----- Original Message -----
From: "William Donzelli" <aw288 at osfn.org>
To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Monday, April 25, 2005 10:08 PM
Subject: Re: End of Surplus?
Any
thoughts on this?
The sky is not falling. Your contact is probably just getting scared, and
will probably come to his senses after some time.
The government is getting far more restrictive with EUCs and demil
policies (this goes back to the 1990s), and because of this, surplus
"died" back then. It still came out. It still comes out to this day
(although not as much cool stuff is spared from demil).
Looks at the way DRMS works - often things are sold as piles, with a few
things tagged and logged on the side to make it look official (remember
the bored clerks that have to do this stuff - it is much easier to ignore
serials and model numbers when 5 PM is approaching! Lots of fun things are
found in those piles - often things that really ought not to get out*. If
the government does not have the complete numbers of what got out - what
good will the scrapman's paper be?
As you know, but others may not, if you get in good with a scrap guy, he
will sell you just about anything, provided you don't cross him.
*Like late model military radios, as in the kind that show up on Ebay from
time to time. They should not be out at all - those that are were hidden
in the "piles" and are stolen!
William Donzelli
aw288 at
osfn.org
It might be nothing if there is just a small fine for not doing the proper
paperwork. Once you have jail time associated with selling older equipment
without paperwork (and an agency willing and able to police it) then the
scrapper will take it seriously. Reminds me of the laws in Ohio about buying
fireworks, you have to sign a paper stating that you will transport the
items out of state (I always picked Mars PA) within a certain time period.
Every block has fireworks on the 4th, and I know of nobody even questioned
about it. If nobody will enforce the law (unlike speeding tickets the locals
would not make any money out of it) then who cares.