Well, that was silly. No looters are not filled with brand consciousness. They just want something small and easily sold.

Quite frankly who actually wants a watch these days. Almost everyone has a cell phone. There is no need for a redundant time piece. The only reason people still wear watches is as a fashion statement or as a habit.

Where will they pawn those Rolexes? presuming they didn't also loot the pawn shops, would any legit or semi-legit pawn shop in the Tri State area even touch a Rolex for the next 3 to 5 years knowing that a very sizable portion of that traffic will be stolen property? at least none without a paper trail of ownership.

The guy walking out with the Nike's or the 4K flat screen TVs have something they can use or trade on the street and get a decent return. That Rolex? no one is going to give much for it, be it on the street or a shady pawn broker.

Rolexes have serial numbers which the store will have recorded. It will be easy enough for a pawn shop or legitimate buyer to check.

Where will they pawn those Rolexes? presuming they didn't also loot the pawn shops, would any legit or semi-legit pawn shop in the Tri State area even touch a Rolex for the next 3 to 5 years knowing that a very sizable portion of that traffic will be stolen property? at least none without a paper trail of ownership. ~ I R A Darth Aggie at June 6, 2020 6:55 AM

Same way they do it today when a guy who looks like he's never in his life had more than two nickels to rub together walks in with a Rolex. Some will reject it and some will accept the guy's story.

"Man, that watch is so hot, it's smokin' ... In Philadelphia, it's worth 50 bucks."

"But what makes a Rolex so valuable? It’s not just its capacity for timekeeping."

Not it's not just its capacity for timekeeping. It's the work that went into designing it and making it. It's the fact that it accurately keeps time without a battery.

Every product today, even your "luxury" iPhone, is made of stamped components. Nothing gets worked on anymore, it merely has a component replaced. A Rolex is a complicated piece of machinery, requiring skill and care to make. A Timex or a Seiko, even a Tag, is mostly stamped circuit board and gilt casing.

We may never see that kind of precision workmanship again.

Where will you pawn a Rolex? You sell it to a drug dealer, duh. As Steamer says Rolexes have had serial numbers for decades. You can't drop them off at a fully legal pawn shop. Quite frankly you can't pawn most illegal goods at straight pawn shops, serial numbers or not.

That said a significant portion of pawn shops are setup to handle illegal goods. Removing or modifying a serial number isn't that big of a deal.

They hear, too, the message of inequality as injustice. By such thinking, all material and capital gains are considered ill-gotten. Just listen to Bernie Sanders on greedy drug companies, amoral banks, and wealthy individuals: “The looting of America has been going on for over 40 years,” he says, “and the culprits are the ultra-rich.” This logic, filtered down to the street, forgives looting as sticking it to the man.

"You didn't build that." ~ Barack Obama

When "all property is theft," then stealing become taking back what belongs to "the people."

These types of messages delivered by so-called progressives have been a slow-acting toxin in the bloodstream of society.

Where will you pawn a Rolex? You sell it to a drug dealer, duh.

And get what? a dime bag? less?? I'm guessing one will get laughed at and told to GTFO and come back with cash.

In God we trust, everyone else pays cash.

Ben:

Quite frankly who actually wants a watch these days. Almost everyone has a cell phone. There is no need for a redundant time piece. The only reason people still wear watches is as a fashion statement or as a habit.

I wear a watch. It's easier to look at the back of my left wrist than fish a cellphone out of my pocket and type in the security code just to get the time.

Ben:

Quite frankly who actually wants a watch these days. Almost everyone has a cell phone. There is no need for a redundant time piece. The only reason people still wear watches is as a fashion statement or as a habit.

I wear a watch. It's easier to look at the back of my left wrist than fish a cellphone out of my pocket and type in the security code just to get the time.

There's always somebody who will buy a hot Rolex. Look at how many fake Rolexes get sold everyday. I once had a boss who wore a fake Tag Heuer that he got in Hong Kong for $20. He told anyone who asked about it or admired it that it was fake, but if you didn't ask, he didn't tell.

If someone is selling a $2,000 Rolex for $200, plenty of people will take the deal, even if the serial number has been filed down and the provenance is sketchy.

It's easier to look at the back of my left wrist than fish a cellphone out of my pocket and type in the security code just to get the time. ~ Patrick at June 6, 2020 10:57 AM

I used to be a pretty faithful watch wearer, but the watch interferes with typing on my laptop and the phone shows the time if I pick it up, no security code or thumbprint necessary. I try to wear one when I'm going out or traveling, but I sometimes forget.

Where will they pawn those Rolexes?

Ever been to Chinatown in NYC?

When (if?) tourists return some just might be able to buy the real deal instead of the cheap knock-offs - at "for a steal" prices!

Rolexes are conspicuous consumption and popular among salespeople, drug dealers, and professional sports folk.

They're great if you need a mechanical waterproof timepiece, or as a rich housewife once said to the sailor who admired the his-n-hers Rolexes of that particular salescouple, "YOU?! What would YOU do with a ROLEX?".

Oh, I dunno, bitch. Work in a saltwater environment every day, maybe?

In my experience, mechanical-drive Seikos are fine timepieces. But mine's only last 40 years, so maybe I'm wrong.

Time will tell.

Good god I sound like a crank. I need a haircut and a cocktail at a really nice bar, stat.

Is this referring to this: https://www.gq.com/story/watch-store-looting-true-story ?

> Time will tell.

1. I got that.

2. I gotta Tag Hauer for scuba years ago. It's not precious, but non-watch people don't know, so they think its exotic. Took 'er down to 200 once. It's piece of shabby sporting gear that I literally wear for formal occasions. I have a cheaper one for daily life because after sixty manly years, going out without a watch is like going out without pants… It's self-winding but I don't even set it, because cell phone: And no one's ever noticed.

3. Lockdown Haircut: Think of Eric Carmen during the Raspberries years… Okay, now, GREY. This is not a good look.

And please, if you go all the way to raspberriesonline.com, following the link from duckduckgo, you'll find that the URL is unoccupied and available to a sincere bidder.

> Where will they pawn

So in the college town where I grew up, there was this guy who had one of the world's largest record collections for classical music. There was an article about him in the paper once. There was an article in the paper. After a tour, the reporter asked the guy how he protected the collection, because it was, after all, in his garage. And he said, "Well, I usually lock the door...." He explained that every dealer in the region, and maybe in North America, would recognize his prizes if they came wandering in the the door under the arm of a country or rock 'n roll fan.

So I guess it depends on the product. I wouldn't know a real Rolex from a fake, or a real 1959 Les Paul from a good copy, which is why I've never pined for either. The beauty of this time in history is that manufacturing is really, really good. And cheap. And the quality of many things, like clothes and cars, has improved tremendously over the last fifty years without people much noticing.

Looters aren’t rational actors. Crid has been trying to point this out in a really nice way.

But generally looters wouldn’t be looters if they had any kind of operational risk reward system.

They should be going for the Pateks! It's a better watch.

IRA, Heavy drug users aren't known for their financial skills or work ethic. If you are going to sell drugs you have to learn how to handle stolen goods. Talk to some former or current dealers. It's pretty universal. Now depending on their current cash flow or the size of the item you looking to get rid of they may not take what you want to sell. But it is pretty normal for them to redirect you to an associate who can handle that for you.

As for bartering stolen items for drugs, yes lots of looters do that too.

They should be going for the Pateks! It's a better watch. ~ NicoleK at June 6, 2020 11:39 PM

Patek Philipe doesn't have the brand recognition that Rolex has. Limited production runs and rare mentions in popular movies have left the brand obscure to all but horology enthusiasts.

"...and I'ma be back t-to talk about them Rolexes." ~ Jay

https://www.watch-rankings.com/ufaqs/why-is-patek-philippe-better-than-rolex/

Correct (if mildly awkward) comma usage from Ben!

Special Day! Amy's office is going to send him an AG Blog sports bottle with the picture of the dog on it and copies of the first two books. (Used, because it's Ben. But still! Good going, kid... Congratulations on the achievement for its own sake.)

Here's a sort of miscellaneous thing that I want to own, and have badly wanted for half a century… And yes, probably the blood-red color depicted in the early images.

An original will co$t nine grand. A good copy will cost an order of magnitude less.

So there's a decision to be made! After fifty years of desire, it's getting to the point where it's now or never, and an impending life change will demand the answer.

How much do we care about authenticity? Like I said, manufacturing and mass production have increased the wealth, performance and reliability in our lives incalculably. The magic of handcraft and heritage is often illusory: PRS electrics, all carved by CNC and then finished by gifted hands, are a favorite example.

Wal-mart is worth twenty times as much as Ferrari, and for very good reasons.

> No looters are not filled
> with brand consciousness.

1.— Comma error. But you made improvement as the day wore on, so we'll let it slide.

2.— One of the most earliest and most pathos-inducing observations about rap music from the inner city, and from its black performers most notably, was the prevalence of brand names in lyrics.

Took my Beamer to to the hood
With the Blaupunkt thumpin' good
Plus the Jordans on my feet
And my Rolex keeps the beat*

*©2020 Uncle Cridmo
Copyright Strictly Enforced
Et loquar ad te in iudicio representent

According to Bloomberg, Rolex is the 11th most-mentioned brand in rap lyrics (based on a survey of top 20 songs over the past 3 years). Rolls Royce tops the list.

Automobile brands figure prominently in the top 12 brands - the aforementioned Rolls, along with Ferrari, Bentley, Porsche, and Mercedes figuring prominently. Oddly, Chevrolet also places high on that list.

Non-automobile brands include Rolex, Hennessy, Jordans, and Xanax. That Cristal and Gucci were not on the list surprised me.

Cristal appears to be making some inroads into poor black culture, but it is a long way from replacing Hennessy. Gucci really hasn't caught on at all. More of a middle age white woman thing. At least here in the south. Though you would know better than me on that topic Conan.

Cristal appears to be making some inroads into poor black culture, but it is a long way from replacing Hennessy. ~ Ben at June 8, 2020 8:23 AM

Hennessy is affordable. And, as a spirit, gets you drunk quicker.

The Jay-Z boycott probably didn't help.

Prior to the falling out, Jay-Z was a fan of the brand.

Cristal has been much in evidence in the past at Jay-Z’s concerts, and his number one hit Hard Knock Life includes the lyric: ‘Let’s sip the Cris and get pissy-pissy.’ Other rappers and hip-hop artists, such as Kanye West, 50 Cent and Mos Def, have shown similar allegiance to the brand.

Gucci really hasn't caught on at all. More of a middle age white woman thing. At least here in the south. Though you would know better than me on that topic Conan. ~ Ben at June 8, 2020 8:23 AM

White woman thing or not, Gucci is easy to rhyme with "coochie" and "hoochie."

According to CNN, Gucci is a popular mention in rap songs (different methodology and sampling from the Bloomberg report I cited earlier).

And, aside from reading those articles, I probably know less about it than you do. I know very little about rap, rap stars, and hip-hop culture.

I had no idea my knowledge of fancy watches was considered above and beyond. I feel so knowledgeable now. Too bad I don't have the funds to put this knowledge to use!

I have some friends who grew up poor in New Orleans. They are much better financially today. Though it is hard to be worse off than section 8 housing with no furniture and only minimal clothes. Linda still likes her Hennessy and gold teeth, which is what I am basing things off of. Neither I nor any of them listen to rap. But rap is based off of the culture they were born into.

What is interesting is I have a number of coonass friends as well, which is the poor rural Louisiana culture. It is just as corrupt and just as self destructive but the wealth markers are completely different. For them it is Patron and lobster in a grass field instead of Hennessy in a club. It is funny what various people associate with being rich.