[TheForge] Theft from Tailgate sales (was: Spring Fling Thanks)

[Andrew Vida]

NOBLER511@aol.com wrote:
> 
> I have been attending blacksmith conferences since 1988 and up until
> about three or four years ago thefts were rarely heard of. You could
> leave anything from tools and books and even money in a honor box or
> can with out worry of anything being taken.NOT ANY MORE!!!  It looks
> like our ranks are being infiltrated by unscrupulous persons.

	Destruction of trustworthiness really sucks and I have to say
	that I resent it.  One of the best things about blacksmithing 
	events is that sense of trust and honor among people. This is 
	perfectly engendered in the ability of a person to cruise the 
	tailgate area when everyone else is off doing something else 
	and knowing that all those people trust YOU enough to not feel 
	a need to lock up their	wares when they're gone.  In this day 
	and age when so many people seem to be trying their level best 
	to steal anything and everything they can, it has always been 
	a great source of satisfaction knowing that we, the blacksmiths 
	of this	world, do not operate in this manner.  

	What I hope is that we will not become cynical, as much of the
	rest of the world has, and allow our fundamental spirit of
	trust and community to be destroyed by such behavior.  If we do,
	then we will have lost something very significant and I believe 
	that the community of blacksmiths will be altered in a way that 
	will diminish the quality and character of that community most
	sadly.

	Illegitimus non carborundum.