chong

We haven't talked about this guy an a while. But since I saw this just now, I was surprised to see that he's not just selling seeds, he's actually selling an Ae-Ae PLANT. And for $99!!! Probably from his alleged Ae-Ae seeds!

Here's the link:
Rare Variegated Banana * Musa aeae variegate - 8 in. - eBay (item 200204042106 end time Mar-07-08 02:25:10 PST)

O.K. experts, what's the verdict? Phony or real? Notice that, that's the same photo in all his previous seed ads.

jason

well I know forsure when it comes to the seeds he is a phony and im sure the ae ae plants are real,,but who cares (he or she is a jerk)!!!!!!!!!!He could be the last person on earth who has ae ae banana plants and i still would not buy from him!!!! He has a very dirty mouth,,,needless to say,,and e-bay would not do anything about the nasty e-mails he left me!!!

Ahava

I reported him too Jason. I tried to flag his stuff as a fake product but they continue to let that moron sell those seeds. For all those people know they are getting marigold seeds, as for the plant, he could get that picture anywhere, and send them a variegated canna or something... not good.

__________________
Banana Student For Life Live the dream ~

jason

I mean i was not a jerk to him at all i just told him that it was totally impossible to get seeds from a Ae Ae banana,,and he told me that i do not know what im talking about and that im a fag and need to go suck _ _ _ _!!and so on I thought to myself have you lost your mind!!!! And than im sure he got mad when i e-mailed him back and told him i dont care to hear about your fantasys!!LOL!!!

Lilith

The people who have complained to eBay about this particular seller are in no way limited to people who like bananas. Bromeliad people have complained about them, epiphyllum people, orchid people... almost every type of item they sell has generated some sort of complaint. One of the main seems to be poor quality, then followed by using pilfered images on auctions. eBay seems to just turn a blind eye.

Tropicallvr

Yeah I contacted him also and got some sort of rant in response, they should really make him quit selling those Ae Ae seeds. Every time they are up for bid there are a few people driving up the cost of the fakey seeds.

momoese

Ebay doesn't care, they just want the money. I agree that if he has a variegated plant to ship it's not going to be an Ae Ae Banana, but most likely a Stuttgart Canna. The picture is probably something he found from another auction or on the internet. Buyer beware!

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Mitchel

STEELVIPER

All about money for eBay. Ebay sucks. Used to be a great place to get some nice things but not much anymore. Don't get me wrong there are some real good sellers on ebay,but its all about money these days. As for the plant he is selling. I would not buy it. F the guy!!! LOL!

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Randy4ut

I just emailed the gentleman and praised him for his work in hybridization of the AeAe. I told him I would like to see pics of the seeds that are up for auction. I will see if I get a cordial response from him and let you know...
Here is a copy of the email I sent him:
Dear mantisbee,

This is truly amazing. Before I place a bid on AeAe seeds that I did not know existed, I would like to see what I am bidding on. Do you have pics of the seeds that are up for auction?
Thank you for your efforts,

- randy4ut

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natedogg1026

Bait him up Randy. Good work. Maybe you should ask him how he did it.

__________________
Banana's are a safe addiction. Right?Maybe I need classes.

Whatever

Heh just do a google search for "mantisbee" there is a lot of complaints.

__________________
With my feet upon the ground I lose myself
between the sounds and open wide to suck it in.
I feel it move across my skin.
I'm reaching up and reaching out.
I'm reaching for the random or what ever will bewilder me.
And following our will and wind we may just go where no one's been.
We'll ride the spiral to the end and may just go where no one's been.

Spiral out. Keep going...

hydrojeff

would it take 2 years for a plant from sead to only get that big?

__________________
Jeff

jpfloors

Good luck even getting a responce from mantisbee. I'm fixing to report him/her for not responding to e-mails. I purchased two bromeliads and an air plant and haven't received it, going on two weeks now!

I just decided to go ahead and get his/her contact info and make an attempt at calling!!!

__________________
I'll show you my banana if you show me yours!!!

D_&_T

Has anyone tried to report "manisbee" to their locate police department as a fraud / scammer? That was a response from SquareTrade which he is a member of.

This is what I received.

Dear Dan,

Thank you for contacting SquareTrade.

We want to ensure that the SquareTrade Seal and Seal Members stand for
a
good buying experience. However, SquareTrade is not in a position to
evaluate whether or not the seller's merchandise is authentic or not.
We
cannot suspend a Seal Member unless there is evidence that they are
committing a fraud or intentionally misleading their buyers. If you
believe that this is a case of true fraud, we suggest that you contact
your local law enforcement agency to investigate the matter further.

Please note eBay has created a VeRO program, which helps ensure that
sellers have the right or ability to sell their item. This program
helps
representatives of the Rights owner help identify infringing or
unlicensed items. For more information please visit the link below:

eBay: Redirect

We would encourage you to file a dispute with this Seal Member if you
believe that their item descriptions are misleading or
misrepresentative. You can learn more and proceed to do so at:

SquareTrade | Solve Problems with Online Dispute Resolution (ODR)

We appreciate the time you took to inform us about your concern. Please
rest assured that we take all such concerns seriously.

If you have additional questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to
contact us.

Sincerely,

Kenneth
SquareTrade Compliance

SquareTrade - Making online shopping Safer, Smarter and Easier! (sm)
You can find out more by going to the SquareTrade website.

SquareTrade | Great Warranty Deals on Laptops, TVs, iPods & More

Original Message Follows:
-------------------------

what is done when a person reports a ebay seller as selling fraudulent
items, or misrepresented

Dan

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Dan & Tara
in need of greenhouse

D_&_T

Isnt that the same potted plant in all his / her AE-AE ads?

__________________
Dan & Tara
in need of greenhouse

chong

Yes, that's exactly why I flagged it in my first post on this thread. His ad says that what was in the picture is the plant that was for sale and which was a two year old seedling! Yet, it is the same picture that he's published in his ads for the seeds for at least a couple of years. So maybe, it just doesn't grow and stays that size all the time. The only plant that I know of that is like that is made of silk!

Whatever

I almost want to start a listing titled something like "Variegated Banana Musa aeae ae ae seed *INFO*" and point him out in the listing. Thats really just about the only way un knowing people to realize those seeds are not going to grow an AE AE.

Probably violates ebay's TOS.

EDIT: He does point everything out in his auction though so hes not doing anything wrong, Morally though that's another story.

__________________
With my feet upon the ground I lose myself
between the sounds and open wide to suck it in.
I feel it move across my skin.
I'm reaching up and reaching out.
I'm reaching for the random or what ever will bewilder me.
And following our will and wind we may just go where no one's been.
We'll ride the spiral to the end and may just go where no one's been.

Spiral out. Keep going...

mm4birds

the picture for the 8 inch and 4 foot plants are identical.

chong

Obviously, it's the same photograph. And it's been running for at least 2 years, so how they be the same plant? Let's let everybody know that this guy's a fraud! I notice that in his listing, he only says that the item is in the USA, and no particular city. Has any of you, who bought from him, successfully contacted him by telephone? The Area Code and Prefix can connect to his city of residence.