WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.980 What's up? It's Boston Card Hunter. I'm here 00:00:01.980 --> 00:00:04.080 with my boy, Alyx. We are going to talk about 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:06.240 sports card breaking and whether it's gambling 00:00:06.240 --> 00:00:09.539 or not. And Alyx is well positioned for this 00:00:09.539 --> 00:00:11.300 discussion. I wouldn't even say debate because 00:00:11.300 --> 00:00:13.599 we'd probably agree on most points because he 00:00:13.599 --> 00:00:17.079 is the founder of Collectors MD and what Collectors MD 00:00:17.079 --> 00:00:20.640 does. is provides an outlet for people who are 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:22.859 struggling with gambling problems related to 00:00:22.859 --> 00:00:25.660 sports cards and breaking and they provide meetings 00:00:25.660 --> 00:00:27.120 and that sort of thing and we're going to talk 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:28.839 about that as well we're going to debate just 00:00:28.839 --> 00:00:31.100 all of this stuff like gambling breaking sports 00:00:31.100 --> 00:00:34.200 cards Alyx welcome man Yeah. First off, Nick, 00:00:34.340 --> 00:00:37.060 thank you so much for having me back on. It's 00:00:37.060 --> 00:00:39.200 kind of wild thinking about when we first connected 00:00:39.200 --> 00:00:41.820 almost a year ago, you were like literally one 00:00:41.820 --> 00:00:44.500 of the first people to reach out to me. I think 00:00:44.500 --> 00:00:48.659 literally on day one of Collectors MD and, you 00:00:48.659 --> 00:00:50.869 know, without hesitation. You invited me on the 00:00:50.869 --> 00:00:53.390 show. And just a couple of weeks later, you know, 00:00:53.390 --> 00:00:56.570 we had that conversation and it really served 00:00:56.570 --> 00:01:00.270 as this springboard and, you know, allowed me 00:01:00.270 --> 00:01:02.310 to kind of come out of my shell a little bit 00:01:02.310 --> 00:01:04.950 and speak honestly and openly about a lot of 00:01:04.950 --> 00:01:08.329 the struggles. And, you know, it was it was one 00:01:08.329 --> 00:01:11.120 of the first spaces where I could really. have 00:01:11.120 --> 00:01:13.359 this sort of conversation. So fast forward a 00:01:13.359 --> 00:01:16.420 year and Collectors MD has grown into this movement, 00:01:16.719 --> 00:01:18.659 you know, hosting weekly peer support meetings, 00:01:18.799 --> 00:01:22.340 putting out content. And, you know, it's been 00:01:22.340 --> 00:01:24.900 a rocket ship. So I can't thank you enough for 00:01:24.900 --> 00:01:27.909 your support. Cool, cool, cool. Well, I'm going 00:01:27.909 --> 00:01:29.750 to try. I'm getting a lot of feedback that I'm 00:01:29.750 --> 00:01:31.930 a New Englander and a Bostonian and I interrupt 00:01:31.930 --> 00:01:33.969 a lot. So I'm going to try not to interrupt you 00:01:33.969 --> 00:01:37.150 today. That's all right. I can't help it. All 00:01:37.150 --> 00:01:39.409 right. I can't help it. All right. First thing 00:01:39.409 --> 00:01:42.290 is sports card breaking, actually gambling and 00:01:42.290 --> 00:01:45.150 or people just being dramatic about it. Yeah, 00:01:45.189 --> 00:01:48.750 I think the problem is that people hear the buzzword 00:01:48.750 --> 00:01:53.310 gambling and immediately just assume accusation. 00:01:53.709 --> 00:01:56.650 like you're calling someone reckless or irresponsible 00:01:56.650 --> 00:01:59.849 right and that's not what it is this is about 00:01:59.849 --> 00:02:03.010 the mechanics not just the morality of it all 00:02:03.010 --> 00:02:06.870 so breaking really sits in this gray area you're 00:02:06.870 --> 00:02:10.569 paying money for a randomized outcome where chance 00:02:10.569 --> 00:02:13.330 determines the value and the emotional high is 00:02:13.330 --> 00:02:17.469 tied to whether you hit or miss so That's not 00:02:17.469 --> 00:02:20.069 traditional collecting. That's not what collecting 00:02:20.069 --> 00:02:22.849 looked like when I was growing up, when you were 00:02:22.849 --> 00:02:25.569 growing up. But it's also not a slot machine 00:02:25.569 --> 00:02:28.509 either. It's something sort of in between. And 00:02:28.509 --> 00:02:31.129 pretending that it isn't doesn't protect anyone. 00:02:31.689 --> 00:02:34.210 Some people can engage with that casually and 00:02:34.210 --> 00:02:37.289 just walk away and be totally fine losing out. 00:02:37.430 --> 00:02:40.389 And unfortunately, others just can't. And the 00:02:40.389 --> 00:02:44.110 fact that different people experience the whole... 00:02:44.409 --> 00:02:47.150 activity differently doesn't mean the mechanism 00:02:47.150 --> 00:02:51.169 isn't real. It just means risk isn't evenly distributed. 00:02:51.409 --> 00:02:54.270 So calling this out isn't being dramatic. It's 00:02:54.270 --> 00:02:57.909 being honest about the product actually functioning 00:02:57.909 --> 00:03:01.449 or how it functions and how the human brain is 00:03:01.449 --> 00:03:04.889 wired and how it works. Let's talk about the 00:03:04.889 --> 00:03:07.789 human brain, because I think that's a really 00:03:07.789 --> 00:03:11.590 interesting point there. I do wonder if it isn't 00:03:11.590 --> 00:03:15.169 gambling or if it is gambling. Does this trigger 00:03:15.169 --> 00:03:18.509 the same dopamine cycle as blackjack or slots, 00:03:18.770 --> 00:03:23.069 do you think? Yeah, so dopamine doesn't care 00:03:23.069 --> 00:03:26.770 what label, you know, labels look like, right? 00:03:26.849 --> 00:03:30.289 It doesn't care if you label yourself an addict 00:03:30.289 --> 00:03:33.810 or a degenerate. It responds to patterns. And 00:03:33.810 --> 00:03:36.550 live breaks are built on things like anticipation, 00:03:36.990 --> 00:03:40.629 suspense, the near miss, the social reinforcement. 00:03:41.389 --> 00:03:44.250 the countdown timers, the instant gratification, 00:03:44.430 --> 00:03:47.930 the instant feedback. Those are the exact ingredients, 00:03:48.050 --> 00:03:51.229 the exact formula that casinos use because they 00:03:51.229 --> 00:03:56.669 reliably light up the reward system. And the 00:03:56.669 --> 00:04:00.270 spike actually happens before the card is revealed, 00:04:00.389 --> 00:04:03.169 not after, which is a common misconception. And 00:04:03.169 --> 00:04:05.750 that's why people end up chasing, right? One 00:04:05.750 --> 00:04:09.069 more break or one more box, one more rip, even 00:04:09.069 --> 00:04:12.789 after. you know, going through a bad run. And, 00:04:12.810 --> 00:04:16.449 you know, dopamine isn't about enjoyment. It's 00:04:16.449 --> 00:04:19.310 about the pursuit, the chase, as we call it in 00:04:19.310 --> 00:04:21.769 the hobby. And it teaches your brain that relief 00:04:21.769 --> 00:04:24.910 is just one action away. So when people say something 00:04:24.910 --> 00:04:27.129 like, you know, it's just sports cards, it's 00:04:27.129 --> 00:04:30.089 a childhood hobby, they're skipping the part 00:04:30.089 --> 00:04:32.230 where the nervous system is being trained in 00:04:32.230 --> 00:04:35.370 real time. This isn't a willpower issue. It's 00:04:35.370 --> 00:04:38.139 literally brain chemistry. And the industry, 00:04:38.220 --> 00:04:40.459 whether intentionally or not, is using those 00:04:40.459 --> 00:04:43.540 mechanics to their advantage to ultimately fill 00:04:43.540 --> 00:04:45.439 their pockets at the expense of a lot of customers. 00:04:46.019 --> 00:04:49.079 Yeah, I did consulting in my past life for a 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:51.339 lot of different companies, everything from South 00:04:51.339 --> 00:04:54.920 American governments to consumer companies. One 00:04:54.920 --> 00:04:57.120 of them was a casino. And you guys would not 00:04:57.120 --> 00:05:01.279 believe how optimized that experience is. It's 00:05:01.279 --> 00:05:03.100 like a department store. I mean, everybody knows 00:05:03.100 --> 00:05:06.279 you can't find your way out of a casino. You 00:05:06.279 --> 00:05:07.860 don't know what time of day it is at a casino. 00:05:08.420 --> 00:05:11.379 They've got it engineered. The pans that are 00:05:11.379 --> 00:05:12.959 at slot machines, those things are engineered 00:05:12.959 --> 00:05:15.920 to create a very specific sound. Like they actually 00:05:15.920 --> 00:05:18.939 will, you know, like cater the sound to you to 00:05:18.939 --> 00:05:20.939 try to get more like you're winning. Even if 00:05:20.939 --> 00:05:22.800 it's just nickels hitting that tin and it sounds 00:05:22.800 --> 00:05:25.560 amazing. There is scents. People have actually 00:05:25.560 --> 00:05:29.920 tested aromas in casinos. There's a reason there 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:31.939 are drinks. Breaking is a little bit different, 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:34.399 but you have to always just look around at how 00:05:34.399 --> 00:05:37.980 breaking has evolved to keep you as a captor. 00:05:38.339 --> 00:05:40.759 Right. And that's that's kind of the next question, 00:05:40.819 --> 00:05:43.699 you know. There are some breakers, I think, who 00:05:43.699 --> 00:05:45.779 do it right. I'm not going to name anybody today. 00:05:46.139 --> 00:05:47.759 There are some who do it right. There are some 00:05:47.759 --> 00:05:49.759 who are more predatory. It's a predatory scale, 00:05:49.939 --> 00:05:52.620 I guess, right? And some are high on the predatory 00:05:52.620 --> 00:05:55.920 scale and some are very low and doing it right. 00:05:56.060 --> 00:05:57.500 And then there's like everything in between. 00:05:57.579 --> 00:05:59.240 And it depends on the product too and stuff like 00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:02.500 that. But do you think... That there's lies breakers 00:06:02.500 --> 00:06:05.160 tell themselves like, you know, hey, there's 00:06:05.160 --> 00:06:07.560 some skill to this. You know, you need to know 00:06:07.560 --> 00:06:10.180 a checklist. You need to know what team is popping 00:06:10.180 --> 00:06:12.100 or do some research. Like, what do you think 00:06:12.100 --> 00:06:13.720 are some of the lies breakers tell themselves? 00:06:13.740 --> 00:06:16.899 Yeah. Why break anywhere else? My favorite line 00:06:16.899 --> 00:06:19.839 in the hobby. Yeah. No, I mean, the most common 00:06:19.839 --> 00:06:22.800 lie breakers tell themselves is, I'm just providing 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:25.240 entertainment. And look, I'm not saying, like 00:06:25.240 --> 00:06:28.459 you just said, Nick, every breaker or not every 00:06:28.459 --> 00:06:34.279 breaker is evil. or a bad actor. But that phrase, 00:06:34.720 --> 00:06:36.879 you know, we're just providing entertainment, 00:06:37.180 --> 00:06:40.839 it can become a shield of sorts. Because if you 00:06:40.839 --> 00:06:43.060 call it entertainment, you don't have to sit 00:06:43.060 --> 00:06:45.019 with the reality that you're essentially operating 00:06:45.019 --> 00:06:48.019 a high speed, variable reward system where the 00:06:48.019 --> 00:06:50.839 customer pays for uncertainty, and it's essentially 00:06:50.839 --> 00:06:54.360 chasing upside. A lot of breakers, I think, are, 00:06:54.360 --> 00:06:56.819 you know, kind of in denial about what they really 00:06:56.819 --> 00:06:59.579 are in this ecosystem. You know, they're not 00:06:59.579 --> 00:07:01.720 just personalities. They're not just rippers. 00:07:01.839 --> 00:07:05.120 They're not just breakers. They're dealers. They 00:07:05.120 --> 00:07:07.100 are the distribution point. They're the ones 00:07:07.100 --> 00:07:09.980 pulling the lever over and over on behalf of 00:07:09.980 --> 00:07:12.439 the audience, on behalf of the customers with 00:07:12.439 --> 00:07:15.699 hype, urgency, the countdown timers, the sudden 00:07:15.699 --> 00:07:19.120 death auctions, the wheel spins, and using language 00:07:19.120 --> 00:07:22.240 like, you know, last call or, you know, one more 00:07:22.240 --> 00:07:25.779 or you're due or, you know, we're heating up. 00:07:26.139 --> 00:07:28.600 Like, that's not neutral language. That's behavioral 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:31.560 influence. Yeah, this is holding, too. Oh, I'm 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:33.240 sorry. I interrupted and I said I wouldn't interrupt. 00:07:33.240 --> 00:07:35.620 You're good. You're good. I think, you know, 00:07:35.620 --> 00:07:38.420 the lie, like, we're calling it a lie here. It's 00:07:38.420 --> 00:07:41.100 not always intentional. It's, you know, it's 00:07:41.100 --> 00:07:44.670 a product of this system. And so... because of 00:07:44.670 --> 00:07:46.949 that it's psychological because the moment a 00:07:46.949 --> 00:07:48.850 breaker admits and says something like to them 00:07:48.850 --> 00:07:51.370 to themselves or to their you know internal team 00:07:51.370 --> 00:07:53.790 you know i'm basically running a mini casino 00:07:53.790 --> 00:07:57.589 on a phone the next question is you know brutal 00:07:57.589 --> 00:08:00.350 what responsibility do i have for the downstream 00:08:00.350 --> 00:08:02.949 damage so instead they tell themselves you know 00:08:02.949 --> 00:08:06.129 they chose it they being the customer or it's 00:08:06.129 --> 00:08:08.850 their money i'm not forcing anyone i'm just opening 00:08:08.850 --> 00:08:12.389 product and on paper yeah that is true but in 00:08:12.389 --> 00:08:15.220 real life The breaker is also shaping the environment 00:08:15.220 --> 00:08:18.459 that makes impulsive decisions a lot easier, 00:08:18.660 --> 00:08:20.879 a lot more frictionless. And for some people, 00:08:20.899 --> 00:08:23.139 that environment doesn't just cost them money. 00:08:23.220 --> 00:08:26.639 It costs them relationships, mental health, self 00:08:26.639 --> 00:08:30.000 -worth, sleep, peace of mind. So, yeah, the most 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:33.879 common line is, you know, the common lie is I'm 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:35.779 just an entertainer because the truth is like, 00:08:35.840 --> 00:08:38.220 you know, a lot heavier than that. They're the 00:08:38.220 --> 00:08:41.080 operators of a system that can really hurt people, 00:08:41.179 --> 00:08:44.179 even if it was never intentional. Yeah, and I 00:08:44.179 --> 00:08:47.100 want to pause here for a second before the next 00:08:47.100 --> 00:08:49.039 question, just let you guys know, there's a reason 00:08:49.039 --> 00:08:51.500 Alyx founded this company. We didn't get into 00:08:51.500 --> 00:08:54.220 that in the beginning. It's a long story, and 00:08:54.220 --> 00:08:56.120 I think we'll sprinkle it in through these questions, 00:08:56.200 --> 00:08:59.279 especially the next one. Alyx has actually experienced 00:08:59.279 --> 00:09:02.220 this personally, some of these challenges being 00:09:02.220 --> 00:09:04.580 on the other end of it. It's funny, I did a video 00:09:04.580 --> 00:09:08.200 on here a couple of days ago about blame. It's 00:09:08.200 --> 00:09:10.080 so interesting. It's like, do you blame yourself 00:09:10.080 --> 00:09:13.799 or do you blame the system? The answer really 00:09:13.799 --> 00:09:17.059 is both, you know, there's accountability both 00:09:17.059 --> 00:09:19.639 ways, but you know, what do you think, and you've 00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:21.440 experienced this, so you can actually talk to 00:09:21.440 --> 00:09:23.919 this personally, but at what point does having 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:26.480 fun in the hobby cross the line into addiction? 00:09:27.220 --> 00:09:29.799 Yeah. So I, like you said, Nick, I learned this 00:09:29.799 --> 00:09:32.500 the hard way, but it really crosses the line 00:09:32.500 --> 00:09:35.860 when the hobby stops being additive, like adding 00:09:35.860 --> 00:09:38.399 value as an additional layer of your lifestyle 00:09:38.399 --> 00:09:41.179 and it starts becoming regulatory where it's 00:09:41.179 --> 00:09:44.870 like, The focal point every day, you know, your 00:09:44.870 --> 00:09:47.929 plans, your agenda, your work, your family, everything 00:09:47.929 --> 00:09:49.809 revolves around it. And that's happening more 00:09:49.809 --> 00:09:52.409 and more. And so when breaking becomes how you 00:09:52.409 --> 00:09:56.110 deal with things like stress, boredom, loneliness, 00:09:56.490 --> 00:09:59.570 anxiety, depression, frustration, when it becomes 00:09:59.570 --> 00:10:03.090 really emotional management instead of this form 00:10:03.090 --> 00:10:05.129 of entertainment, which is what it should be, 00:10:05.230 --> 00:10:08.289 the relationship with collecting, with the hobby. 00:10:08.830 --> 00:10:11.210 starts to shift. And that's exactly what happened 00:10:11.210 --> 00:10:13.649 with me. You know, another big signal is what 00:10:13.649 --> 00:10:16.669 happens when you try to stop. If pausing creates 00:10:16.669 --> 00:10:20.870 this sort of agitation or restlessness or fear, 00:10:21.210 --> 00:10:25.110 that's, you know, not about missing out on the 00:10:25.110 --> 00:10:28.690 fun and excitement. That's what we call dependence, 00:10:29.169 --> 00:10:31.990 right? Addiction isn't defined by how much you 00:10:31.990 --> 00:10:34.549 spend. It's defined by why you spend and what 00:10:34.549 --> 00:10:37.029 it's costing you emotionally, financially, and 00:10:37.029 --> 00:10:40.070 relationally. So, yeah, I mean, we can get into 00:10:40.070 --> 00:10:43.450 more of my lived experience as we as we progress 00:10:43.450 --> 00:10:47.870 here. But yeah, I saw it firsthand. And there's 00:10:47.870 --> 00:10:49.590 so many other people that are struggling with 00:10:49.590 --> 00:10:52.330 the exact same thing that have zero idea that 00:10:52.330 --> 00:10:54.169 there are resources out there that can help them. 00:10:54.549 --> 00:10:56.850 All right, we'll get into the resources towards 00:10:56.850 --> 00:10:59.320 the end of this. guys because i i never like 00:10:59.320 --> 00:11:02.320 to present a problem without a solution i think 00:11:02.320 --> 00:11:04.240 that's just a terrible way to go through life 00:11:04.240 --> 00:11:06.259 is to just point out problems without solutions 00:11:06.259 --> 00:11:09.519 so we we will take some steps at the end here 00:11:09.519 --> 00:11:10.899 like maybe you're watching this and you're like 00:11:10.899 --> 00:11:13.720 oh crap maybe i am addicted maybe you think this 00:11:13.720 --> 00:11:16.080 is all stupid and he's like an industry plant 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:18.179 or something like that, which, by the way, I 00:11:18.179 --> 00:11:20.460 assure you he's not because we talked on day 00:11:20.460 --> 00:11:24.399 one. But I think maybe you want some help at 00:11:24.399 --> 00:11:26.960 the end and I will make sure he has time to share 00:11:26.960 --> 00:11:29.879 that. But so let's say you do want to help somebody. 00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:32.259 What are some of the red flags a spouse or family 00:11:32.259 --> 00:11:35.240 member can watch out for? Yeah, this is a really 00:11:35.240 --> 00:11:37.759 important one because, again, this hobby, this 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:40.639 idea of collecting, especially with cards, sports 00:11:40.639 --> 00:11:42.960 cards, Pokemon cards, what's really considered 00:11:42.960 --> 00:11:48.379 juvenile. by the outside looking in, people don't 00:11:48.379 --> 00:11:52.740 really recognize it as a problem. So a lot of 00:11:52.740 --> 00:11:55.879 what happens right off the bat is secrecy. Secrecy 00:11:55.879 --> 00:11:58.460 is usually the first one. The hiding the purchases, 00:11:58.779 --> 00:12:02.159 the minimizing costs, the lying by omission, 00:12:02.320 --> 00:12:04.940 the mood swings that track directly with breaks 00:12:04.940 --> 00:12:07.980 or box openings or eBay purchases. It's really 00:12:07.980 --> 00:12:10.360 financial stress without clear expectations. 00:12:11.309 --> 00:12:13.990 We'll also see a lot of, you know, defensiveness, 00:12:14.230 --> 00:12:17.009 irritability, just when being questioned, like, 00:12:17.110 --> 00:12:19.269 hey, why you been on your phone for so long? 00:12:19.330 --> 00:12:22.350 Or like, you know, you didn't go to bed last 00:12:22.350 --> 00:12:23.830 night till two or three in the morning. Like, 00:12:23.870 --> 00:12:27.169 what were you doing? Right. And then people justify, 00:12:27.409 --> 00:12:30.230 they make justifications to make themselves feel 00:12:30.230 --> 00:12:32.470 better. They say things like, I deserve this, 00:12:32.509 --> 00:12:35.529 or it'll even out, or you just don't understand 00:12:35.529 --> 00:12:39.070 the hobby. And so addiction doesn't show up as 00:12:39.070 --> 00:12:42.629 like. chaos at first it shows up as confidence 00:12:42.629 --> 00:12:45.470 wrapped around avoidance and the longer it stays 00:12:45.470 --> 00:12:48.750 unchallenged or unchecked the harder it can become 00:12:48.750 --> 00:12:52.789 to sort of take a step back unwind or you know 00:12:52.789 --> 00:12:54.590 like we were talking about before rewire the 00:12:54.590 --> 00:12:59.129 brain yeah i know um one of my degrees is psychology 00:12:59.129 --> 00:13:03.220 and uh you know we talk you know, a lot of the 00:13:03.220 --> 00:13:05.320 coursework was around addiction is very difficult 00:13:05.320 --> 00:13:10.659 to cure. You have to actually parlay that. You 00:13:10.659 --> 00:13:13.179 have to change the addiction into something that 00:13:13.179 --> 00:13:15.139 doesn't hurt you as much. And so a lot of the 00:13:15.139 --> 00:13:20.019 popular choices are religion, fitness, music, 00:13:20.299 --> 00:13:23.519 you know, stuff like that. Because it's hard 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:25.980 to just turn a light switch off. You need to 00:13:25.980 --> 00:13:28.399 turn something else on to take the brunt of that 00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:33.679 emotion. So, you know, And people do have a lot 00:13:33.679 --> 00:13:35.940 of success as long as they find something else 00:13:35.940 --> 00:13:38.139 to replace that addiction. It's very interesting. 00:13:38.340 --> 00:13:40.500 The whole thing's interesting. Yeah, I was a 00:13:40.500 --> 00:13:42.720 psychology minor in college. And what's interesting 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:45.659 is I was in advertising sales for 13, 14 years 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:47.820 before I started Collectors MD and never really 00:13:47.820 --> 00:13:50.820 had the opportunity to apply some of what I learned 00:13:50.820 --> 00:13:52.980 in college. Granted, it's been a long time. But 00:13:52.980 --> 00:13:56.799 yeah, some of this stuff is really, really interesting 00:13:56.799 --> 00:14:01.100 how the human brain works. Right. You know, I 00:14:01.100 --> 00:14:02.820 guess I have a different view on this because 00:14:02.820 --> 00:14:05.179 I live sort of like a libertarian, but like, 00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:08.100 you know, do breakers and platforms have a moral 00:14:08.100 --> 00:14:09.940 responsibility to protect people or is this just 00:14:09.940 --> 00:14:13.320 personal accountability? Yeah, this is one that 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:16.000 comes up all the time. Right. Especially, you 00:14:16.000 --> 00:14:18.539 know, people in the comments, the naysayers, 00:14:18.539 --> 00:14:21.000 the folks that are like, you know, you're an 00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:23.139 adult, you know, just just make an adult decision. 00:14:23.600 --> 00:14:26.259 Just stop. If you're doing something harmful, 00:14:26.519 --> 00:14:28.860 not just to you, but those around you, stop the 00:14:28.860 --> 00:14:32.019 behavior. So it's really both. It's always both. 00:14:33.000 --> 00:14:36.100 Individuals are 100 % responsible for their choices, 00:14:36.220 --> 00:14:39.639 especially adults. That doesn't go away. But 00:14:39.639 --> 00:14:42.679 the systems are designed around things like urgency 00:14:42.679 --> 00:14:47.440 and scarcity and constant access. And so those 00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:51.750 things don't get to pretend to be neutral. Platforms 00:14:51.750 --> 00:14:54.190 know exactly what drives engagement. They have 00:14:54.190 --> 00:14:57.190 the best of the best marketing teams putting 00:14:57.190 --> 00:15:01.070 together these promo messages and the product 00:15:01.070 --> 00:15:04.490 itself and how to market it in a way that will 00:15:04.490 --> 00:15:08.029 pull the heartstrings of collectors. It's not 00:15:08.029 --> 00:15:11.850 by coincidence. And so breakers also know exactly 00:15:11.850 --> 00:15:15.850 how to hype any product. They understand how 00:15:15.850 --> 00:15:19.330 hype influences behavior. And when design... 00:15:19.710 --> 00:15:23.029 you know, choices, intentionally reduce friction 00:15:23.029 --> 00:15:27.169 and increase impulse. This whole idea of responsibility 00:15:27.169 --> 00:15:30.990 doesn't just go away just because the transaction 00:15:30.990 --> 00:15:34.169 is optional. We can ask people to be accountable 00:15:34.169 --> 00:15:37.149 and ask systems to stop pretending they don't 00:15:37.149 --> 00:15:39.250 shape outcomes at the same time. They can coexist. 00:15:39.690 --> 00:15:42.070 That's not anti -business. That's not anti -hobby. 00:15:42.129 --> 00:15:44.549 That's just having a mature adult conversation. 00:15:44.909 --> 00:15:46.830 Well, it's like, I don't know, alcohol, right? 00:15:46.889 --> 00:15:50.009 Like you have kids and If you're a good parent, 00:15:50.110 --> 00:15:52.649 you talk to them about, you know, you're going 00:15:52.649 --> 00:15:54.190 to go to college, you're going to high school, 00:15:54.309 --> 00:15:56.769 parties, things are going to happen. This is 00:15:56.769 --> 00:15:59.309 how you can be responsible, right? Don't drink 00:15:59.309 --> 00:16:01.750 15 beers your first day, you know, something 00:16:01.750 --> 00:16:03.610 like that. And there's a little bit of accountability. 00:16:03.809 --> 00:16:05.490 Watch where your kids go. Make sure they're not, 00:16:05.570 --> 00:16:07.830 I don't know, drinking six packs in the basement 00:16:07.830 --> 00:16:10.850 or something like that. But also, you know, you 00:16:10.850 --> 00:16:14.080 don't want that alcohol company like... catering 00:16:14.080 --> 00:16:16.279 to kids you know like advertising and kids commercials 00:16:16.279 --> 00:16:18.399 which obviously isn't allowed and it might seem 00:16:18.399 --> 00:16:21.879 crazy but back in the day cigarettes and stuff 00:16:21.879 --> 00:16:23.980 were in sports illustrated and and things like 00:16:23.980 --> 00:16:27.440 that so it is it's always both and it always 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:31.360 will be both with any activity like that um so 00:16:31.360 --> 00:16:33.960 yeah it's a good take on it now have you have 00:16:33.960 --> 00:16:36.779 you seen somebody personally lose their life 00:16:36.779 --> 00:16:38.500 savings through breaking or have you heard any 00:16:38.500 --> 00:16:42.029 stories like that Yes. So this none of this is 00:16:42.029 --> 00:16:44.929 theory for me. And this is where we can come 00:16:44.929 --> 00:16:47.610 back a little bit to my lived experience. I didn't 00:16:47.610 --> 00:16:49.809 wake up one day and just lose everything in like 00:16:49.809 --> 00:16:52.629 one dramatic moment or, you know, because of 00:16:52.629 --> 00:16:56.389 one break or one tilt session at the casino. 00:16:56.889 --> 00:17:01.389 It really happened slowly. And, you know, it 00:17:01.389 --> 00:17:03.850 was like one break, one rip, one purchase at 00:17:03.850 --> 00:17:06.920 a time. And, you know, it wasn't like I wasn't 00:17:06.920 --> 00:17:09.880 thinking like I felt like I was using logic, 00:17:09.940 --> 00:17:12.960 you know, but I was justifying. I was always 00:17:12.960 --> 00:17:15.480 believing that that next hit, that next big card 00:17:15.480 --> 00:17:19.200 would fix the last. And it happened. So there 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:22.519 was that false sense of hope. There was an illusion, 00:17:22.720 --> 00:17:24.619 right? Because there were times where I hit a 00:17:24.619 --> 00:17:27.460 massive card and was able to sell it for five 00:17:27.460 --> 00:17:30.539 figures and then recoup a lot of my losses. But 00:17:30.539 --> 00:17:32.480 instead of just stopping, I would just keep going. 00:17:32.619 --> 00:17:35.539 And so I would tell myself that I was in control. 00:17:35.619 --> 00:17:38.140 I was in the driver's seat until I just wasn't. 00:17:38.140 --> 00:17:41.440 And so watching money disappear while convincing 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:44.980 myself it made sense is a feeling I wouldn't 00:17:44.980 --> 00:17:48.880 wish on anyone. And so beyond myself, now every 00:17:48.880 --> 00:17:51.359 week in our peer support meetings, we hear these 00:17:51.359 --> 00:17:54.289 anonymous versions of the same story. People 00:17:54.289 --> 00:17:57.710 who chase losses. People who hid debt from spouses. 00:17:57.910 --> 00:18:00.349 People who didn't realize how far it went until 00:18:00.349 --> 00:18:03.289 the damage was already done. People who have 00:18:03.289 --> 00:18:06.609 lost everything because of sports cards. Not 00:18:06.609 --> 00:18:09.109 just their life savings, but their homes, their 00:18:09.109 --> 00:18:12.589 cars, their spouses, their kids, their jobs. 00:18:13.029 --> 00:18:15.549 These aren't rare horror stories anymore. They're 00:18:15.549 --> 00:18:17.789 patterns. And pretending that they don't exist 00:18:17.789 --> 00:18:20.069 doesn't protect the hobby. It protects denial. 00:18:20.829 --> 00:18:25.680 Yeah, I think, to be fair, I've not as many, 00:18:25.759 --> 00:18:28.160 but I have heard story, bad stories for collectors 00:18:28.160 --> 00:18:32.039 too. They just like buy stuff that, you know, 00:18:32.039 --> 00:18:33.319 they just, I don't know. They bought something 00:18:33.319 --> 00:18:35.380 for no reason, some prospect or whatever, and 00:18:35.380 --> 00:18:36.980 it doesn't pan out. They lose a ton of money. 00:18:37.019 --> 00:18:38.759 You can lose money that way too. Absolutely. 00:18:39.339 --> 00:18:41.619 And maybe they don't even intend to flip, but 00:18:41.619 --> 00:18:44.819 they all of a sudden now they have an illiquid 00:18:44.819 --> 00:18:47.319 asset. That's tied up a lot of money and that 00:18:47.319 --> 00:18:49.700 can cause stress to the whole, the whole industry. 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:53.460 It's just so fascinating. Which leads to this, 00:18:53.480 --> 00:18:55.220 you know, what do you think is more dangerous? 00:18:55.859 --> 00:18:58.420 You got a casino, a brick and mortar casino. 00:18:58.460 --> 00:19:01.059 Now, I'm aware that you can place bets on your 00:19:01.059 --> 00:19:03.160 phones now. I did myself for the Super Bowl. 00:19:04.319 --> 00:19:07.359 Or a phone in your pocket with Whatnot notifications. 00:19:08.480 --> 00:19:12.460 Yeah, so a brick and mortar casino, it has walls, 00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:15.339 right? You have to physically get in a car and 00:19:15.339 --> 00:19:18.079 make the concerted effort to drive to a physical 00:19:18.079 --> 00:19:20.529 destination. And so because of that, there's 00:19:20.529 --> 00:19:24.650 a sense of physical friction. You have to go 00:19:24.650 --> 00:19:27.630 through several steps in order to get to the 00:19:27.630 --> 00:19:30.630 table, right? Your phone doesn't have any of 00:19:30.630 --> 00:19:33.690 that. It follows you everywhere into work, into 00:19:33.690 --> 00:19:36.930 bed, into moments of vulnerability. And so these 00:19:36.930 --> 00:19:40.210 push notifications manufacture this sense of 00:19:40.210 --> 00:19:43.509 urgency. They collapse, you know, the space between 00:19:43.509 --> 00:19:47.009 impulse and action. And so when access is just. 00:19:47.420 --> 00:19:50.640 24 -7, constant, in your face, that opportunity 00:19:50.640 --> 00:19:53.200 to pause and reflect just completely disappears. 00:19:53.539 --> 00:19:55.539 And without being able to pause and reflect, 00:19:55.819 --> 00:19:59.339 even the smartest, most disciplined people can 00:19:59.339 --> 00:20:01.460 end up making decisions they would have never 00:20:01.460 --> 00:20:03.799 made otherwise. So that's really the inherent 00:20:03.799 --> 00:20:07.980 risk. Yeah, you know, casinos post very clearly. 00:20:08.019 --> 00:20:11.299 You can go look up roulette odds, house advantage 00:20:11.299 --> 00:20:13.759 in five seconds. You can just Google that or 00:20:13.759 --> 00:20:16.579 chat to you or whatever. Same thing with roulette. 00:20:17.039 --> 00:20:20.140 Poker is a bit more of a game of skill. So, you 00:20:20.140 --> 00:20:22.519 know, obviously there's a rake there at the casino. 00:20:24.119 --> 00:20:28.980 And I feel like I'm a half intelligent guy. I 00:20:28.980 --> 00:20:30.440 haven't really, I've broken a couple of times 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:34.420 just for fun. I don't fully understand the odds 00:20:34.420 --> 00:20:38.079 of serial number breaks and pick your player, 00:20:38.180 --> 00:20:40.839 pick your team breaks. I can't. I can't get that 00:20:40.839 --> 00:20:43.579 in my head in five seconds. Now, yeah, if I sat 00:20:43.579 --> 00:20:45.319 down with a pad and was like, you know, I spent 00:20:45.319 --> 00:20:46.799 like a couple of days on it, I could probably 00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:50.019 come up with the VIG. But I have spoken to breakers 00:20:50.019 --> 00:20:51.660 about their margins and some are quite honest. 00:20:51.720 --> 00:20:54.980 Some say 20%. I think the repackers are making 00:20:54.980 --> 00:20:59.400 80 % in my opinion. But I don't know. It's like 00:20:59.400 --> 00:21:02.059 a societal thing, right? It all changed in, I 00:21:02.059 --> 00:21:05.559 hate to go all sociology on this, but in 2007. 00:21:06.640 --> 00:21:09.140 The iPhone came out, man. And a lot of things 00:21:09.140 --> 00:21:11.640 changed. One funny graph I like to show people 00:21:11.640 --> 00:21:17.420 is the iPhone release and the iPhone usage. It's 00:21:17.420 --> 00:21:19.960 a curve going like this. And then another one 00:21:19.960 --> 00:21:23.299 I like to show is hemorrhoid use. Googling hemorrhoids 00:21:23.299 --> 00:21:26.119 and usage. It's the exact same curve because 00:21:26.119 --> 00:21:28.279 everybody's sitting with their phone in the bathrooms 00:21:28.279 --> 00:21:31.500 or they're hooked to their phones. And I bet 00:21:31.500 --> 00:21:33.720 you there's probably correlations with accidents. 00:21:34.480 --> 00:21:38.019 and texting and, um, a hundred percent, we've 00:21:38.019 --> 00:21:41.519 just turned into cyborgs and, uh, we're not meant 00:21:41.519 --> 00:21:44.319 to be a hive mind like that. We're primates, 00:21:44.319 --> 00:21:46.740 you know? Yeah. Just, just to piggyback off that, 00:21:46.799 --> 00:21:49.380 Nick, think about where we are in today's day 00:21:49.380 --> 00:21:52.119 and age with technology, with smartphones, with 00:21:52.119 --> 00:21:55.880 access now, AI being on the cutting edge of, 00:21:55.900 --> 00:21:58.619 of everything. Yeah. What is the world going 00:21:58.619 --> 00:22:01.180 to look like? in five years from now, in 10 years 00:22:01.180 --> 00:22:04.240 from now, in 20 years from now, right? I firmly 00:22:04.240 --> 00:22:06.559 believe that technology, now that AI especially 00:22:06.559 --> 00:22:10.519 is involved, is just going to continue to expand 00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:12.900 at an exponential rate. Well, let's talk about 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:15.099 that. Yeah, what kind of impact does that have 00:22:15.099 --> 00:22:17.920 on the hobby? Let's talk about the world. We'll 00:22:17.920 --> 00:22:20.730 talk about the hobby in five years. I think AI 00:22:20.730 --> 00:22:22.809 is going to be the end of society. I mean, I 00:22:22.809 --> 00:22:26.009 have a lot of people agree. I've lived through 00:22:26.009 --> 00:22:28.950 a lot of the Internet 1 .0, 2 .0 social media. 00:22:29.009 --> 00:22:31.089 I've never seen anything like this. I've met 00:22:31.089 --> 00:22:33.430 people that literally don't think for themselves 00:22:33.430 --> 00:22:35.809 at all. There's somebody I won't name him on 00:22:35.809 --> 00:22:38.130 IG, but he's got over 10 ,000 followers. Every 00:22:38.130 --> 00:22:40.450 single thing he does is AI. When he DMs you, 00:22:40.529 --> 00:22:42.730 it's AI. And when he has a conversation, it's 00:22:42.730 --> 00:22:48.069 AI. And I am. I am actually worried about our 00:22:48.069 --> 00:22:51.089 ability to critically think going forward. And 00:22:51.089 --> 00:22:53.690 man, it's going to be interesting. But then people 00:22:53.690 --> 00:22:55.349 probably said that about the car, the train, 00:22:55.529 --> 00:22:57.829 the nuclear bomb, you know, everything else. 00:22:58.130 --> 00:23:01.549 But sports cards. Right. Like if you're using 00:23:01.549 --> 00:23:05.630 AI, that's not cheating. I think if you're using 00:23:05.630 --> 00:23:09.150 it to, you know, be more efficient, to help you. 00:23:09.740 --> 00:23:12.380 with certain activities, operations, whether 00:23:12.380 --> 00:23:15.319 it be work -related, personal, you're more or 00:23:15.319 --> 00:23:17.400 less just taking advantage of the technologies 00:23:17.400 --> 00:23:20.220 that are available to you. The same way people 00:23:20.220 --> 00:23:23.700 started using typewriters back in the day instead 00:23:23.700 --> 00:23:28.119 of writing with a pen. It's more efficient. And 00:23:28.119 --> 00:23:31.799 so if you use it correctly, if you use it the 00:23:31.799 --> 00:23:36.220 appropriate way, then... That's fantastic. But 00:23:36.220 --> 00:23:37.900 if, yeah, to your point, if you're just using 00:23:37.900 --> 00:23:41.079 it for quite literally everything and no longer 00:23:41.079 --> 00:23:44.839 putting together your own thoughts or words or 00:23:44.839 --> 00:23:50.140 opinions or beliefs, I mean, you know, it's subjective. 00:23:50.420 --> 00:23:53.559 It's not healthy. It's not healthy. So what do 00:23:53.559 --> 00:23:55.099 you think the hobby looks like in five years 00:23:55.099 --> 00:23:58.180 if this really isn't kept in check and people 00:23:58.180 --> 00:24:00.680 continue to have problems like you've outlined? 00:24:00.900 --> 00:24:02.420 You know, what do you think our industry looks 00:24:02.420 --> 00:24:06.089 like? Yeah, so I think burnout, the burnout that 00:24:06.089 --> 00:24:08.450 we're seeing across the board, just starts to 00:24:08.450 --> 00:24:11.490 accelerate more. You know, the trust erodes. 00:24:11.730 --> 00:24:17.210 The more people join breaks and leave, they end 00:24:17.210 --> 00:24:21.549 up just walking away, but not just, you know, 00:24:21.569 --> 00:24:24.990 with their tail between their legs. They're ashamed 00:24:24.990 --> 00:24:28.529 and they're feeling all of these different emotions, 00:24:28.710 --> 00:24:32.299 right? And so I think this sense of churn. that 00:24:32.299 --> 00:24:35.259 we're seeing across these platforms will eventually 00:24:35.259 --> 00:24:38.059 slow down and the hobby will end up in a really 00:24:38.059 --> 00:24:41.700 dark place if we don't start to make proactive 00:24:41.700 --> 00:24:44.740 changes. And so I also think that regulation 00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:47.079 will eventually come. I don't know when that 00:24:47.079 --> 00:24:50.240 will be, but if we, again, aren't proactive, 00:24:50.539 --> 00:24:53.240 it's not going to be thoughtful or hobby friendly. 00:24:53.420 --> 00:24:58.259 It's going to be reactive to the harm that's 00:24:58.259 --> 00:25:01.700 being done. And so. Yeah. And then like even 00:25:01.700 --> 00:25:04.839 worse than that, if nothing changes publicly, 00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:07.559 if there is no regulation and the damage just 00:25:07.559 --> 00:25:10.259 ends up staying hidden, you know, people will 00:25:10.259 --> 00:25:14.079 disappear while everybody, you know, in the industry 00:25:14.079 --> 00:25:17.019 who are sort of on the other side, breakers, 00:25:17.019 --> 00:25:19.779 platforms, manufacturers just sort of tell themselves 00:25:19.779 --> 00:25:23.579 that it's all it's all fine. And so, yeah, like 00:25:23.579 --> 00:25:26.380 hobbies don't collapse from criticism. They collapse 00:25:26.380 --> 00:25:29.539 from denial. And addressing this doesn't weaken 00:25:29.539 --> 00:25:32.019 the hobby. It's really the only way it survives 00:25:32.019 --> 00:25:34.920 long term. And just to be clear, this isn't about 00:25:34.920 --> 00:25:38.720 being anti -hobby or pessimistic. It's actually 00:25:38.720 --> 00:25:42.779 the opposite. This is just realism rooted in 00:25:42.779 --> 00:25:46.430 real care, real passion. I really genuinely care 00:25:46.430 --> 00:25:49.150 about the hobby. And we want the hobby to survive 00:25:49.150 --> 00:25:51.490 long -term. We want it to be healthy, sustainable, 00:25:51.630 --> 00:25:53.849 and something that people can actually participate 00:25:53.849 --> 00:25:56.910 in without quietly hurting or losing themselves. 00:25:57.230 --> 00:25:59.750 And not just adults, kids too. Because if we 00:25:59.750 --> 00:26:02.529 continue to normalize a lot of this unchecked 00:26:02.529 --> 00:26:05.670 hype, a lot of the behavior around urgency and 00:26:05.670 --> 00:26:08.809 FOMO and the lack of guardrails, we're teaching 00:26:08.809 --> 00:26:11.029 this next generation that risk without reflection 00:26:11.029 --> 00:26:14.539 is just part of the fun. It's just... par for 00:26:14.539 --> 00:26:17.259 the course so real reform and real accountability 00:26:17.259 --> 00:26:20.220 aren't threats to the hobby they're how it grows 00:26:20.220 --> 00:26:23.619 up they're how it earns trust you know and protects 00:26:23.619 --> 00:26:25.839 people and build something that's meaningful 00:26:25.839 --> 00:26:29.380 and and lasts so if we actually love this space 00:26:29.380 --> 00:26:32.319 then pretending everything is just fine isn't 00:26:32.319 --> 00:26:36.259 you know um loyalty it's it's avoidance so yeah 00:26:36.259 --> 00:26:40.799 i mean if we um If we don't keep this in check, 00:26:40.880 --> 00:26:42.539 I'm going to be a little bit more grim here. 00:26:42.900 --> 00:26:45.319 I'm pretty good at forecasting industries. I 00:26:45.319 --> 00:26:49.079 did that for a living for a while. I'd say in 00:26:49.079 --> 00:26:51.660 five years, if this doesn't get under control, 00:26:51.839 --> 00:26:54.019 you're going to see two -thirds of breakers go 00:26:54.019 --> 00:26:57.119 out of business. And you'll see that last third 00:26:57.119 --> 00:27:00.299 consolidate into a few big companies that will 00:27:00.299 --> 00:27:04.740 always be here. And that's going to change things 00:27:04.740 --> 00:27:06.559 a lot. It's going to change the liquidity of 00:27:06.559 --> 00:27:08.799 the slabs you're sitting on. It's going to change. 00:27:09.500 --> 00:27:12.359 The repack companies, it's going to change everything 00:27:12.359 --> 00:27:15.859 because what's going to happen is, you know, 00:27:15.859 --> 00:27:18.079 people are just going to smoke 200 bucks and 00:27:18.079 --> 00:27:19.119 they could be like, what did I get for this? 00:27:19.220 --> 00:27:21.440 And then even worse, you're going to have 16 00:27:21.440 --> 00:27:24.500 year olds doing it. That'll be the first regulation 00:27:24.500 --> 00:27:28.200 that comes. We're going to see some state. There's 00:27:28.200 --> 00:27:29.880 just too many lawsuits going on. There's one 00:27:29.880 --> 00:27:33.730 for Whatnot right now in Utah. You'll see an 00:27:33.730 --> 00:27:35.670 age restriction in some state and then Whatnot. 00:27:35.789 --> 00:27:37.710 It's just once they're forced to do it in one 00:27:37.710 --> 00:27:39.670 state, they'll just do it everywhere. And then 00:27:39.670 --> 00:27:42.190 everybody else will do it. And that's probably 00:27:42.190 --> 00:27:45.329 a good thing, but I don't know. We'll see, man. 00:27:45.430 --> 00:27:50.170 We shall see. So this is really gloomy, really 00:27:50.170 --> 00:27:51.950 gloomy stuff. That's not, that's not what it's 00:27:51.950 --> 00:27:54.250 intended to be, but it's, which is again, we're 00:27:54.250 --> 00:27:57.269 being realistic. Yeah. Now, if you, if you're 00:27:57.269 --> 00:27:59.769 watching this and you're like crap, okay, I'm 00:27:59.769 --> 00:28:03.279 addicted to this or I'm, or. I'm trending towards 00:28:03.279 --> 00:28:05.740 a problem. Or maybe you're totally fine and you're 00:28:05.740 --> 00:28:07.200 just a collector and don't care, but you know 00:28:07.200 --> 00:28:09.640 somebody who might be dealing with this stuff. 00:28:09.799 --> 00:28:11.960 What are some of the resources that Collectors MD 00:28:11.960 --> 00:28:14.960 has and how can you find them? Yeah, if any of 00:28:14.960 --> 00:28:17.880 this resonates with you, it doesn't matter if 00:28:17.880 --> 00:28:21.119 you're a breaker, you're on the industry side, 00:28:21.359 --> 00:28:24.099 you're a collector, or you're just someone who's 00:28:24.099 --> 00:28:25.940 starting to question their relationship with 00:28:25.940 --> 00:28:29.319 the hobby. What we always say is you can't... 00:28:29.609 --> 00:28:32.789 get through tough times in isolation, right? 00:28:32.890 --> 00:28:36.329 You have to lean on your peers. You have to lean 00:28:36.329 --> 00:28:38.710 on community. And so that's what Collectors MD 00:28:38.710 --> 00:28:41.670 is here to offer. And so you can reach out anytime. 00:28:42.410 --> 00:28:45.309 We have a website, collectorsmd .com. You can 00:28:45.309 --> 00:28:49.170 email info at collectorsmd .com. We have social. 00:28:50.619 --> 00:28:52.759 We're on pretty much every social platform. We 00:28:52.759 --> 00:28:55.079 have tools and resources on our website. You 00:28:55.079 --> 00:28:59.480 can see all of our social channels at bio .collectorsmd 00:28:59.480 --> 00:29:02.460 .com. And beyond all that, we offer education, 00:29:02.920 --> 00:29:06.940 open conversation, and peer support, right? Not 00:29:06.940 --> 00:29:10.140 judgment, not mandates, and not, hey, you have 00:29:10.140 --> 00:29:15.079 to quit in order to heal. Everybody's different. 00:29:15.220 --> 00:29:16.920 Everybody has a different journey and a different 00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:20.660 path. And so we meet folks where they are. So, 00:29:20.720 --> 00:29:23.759 yeah, we just we have it's a place to slow things 00:29:23.759 --> 00:29:27.039 down, be honest. And ultimately, our mantra is 00:29:27.039 --> 00:29:29.220 collect with intention, not compulsion. I got 00:29:29.220 --> 00:29:31.660 one last question for anybody that's still listening. 00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:36.259 The brake mats that you've got. I know Rip Hamilton 00:29:36.259 --> 00:29:39.160 uses one. I texted him and I said I was like, 00:29:39.220 --> 00:29:41.579 actually quite proud of him for doing that. I 00:29:41.579 --> 00:29:43.940 gave him a lot of crap in my early days, but 00:29:43.940 --> 00:29:46.319 we get along well now. Danny's my boy. What do 00:29:46.319 --> 00:29:48.599 you say about. People saying like, oh, well, 00:29:48.660 --> 00:29:50.420 that just makes it okay. Like this break is just 00:29:50.420 --> 00:29:51.859 going to put a break mat down and that makes 00:29:51.859 --> 00:29:54.619 it okay. Yeah, it's a totally fair question. 00:29:54.720 --> 00:29:57.019 And I get why people would ask that. The short 00:29:57.019 --> 00:29:59.960 answer is, you know, the mat doesn't magically 00:29:59.960 --> 00:30:03.519 make everything okay. What it does is it changes 00:30:03.519 --> 00:30:07.680 the tone and it introduces things like an opportunity 00:30:07.680 --> 00:30:11.019 to pause. It creates awareness. accountability, 00:30:11.259 --> 00:30:14.359 maybe curiosity within a space that historically 00:30:14.359 --> 00:30:17.319 hasn't had any of those things. So the whole 00:30:17.319 --> 00:30:19.619 RIP responsibly message, and this is part of 00:30:19.619 --> 00:30:21.440 our initiative that we've rolled out in the hobby. 00:30:21.579 --> 00:30:24.799 And, you know, RIP Hamilton is not the only big 00:30:24.799 --> 00:30:28.299 breaker that's leveraging the message to, you 00:30:28.299 --> 00:30:30.000 know, ultimately create a healthier and safer 00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:33.700 space for their customers. But using it isn't 00:30:33.700 --> 00:30:37.309 like a hall pass. It's a signal. It says we acknowledge 00:30:37.309 --> 00:30:39.950 this can be risky for some people and we're not 00:30:39.950 --> 00:30:41.789 pretending otherwise. You know, what actually 00:30:41.789 --> 00:30:44.690 matters is what comes with the mat. You know, 00:30:44.730 --> 00:30:47.630 are there limits? Are those limits encouraged 00:30:47.630 --> 00:30:50.069 or are they ignored? Is language responsible 00:30:50.069 --> 00:30:52.549 or hype driven? Are people pressured to chase 00:30:52.549 --> 00:30:56.829 or supported to, you know, pause, slow down and, 00:30:56.849 --> 00:31:00.670 you know, really like make purchases intentionally? 00:31:00.849 --> 00:31:04.109 Is there transparency when someone says? I need 00:31:04.109 --> 00:31:06.849 to step away. So the mat alone, again, isn't 00:31:06.849 --> 00:31:10.609 the solution. It's intended to be a layer of 00:31:10.609 --> 00:31:14.710 awareness so that people can ultimately change 00:31:14.710 --> 00:31:17.890 their behavior. And so we've never claimed a 00:31:17.890 --> 00:31:20.890 disclaimer solves everything. It's about harm 00:31:20.890 --> 00:31:23.730 reduction, not harm denial. You can enjoy breaking. 00:31:23.990 --> 00:31:26.410 You can enjoy collecting and be honest about 00:31:26.410 --> 00:31:29.329 the risks. Those two things can coexist. So that's 00:31:29.329 --> 00:31:30.990 the whole point of Rip Responsibly. I just had 00:31:30.990 --> 00:31:34.019 a great idea for a follow -up episode. I am going 00:31:34.019 --> 00:31:36.180 to get a behavioral psychologist that deals with 00:31:36.180 --> 00:31:38.440 addiction on this channel. And I think that would 00:31:38.440 --> 00:31:42.240 be dope because it may not, you may have no addiction 00:31:42.240 --> 00:31:43.900 with sports cards whatsoever. And you just collect 00:31:43.900 --> 00:31:45.339 wax from the eighties, but maybe you're addicted 00:31:45.339 --> 00:31:47.819 to something else. You know what I mean? And 00:31:47.819 --> 00:31:49.539 I actually think that's going to be a cool discussion. 00:31:49.599 --> 00:31:51.700 So that's on my, that's on my, thanks to you. 00:31:51.839 --> 00:31:53.880 That's all my checklist for today. Brilliant 00:31:53.880 --> 00:31:57.299 idea. Alyx, this has been awesome, man. I appreciate 00:31:57.299 --> 00:32:01.789 you always do always. give you a platform here, 00:32:01.950 --> 00:32:03.329 you know, to talk to me and stuff like that. 00:32:03.369 --> 00:32:05.190 Cause I love what you're doing. If you guys want 00:32:05.190 --> 00:32:07.509 to hit him up, I've got his Instagram under his 00:32:07.509 --> 00:32:09.809 name there. Feel free to DM him, check out the 00:32:09.809 --> 00:32:11.930 website and jump on a meeting if you need it, 00:32:11.950 --> 00:32:13.910 or at least tell somebody about it. But thanks. 00:32:14.009 --> 00:32:15.329 Thanks so much, Nick. Appreciate you.