Just like to bump Brian's post (and also second slipstar's comments)
Thought I would throw out my two cents on the matter, though that might leave me little change to spare in my head, as flipping is always something that has irked me. I still can't get over when I see 'dealers' lined up outside a Salvation Army (e.g.) at opening time to grab their 'collectibles' to put in their shops/flea markets.
I think the bottomline is that you know it when you're doing it. And when it happens, it is pretty obvious.
You know it, we know it; and anyone expecting to price gouge can just keep [it]. As collectors/fans/whathaveyou of any media, be it vinyl, comics, toys, etc., I think it goes against the definition to even be a flipper. A collector buys (and might sometimes sell) as a hobby, a flipper does it as a business. That great beast that is now ebay was started out for collectors (I still remember doing searches for vintage Star Wars in its infancy and returning only handfuls of items) but sadly has become the latter. Yes, it is still a tool we can all use, though I often would rather not, but the true-to-nature comraderie of interacting with your fellow fans and collectors is what makes a forum like SB so great.
Of course there is going to be gradual exchanges of figures back and forth between members, heck, how else can you complete your collection
? I just think it of it like trading cards on the playground. So all that said, it seems that the self-regulation that occurs on these discussion boards is great, and highly geared towards us as fans. And if for some reason a 'flipper' does join the forum, seems lie a silly move to me, but I guess the free market will decide.
[Rant Over]
And now for something completely different....