Just my $0.02 here on a couple of things … a few re-posted comments / PMs I have had with folks on this subject.

All of my ads had essentially said the same thing ... from as far back as 2010 … "PayPal + Fees (no fees with family / friend / gift)". Prior to that my ads would say something to the effect of "Payment by discreet Paypal + 3.5% (preferred) or by USPS MO. CONUS only." I changed the wording not because I was asking to be paid as a gift, it was an option for the buyer and it really came about because many folks whined about having to pay the fees. I just put the "gift" option out there so people would stop asking.

By the way … the way I used "DISCREET" was really to highlight to the buyer not to put any type of firearms related descriptions in the PayPal transaction space. It was not some code word for the gift option. Maybe others see it this way, but from here forth it will no longer matter as I have since gone and modified all my open "WTS / WTT" posts to scrub the gift option language / reference.

As you can see, I am fairly active in the EE and have never had any negative feedback. I actually have about 2.5x more feedback than actual posts. Heck, if everyone I did a transaction with actually gave feedback when I did for them, my score would be even higher. I guess I finally found a way that the <200 posts issue finally hurt me, for if not for the buyer of my recent ad for the VP9 / P30 sights ( a repeat buyer from me) linking the original GD thread on the PayPal issue, I may have missed it entirely and wound up on the wrong side of the rules. I have been here since early 2008, and I guess lived well past the "read and learn, don't make stupid comments" suggestion. It is probably time to give back and get my posts up so I don't miss another GD thread or not have the ability to post in it (obviously the thread is now an open thread).

My low post count was never intentional, but more a reality due to some or all of the following: i) employment related restrictions / desires on social media posts, ii) lack of additional time beyond employment, family, range and down time and iii) and the "learn before posting" thing.

I will say however, I will comply with any rule changes that come about because I think M4Cs EE is one of the best run and self regulated exchanges out there. And I think it is one of the most under-rated features of the site.

A well run and liquid market for used items allows people like myself to try new things, especially if not available locally, and sell them later if it does not work out. Plus the price is usually at a level that works for both the buyer and seller. I've had very few issues on either side of the transactions for either small or big ticket items. I can only hope that a flood of newbies does not change that any time soon.

I will also try to post more "relevant" comments to help others out in the future and give back to the community from which I have learned so much from.

I am however curious, as it would have been a self serving / correcting issue for me … why do original posts in the EE not count towards a members post count like on other sites? If that were the case I'd be well over the 200 mark by now?