Considering the hullaballoo surrounding a law that has already passed in Florida and Utah (and could pass in Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and elsewhere), that would force stores to check IDs and thumbprint used CD sellers, I thought I'd check in with some record store owners and employees to see what they think about the development.
Record stores across the country already check IDs when someone walks in the door with a bunch of CDs to sell, even without this law, and with good reason. John Garcia, who works at San Francisco's Amoeba (considered by many to be the best used CD store in the world), told me, "We check IDs for the people who want cash, because the people who steal CDs always want cash... That way, if people come in and sell a whole stolen collection, we have their ID on hand" so that the police know who to look for (assuming the thief was dumb or desperate enough to use their own real identification).
But thumbprinting goes too far, according to Evan Chern, owner of Yesterday and Today,
a record store in Miami that specializes in "progressive, psyche, andgarage form the 60s, particularly [in the] vinyl [format]." He said, "Over the years, you hear these horors stories that people havebeen broken into and [the burglars] try to pawn off these things realquick to get some cash. I can understand that to a dregree... butfingerprinting? That gets a little too 'big brother' for my taste."
Chern recommended that I talk to Spec's Music, which he says is thelargest used CD buyer in the Miami area (although he also pointed out thatthere aren't many left around there). I'vecontacted Trans World Entertainment,
which owns Spec's Music (as well as music chain stores Strawberries,
FYE, Coconuts, Wherehouse Music, and Planet Music) to see if they areplanning to comply with the thumbprinting aspect of the new law.
It's hard to imagine every used CD store in the country with a thumbscanner or one of those black smudgy fingerprint pads. As for checking licenses, I'm all for that, having had several prized CDs and a car stereo lifted from a car last year.
(image from hogs-head)
