Shotgun wound no deterrent to PS3 buyer

Post by BD » Tue Nov 28, 2006 12:06 pm

November 28, 2006 7:51 AM PST

Despite a shotgun blast to the chest, Michael Penkala stayed focused being one of the first U.S. buyers of the new PlayStation 3.

In the early-morning hours of November 17, the Massachusetts resident was first in line at a Wal-Mart store in Putnam, Connecticut, waiting with three friends for Sony's next-generation game console to go on sale. In his pocket was $2,600 in cash.

Then the bandits showed up, masked and carrying guns. "They approached two kids first, and they got 75 cents out of them, and I was the third person they came to. And I wasn't giving it up for anything," Penkala told the Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette. That refusal earned him a beating as the robbers tried to get his wallet.

Penkala, who'd had the foresight to dial 911 on his cell phone, says he scared off the robbers, but one turned while fleeing and fired a single shot from about 10 feet away, according to the Telegram account. But he was a man with a mission.

"When they let us in the lobby there at Wal-Mart, I was on the floor coughing up blood and telling the workers to take the wallet out of my pocket and give it to my friends so they could continue waiting in line and purchase the PS3s," Penkala told the newspaper. "For some reason I wasn't thinking about my wound, I was all about those PlayStations."

What makes his dedication all the more remarkable was that he wasn't a fervent gamer looking for new thrills from the PS3. No, the 21-year-old was looking to resell the consoles on eBay--after eight days in the hospital, he ended up with four, including one given as a gift by Wal-Mart--and make a profit.

Death_Dealer[CotC] · Post by **Death_Dealer[CotC]** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 11:28 pm

idiot

Post by **D.A.R.K.[CotC]** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 5:51 am

I salute the dedicated gamer!

Death_Dealer[CotC] · Post by **Death_Dealer[CotC]** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 10:03 am

Hes not a dedicated gamer if he only had attentions of selling them for profit he is a thorn in the side of gamers those systems could have went to a real gamer who actually wanted the system.

Post by **Neophyte** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 10:05 am

...and therefore.... I side with Death_Dealer!

IDIOT!

TooLBlue · Post by **TooLBlue** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 11:50 am

I hope his PS3 overheats and explodes. It would make for a great sequel...

Post by **Buzzed** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 8:27 am

Neophyte wrote:...and therefore.... I side with Death_Dealer!

IDIOT!

Hear Hear

Executioner [CotC] · Post by **Executioner [CotC]** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 10:11 am

I will also have to go with Death on this one

Post by **Serpent** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 12:01 pm

What is so wrong with trying to make money?

It's how business is done.....you buy something for one price and sell it for a higher price, to make profit. It's done with clothes, cars, everything practically....so why could you all possibly feel the need to chastise over a console? Do you complain to the car dealership when they markup the price of your car? etc....

Post by **Neophyte** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 1:08 pm

Serpent wrote:What is so wrong with trying to make money?

It's how business is done.....you buy something for one price and sell it for a higher price, to make profit. It's done with clothes, cars, everything practically....so why could you all possibly feel the need to chastise over a console? Do you complain to the car dealership when they markup the price of your car? etc....

Nice try Serpent, however the Car Dealership and the Retail store are legitimate businesses taking a fair share for their services and paying taxes like a good business should. This person is blocking the the customers who would buy the systems for personal use. Then, he intercepts that system and inflates the price for his personal gain. It's the same thing as buying World Series tickets which you do not intend to use and selling them at a profit. This is called Scalping, it's not honorable, it's not ethical, and it's illegal.

Death_Dealer[CotC] · Post by **Death_Dealer[CotC]** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 1:53 pm

Right on baby! Just because something can be done does not mean it is the proper thing to do or should be done. Taking advantage of someone because you can is not cool.

Little off the wall but similar. When i was younger and doing yard work for neighbors i worked for a blind man (no joke) when i was done with the work he handed me his wallet and told me how much to take out and I took exactly that. Now i could have not done the work and took as much money as i wanted from his wallet but thats not cool. This guy in the same situation most likely would have not done the work or done it poorly and took more money then he was allowed.

This is kind of harsh but i feel no sympothy for him. And the guys who shot him were worse because they would have turned around and done the same thing rip me and you off.

Would you screw someone over just to put some cash in your pocket?

Post by **Serpent** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 2:08 pm

Neophyte wrote:
Serpent wrote:What is so wrong with trying to make money?

It's how business is done.....you buy something for one price and sell it for a higher price, to make profit. It's done with clothes, cars, everything practically....so why could you all possibly feel the need to chastise over a console? Do you complain to the car dealership when they markup the price of your car? etc....
Nice try Serpent, however the Car Dealership and the Retail store are legitimate businesses taking a fair share for their services and paying taxes like a good business should. This person is blocking the the customers who would buy the systems for personal use. Then, he intercepts that system and inflates the price for his personal gain. It's the same thing as buying World Series tickets which you do not intend to use and selling them at a profit. This is called Scalping, it's not honorable, it's not ethical, and it's illegal.

As far as selling goes, he could have fared the same as a few auctions I saw on ebay, where the ps3 sold for less than 50 bucks!!! that would be funny! lol

Death_Dealer[CotC] · Post by **Death_Dealer[CotC]** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 5:12 pm

Serpent wrote: As far as selling goes, he could have fared the same as a few auctions I saw on ebay, where the ps3 sold for less than 50 bucks!!! that would be funny! lol

That would be funny.

If there was no reserve thye would be screwed.

Post by **Serpent** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 5:48 pm

Death_Dealer[CotC] wrote:
Serpent wrote: As far as selling goes, he could have fared the same as a few auctions I saw on ebay, where the ps3 sold for less than 50 bucks!!! that would be funny! lol
That would be funny. If there was no reserve thye would be screwed.

it *did* happen like that on a few auctions I saw....i'd buy a ps3 for 10 bucks. LOL.........the seller would be pissed though. hehe

Executioner [CotC] · Post by **Executioner [CotC]** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 8:12 pm

I bet