tsunami disaster relief

[newsguy]

just wanted to direct everyone's attention to a posting on, gulp, another board.
to see a post about wine auctions for tsunami disaster relief:

http://forums.winespectator.com/eve/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=9306023451&f=7986076161&m=924109052


or you can go straight to wine commune and see all the tsunami relief auctions:

http://www.winecommune.com/search/searchResults.cfm?first=1&searchText=tsunami


my two auctions, a 3-bottle 1999 italian horizontal and a 3-bottle lot of 93-point aussies, go to:

http://www.winecommune.com/lot.cfm/lotID/784816.html

and

http://www.winecommune.com/lot.cfm/lotID/784817.html.

please consider opening up your wallets, pocketbooks and cellars. if i can, anybody can.

[This message has been edited by newsguy (edited 01-06-2005).]

[winoweenie]

That's very nice Newssie. Both CG and I have made contributions to the Red Cross for this horrific disaster. We are hoping to arrange a local wine auction also. WW

[wondersofwine]

I plan to contribute a small check to International Rescue Committee (one of the charities I already support through Combined Federal Campaign.) Their emphasis is working with refugees and displaced persons around the world and they already have people on the ground in Sumatra since 2001.
http://www.theirc.org
http://www.theirc.org/index.cfm/wwwID/2137

I might consider donating to the wine auctions but am a bit concerned about the logistics--legality of shipping across state lines, boxing the wines in such a way that they arrive intact, etc. Have you done this before Newsguy and can you offer any tips?

[newsguy]

WOW: i have purchased a few bottle of wine via winecommune. wine most often are sent inside styrofoam shippers, which then go snugly inside a cardboard box. these often can be purchased at a wine shop. as for the legality of shipping across state lines, i can't address that with authority. i can tell you that the feds did send some letters last year to some sellers on winecommune telling them to cease and desist, but the folks that got them were ordinary folks who were doing hundreds transactions and selling hundreds of bottles on that site. i am i no way worried about offering six bottles with the money going to charity. could you imagine the PR backlash if the feds decided to create a stink over this? that would be a *very* bad move, IMO.

[Kcwhippet]

newsguy, The feds may get some bad PR, but that doesn't diminish the fact that under current laws it's still illegal to ship wine to consumers in certain states. Doing it as a way to raise funds for the tsunami disaster relief effort doesn't alter that. It just makes it more visible, and the less visible the better. Until the Supremes vote in favor of interstate wine shipments directly to consumers (hopefully), it's still best to fly as far under the radar as possible. It's too bad, because it certainly is a worthy cause - none worthier at this time.

[newsguy]

KC: understand completely. you notice i'm not saying it is, in fact, legal to ship to all states. i know it's not. i just reiterate that i don't imagine they will be coming after me or others on this. if they do, they'll be getting more bad press than i think they could possibly envision. that's all i'm saying [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/biggrin.gif[/img]

[newsguy]

in case anyone's interested in my two auctions over in wine commune, they close tuesday night and the high bids right now would be *stealing* these lots, especially the aussies. the high bid on that one barely covers the cost of the kaesler alone. i keep thinking, "hey, this is for charity" so i hope the bids rise substantially, especially on the aussie lot.

[This message has been edited by newsguy (edited 01-10-2005).]

[winoweenie]

Newsie I've tried going to the site and keep getting another site. As technically challenged as I be it's probably my typing. Can you highlight the site so I can click it on? WW

[Innkeeper]

If you go to the same thread on Talk To Your Moderators you can click on it.

[newsguy]

WW: what IK said... [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/wink.gif[/img]

i'd put it here and highlight the links so you can click on it, but i don't know why it did it that way on the other thread and this way here. i, too, must be pretty technologically challenged.

[newsguy]

i'll try again for WW. here's the lot of 3 '99 italians:

http://www.winecommune.com/lot.cfm/lotID/784816.html

and here's the 3 93-point aussies:

http://www.winecommune.com/lot.cfm/lotID/784817.html

they're both still at "steal" prices.