Lee, I'm sorry you got taken, but the truth is that it was very easy to prevent.
Several of the more experienced members here you've been so snarkey to could have offered advice that would have prevented you from spending money with this guy.
Did you bother to PM a more experienced member before buying? Post a thread asking if the seller was known, and legit?
The reason that some of "old guys" feel that there's a sense of entitlement with some of the "new guys" is they don't seem to understand the benefits of the community, nor seem willing to ask for and accept advice when it's freely offered.
I am genuinely sorry you got taken. At work, we refer to things like this as a 'SILO' event; a self-induced learning opportunity. If good can come from bad, perhaps this will prevent other newer members from getting burned when in pursuit of their own personal "holy grail".
Food for thought - B.B.S.
As a newbie who values the wisdom of FOGs, this post is like
gold Tom. All this drive to get these "holy grail" cigars as Dan pointed out is ridiculous. Cigar smoking is a lifestyle, where the most valuable assets are the camaraderie and friendship it brings, and enjoying life to the fullest. It ain't about who's got the newest friggin' stick pre-release (because eventually every schlub is gonna end up getting one), or who can get an original release of this cigar or that cigar... This stuff
COMES IN TIME.
When I first joined, I never thought I'd see more than one Opus in my humidor and more than one Shark together at a time, but now I have a full box of each. Guys like Rod, Bruce, Tom, Tony, Doc, George, Ray, Andrew, Sam, and a host of others...these guys do it the best because they've been around the block more than once in life experience and cigar experience. It's just
utter stupidity to not tap into these guys as a resource, and snub your noses at them.
It doesn't matter how much money you have to throw away on HTF sticks, your "Look At Me!" posts, or your self-proclaimed status as a "High Roller," because in the end you're just a guy smoking a cigar. Whether it fell out of Carlito's ass and into your hands, or it was rolled by your local smoke shop, it's just a damn cigar. The real treasures are the
PEOPLE and friendships made, and the history behind the culture.
CP isn't a wheel-and-deal site, you can go to Wade's for that and donate your 4% to him if you'd like. Take a moment and stop to enjoy the history of these cigars, PAY IT FORWARD, and respect those before you. Lesson learned.
/endrant.