Ebay's erroneous and arrogant airgun policy in VA!

[tomsz]

https://monachuslex.com/?p=1162

...there are no statutory bars to the lawful purchase or possession of air guns in Virginia.  And it is good that Virginia has not attempted such controls because it turns out that states are preempted by federal law from banning the sale of air guns, at least to adults.    15 USC § 5001(g)(ii) states that:

(g) Preemption of State or local laws or ordinances; exceptions

…  no State shall—

(ii) prohibit the sale (other than prohibiting the sale to minors) of traditional B–B, paint ball, or pellet-firing air guns that expel a projectile through the force of air pressure.

This brings up a good point.  Localities may, under both federal and state law, impose restrictions on the sale of air guns to minors but may not impose such restrictions on adults.

[bonjourami]

And exactly how is Ebay to know the buyer is an adult?

[joem4stuff]

Unfortunately, corporate America is more interested in being politically correct than legally correct.

You call them arrogant, I call them ignorant; arrogance and ignorance are often interrelated.

[bonjourami]

While airguns are not considered firearms, dont they shoot pellets that could harm or even kill people?

[bonjourami]

There was a case here where a four year old child was shot in the eye with the pellet from an airgun.

[1786davycrockett]

There are many, many items on eBay's list of "forbidden" products; and, as a non-government organization, eBay can choose which items to allow, and which to disallow.  

The contract with eBay to which all eBay sellers must agree,  clearly states that sellers on eBay will abide by eBay's set of rules.  The Second Amendment to the U. S. Constitution does not preempt eBay's non-governmental corporate policy.

If you don't like the rules, perhaps you should find another venue to sell your air-gun.

[tomsz]

In short:   

1.  Ebay is violating my access to interstate commerce when banning the purchase of a publicly available product in my jurisdiction without being able to cite a federal/state/local law/rule that prompts them to do so.

2.  Ebay is violating my rights as an Ebay member, by treating me different from all other Ebay members who are equally not limited by any federal/state/local laws. 

[joem4stuff]

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@bonjourami wrote:

While airguns are not considered firearms, dont they shoot pellets that could harm or even kill people?

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Anything can harm or kill if used by a person in a harmful way. That includes baseball bats, steak knives, autos, fists, cell phone use while driving, etc.

[bonjourami]

Of course, but why would Ebay allow airguns that could deliberately maim or kill somebody be sold here?Who knows who's buying it or what they plan to use it for?

[joem4stuff]

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@bonjourami wrote:

Of course, but why would Ebay allow airguns that could deliberately maim or kill somebody be sold here?Who knows who's buying it or what they plan to use it for?

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You missed the point!

An airgun can not deliberately do anything! it does not have a conscious nor is it capable of performing an act; only a person can do that.  Anything could be used by a person to deliberately maim or kill somebody, would be a correct statement.

Society needs to stop blaming certain objects and realize it's the actions of people that are the problem, not the objects. Failure to do that is irresponsible and becomes a bigger problem.

[bonjourami]

oh I  agree,absolutely,and I get your point...but who knows what 'people' would be buying those guns here,and what they would be using them for? Need a gun that can maim or kill? Come to Ebay! And the first time some lunatic used that gun to shoot up a school, or a mall, or a movie theater, Ebay would find themselves with a huge lawsuit on their hands for providing access to the weapon with absolutely no qualifications or background check. I do see Ebays side in this controversy.

[bonjourami]

And before you say it, no, I am not anti gun. My husband is a responsible gun owner, as are my sister, my brother, and two brother in laws who are all Chicago police officers. The keyword here being 'responsible'.

[joem4stuff]

The point is, eBay is being ridiculous!

Someone is more likely to be hurt by a baseball bat than an airgun, and again, it tales a person to hurt someone; stop blaming objects.

It's the ridiculous paranoia than the anti-gun groups are propagating and because of that nothing is being done about the real causes of violence.

eBay should be sued for not allowing someone to make a legal purchase.

[omgitlightsup]

I think you're being a little unreasonable in saying that eBay should be sued for denying people their freedom to buy whatever they want.

eBay is a private marketplace and is allowed to set rules on what members may trade. The regulation against airguns is an effort to comply with laws. An error in a mechanism designed to ensure compliance is not a willful effort by eBay to mess with Virginia residents.

gunbroker.com allows airgun sales, and has lower fees and a much less restrictive user agreement in general. You should check that site out if you're interested in buying/selling airguns.

Also, to the mom from the other locked thread.. please get a .22LR or magnum, and not an airgun to protect your hens. You're unlikely to kill a fox with an airgun; you'll probably just injure it. It will probably cost about the same for a semi/single shot rifle, and an airgun scope is much more costly than a cheap Tasco/BSA from Walmart.

[bojibelle]

Not quite sure what your rant is all about.  Are you trying to buy or sell?

What type of air gun?  There is a category for Air Guns, there are thousands of listings.

Whatever your problem is, it has nothing to do with the state of Virginia.