Sorry,
this came to me without the URL.
-Anson
02:00 AM Mar. 25, 2003 PT
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- On eBay, the highest bid wins -- unless
the item on sale is a laser printer from CompAtlanta and the bidder
happens to be Canadian.
That's what a tax consultant discovered last week when he tried to buy
a printer on eBay, but was refused by the vendor when it was discovered
he lived in Vancouver.
David Ingram received notification that his winning bid of $24.50 had
been canceled, along with this message: "At the present time, we do not
ship to, or accept bids from, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany or any
other country that does not support the United States in our efforts to
rid the world of Saddam Hussein. If you are not with us, you are
against us."
Ingram's .ca address sparked the notice from CompAtlanta , based in
Lawrenceville, Georgia. Canada is one of a number of countries that
said it would not support an American invasion of Iraq without United
Nations' approval.
"I've made a winning bid,'' Ingram said. "To discriminate against me
because I'm a Canadian is ridiculous."
Sid Mitchell, CompAtlanta's president, could not be reached for
comment. However, an e-mail exchange between Ingram and Mitchell
clearly laid out the company's policy: "What part of this listing do
you not understand?" Mitchell wrote Ingram. "This item will not be
shipped outside the USA, and we do not accept bids from Canadians. Both
are plainly stated."
That didn't stop Ingram from trying again over the weekend. He bid for
the laser printer a second time, offering $107.50 to avoid being outbid
and specifying delivery to an American address. In a separate message,
he informed Mitchell that he wanted the printer shipped stateside.
Judging by Mitchell's reply, however, Ingram isn't likely to get his
printer from CompAtlanta: "You are obviously trying to get around the
fact that you are Canadian," Mitchell wrote to Ingram, "and we will not
honor your bid or ship to any location for you."
Ingram said Mitchell lacks a good business reason for not shipping to a
Canadian who uses an American address. "If they're going to do that,''
Ingram said, "then they shouldn't sell to the 50 percent of Democrats
and the 20 percent of Republicans that aren't supporting the war,
either."
CompAtlanta is one of a small number of companies boycotting countries
opposed to the war. The German newspaper Deutsche Welle reported late
last week that a German shoe-supply manufacturer lost a contract with
an American firm over Germany's stance on the war. There have also been
reports of American consumers boycotting French wine and cheese.
But the boycotts aren't widespread yet. JoAnn Dupont, a customer
service representative with eBay vendor IkeSound.com of Florida, said
her company's policy of shipping to Canada and other countries has not
changed as a result of the war.
And some eBay vendors selling such items as Saddam Hussein "terrorist
hunting licenses" and dart boards will ship them anywhere in the world.
Andre Lemay, a spokesman for the Canadian department of Foreign Affairs
and International Trade in Ottawa, said he wasn't aware of any reverse
boycott. Nor did he believe such a boycott would be an issue, since
Canada and the United States remain each others' two largest trading
partners. "We still believe our relationship with the U.S. is good --
in fact, enviable,'' he said.
EBay spokesman Kevin Pursglove said CompAtlanta was the only eBay
merchant he knew of that is boycotting buyers for reasons related to
the war. He said sellers can decide with whom they want to do business,
but eBay frowns on posting overtly political messages. Pursglove said
eBay ordered CompAtlanta to remove the auction item and to modify its
message to bidders from Canada, Mexico, France and Germany.
But CompAtlanta's message is still more or less intact, which incenses
Ingram. He says he plans to pursue the matter with eBay.
He may also take it up in person with CompAtlanta. If he doesn't
receive his printer before a scheduled trip south of the border later
in the fall, Ingram says he'll pay the computer vendor a visit.
"If they don't send it,'' he said, "sometime in September or October I
will park outside their store with a sign saying they discriminate
against Canadians."
02:00 AM Mar. 25, 2003 PT
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- On eBay, the highest bid wins -- unless
the item on sale is a laser printer from CompAtlanta and the bidder
happens to be Canadian.
That's what a tax consultant discovered last week when he tried to buy
a printer on eBay, but was refused by the vendor when it was discovered
he lived in Vancouver.
David Ingram received notification that his winning bid of $24.50 had
been canceled, along with this message: "At the present time, we do not
ship to, or accept bids from, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany or any
other country that does not support the United States in our efforts to
rid the world of Saddam Hussein. If you are not with us, you are
against us."
Ingram's .ca address sparked the notice from CompAtlanta , based in
Lawrenceville, Georgia. Canada is one of a number of countries that
said it would not support an American invasion of Iraq without United
Nations' approval.
"I've made a winning bid,'' Ingram said. "To discriminate against me
because I'm a Canadian is ridiculous."
Sid Mitchell, CompAtlanta's president, could not be reached for
comment. However, an e-mail exchange between Ingram and Mitchell
clearly laid out the company's policy: "What part of this listing do
you not understand?" Mitchell wrote Ingram. "This item will not be
shipped outside the USA, and we do not accept bids from Canadians. Both
are plainly stated."
That didn't stop Ingram from trying again over the weekend. He bid for
the laser printer a second time, offering $107.50 to avoid being outbid
and specifying delivery to an American address. In a separate message,
he informed Mitchell that he wanted the printer shipped stateside.
Judging by Mitchell's reply, however, Ingram isn't likely to get his
printer from CompAtlanta: "You are obviously trying to get around the
fact that you are Canadian," Mitchell wrote to Ingram, "and we will not
honor your bid or ship to any location for you."
Ingram said Mitchell lacks a good business reason for not shipping to a
Canadian who uses an American address. "If they're going to do that,''
Ingram said, "then they shouldn't sell to the 50 percent of Democrats
and the 20 percent of Republicans that aren't supporting the war,
either."
CompAtlanta is one of a small number of companies boycotting countries
opposed to the war. The German newspaper Deutsche Welle reported late
last week that a German shoe-supply manufacturer lost a contract with
an American firm over Germany's stance on the war. There have also been
reports of American consumers boycotting French wine and cheese.
But the boycotts aren't widespread yet. JoAnn Dupont, a customer
service representative with eBay vendor IkeSound.com of Florida, said
her company's policy of shipping to Canada and other countries has not
changed as a result of the war.
And some eBay vendors selling such items as Saddam Hussein "terrorist
hunting licenses" and dart boards will ship them anywhere in the world.
Andre Lemay, a spokesman for the Canadian department of Foreign Affairs
and International Trade in Ottawa, said he wasn't aware of any reverse
boycott. Nor did he believe such a boycott would be an issue, since
Canada and the United States remain each others' two largest trading
partners. "We still believe our relationship with the U.S. is good --
in fact, enviable,'' he said.
EBay spokesman Kevin Pursglove said CompAtlanta was the only eBay
merchant he knew of that is boycotting buyers for reasons related to
the war. He said sellers can decide with whom they want to do business,
but eBay frowns on posting overtly political messages. Pursglove said
eBay ordered CompAtlanta to remove the auction item and to modify its
message to bidders from Canada, Mexico, France and Germany.
But CompAtlanta's message is still more or less intact, which incenses
Ingram. He says he plans to pursue the matter with eBay.
He may also take it up in person with CompAtlanta. If he doesn't
receive his printer before a scheduled trip south of the border later
in the fall, Ingram says he'll pay the computer vendor a visit.
"If they don't send it,'' he said, "sometime in September or October I
will park outside their store with a sign saying they discriminate
against Canadians."
