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Booted by the ICSBS

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cshapiro
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« on: June 22, 2017, 01:03:42 am »

Hmmm well I paid my membership fee online to the ICSBS a couple of months ago, and never heard a word from them.
I was thinking I might get a letter or something eventually.
Instead today my membership fee was mysteriously refunded. I did not request a refund!

I just got the boot!

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Cathy

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« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2017, 01:21:40 am »

Cathy

That's strange, but if it makes you feel any better, I was a member for a year, only received only 1 of the periodicals, and after repeated requests (almost pleading or begging) was ever sent 1 of the 2 missing ones, had my further requests completely ignored, and then NEVER received a subscription renewal . Needless to say, I was significantly less than impressed. 

And I am not exactly a beginner collector, I have been at this since 1999, and avoided membership forever because of the elitist attitude until Joey joined here, and then gave it a shot, with the results above.   

This in a public forum, so I hope someone at ICSBS is reading this.  Customer service needs to be DRAMATICALLY improved.
« Last Edit: June 22, 2017, 08:31:57 pm by Pat - 查尚杰 » Report Spam   Logged

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« Reply #2 on: June 22, 2017, 01:34:37 am »

Thanks Pat! Makes me feel better.

They never sent an email either way - when I joined or when they refunded my membership fee.

Absolutely zero communication. So I guess I am better off - I really wanted to be able to buy some journals  - but have had some luck accumulating them elsewhere. Wink
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« Reply #3 on: June 22, 2017, 02:02:39 am »

Cathy

I have a LOT of duplicate journals that I have accumulated over the years.  Let me have a look what I have.  Maybe we can do an exchange for something.. like the Chen Zhongsan we discussed a while ago.  If you still have it please keep it for a possible exchange.  Many of what I have double you would have a rough time finding in the market, I think.  I bought 4-5 large collections to get where I am today.
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« Reply #4 on: June 22, 2017, 03:35:16 pm »


Cathy,

As a member of of the ICSBS I'll keep your situation in mind.  I attend a board meeting on occasion in the spring of each year when the Joint Northern and Southern California chapters meet, and will bring this up if there are still issues by next spring.  Something is going within society administrative staff for there seems to be new people and/or a transition occurring.   That may explain the poor response.

Also, Joey is a current board member and he is presently having extensive communications with the society staff in preparation for the London meeting this fall.  If he picks up on this thread maybe he bring to the their attention and can track down the issue.

Charll 
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« Reply #5 on: June 22, 2017, 05:20:51 pm »

Pat,

   I'm sorry to here that this happened to you, and will check out what happened. By the way, we only get 3 Journals a year (Spring, Autumn, Winter); they stopped producing 4 a year at least 10 years ago, if I'm not mistaken. But that's not meant as an excuse, just an explanation.
Which year were you a member?

Cathy,

   How much did you pay for membership? I ask because ours is expensive, at US$150 or US$165 a year.
   But there is a crowd in Taipei who took a website almost identical to ours, and were charging US$20 or US$30 a year! And claiming to be the ICSBS, based in Baltimore.

   If it is the ICSBS, then I will look into it, as I will over Pat's issue.

Joey
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« Reply #6 on: June 22, 2017, 08:25:15 pm »

Joey

Yes, I mis-wrote, you are right.   But since I never even got a complete year's worth of journals, I kind of remembered the old rhythm... I paid up dues for 2015, I recall. 
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« Reply #7 on: June 22, 2017, 10:06:31 pm »

Dear Pat,

      I want to apologise on behalf of the ICSBS. The odd thing is, Virginia Remsberg, who was running the office from Jan. 2013 till July 2016, was incredibly efficient as a rule. Ask whoever I got Journals sent to (George and Steven, and possibly Charll).

     I will get you whichever Journal you did not get.

     Re.Cathy - a number of people got caught in a scam, purporting to give a membership or renewal in our Society for a 'bargain price' of US$30.
You might remember that George once asked about this, not realising it was a scam, and posted photos of 'Journal' covers in Chinese.

    Best,
Joey
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« Reply #8 on: June 22, 2017, 10:17:42 pm »

Thanks Joey. 

I will have a look which one I am missing.   If I could be assured this doesn't happen again, I would rejoin, because I like the journals... and one day will join a event.   I forgot to mention, I did interact with Virginia, and then got radio silence, maybe because she left... not sure.

At the time I was using my IBM office address, and had almost perfect scorecard in receiving items, as there was always someone to 'receive' or 'sign for'.

Appreciate your help as always. 
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« Reply #9 on: June 22, 2017, 10:34:11 pm »

Joey, I paid $167 for membership at snuffbottle.org, and yes, I know I was on the correct site. I am a web developer by trade so the insinuation that I would be duped by phishers is ludicrous.  I write the code to catch them. Wink

The email address I communicated to on more than one occasion, who never answered back was icsbs.office@verizon.net

I would be particularly interested to know if new members have to be approved.
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« Reply #10 on: June 25, 2017, 03:04:22 pm »

   You are a rude, offensive person, who thinks she knows it all, when in reality, you know nothing and seem to learn nothing.
When I want to 'burn' someone, I do it to their face. I don't make 'insinuations'.

   I asked a simple question, expecting to get a simple and CIVIL, answer. This is because over 37 of our members, out of under 500 total membership, actually did accidentally pay a site designed to fool people by having a website with a name almost identical to ours.

   I wanted to help you now, as I did last year when I wasted 3+ hours a day for 6 weeks, trying to help you learn about snuff bottles, and NOT buy 110 bottles in 32 days, MOST OF THEM JUNK. And I sent you a gift of my publications, again to help you.

   Well, I'm tired of your offensive behavior, and I'm tired of you.
 And don't bother trying to rejoin.
If there wasn't vetting before, there certainly is now.
   
 


Joey, I paid $167 for membership at snuffbottle.org, and yes, I know I was on the correct site. I am a web developer by trade so the insinuation that I would be duped by phishers is ludicrous.  I write the code to catch them. Wink

The email address I communicated to on more than one occasion, who never answered back was icsbs.office@verizon.net

I would be particularly interested to know if new members have to be approved.
« Last Edit: June 26, 2017, 05:35:01 am by Joey » Report Spam   Logged

Joey Silver (Si Zhouyi 義周司), collecting snuff bottles since Feb.1970

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« Reply #11 on: June 26, 2017, 10:02:47 pm »

   You are a rude, offensive person, who thinks she knows it all, when in reality, you know nothing and seem to learn nothing.

I have been trying to figure out what to say to this Joey..   I really must say that it was not necessary no matter how poorly the two of you seem to get along..

Personally, I truly believe Cathy a very nice person, who as a new collector has come much further than did I at this short time she has been collecting..

I think it would be best if the two of you simply stay clear of each other as I really do not want to loose Cathy as a member here..
« Last Edit: June 27, 2017, 03:15:48 am by George » Report Spam   Logged

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« Reply #12 on: June 27, 2017, 02:29:02 am »

George,

   Believe me, I've tried to avoid her since I stupidly spent a total of over 135 hrs. during the first 6 weeks after she joined the Forum, trying to help her learn.
BUT, when she gives false info (like the latest - describing the three fake Ma bottles in the Zacke auction as "a bargain, IMO", since she didn't know they were fake), I don't feel I can ignore it. Thankfully, this time Charll corrected her.

   Never mind the previous time, when she pulled a 'Cathy Griffin', a few days before President Trump's Inauguration, by joking about "the Trump Assassination, I mean Inauguration".
I'm NOT an American - I'm Israeli; and I was seriously offended by that fake 'slip of the tongue'. Any American who is truly loyal to American democracy, should have been even more so, and the person's politics is not the issue.

  While I loathed, and loathe, the man, I'd never have advocated for Barak Hussein Obama's lynching, even as a joke. I have too much respect for America's successful 231 year old experiment with a working mass population democracy.

   We'll agree to disagree over her personal qualities, or over her 'positive' contribution to the Forum.

   But in the latest case, after Pat mentioned  his hassle with the ICSBS, and Charll wrote I was on the ICSBS Board (I'd thought to contact Pat privately, to help him), I decided to offer my assistance to both Pat AND to Cathy.

   I don't know what 'phishing' is and don't care. And I DON'T do 'insinuation'. I tell it to your face, whether positive or negative.
   Because we'd had over 7% of our membership get caught with a scam, I wanted first, before I queried Berthe and the new guy in the ICSBS office, to be sure she'd not been scammed in the same way. I think that was a fair assumption on my part.

I did NOT expect to be attacked by someone whom I was attempting to assist.

Yours,
Joey
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« Reply #13 on: June 28, 2017, 04:24:13 am »

Hi All,

While  not intending to pour  more  oil onto the  flames,  I have quietly resigned from the  ICSBS  this  year (by  just not  renewing my  subscription) .

 I have felt the need to  do this in view of the  Society's  total lack  of  interest  in MIPBs  (apart  from a  sporadic  burst in 2014 which  quickly died)

However, I never suffered  any  of the  unfortunate administration problems mentioned  below so maybe it was  just a  temporary glitch  in the  admin system.  Also  I  received my journals  three time  per year without  any  problem - but  maybe   that was  because the  journal  is  published  in HK (I think actually  in  Shenzhen by  CA Design  which  is a  HK-based  company) , so  my journal copies  always  came by local  post

Cheers
Peter

PS:  Many will be shocked to learn that the word “democracy” was neither used in the Declaration of Independence nor in the American Constitution. Indeed, the Founding Fathers were anxious and fearful of allowing any form of tyranny, including the tyranny of the majority.
The  USA  was  set  up  specifically  as a Republic !
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« Reply #14 on: June 28, 2017, 05:37:27 am »

Thank you, Peter. I think your post was timely and calming.

Re. interest in VMIPBs. The Society "...was founded in 1968 to foster connoisseurship... among collectors...".

   There was never much interest in modern IPBs, with the possible exception of Wang Xisan's work.

   The Society was always interested ONLY in Antique snuff bottles. Not modern and not imitation.

   I am something of an odd duck in the Society, since I collect both antique and modern IPBs.
But for your information, when I was invited to exhibit 50 SBs in the upcoming London convention, I was specifically requested NOT to exhibit any modern works.

   However, for Wang Xisan's 80th birthday and the Society's 50th anniversary, in 2018, I and anyone else with WXS examples have been requested to bring them to Baltimore (the home of the Society, and our 50th convention venue) for display in the Master's honour.

  Joey
 
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« Reply #15 on: July 03, 2017, 11:55:54 pm »

Dear all,

I paid the annual ICSBS fee of USD167 by paypal a few months ago.  I never received any confirmation or any email regarding membership, password or anything.  I wrote to the email listed and a Lou Joseph responded.  He said he would fix it but so far I have received nothing from them. 

And I have not received any refund.

besides the membership issue, I wrote to Lou asking about the London convention that I am planning to attend. He promised to send me registration information but again I have heard nothing.

It is frustrating....and it appears that I have paid USD167 for nothing.

Curt

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« Reply #16 on: July 04, 2017, 12:47:25 am »

Hmmmm....Thanks for your post Curt!  Hope all is well otherwise.

This is now 3 people with problems in a community of say 15 active participants, of which 10 or so are longer term ICSBS members.   Not good statistics, at all, and terrible for reputation!   Looks to me like the ICSBS has some major issues to deal with, or kind of ignores its (new) non-US member base.


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« Reply #17 on: July 04, 2017, 02:54:42 am »

Hi Curt,

I had the same problems initially but then I sent a polite email to the general email address and also copied in Berthe the head of the ICSBS. I then quickly got access to the members area, which I requested and have been getting correspondence plus journals every now and then also.

Best,
Luke
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« Reply #18 on: July 04, 2017, 03:01:19 am »

Luke

Thanks for your personal input, but if you don't mind me saying 'journals now and then' (like was the case with me) is frankly totally unacceptable.   So I guess that now makes 4 of us ...

And copying Berthe, while it seemed to help, totally defeats the purpose.  If every time we have to copy the GM, 'Head of', CEO, or whomever, there is a problem.  Sorry to vent, but I have been very frustrated with them....
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« Reply #19 on: July 04, 2017, 03:08:54 am »

Hi Pat,

I should clarify - I've received all the journals so far, but I only joined in December and also I was just as frustrated as you for a few weeks until I sent the email. Was hoping it might resolve the problems you guys are having too. Obviously not an ideal solution. I hope you guys get your problems resolved as being a member does seem useful... for example, I also received a members and dealers booklet..

Best
Luke
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