[rubbinisracing]

Les you have it right!

The law requires the auction house to disclose to the consignor that they have the right to advance the bid up to the reserve amount, but there is no requirement that they make this unethical (IMO) practice part of their business practice....they choose to do it! The bidders agreement makes no mention of the practice nor does the Speed Channel or ESPN when they televise the auction. It sure would add another dimension to watching it on TV and trying to figure who's the shill bidder and who's real. All we would need then is Kitty Carlyle and Soupy Sales asking some questions.

Makes me wonder if Andy hadn't yelled so quickly and so loud if the result would have been different. I think the characterization of these complaints as "whine" is very telling about R&S's attitude towards customer service after the sale. I believe I could discern the real story while listening to Clemens and McNamee and the same goes here.