted by a swatch window. I really couldn’t care less about having a ginormous swatch on a card, as design will always be more important. When that mammoth swatch covers up the player, I would rather run my hand through a wood chipper than pay my money to get one of them. In 2005, DLP managed to put together a great set in the tools of the trade giant swatch set, and NONE of the swatches were intrusive on the actual subject's picture.

Thou Shalt Not Use Event Used Football Swatches

Its one thing to use a swatch of a football from the rookie premiere that was tossed around for two throws before going in a bucket (10 per player!), but to force it into the design of the card when its not needed, deserves even more lightning from the heavens in smitten anger. Donini is weirdly obsessed with including these swatches of football into as many products as it can, despite the fact that they have less connection to the player than a jersey worn around for 30 seconds. Its really unfortunate.

Thou Shalt Not Break Line Borders With Swatch Windows

If you are going to put die cuts and oddly shaped swatch windows into a product, you have to fit it seemlessly into the design. That means creating the borders to fit the placement, not just plopping them willy nilly whereever you want. Take a look at the line borders of the cards featuring swatches, and not just the edges of the cards. Each line could be considered a border, and when you have swatches that break those lines, it looks amateurish and poorly conceived. A line should never be broken by a swatch window, unless it makes sense in the context of the design. This set is ripe with cards that break every last word of this commandment.

Thou Shalt Not Overuse Parallels In ANY Product

Although Tracy Hack-ler thinks that Donruss never uses many parallels in their products, they are known industry wide for the practice of paralleling their cards to hell. Absolute is a testament to that fact, with the set featuring humongous numbers of needless parallels of each card. Like many Donruss products, each card has a series of parallels of the non-hit base card, a jersey parallel, a patch parallel, an auto parallel, and an auto jersey parallel, and an auto patch parallel. That means there could be in upwards of ten parallels for every subset in the product (this is the DLP standard). Tools of the trade takes it to a whole new level, with a good percentage of the cards featuring more than 20 parallels, including a parallel series without a swatch. That is just absurd in every way.

Thou Shalt Not Lie About All Star Game Jerseys

If you remember, Topps has used their flagship product and Triple Threads in baseball to showcase all star game swatches, when really they are just jerseys used in a topps event with the players. All star game jerseys are extremely hard to come by, as many players want to keep them as a memento of the game, therefore making them sought after items by jersey collectors. This year, Absolute has an entire fucking subset of tools of the trade dedicated to the "jerseys," when really they seem to be not even close to being game worn. The cards also say "event worn" leading us to believe these were just slipped on and off at the pro bowl just like the rookies at the premiere.

(This one breaks more than one commandment!)

Thou Shalt Use Bright Backgrounds With Sticker Autos

Since Panini RARELY uses on card autos, Absolute is 100% sticker autos. The problem is that many of the stickers are slapped onto cards that feature blocks of dark colors. The rookie premiere materials cards are a focus of this set, and many of the team colors are featured in some way in weirdly designed line blasts. These awful looking blocks of color created by the line blasts cross the places where the stickers go. Because teams like the Vikings and others use darker colors, those rookies autos are interrupted. At least it still looks better than Topps using bordered boxes for theirs.

Its really too bad that Absolute has made it to a point of parody, as it used to be a favorite set of mine. I bought one solitary single last year, was disappointed and gave up on the set altogether. This year im not even going to waste my time. What a waste.

Hiding Is Not Worth The Effort

Yesterday, Beckett posted the end to their highly publicized in depth three year long expose about the fake Topps Rookie Premiere autos. This move sparked quite a frenzy over why this approach was taken, a lot of those comments focusing on Beckett's lack of professionalism. Rather than moving on or examining the impact of said news, Hackler instead decided it was better to take passive shots at the vast amounts of discussion over the merits of Topps move. After discussing with some of the other bloggers the reason for this idiotic display of douchebaggery, it became clear to us why this was all happening in such a weird fashion.

As most people said, including myself, the move by Topps was just a minor chink in the armor created by these people who sell hundreds of fake Rookie Premiere Autos. Beckett, as most of us expected, focused more on the inconsequential parts of the story, as not to disturb the plethora of people who come to them with news. I mean, because "player issue" cards are a HUGE part of the problem, right? Personally, I now see why Topps decided that Beckett would be a better outlet to break this story to. Rather than giving the story to a blog like this one, they chose a more familiar outlet. Clearly, its easier to go with a friend who wouldnt question the lack of action or call them out for focusing on the future rather than the present. Topps knew that going with Beckett would provide them with the opportunity to hide behind a solution that only covers upcoming cards instead of securing one that deals with the current problem.

Despite what people may say about my motives, many were left scratching their heads as to why Topps wasn’t going after the scammers more aggressively. If you think about it, it’s a good way to guard against future transgressions if the people responsible are punished for their crimes. Of course, there is a large discrepancy over the amount of time needed to execute this bust and the time available to execute it, which is a great reason why its important to have the discussion now. By throwing this solution at the problem, you still leave the collector base open to decade worth of fake cards, all being sold to unsuspecting people who pay hundreds to get them. How about protecting the customer rather than yourself? Hmm, becoming clearer now why Beckett got the resolution rather than the blogs?

Luckily here in the blog network we have established, its no longer an easy task to hide in plain sight, as many of the people who read Beckett's blog also read Mario, Rob and I. That means the people who read the kid gloves version of the story, are also going to get a lot of the riff raff you create by handling it that way.

Topps Finally Takes Action On The Fake RPAs

Even though Beckett stepped in and took the credit for all the work I have done with this blog and for my watchdog pieces at Tuff Stuff, I think it bears coverage here. Voluntarheel passed this story along to me from those fucking asshats, and I am glad that Clay Luraschi decided enough was, well, kind of enough.

Per their release, Topps will now be foil numbering the Rookie Premiere autos, which should prevent SOME of the counterfeiters from doing their shit-tastic fakes. This is good. Sadly, its too little too late, as they should have just gone in an pulled down all the obvious ones already on eBay. Its not even that hard to tell which arent real, so im not sure why those shit eaters are allowed to continue to sell counterfeit pieces, especially when we now know Topps has knowledge of the situation. Typical bullshit.

I know that its very good that Topps has assured the future should be taken care of, but I think the fact that scammers are getting a free pass for their reprehensible businesses is just as pressing of an issue. Well, we will see how long it takes Topps to get in on that, if they ever do.

Now, since Beckett has the wonderful reputation of taking credit for the work of others, Im not surprised that this happened. I am kind of disappointed that Topps didnt even have the common courtesy to give me the heads up that they were changing this production practice, though the outcome is really all that matters. Thank you for doing this Topps, it makes me very happy, and gives me a LITTLE confidence that you have someone there who knows what they are doing. Of course, this does not give you a free pass on the ones that are up right now, posted on here as recent as fucking YESTERDAY. So get off your asses and do something before you dig yourself right into another hole.

Beckett's Upcoming National Show Report: REVEALED!

Guys, I just got an exclusive preview of Beckett's national card show report, as my personal psychic has dictated it word for word to me per her vision of the future. At this point in our technology, we are unable to time travel into the future, but this is a pretty good replacement. For your warning, I want to post this just so you have an idea of what is going to go down this week, before it happens. Thanks to Madame Cleo for this:

Beckett Is A Bright Star At The National Card Show

By Tracy Hackler, Editor, Beckett Everything Magazine

Golly! What a week at the national card show! We had a blast showing everyone the awesome things that Beckett has done over the last year as well as what is coming up for 2009 and 2010! I cant believe how many collectors we met, as well as all of the amazing things that at the best booth at the show! Here is a recap of what went down.

- Most of you heard about the Pristine 10 BGS Montana RC from last year's show, but just wait until you hear about this year! In front of everyone, we graded the first ever Pristine BGS Michael Jordan 1986 Fleer RC! It was a sight, and a great investment for a collector who wished to remain anonymous. At least he was wearing a Beckett shirt, which was great for working the booth after the commotion died down! Who would have guessed that the biggest card grade in history would have come from the biggest show on the planet? We didnt!

- There were also a ton of people who came and told us how much they loved seeing us do our Beckett Box Busters! Unfortunately, there are a few vocal people out there who tell us that this is a huge problem, but the ten or so people we talked to all told us how much they loved it. Shows how much those downers out there know about collectors! Then, when those Beckett fans broke the boxes we gave them, they told us about how much more they loved the Beckett Box Busters! We aim to please!

- On Friday, our own Chris Olds and Timmy, a ten year old collector from Cleveland, got a chance for his own special episode of box busters! Thanks to our "friends" at Panini, they were able to break dueling boxes of Panini's upcoming Absolute Memorabilia, more than 2 months early! To our amazement, Chris ended up pulling a 1/1 Michael Crabtree auto patch! Talk about luck, right? As for Timmy, he pulled a sweet Andre Caldwell auto, so he went away happy too!

- Beckett also unveiled that in addition to grading cards on the spot at the show, they were also starting up the first ever completely graded card live auction! We opened the huge Beckett vaults, pulled out as many 9.5s of some of the most important cards in history, and made them available for the first time to you! The auction was a huge success, and it also allowed us to pay the electric bill we have been trying to avoid paying for so long. People may have complained that the cards we sold didn’t look right, but our grades are completely legit, as they always truly are. These are the ones graded by our top graders over the last few years, and the grading standard has been accepted by collectors worldwide. Also, some of these graded cards will be available again on the new Beckett Graded Card Marketplace, where you can buy the 9.5s directly from us!

- We also got compliment after compliment from kids at the show who told us how happy they were to find out that their collections were worth so much in the price guide. After using our "my collection" station, 8 year old Joey C found out that the cards his dad had given him from 1987 were worth over $1000 dollars due to the sheer number he had! Again Beckett satisfies another collector, good luck selling those million cards Joey!

- Fresh off his sweet box break, Chris Olds was also a big hit! He wowed us with material from the best blog on the net, showing everyone why the Beckett blog should be the ONLY stop you make on the blogosphere. We are so glad to see that his work paid off in talking about the Craigslist Collector Corner, where he tried to educate a few people on how outdated their ads were. He also showed a few previews for his expose on the fake Topps rookie premiere autographs, as well as his "man on the street" features. Chris is definitely the most innovative blogger out there.

- Lastly, Panini and Beckett embarked on a long standing relationship with our teams formally announcing that all high end Panini products will feature Beckett/JSA authenticated player autos, as well as a special Panini page on the Beckett site. Despite accusations that the new partnership stood against everything that is right and just in the hobby, we promised that no favoritism would occur. In fact, we even showcased the first pricing for Panini's Donruss Elite, the most valuable set of the year so far! This is great news for this new company on the block, as well as great news for our new special Panini Market Analysts, who will be working directly with the manufacturer to make sure all pricing reflects exactly what the cards are worth.

The folks here and in Texas cannot wait for next year's show, so be sure to check back to Beckett.com for more overage and pictures!

Im so glad that Madame Cleo had such a good vision of the future! This is some gold right here!

How Deep Does The Relationship Between Beckett and Panini Really Go?

We all know the events of the past four or five months, Beckett and Panini have basically declared their sloppy love for each other, even going pretty far in showing that relationship off to the public. Although its pretty sickening to me, not many people know how deep that love really is.

It starts with tiny stuff, like Beckett receiving boxes weeks ahead of their release, and larger amounts exclusive info here and there. For each of the last Panini releases, Beckett has gotten boxes up to ten to fifteen days ahead of the street date, some of them with pretty nice stuff in it. You may remember that after the hype machine behind the school colors on card autos, Beckett pulled a Percy Harvin, a card I have yet to see being offered to the public. Although it wasnt a huge dollar pull, it was a card from an overhyped, ugly product that needed a little push. I rarely believe these things to be a coincidence.

Of course, this was after the massive amounts of exclusive previews that Beckett receives directly from Panini, sometimes needlessly so. Its almost like they are providing Beckett with these things to try to show people that when it comes to news, Beckett is it, despite the fact that are continually out-scooped by the blogs. Add in that stories are consistently ripped off of the people who do it for fun, and you see why this practice is necessary. Beckett is basically facing the fact that message boards and blogs are now the number one source for hobby news, and they are left with Wrestling cards and promises of finding love for lonely collectors.

What people arent familiar with is that Scott Prusha of Panini Marketing, and Tracy Hackler have been best friends since Prusha started his career with Beckett media. In fact, Prusha and Hackler have such a close relationship, that Hackler was the best man at Prusha's wedding. To think that these two people have teamed together to boost each of the products the other offers, doesnt seem like so much of a stretch anymore. Not only that, but it may be the evidence people are looking for when it comes to establishing the link between Panini and Beckett's coexistance.

Its also kind of interesting that Panini products have been hailed by Beckett Football as the best of the year so far, even though there are less than 10 total products from three companies on the market. Plus, the UD products have made the Panini products look like they were done by people who didnt know what the fuck they were doing, so the title of best of the year seems like a huge stretch. Why else would that be the case other than pure favoritism?

The reason that I focus on this so much is because of what it means for average collectors, who may not spend the time on the blogs. They see Beckett as a legit news source, when really it is just advertising for their buddies. Im guessing that prices for Panini will also be higher this year despite the "market analysts" they have, yeah fucking right. I would go so far as saying that new collectors may be so jaded on this that Panini sales are above where they actually should be, despite the already poor performance they have had on the primary and secondary markets.

Lastly, we already know that Beckett and Panini have had and will have events together that showcase the relationship they have built. There have also been multiple sources that have told me that Panini reps will be at Beckett's national booth, and vice versa. So, based on that information, isnt it safe to say that a company like Panini should not be supported the way that other companies are? I dont remember hearing anything about a Topps/Tuff Stuff relationship where both companies worked together to help the other out.

See, when you present yourself as an objective news source and price guide for the hobby, relationships like the one Panini and Beckett have should not be fucking tolerated. Bottom line. The problem is that Beckett has no responsibility to the people they consider to be their reader base, so they end up doing some of the douchebaggiest things since UD printed extra griffey rookies on the weekends. Sadly, the people they hurt are not the type of people that read SCU and Wax Heaven, but rather the collectors who dont have those opportunities. Each kid who picks up a Beckett forms an opinion, some of those opinions being ones entirely based on the info they read. I know I did as a kid. With that information and those opinions, new ideas are formed, most of which are based on lies.

Ask yourself, are these the type of people you want to support?

A Comment On VOTC's National Show Coverage

The National is nigh, and Rob from VOTC has posted a great guide to making it the card show experience of your life. I do have a few things to add, as I see it a little differently than most of the others out there. Obviously, I cant go due to having to work this weekend and being across the country, but I hope a lot of you do. It looks like a lot of fun, and you are really going to have to watch your wallet.

Before you go splurge on your future collection centerpieces, remember that eBay is still the best way to get cards, hands down. Even though this show will pretty much have everything you could ever need, its still a show. Also remember that when you go from table to table, the prices are still show prices, and that most of the regular cards wont be worth your time unless you are trading your stuff away. Even in that case, I would probably wait before handing your collection to a dealer booth, as they will only give you trade values based on them making money(we all know what that means).

What I would suggest is trying to find those cards that wont be available anywhere else. You know there are going to be some ridiculous cards, in a good way, and this may be your time to A) see what is out there B) window shop and C) secure some nice rarities and oddballs. Other than that, I would be very careful if you are going to buy mid to high end stuff at show prices.

Second, the manufacturers booths are the way to go as Rob said. They have awesome giveaways and ways to get free stuff. If you do one thing at the show, its go to these booths.

In terms of buying versus trading, this is a show that has thousands of collectors there for one reason. I would not hesitate to set up some trades with collectors instead of the dealers, as you know that they don’t have to pay overhead for booth space. I have heard so many amazing stories of trades that go down, and I assume that if you look, you should be able to find a lot of the action.

Another great thing is the case breaks that go down, because as you can imagine, collectors from all walks of life will be there. Last year I heard there were so many Cup and Exquisite breaks that they almost devoted a whole room to the people who spend 20K and break it all there. Keep your eyes out as you may see something that you will never be able to see again in that respect. Also, many of these people bust for stuff to sell at the show, so it’s a good chance that you would be able to work out a deal for any card they pull. Not always, but I got an email from a guy last year who said he purchased a Brady Quinn Exquisite Patch Rookie Auto for 20 bucks. The scan alone was worth that.

Of course, Beckett will be there, and they are going to be surrounded by everything that makes them the devil in this industry. They surely will grade your cards on the spot, and they will also have something called "Raw Card Review" like they do at every show. It is the biggest rip off ever created, don’t fall for it. RCR is basically them stealing your money, as they take a quick look at your unslabbed card and give it an "expected" grade. The problem is that these grades are NOT guaranteed to transfer to a slab and are not held with the same premium as the regular slabs. It will still cost you a long wait and some cash you could spend elsewhere. Also, there will be about 100,000 cards they will need to slab in three days, so the attention your card will get will be minimal compared to the regular process. This could work to your advantage, but it could also screw you out of getting a deserved higher grade. I don’t support grading at all, but if you have to do it, wait for better ways, or don’t request on the spot service.

With Beckett, they seem to think that the people at the National justify a lot of their horrible existence, but you will see why I have some of the problems I do with their practices, just from observing their booth. From what I have heard from my industry sources, there may be Panini reps AT the Beckett booth, and many of the Beckett giveaways will be Panini in nature. No surprise there. Either way, I am confident that Tracy Hackler will be sure to give his report of how much positive feedback they get at the show, but as an enlightened collector, I would stay far away from anything they have to offer. That is, unless you actually want to be surrounded by a bunch of price guide thumping idiots who want to suckle at the teat of the hobby's number one source on douchebaggery. Really, I'm sure there will be enough price guide propaganda outside of the area around their station, as this show will probably be ripe with JCs who don’t know anything about the sheer stupidity of everything Beckett preaches.

Also, Blowout and DACardworld are going to be there and they always have some sweet deals on wax. If you are looking for older stuff, or stuff that has been out for a few years even, check out the booths, they will have some rock bottom prices.

Just be sure to remember that it may be the national, but its still a card show. It will be a blast even if you don’t buy anything, so don’t think you are wasting time and money if you just go there to see the gathering. I think that because so many of your contacts from the blogs and the message boards will be there, it would be a great way to put some faces and personalities to the names. Keep your eyes peeled for good deals, and avoid tables with price guides sitting in prominent places.

Most importantly, send me the pictures!!

The Donini/Beckett Love Affair Continues: How Far Does It Go?

So, Donini sent over another box to Beckett, again a week early. Im sure it was for all the "favors" to be named later, but this one gave us some indication of how deep the love affair really runs. Not only was it a week early, fresh from the factory, but it contained an auto that Donini has been publicizing non-stop since the Premiere last month.

They managed to "pull" (being a subjective term) a Percy Harvin School Colors fugly silver paint pen auto, which in itself isnt that big of a deal. The reason I am mentioning this is solely because of the sheer fuckload of marketing they have done on these cards. They have released digital galleries - twice - as well as provided extremely visible coverage from the premiere signing of the cards.

After seeing all of this marketing crap, I guessed that it was happening because when Donini releases an on card auto subset, its a holiday! No matter that they are fugly beyond belief, they are just happy to be a waiter at the on card auto dinner table, right?



Obviously, post-beckett break, its making a little more sense to me. Considering that Beckett was delivered a box with a top of the class auto from this set, we are now seeing the purpose of the Beckett box break. Its no longer about setting unrealistic expectations for the box breaks that are done by real collectors, but now its about pimping your ugly ass subsets to draw up needless buzz. My uncle, an emmy award winning writer, once said that hollywood only advertises early when its a dog, otherwise they let the stuff speak for itself - then blow it up. Here we clearly have the dog, being blown up as long ago as the fucking rookie premiere. Then you send a fresh box to Beckett with a "great" example of that target? Cmon, im not that dumb.

Im not even going to talk about the 2 patch cards they received in the same box, something that NEVER happens in boxes of Classics.

Lastly, on an unrelated note, Im happy that Donini has sort of solved their floating swatch problems, as some of the jersey cards look good. However, they majorly fucked up the base formula by editing out the field and replacing it with a weird ass brown background. Im not sure why, as I think the field is ABSOLUTELY necessary to do a picture it's due justice. Without it, you just have overdone photoshop abortions with no character.

Where Your Subscription Money Goes...

Well, looks like Beckett has pissed off more people, including former employees. Ha, love it. Despite the fact that I have received internal communications that Beckett is not at all well to do in terms of finance, this post on Boycott Beckett seems to show that they at least have money to threaten the bloggers with lawsuits.

Well, glad to see that Beckett's priorities are in the right order:

1) Suck Donini's cock

2) Threaten former employees with libel suits

3) Use the "millions" of dollars in the bank to file said suits

4) Try to get leg up on bloggers who do everything for free

5) Make excuses for epically failing at #4

6) Suck Donini's cock

7) Put together Donini marketing event at Beckett HQ

...

...

...

100) report on hobby "info" (actually more advertising for Donini)

Good job there on establishing these. Glad to see Beckett is still the number one source for Douchebaggery.

Beckett and Donini: As If There Was Any Question Anymore

Thank you to reader Greg for sending this in care of the Beckett idiots.

I am not going to plug anything for them, but I want to point out a few things that are very VERY important to collectors who question any relationship between Panini and Beckett. Its getting to the point now where they are sharing lollipops and walking around with their hands in each other's back pockets. Im really hoping that people respond as wretchedly as I did.

For their upcoming "Screw The Hobby and The Collectors" event:

You can …
– Meet James Spence, the JSA staff, Beckett Media and Panini representatives.
SCU: So, now Beckett and Panini are doing events together? Sickening.

– Increase the value of your memorabilia by assuring its authenticity.
SCU: Third party authentication does not "assure authenticity," especially when it is done on site.

– Have your items authenticated and appraised by the best in the industry.
SCU: PSA has better authentication than JSA if you HAVE to do it. I don’t even need to point that out, everyone knows. As for the appraisal, I have no idea why people would have confidence in any appraisal from someone that values cards the way Beckett does.

– Get on-site encapsulation and grading performed by Beckett Grading Services and receive your item back the same day submitted.
SCU: Another scam, perpetrated by people who only want your money. Fuck, they NEED your money.

– Attend free seminars and Q&A sessions from BGS, JSA, and Panini representatives.
SCU: I would pay someone to go and ask why Beckett thinks it’s not a conflict of interest to partner with a company whose value and sales are helped/hurt by the price guide.

– Win free stuff from Panini and Beckett Media.
SCU: Swag is good enough reason to go and perform the above request.

– Participate in a Card Grading Contest. How accurately can you grade
under BGS/BVG standards?
SCU: Im guessing since its all arbitrary and subjective, you can be AS GOOD as the "professionals!"

– Meet Beckett Select Auction staff for free evaluation of your high-end sports collectibles.
SCU: See above with the appraisals. "So, my Marty Cordova authenticated JSA jersey is worth 400 bucks according to you? Awesome, now find me a buyer at that price."

Please, please, please, someone in texas please go to this event to fuck shit up. I would laugh hysterically and offer you plugs galore for whatever you want. I don’t think there could be a better event for SCU readers, especially with all the wonderful appraisals they will give you. Hell, go get your card graded by the "best in the business." Hahahaha.

I LOLed.

This was great from the Beckett douches: "We’re not going to tell you what we had to do to get it, but we’ve managed to procure a box of 2009 Donruss Elite Football almost a full week before its official release date." Im guessing it went a little something like this:

Donini Brand Manager: Hello you got the big guy, talk.
Hackler: Hey baby, how YOU doin?
DBM: Oh, hi, didn’t realize it was you! Im doing great!
Hacker: So, I was wondering if I could come over later, grab a few boxes of Elite, and maybe help you "relax."
DBM: God, I love when you do that. Id give you a case for your talents.
Hackler: I only have eyes for you Donini, ill be over later, light some candles.
DBM: Oh, almost forgot. Remember the deal. You LOVE this product, and we continue to help you scoop the misinformed cesspools.
Hackler: Wont be a problem.

Well, since Donini loves Beckett like a fat kid love cake, they got a box of Prestige Chrome a full week ahead of time. They may not have pulled anything, as this was obviously NOT a hand seeded product, but you can bet this solidifies that I am going to have a very hard time supporting Donini products this year. Either way, it shouldn’t be too hard if the cards look as shitty as they did in this video.

You can already see the poorly constructed cards with the Maroney being ass backwards with a swatch in no man's land. Plus, the weird ghost starburst looked ridicu-stupid on the base cards, im not sure who thought that looked good. So far, Ill be passing on this product faster than Donini can say "I heart Beckett."

A Comment On The Montana BGS 10 Sale

I just want to leverage the Montana BGS 10 against some very interesting information that was briefly discussed by Mario in his write up of the recent auction. First off, we know that the Montana was graded at the national convention by an "anonymous" person who didn’t want the publicity of having the only 10 ever graded. As Mario mentioned, this person was long thought to be associated with Beckett, and used that relationship to his advantage in the grading of the card. Sean Storms, the current seller of the card is opening an eBay business that specializes in the inventory that will provide BGS with some very important cards and clients. Add this all together, in addition to the history of one of the douchebaggiest companies known for providing favorable grading treatment to their large customers and friends, and you have a large scale scam that may have cost a buyer $65,000.

First off, lets discuss a little bit about BGS and PSA grading, and the incredibly subjective grading that they put cards through. Mario mentioned that it is so subjective, that collectors have made a practice of cracking holders and resubmitting cards for better grades. Now, I discussed a while ago about PSA offering better average grades for larger orders than it does for customers who use the service once in a blue moon. BGS has been largely accused of the same practice, mainly because they supposedly spend less time on individual pieces from larger orders, and that large volume customers can often be driven away by the lack of good grades. This leads to higher grades on the cards, and only exacerbates the scam.

BGS is a business just like every other part of this hobby, and provides no responsibility to offer expert services to collectors. The only responsibility they have is to making money, which at this point is a major focus for the failing magazine. Basically, if they screw up, they don’t answer to any regulatory body, and many collectors enjoy the extra preferential treatment they get due to the inflated values of the cards. However, most lay people are unaware of the subjectivity and often take BGS and PSA as gospel with their grades. Really, if you examine a BGS 10 with a BGS 9.5 through magnifying glass, there is usually no difference in the card itself. It could be that one grader had a good day, and one had a bad day. Then, factor in the size of the original order, and you have your result.

I am not saying that 10s don’t exist outside of big orders and valuable customers, but most of the time, that’s the way it turns out.

Lets go back to the Montana for a second. Lets say that they get a great looking Montana in at the national, and have a quick conference. The person submitting the grade is a "friend," and the publicity generated in the hobby from finding the ONLY Montana 10 out there is pretty huge. Plus, if anyone were ever to examine the card, there are no legit ways to prove the difference between a 10 and a much less valuable 9.5. We know that the anonymous grade getter made 25K off his card, the price of a mid ranged car, and as many of us know, money drives this hobby. At this point I am casting every bit of suspicion I have at the evil empire, because they have every reason to use this as a great advertisement for BGS.

It comes down to the fact that all is never what it seems with Beckett, and this will ultimately lead to suspicion of douchebaggery. For those of you out there who still have faith in the magazine that seems to gaff on a daily basis, your day will come. Trust me on that, it always does.

Im So Glad That Beckett Has Taken The Time To Talk About Us...

I was at the mall today waiting for my wife to do her shopping when I stumbled into borders to grab a cup of coffee. While I was enjoying myself, I heard a large chuckle coming from one of the other patrons. I look in his hands and see he is reading the latest issue of Beckett and typing on a computer. Funny enough, he is a student at California State and is writing a paper on the poor effect that price guides are having on hobbies, including looking at Wizard Magazine for comics and Kelly Blue Book for Cars.

I went over and started up a conversation, and he started feeding me lots of economic models about the ill effects that price guides have on collectibles as well as reasons that advertisers make money off the contributions to the mags. When I told him who I was, he recognized my name from the blog. He even said that they made reference to card blogs in the recent issue of Beckett as good, but basically just a fun place to go to talk to other collectors, as long as you still get all the info from the "true" hobby reporters.

As I read what he was referring to, I saw it was a little more drastic. First, in an article from recently laid off David Lee, I saw that he had taken a good five inches to explain how the rumors of the Panini sale were exploited on the blogs before it was considered "confirmed." He took a classic sports reporter approach and said that blogs were something he "liked," but should basically be written off as credible news sources due to speculating about events before they are reported on by the big dogs. This is coming from the former editor of a magazine who hasnt published a REAL expectation of card value EVER, and used half the magazine giving a printed blow job to their boyfriends at Panini. Oh, but wait, it gets better!

Later in the magazine, they published "30 reasons to smile" about card collecting. Number 17 was about the blogs, though it was said that some of them could be "cesspools of misinformation" and full of "uneducated ranting." Really? So its something to "smile" about even though its been "reported" that the 90% of the total blogosphere who bash Beckett like a job are loathed by the evil empire. Im so glad that the blogs are making a mark on a magazine headed for the recycle bin so much that they need to trash us as reporters for the hobby. Yeah, if you are getting your ass fucking kicked by amateurs who do it for free, I would take every chance to discredit them too.

Mike at Borders, thanks for the fun hour we had.

Is Beckett FINALLY Going Under?

Man, if the news I received from John is true, color me fucking elated. He sent me some inside news that said that Beckett had not only gone through MASSIVE layoffs in recent weeks, but that the layoffs will continue very soon. Much like SCD, the magazine's content will shrink considerably in coming months, mainly due to a lack of money. There is also rumblings among the Beckett employees that the number of publications will drop, as well as circulation, so that the money hemorrhaging from the Beckett accounts may slow as much as possible.

John basically said that he doesnt predict the magazine to be around much longer as readership, subscriptions, and basically everything has hit a massive downturn. Although I feel bad for the innocent employees who will ultimately lose their jobs, I do not have anything but contempt and hatred for the people who have basically destroyed any semblance of ethics that may or may not have been present at the company.

Certain practices at Beckett have already spawned a blog that was started by former employees affected by the layoffs, as well as garnered widespread hatred among the many people who still take stock in the grossly outdated and outclassed magazine. Considering how many ridiculous fucking things they have done over the last year, I am beyond goddamn happy this is so close to happening.

Finally there will be no more sham box breaks of product hand picked and hand delivered by people at the manufacturers to the asshats who open them. No more incoherent prices that are drawn from the pricing hat with no ties to actual value at all. No more cry babies at the Beckett blog who run to their secret lovers at Panini and Topps to give them exclusives so that the blogs wont get more traffic than they do. No more blatant stupidity in the grading service BUSINESS that shows how much of a sham it really is. No more underhanded, unethical, unprofessional actions that damage the expectations of people who dont know any better.

The time to stop the lies is now, and I will be there to piss all over the burnt ashes of a company that deserved to go more than any single entity in the history of the hobby. There are still so many people with the wool pulled so far over their face, that I am continually sickened by them. Maybe, once the sheep have no leader, things will change for the better. However, if Beckett miraculously stays afloat, the hobby will never be free from the evil grasp of the magazine riddled with conflicts of interest.

Plus, after numerous examples of douchebaggery by the hobby media, why would anyone want to further support the people who only care about making money, rather than the responsibility of proving truthful coverage to the collectors out there? You may think its great and wonderful that every product gets nothing but kind words in the shit stained pages of Beckett, but with that kind of crap polluting the minds of people out there, no inspiration for change will ever provoke creativity. I know you feel the creeping boredom of the latest products, please dont take it for the only possible outcome. With people out there who give honest reviews, without worrying about backlash from advertisers, there is no reason to read anything from tainted meatpuppets other than for comedic purposes.

Its your dollars that spark change, so please keep that in mind. I may only reach a few people, nothing in the grand scheme of things, but with word of mouth, I have found that an idea can change more than one would expect.

My Blog Bat Around: Growing Pains

When I first discovered blogging, I was immediately turned on by the fact that I could finally say whatever I wanted, when I wanted. I would no longer have to put up with any 12 year olds on the BMB who disagree just to disagree, and if I wanted to swim against the current I could without a problem. Being an English major in school, I loved to write, especially informal pieces about things I love. What better excursion could there be than blogging about cards?

The problem started out that I had a lot of pent up anger ready to fire at those I was angry at, and not many people willing to listen. I wasn’t experienced at building a site, and the community we have now was relatively small at the time. After the Exquisite fiasco of last year, the subject I wanted to focus on had a springboard and a purpose. The problem was, the perpetrators I chose conflicted with the owner of the place I was going to use to disseminate my site. That was a problem as you could imagine, and I was banned shortly after my site was mentioned on the board.

Much to their chagrin, many people started reading from my presence on the board, some out of hate, others out of support. I finally had an audience, and I was more than happy to preach to their waiting ears. Ill tell you, I had so much fun the first few months doing the blog, I barely cared that my video on youtube had more views than the site. Then, at that time, it was about having fun and if people were pissed, they were pissed. Some times you have to crack the eggs to make an omelette.

As the months started to pass, more people joined the blog community, which led to more people coming to the blog. Mario helped out quite a bit by promoting SCU on the directory he had started, and the sitemeter at the bottom of the page started to grow. You can imagine that more haters also started reading, including some with more hatred than I have for Beckett. They started to make the blog their toilet for comment diarrhea, but most of the time SCU wsa for like minded people to myself.

Somewhere around that time, internet views of the media evil empire started to change, as more people came on board with SCU, which made me take on a new purpose for blogging too. Instead of doing it to have fun, my purpose became to discredit, defame, and change the mindset away from previous paradigms that had plagued the hobby. I wanted to change people's mind, and I was going to have fun doing it. I, in fact, did have a blast sticking it to the 'man' and even acquired some interesting visitors in the process. Top dogs from UD, Donruss, and other companies started to read the blog, including many of the people I despised at Teenage Sports Card Life and Love Magazine. To know that there were people listening, though few, was exhilerating, and I continued my quest to be at the forefront of their mind when planning for the future.

This continued, as well as my love for blogging, well past the 100,000 visitor and 1 year anniversary of the site, up until Tuesday of this week. Im going to elaborate in case you are not in the know. On Monday, I was approved for Media access to the NFL rookie premiere at the LA Coliseum, making it my best day as a blogger, ever. Finally, I had made enough progress to be able to move past my humble beginnings as an outlet from a heavily censored message board to an actual hobby media member. My success was short lived as less than 24 hours later, my credentials were revoked in a blanket decision to not allow bloggers and media members like me. I immediately got on the horn and started finding out why things had done a complete 180, but didn’t get very far. The NFL could not comment on who had made the decision, but reps at NFL Players there made my assumptions rise that someone had requested this be the case. I talked to a few industry people close to the event, and all of them had said that this type of revokation had NEVER happened before. They also hinted to me that there was more that was going on - typical. When I talked to my main source, whom I have never spoken about on this blog, they mentioned that there were people in the industry who had made it clear to the NFL that I was not to be allowed at the event. Apparently, this was done on behalf of people who disliked my mission in life, and that they had made a mistake blabbing about it to sympathic industry people to their interests. I wanted to find out who, but it was pretty clear that it could be a number of people, with two at the top of the list.

So, instead of going to the event with the intent of providing coverage for you guys, I am now sitting at home this Saturday because certain people in this hobby function like the cast of Mean Girls. If you think that I regret my past trangressions against the brass of the hobby, you are completely wrong. I would never trade my stances for access to an event. Nor do I regret anything. I would do it all the same.

To answer the question of why do I blog, the answer is simple. Its part of who I am.

Beckett: #1 Authority On Getting Laid

So, I get an email from Hitter yesterday informing me that the wonderful people at Beckett have added "relationship councelors" to their list of epic fails. For some reason, they feel arrogant enough to assume the role of relationship psychologist for the cardboard community, as if they hadnt already done enough damage to the hobby we love. 

See, its about target audience, and holy fucking fuck has Beckett screwed the pooch on this. I mean, Gamepro doesnt go and write about Chanel perfume on their shit, do they? They know its fucking stupid and people will laugh their ass off as much as I did when I saw this shit.

I am going to assume that they were sitting around a conference table, wondering where to go next. Here is how it went:

Beckett Lackey #1: Well, our Beckett Obama price guide is hitting shelves in a few weeks, so be sure to add that we are the number one authority on Presidential Collectibles to the website.

Beckett Lackey #2: Are we the number one authority? 

Beckett Lackey #1: Well, we are the only ones ever to put out a magazine about this stupid shit, so that automatically makes us number 1. How dare you question me!

Beckett Lackey #2: So, because we publish a magazine on it, we are supposed to be the best? 

Beckett Lackey #1: YES! YOURE FIRED, NOW LEAVE.

Beckett Lackey #3: Since we are already the number 1 authority on collectibles, presedential stuff, video games, yu-gi-oh! cards, pokemon, and now blogging with Chris Olds, where do we go next? We are still losing readers by the minute...

Beckett Lackey #1: Well, hmm, im not sure. Ha, I have an idea! ***giggles*** Since all the collectors are nerds and have no lives, lets give them relationship advice! ***giggles***

Hackler: You just became the number one authority on ideas, my friend. Congratulations! RUN IT.

Chris Olds: (shouting from down the hall) Did someone say they want a relationship? I want one!

All: SHUT UP!

Hackler: Holy shit, what a creepy piece of shit he is. The number one authority on being sexually inexperienced.

Beckett Lackey #1: I know a gal we can drug to bring in here to do this for us. She is like, so hot. I think she would be great.

Chris Olds: (shouting) Did someone say that there are girls coming? ***runs in naked*** ME FIRST!

Beckett Lackey #1: ***barfs***

Beckett Lackey #2: ***barfs***

Hackler: ***Licks his lips***

Beckett Lackey #1: Dude, run that shit, its going to blow the other blogs out of the water, we are fucking geniuses!

Beckett Lackey #2: its going to blow alright.

Hackler: I thought you were fired.

Beckett Lackey #2: Im the #1 authority on being a douche. 

Hackler: Sorry man, already mine.

ANNNND Scene. 

If You Do Something Like This, You Might Be A Beckett...

(Thanks to Mario for the story)

Yes, I know this is a box of Press Poop, and yes I know it is a box of Nascar cards, but I think it bears mention on here for a few reasons. So, in true redneck fashion:

- If you have to justify why you might be getting a good box at the BEGINNING of the break, you might be a Beckett.

- Despite said disclaimer, if you mention that your box was hand delivered by the president or brand manager of a company, you might be a Beckett.

- If you have to tell the viewers of your video that the company told you it may be a hot box, due to some bullshit excuse, and you STILL bust it like nothing is wrong, you might be a Beckett.

- If you consistently get more hits or better hits than you are supposed to get, you might be a Beckett.

- If your loaded boxes are always free and you deprive paying customers of hits they should be getting, you might be a Beckett.

- If you still think you havent pissed anyone off with your stupid fucking videos due to an arrogant attitude and a backwards sense of entitlement, you might be a Beckett.

- If you have to be told by your subordinant to shut the fuck up on more than one occasion during the video, because what you say is an embarassment, your name is Tracy Hackler and you are a douchebag (also a Beckett).

Man, I cant believe they are still posting videos as bad as this one, despite the fact that they have to explain why they get better hits than everyone else. Wow, what a bunch of arrogant wankers. I cant tell you how happy I will be when the company folds like a lawn chair (and it will).

Obvious News Of The Day: Beckett Needs A Diaper Change

Putting his own neck out there and risking a lot, Mario has posted the proof from his experience with Upper Deck and the collicky babies over at Beckett. Mario's contact at UD had sent him some exclusives for his site, and as I have said before, Hackler put on his pull ups and toddled to the phone to call his people to let them know that it was "*CRY* NOT FAIR *CRY*" that Mario was getting stuff before them.

That was the end of the exclusives for Mario, and its now become painfully obvious that Beckett loathes us as much as we loathe them. The problem is that we cater to their customers too, and this is pretty damning evidence for us to exploit on the behalf of the right and the just. See, remember when the comments were flying and Beckett stood by the fact that the hobby was just meant to be fun and that doing what we do here at SCU was pointless? Well if this is what they truly believe, than this should not have happened. Its all supposed to be about fun, until someone else puts their flag at the top of the mountain, right?

Listen people, you can hate me for who I am all you want. You can defend Beckett until you are blue in the face. The issue will remain that the people at Beckett are awful, horrible people who dont care about anyone but themselves. They have no responsibility to you as a collector, and the magazine and site reflect the fact that truth is secondary to the BJs they give to their contacts at the manufacturers.

Glad to see that we are finally getting a clearer picture of what happens in Texas - and look, there happens to be a naked guy inadvertantly in the background! I hate when that happens!

Beckett's Sterling Break Response, Its Even Constructive!

Today, for the first time in a while, Beckett broke a few boxes of Sterling and got crap. It was refreshing, and thank you to Topps for not playing into this any more. I dont think I could stomach another Sterling break like last years Arod Auto/Dimaggio Cut scam.

A lot of you are either for Beckett or against them, and this one is for those of you who actually care about the future of this situation. Or, more specifically, how Beckett can fix all the problems they create on a regular basis. I have offered these solutions before, but I doubt you remember.

Really, if Beckett thinks that they dont need to fix any of the things listed below to stay in business, I promise they will be sadly mistaken. I think these solutions are no brainers.

1. DITCH THE PRICE GUIDE

There. Now you get rid of a lot of the conflict of interests that plague the magazine. Just dump it. Its completely off base and irrelevant, and the prices (even though there is SURELY a formula) have no bearing on actual value. Why keep up this charade? Even better, just put a big ad for eBay's completed auction page.

2. STOP ALL THE ARROGANCE

Face it, Beckett is no longer the #1 authority. Internet users are. That means that you need to stop walking around with your dick hanging out of your pants. We dont want to look.

You need to start embracing the internet revolution, rather than taking a big poop on it. We hate you because you are a company of asses. Dont belittle the fact that there are people who disagree with you any more, because that will be the end of you. That is the nature of this. Stop posting 5th grade type rebuttles to things you are obviously at fault for. Say you are sorry, offer amends, make friends not enemies.

An example here: when this website was first created and people were really pissed, you should have maybe sent an email saying that you wanted to make it up to us. Instead of posting fuck you after fuck you after fuck you on the site, you should have just came out and said "We are sorry, please forgive us." You didnt. Instead you adopted a policy of non-recognition, which only makes you look like assholes (which you are). Asking for forgiveness is the sign of a good person who has done wrong. If you stand fast and act like you are above the law, its the sign of a lack of character. FYI, I still have not received one olive branch, not even a sniff. Thats pretty interesting considering I come up in staff meetings. Its too late now, but you get the point.

Another example: After the national card show, Hackler laid a golden poop talking about how much people love his poops that smell like rainbows. He said something like, "our box breaks are the most popular things we do, and its now obvious that only a few people dont like them." That was completely pointless, because we all know how many of us really dislike them. Ill show you my inbox, it has close to 300-400 emails that say exactly the opposite of what Hackler says. All you gain by pulling this time and time again is more enemies.

Last example: Instead of addressing the issue like an adult, someone decided that making fun of Dave's graphic would be a better route. Yes, that worked out great right? Now instead of a website with 450 hits a day being pissed at you, you now have a website with 100,000+ hits a month that is pissed at you. Time to give it up.

3. NO MORE COMPANY SPONSORED BREAKS

Youtube is filled with breaks of boxes from people who are actually paying for them at real stores. Use those in a weekly forum post on the site rather than accepting loaded boxes from crooked PR reps at the manufacturers. Users will be pumped they are on the site, people will be happy, AND I WILL SHUT UP ABOUT IT. Also, it will be real people with real cards who have spent real money. Plus, the real emotions of a real breaker trumps your bad acting any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

This will also dump another conflict of interest from the business you run, and everyone can again have a realistic expectation of what is REALLY in a box of cards.

4. PUT REAL COMMENTARY IN THE MAGAZINES

Get some of the real collectors to write real articles, work with them, and create a true collector's magazine. Tackle real issues with real people, no more fake bullshit. If patch faking is a problem, publish a spread on it. If people love a product, tell us why by having them write about it in article form. Dont publish short paragraphs from people who post on the message board, start getting stuff from people who actually are vested in this hobby. Besides, we are tired of hearing from the same people over and over again. Stop thinking about how to stop the opponents and start thinking about eliminating the problems that cause opponents in the first place.

This also means when Mario and JV spend their time writing an article, you publish it as promised.

5. ADMISSION OF GUILT

Again, apologize for the wrongs, stop doing bad things that cause wrongs, and run a respectable publication. People will admire you for being brave enough to say you are sorry, and they may even start buying the magazine again. Dont give some half assed excuse like, "We are sorry you feel the way you do, it was not meant to be like that."

Instead say, "We broke a lot of a rules in the book, and we are sorry for what we did. We understand why people are angry, and we will make the practices of the magazine reflect a better and more ethical way of functioning."

See? Dont blame us for feeling the way we do, say sorry and admit to what you did.

Dont just say it either, DO IT.

6. STOP SELLING ON EBAY

Another conflict of interest - gone. Its not cool to sell Beckett graded cards on ebay. Do you not see what is going on? Just stop, we will all be happier.

There are a lot more, and I will discuss them as they come up.

Beckett Topps Sterling Break Is Coming Monday

Just so this is here, I am putting the odds of them getting a monster pull at 1:1, much as I did with Prime Cuts.

Here is a something that you may want to think about:

1. Will they get a top tier box?
2. Will they get a case hit letter?
3. Will they get a huge fucking cut auto like last year?
4. Will they be stupid enough to post the video if they do?
5. Why are they publicizing this?
6. Do they expect us to eat this shit up like its hackler's (obviously) golden poops?
7. Are they thinking that we are going to forget that this is ANOTHER hand seeded product?
8. Are they expecting us to forget that the NAMES ARE PRINTED ON THE FUCKING BOXES?
9. Will people care that this is filmed before the release date, AGAIN?

My call: A ridiculous patch of a pre-war or war era player, and yes to all the above.

Beckett Scam Updates

Just a cute little FYI, Beckett has yet to put the Prime Cuts video on the main site, and that is funny.

Also, take a look at the comments on the video post on the douchebag blog. They are just amazing what is said by Eric, someone who seems nice, but is really misguided in his ways. Its just scary to think that people out there think the same way.

"Why, we provide information collectors need to enjoy the hobby to the fullest, of course."

To those of you who think that these are average boxes from Prime Cuts and that a Joe Jackson bat relic is nothing to be excited about, fine, you have your thoughts, I have mine. The fact is that Beckett is still getting FREE boxes, two weeks ahead of time, with great, great cards in them. Isnt that enough to raise a ruckus? I mean, yes, there are a lot of good cards in the set, but there are three times as many bad ones. There are thousands of cases of these cards and they end up with what they got? Cmon. Donruss wouldnt be stupid enough to send them a cut, they saw what happened last year. Guys, this is a hand seeded product, Donruss knew exactly what was in those boxes and so did the hobby's number one source on douchebaggery.

Lastly, check out these great response articles on this from Houston Collector, Wax Heaven, White Sox Cards, and Sports. Cards. Life. Try to get a true sense of the way people from Beckett look at this break, and the way collectors like me look at the break.