Does anyone else think so?
Last night I spoke with my brother (Mike in Virginia Beach), who has also posted on the Ring Daddy page in the past. We both thought this ad was a bit odd.
First, the person says, "Go to 'treasure depot' and click on 'sand and surf '. Then click on ' ring daddy '.
What's odd about that? We thought that MOST people (those who are not familiar with the treasure hunting forums) would either give you a direct link or say "Google: 'treasure depot,' then click on sand and surf, then click on ring daddy."
Another thing that we both found odd? When the guy writes:
"You will find pictures of jewelry and the people that found it.
Happy hunting."
That "Happy hunting" reference at the end is what concerned us. That sounds odd, coming from a non-treasure hunter.... Could this be, perhaps, someone who lurks on the forums, perhaps even another treasure hunter? Someone who doesn't post his finds, doesn't like people who do, or who doesn't have many finds to post? Maybe someone who is a tad jealous of those who do?
Just some thoughts.
Either way, this is exactly why I have not participated on the Ring Daddy page this year (nor have I posted pictures of my good finds). Last year I had eight rings there (although I found nine gold rings) and, yes, I enjoyed the "atta boys" from my buddies here on the forums. But this year I have found (only) two gold rings, but haven't posted them. One has a diamond. While they aren't on the level of some of the bling that the South Florida Water Boys post on the forums, one of them is pretty and quite unique. I realized that with a name such as "Stacey in West Palm Beach" and the fact that many who follow the forums regularly know that I am the VP of a local treasure hunting club and co-editor of its newsletter, which is posted on our website - where my full name and phone number is listed, well, it would be very easy for some unscrupulous person to find me to attempt to claim some of my finds as their own. I no longer want to take that chance.
Unfortunately, while most of us also use our "super metal detecting powers for good" (haven't most of us returned things to their rightful owners or gone searching for lost items for others?), there are also some evil doers out there who would like to take our finds from us. Now that this craigslist thing has come out, I guess each of us needs to reexamine how much of a chance we are willing to take when we share photos of our finds. I, like many of us, liked to "post and boast" while sharing my love of the hobby with friends, both near and far (and I DO consider many of you to be my friends, although I may never meet some of you), but I don't know if posting pictures of my best finds is really worth the trouble it could bring.
Now that Pandora's Box has been opened, we each might want to ask ourselves, "is it worth the risk?"
Stacey
