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Digital Gaming => Computer Gaming => Topic started by: Slick Wilhelm on December 30, 2012, 02:46:47 PM

Title: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Slick Wilhelm on December 30, 2012, 02:46:47 PM
Last night, I received an email from a guy claiming that he made a typo and accidentally put my email address in a PayPal transaction, which resulted in my Paypal account receiving an $800 payment. He asked me to refund this payment, and provided me a link.

Smelling a scam, I logged into my Paypal account(not using his link!) and sure enough, I had received $800 from a verified transaction. I still suspected it was a ruse of some kind, so I called Paypal and they were able to determine that it was a legit transaction. Furthermore, since it was a personal payment, there was no protection for the guy who accidentally paid me. I could have said "tough luck, pal" and kept the money. But I did the right thing and had Paypal reverse the payment.

I replied to this guy and told him that I had the payment reversed. He was so grateful, that he googled my name and found that I was a wargamer, and he offered to buy me a game or three in token of his appreciation. I thanked him for his generous offer, but I declined and said that I only did what I hope someone else would do if I made a mistake like this.

A few minutes later, I received an email from Matrix Games that he bought me a $50 gift card!

So, I suppose I should use it because he wasn't taking no for an answer. :)

I guess it does pay to be honest!

Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Nefaro on December 30, 2012, 02:56:38 PM
Well done, sir.  ;D

Cool story, too.   Maybe that karma will come back to ya soon, when you need it.  8)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: bayonetbrant on December 30, 2012, 03:16:45 PM
seeee?  we wargamerz is güd peeps, regardslesss of wot' odder peeps thinks  8)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Huw the Poo on December 30, 2012, 03:18:21 PM
Wow, an excellent Christmas story there!  Well done mate - enjoy your voucher. 8)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Longdan on December 30, 2012, 03:24:02 PM
Well both you and he did the right thing.
Whether I would have or not would depend
on how many beers were in the fridge and
how many naked pictures of his daughter
he was willing to trade. Bravo.
By extension you made us all look good.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Toonces on December 30, 2012, 03:46:32 PM
That's really cool, dude.   8)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Silent Disapproval Robot on December 30, 2012, 03:48:15 PM
Good on you Willhelm.

Is $50 enough to buy anything from Matrix?  A Win7 version of Pong or Lemonade Stand maybe?
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Greybriar on December 30, 2012, 04:06:23 PM
Good for you, Slick Wilhelm! Both you and the guy you helped acted appropriately.

By the way, a $50 reward for an $800 recovery isn't bad but it isn't as good as it might have been. I once knew an old man who told me if I lost my billfold and someone returned it, I should reward them by giving them half the money that was in it. The difference between $50 and $400 is possibly due to his nationality (he was a Swede) and the period when he learned that lesson himself (he was born in 1908 or thereabouts).

But $50 isn't anything to sneeze at and it will buy more than one game during the Matrix Holiday Sale (http://matrixgames.com/news/982/Matrix.Games.Holiday.Sale.is.Here!).
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: besilarius on December 30, 2012, 04:35:40 PM
What was it General Cota said on Omaha Beach?  Wargamers lead the way.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Bison on December 30, 2012, 04:40:18 PM
This is a real good story Slick. 
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: TheCommandTent on December 30, 2012, 05:26:09 PM
Good for you Slick.  It is nice to see there is still some good left in this world.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Martok on December 30, 2012, 05:31:35 PM
Nice job, SW.  Glad to see a good deed get rewarded.  :D 


Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: bob48 on December 30, 2012, 05:39:44 PM
There's hope for mankind yet - nice heartwarming story.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: steve58 on December 30, 2012, 05:44:16 PM
 Great story, thanks for sharing and kudos to you.  We need more stories like this to make up for a somewhat crappity 2012 :-\...
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: spelk on December 30, 2012, 05:50:38 PM
The world needs more folk like you Slick. Doing the right thing.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Zulu1966 on December 30, 2012, 05:55:08 PM
Quote from: Slick Wilhelm on December 30, 2012, 02:46:47 PM
Last night, I received an email from a guy claiming that he made a typo and accidentally put my email address in a PayPal transaction, which resulted in my Paypal account receiving an $800 payment. He asked me to refund this payment, and provided me a link.

Smelling a scam, I logged into my Paypal account(not using his link!) and sure enough, I had received $800 from a verified transaction. I still suspected it was a ruse of some kind, so I called Paypal and they were able to determine that it was a legit transaction. Furthermore, since it was a personal payment, there was no protection for the guy who accidentally paid me. I could have said "tough luck, pal" and kept the money. But I did the right thing and had Paypal reverse the payment.

I replied to this guy and told him that I had the payment reversed. He was so grateful, that he googled my name and found that I was a wargamer, and he offered to buy me a game or three in token of his appreciation. I thanked him for his generous offer, but I declined and said that I only did what I hope someone else would do if I made a mistake like this.

A few minutes later, I received an email from Matrix Games that he bought me a $50 gift card!

So, I suppose I should use it because he wasn't taking no for an answer. :)

I guess it does pay to be honest!

A man of honour - a quality all too lacking in the world to day. I have always found that invariably no matter what shit life throws at you its always better to treat others as you would like to be treated yourself. You may not always win - but you keep your self respect - the most valuable commodity anyone can posess though all too many treat as expendable. Spend your voucher with pride my friend - knowing the guy who bought it knows what and why you did it.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Keunert on December 30, 2012, 05:55:28 PM
if anybody wants to test my morale i will pm him my paypal account
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Tuna on December 30, 2012, 06:21:57 PM
WTG Slick.. .also good on your part about being cautious.. a lot of phishing schemes out there!
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: LongBlade on December 30, 2012, 06:29:20 PM
Bravo! Good for you.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: mirth on December 30, 2012, 06:30:14 PM
Good story. Enjoy your game!
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Gusington on December 30, 2012, 08:05:27 PM
Good job Slick. Your story warmed my gray cold dead heart.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Longdan on December 30, 2012, 08:41:29 PM
Somebody needs a drink.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Gusington on December 30, 2012, 08:42:15 PM
What do you think grayed my cold dead heart in the first place?
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Al on December 30, 2012, 08:46:21 PM
Doing the right thing and asking nothing in return is truly an act of honor.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: MetalDog on December 30, 2012, 09:08:03 PM
Good job by you, Slick.  And good job by him, too.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Jarhead0331 on December 30, 2012, 09:43:47 PM
Quote from: Slick Wilhelm on December 30, 2012, 02:46:47 PM

I guess it does pay to be honest!

Nope.  Being honest in this instance actually cost you $750.


Just kidding.  Good work Slick.  We should change your name to Honorable Wilhelm.  :D
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Longdan on December 30, 2012, 11:39:22 PM
Once a lawyer........
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: LongBlade on December 30, 2012, 11:40:36 PM
Quote from: Longdan on December 30, 2012, 11:39:22 PM
Once a lawyer........

Nah.

More like: no worse enemy, no better friend...
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Sir Slash on December 30, 2012, 11:42:03 PM
Very good Sir Wilhelm the Honest. Sounds like you're both class acts. This is the story I'm gonna tell everybody and they'll say I made it up.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: LongBlade on December 30, 2012, 11:45:02 PM
Quote from: Sir Slash on December 30, 2012, 11:42:03 PM
Very good Sir Wilhelm the Honest. Sounds like you're both class acts. This is the story I'm gonna tell everybody and they'll say I made it up.

Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking. I value nothing higher.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Longdan on December 30, 2012, 11:47:45 PM
When you weren't looking I did an integrity thing.
Does that count?
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: SgtRock on December 31, 2012, 12:27:24 AM
Nice, all you ever hear about are the far too many scams these days.

Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: MikeGER on December 31, 2012, 02:01:08 AM
Outstanding :) the good Karma will carry on. there may be some more nice surprises for you in the future Slick  8)

The forum rank name shown under the nick should be adjusted to  'Man of Distinction'  (or what English term is best appropriate)   

Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Arctic Blast on December 31, 2012, 02:53:34 AM
On the one hand, good stuff Slick.

On the other hand, it really is kind of sad how far we've fallen as a society when someone being a decent person and doing the right thing seems so sadly refreshing and different.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: JudgeDredd on December 31, 2012, 05:03:02 AM
Agreed Arctic...However I'm not sure the world is as bleak as we make out and people aren't really as bad as we "think". We're just led to believe it by the media because bad news sells.

Well done Slick - I'm with Jarhead - a name change is in order. "Slick" doesn't seem to go with honesty.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: bayonetbrant on December 31, 2012, 06:15:02 AM
^^ unless it's referring to his hair ;)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Slick Wilhelm on December 31, 2012, 09:13:07 AM
Wow, thanks for all the compliments, guys. I really wasn't fishing for them, honest.  ;)

I really did nothing wonderful, I only did the right thing. My moral compass, however shallow when it comes to women, porn and booze...would never allow me to take money that isn't rightly mine. Afterall, the poor guy made an honest mistake, and his email address is only one character different than mine.

While I think it's rather ridiculous try to elevate me to the status of Mother Teresa for doing what everyone should do in that situation, I can't deny that "Mother Slick" does have a nice ring to it.  ;D

Funny, I sat on Matrix' store last night for an hour trying to find a game that I don't already own. I think I've narrowed it down to Scourge of War: Antietam and Chancellorsville. Still considering the new Close Combat game, though, as I have all the others in the series.

Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Sir Slash on December 31, 2012, 10:40:19 AM
How about,"Slick Mother"? Better not go there. ;D
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Johnnie on December 31, 2012, 11:18:42 AM
Slick:

You told that gentleman that you needed no reward and he did not send you one.  That $50.00 was a payment meant for me.  Kindly remit.   (I'm  sending you payment instructions under separate cover. Let's see how honest you really are.)

That poor guy can't get anything right.
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Slick Wilhelm on December 31, 2012, 12:21:50 PM
^^ LOL!
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Nefaro on December 31, 2012, 03:42:32 PM
Quote from: Slick Wilhelm on December 31, 2012, 09:13:07 AM


Funny, I sat on Matrix' store last night for an hour trying to find a game that I don't already own. I think I've narrowed it down to Scourge of War: Antietam and Chancellorsville. Still considering the new Close Combat game, though, as I have all the others in the series.

Hey Willy - if you happen to get SOW:Chancellorsville, I've been playing some co-op with a few people every weekend.  Feel free to join us if you get it.  We usually do it Sunday and regularly have Saturday sessions too.   :D  The AI still manages to beat the snot out of us on certain Divison-level command scenarios.  8)
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Seytan on January 01, 2013, 02:17:56 PM
Bravo Slick!
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Toonces on January 01, 2013, 02:26:46 PM
I'd go with Antietam or Chancellorsville...great system.  In fact, why don't I have either of those yet?
Title: Re: I guess it pays to be honest
Post by: Gusington on January 01, 2013, 07:04:05 PM
^Too busy being a 'dude' and surfing and living in paradise?