Ok folks...life gets busy....and it can get rough....I get it. We all have our lives outside this family here, and that's exactly how its supposed to be. We genuinely want the best for all members of our extended family here, and their families too!
That being said, I have the following three things to add to this conversation....
1) Most of us have never met each other. Some folks share enough to link facebooks, or other profiles...or to have met in person at some point, but most of us have not. Hell, most of us have no idea, what the other folks here even look like! That means the only thing we have here that binds us, are our common interests, and our word as people of integrity and character. We hold each other accountable for that, and expect the common, positive will of our community to be upheld by every member here. The only way a community like ours can thrive, is through this kind of thinking, and we all owe it to each other, and the brilliant folks who share their work, time, and love here, to honor that.
2)tonyt76's actions, in not contacting Rancor first, and going straight for his pocketbook, and his reputation and status with paypal, are not fitting to the standards we hold above. This type of behavior is unacceptable. Contact has been made now, and apologies issued, but AFTER being called out by our community. Rancor has proven himself to be a standup individual, with many transactions and many happy customers. Tony's sentence of , "May have reacted harshly," is an significant understatement in this case. Hopefully the situation gets sorted quickly and amicably, but throwing someone to the wolves, before you've even given them a chance to discuss the matter, is not OK. All we can do, once we've made a mistake, is our best to correct it, and to not repeat it, moving forward. I have faith that this is what will happen here.
3) Regardless of who the buyer or seller are...the onus is on you, as the buyer, to ensure the product that you received, arrived in proper and correct condition. Unless you have discussed it with your seller, and let them know of circumstances...you should be expected to report problems within two weeks...or a month at max. If you wait 60 days before opening your package to inspect...at that point, the fault is yours. Reaching out to a seller for a discussion is fine, and many here would be gracious enough to try and help....but to expect them to bend over backwards, or rake them over the coals, because you were too busy, or didn't have your life together at the time of purchase, is ludicrous.
These points are simply a reminder of the tenets of our community, and the standards we hold each other to. I am not attacking anyone, certainly not Tony. The situation, however, is an excellent teaching tool, to remind us how to be good to each other. Hopefully they are all points, our community will consider as they make future transactions on this site.