True, there are crooks everywhere. There does seem to be more of a problem in Europe these days, although North America has nothing to brag about in that regard. One problem is getting authorities involved when fraud or theft is involved. When the victim is from another country, the interest by law enforcement, with few exceptions,is almost non-existent. I've not had a problem out of France, but have had several in other European countries, the US and Canada. I was hit hard several years ago by a thief in Italy. I was advised the Italian authorities only take complaints in person, not by mail, telephone or email. Taking a plane to Italy to file a complaint was a bit beyond me and, probably, nothing would have been done if I had. In other words, Italy appears to be fertile ground for a crook, as long as he stings someone in another country. I still like pizza, though. The "common sense" rules in dealing with foreign sellers and buyers have been around a long time. It's easy to forget them when the item is so desirable and the price is so low. I don't believe bringing up a particular country where problems have been experienced in any way throws a disparaging light on honest collectors and dealers from those countries. The good, the bad, the ugly are all around us.
