Time to de-nazify eBay

[tenorly]

Fellow DUers:

I'm currently looking for a nice, vintage wind-up clock, as the one I've had for years stopped working and the cost of repairing them makes getting another one on eBay the far better choice.

An attractive vintage wind-up clock in good condition generally costs between $5 to $100, depending in part on the rarity of the item.

What their value should definitely not depend on, is its being Nazi memorabilia.

And that brings me to this little item:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-ADOLPH-HITLER-GOLD-WIND-UP-ALARM-CLOCK-WORKS-ALARM-DOES-NOT-/162458222788?hash=item25d343c0c4:g:t9QAAOSw03lY494I

Putting aside the fact that Hitler's pissy mug is on the face, it's nothing but a very plain and tarnished 3" alarm clock - and whose alarm no longer even works. Ordinarily, something like that, in the condition it's in, would fetch no more than $20 or so - even as a collectible.

But it's being offered for $300 for the reasons we all know.

If anyone reading this has legal expertise, and knows the ins and outs of eBay, would you please consider trying to do something about this?

There's a limit to everything. If the owner of said clock wants to sell it, he or she should stick to flea markets (if that).

Thanks.

[jberryhill]

1. Legal expertise?

I would be fascinated to know what leads you to believe that selling a clock with Adolph Hitler on it is illegal in some sense.

As far as eBay policy goes, the page you are looking for is here:

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/offensive.html

Allowed:

Stamps, letters, and envelopes displaying Nazi postmarks (must comply with the currency and stamp policy)

Currency issued by the Nazi German government, including military scripts

Historically accurate WWII military model kits that have Nazi symbols

Historical and religious items that bear a swastika if they are made before 1933 and are not related to Nazism

Not allowed:

Items that are not permitted include, but are not limited to:

Historical Holocaust-related items, including reproductions such as:

Uniforms and personal belongings of concentration camp prisoners

Jewish identification (armbands, Star of David)

Holocaust photos that depict dead bodies, executions, or other violent or degrading scenes

Nazi-issued documents (passports, travel papers)

Historical Nazi-related items, including reproductions such as:

Uniforms, uniform components, weapons, or other items that bear Nazi symbols, whether visible or covered

Listings in which images are edited or cropped to try and hide Nazi symbols

Denazified items (items that originally had Nazi symbols that have been removed)

1936 Olympic medals

Items that were owned by, affiliated with, or books written by Nazi leaders such as:

Joseph Goebbels

Hermann Goering

Rudolf Hess

Reinhard Heydrich

Heinrich Himmler

Adolf Hitler

Any item made after 1933 that bears a swastika (e.g., jewelry, clothing, rugs, fabrics), unless listed in the allowed section above. We are sensitive that the swastika is commonly and legitimately used in religions, including Hinduism and Buddhism. However, given the highly offensive nature of the Nazi swastika, we have decided to not allow any non-historic items bearing a swastika.

Media identified as Nazi propaganda or that otherwise promote hatred or racial supremacy including historic and current items

[tenorly]

2. Didn't mean to imply that I thought it was.

Simply that someone with the right expertise could try to discourage eBay from allowing such listings in the future. Or least voice their opposition in more precise language that a layman would be able to.

Surely you don't object.

[jberryhill]

3. If you Google "ebay nazi policy" it takes you right to the relevant page

I do not understand your "time to de-nazify ebay" post.

Ebay has a longstanding policy posted on the subject.

Specifically what you can do is right there on that page, and it takes considerably less time to do so than posting a rant on some other website in apparent ignorance of the fact that eBay already has precisely the policy and procedure you are looking for.

Why not simply use their existing policy, report the item, have it de-listed and be done?

Unless, for some reason, you wanted to generate a lot of attention for this listing.

[Lurker Deluxe]

5. Pretty sure

That the proper coarse of action is to put all of these items in a big pile in town square and burn them.

Only makes sense ...

[Hayabusa]

4. I saw

"Historically accurate WWII military model kits that have Nazi symbols " on that list and before I saw that it was allowed I nearly threw a shitfit.

[jberryhill]

6. Apparently someone wants to provide publicity for this particular auction before it is yanked.

[tenorly]

7. Not everyone seems to share our objection, I just learned.

Qué será.

[jberryhill]

8. Why are you publicizing this auction?

Straight up - why?

You posted the link to it, in order to get as many people as you could to look at it.

eBay has a well-known, longstanding policy banning items like this.

You could have easily found that out without publicizing this auction.

But, for reasons you don't state, you found it necessary to make sure everyone got to see what is being sold and for how much.

Would you care to explain why?

[tenorly]

9. I did in my previous post, if you care to re-read it.

[jberryhill]

10. Bull

"Report Item"

Do you see that link on the auction page?

Or are you going to pretend you didn't?

Three drop-down menus:

- Prohibited Material

- Offensive or Violent

- Nazi

"Submit"

Done.

I don't believe for one red hot second you can't understand "Report Item" on an eBay listing.

[tenorly]

11. They almost always ignore those, as you know.

Given that DUers include quite a few lawyers among them, I was hoping someone with the right skills could in some way pressure eBay against allowing this - something a little "report item" alert can't do.

[jberryhill]

12. It's their policy

They enforce it however they like.

There is nothing illegal about selling a clock with Hitler on it.

eBay, however, does have a relevant policy on the subject and a procedure for reporting items. "Nazi" is one of the handy drop-down menus to specify the complaint.

Now you are pretending that you knew about the policy, but your problem is that you claim they don't enforce it. But you opened with "time to de-nazify ebay" as if there were no such policy there.

Tell me if that listing is there tomorrow.

If you had a genuine concern, you could do so without advertising the item here.

Oh, and, you're welcome.

[tenorly]

13. I figured 20 or 30 others already had, as outrageous as it is.

Hopefully something more substantive can be done about it in the future.

Of course, it would take someone with at least some interpersonal skills.

Thanks for the interesting chat, jberryhill.

[jberryhill]

15. "something more substantive can be done about it in the future."

There is no shortage of discussion and history of eBay's policies.

There are millions of nitwit users of eBay buying and selling millions of pieces of crap every second of every day.

Just how many full-time people do you think they would need to individually review every item?

That's why the "report" link is on the page.

Even then, how many reports do you think they get in a day? Just guess.

I will bet you a new clock that this one will be removed before the auction time expires.

However, if I were interested in selling Nazi memorabilia on eBay, do you know what I'd do?

I would put the item up, knowing that it will be at least some time before I was caught. Then, I would go to other websites which are trolled and read by neo Nazis and act "outraged" about the auction, in order to make sure that an interested person at the other website could get it at my "buy it now" price before eBay could catch up with me.

That's what I would do.

Now, explain to me how what I would do in order to sell Nazi stuff differs, in any objective way, from what you are doing.

You are advertising this auction. Period.

[jberryhill]

14. Anyone believe this?

"I'm currently looking for a nice, vintage wind-up clock, as the one I've had for years stopped working and the cost of repairing them makes getting another one on eBay the far better choice."

Actually, you can buy a brand new wind-up alarm clock for under 20 bucks.



But you want to spend more for an antique one, because you can't afford to get your old one repaired?

Do I understand you correctly?

And, still, you won't edit your post to avoid advertising that one in particular.