Re: Pizzafest Door prize

[Mpotheau@xxxxxxx]

In a message dated 10/7/98 9:03:24 PM Eastern Daylight Time, jclay@domain.elided
writes:

<< As for the personal remarks you made, I will be glad to respond to them
 in private in the manner they should have been issued.  Finally, I
 respectfully decline your generous offer.  Perhaps if I was in a
 different financial position, >>

You are the one who brought the matter of door prizes into a public forum,
repeatedly, try to recall that.  Had you done this privately and not on the
Internet for the universe to see, I might have kept this private. 

Someday maybe you will be in a position financially to donate a door prize
yourself and then this will all be clearer to you. Your rationalization of
your financial position is, at best, humorous and clueless. You own one of the
best friggin cars ever made and an expensive one which the majority of the
masses can barely hope to rub against let alone drive or own. Dignity, honor,
unselfishness, cluelessness. That's what this is all about, not money.  If
sponsors wanted you to have money they would have donated a pile of $20 bills.
Don't you think that they could figure that out? 

Actions like yours really sour sponsors and the damage you do by your actions
is in may cases non-reversible.  This is precisely why many sponsors give
"cents off" coupons instead of real prizes.  Like $100 off a purchase of
$2000. Your actions are one of the reasons why I never will donate a door
prize to an event ever again. It sucks, when as a sponsor, I saw someone at an
event going from table to table trying to sell their doorprize for less than
it cost me. Appreciation? Bah. 

Rationalizing what you are doing is just that. The fact that you might have
endorsed Jim C's products in the past counts for nil. You cannot clear the
ledger by having "Jim C Chips Rule" tattooed on your forehead. I can't speak
for Landshark, maybe he would like that. Or suggest it be branded in, not
tattooed. 

I ask you, publicly, how would you feel if a BMW Dealer offered something, in
public, for a price and then jacked up the price as you have done?  You are
asking your prospective buyer to pay for your misunderstanding about the
value. You made the error, you should live with it.  Going from a price of
$200 to $350 is preposterous and should not be tolerated because you are a
"private party." And, as the vendor you should bear the burden of Technical
Support for this, since it is new and not used. In a lot of jurisdictions your
initial price of $200 is binding and you could also be prosecuted for jacking
up the price. 

If you broke your car at the track, like some people unfortunately did, you
would gladly accept help, wouldn't you? That's what this whole BMWCCA and
Pizzafest is all about. Yet, if you got a bill from one of the Bubbas for
helping fix your car, how would you feel? Would suck wouldn't it? At many
events someone has disabled their street car to help a racer qualify or
finish. Many guys have skinned knuckles working on a strangers car simply so
they could limp home. There are givers and takers. Try switching sides, you
might like it. 

These arguments are lost on you, I'm certain. The reason I've made them is
that, perhaps, in the future, someone else might avoid acting the way you have
chosen to. The concepts here are honor, dignity, unselfishness, cluelessness
and materialism. Seems like of the five there is only one you understand or
espouse. Maybe some others out there do better than that. 

Michel Potheau BMWCCA#0000002 
Circle Tire Co. 
+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+, 
Clueless ones? We don't need no stinkin Clueless ones!
+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+, Barbed wire.

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