... Michael:

>> Retracting a bid because you found the same item cheaper somewhere else ...
>> is not allowable, and I can't imagine anyone saying it is.

>> We disagree about whether it should be allowable if the seller receives a
>> better offer elsewhere. It currently is allowable, well within the rules ...

And there's the nub of the deal -- assuming that you are correct on both interpretations of the eBay rules, what's good for the seller is not good for the buyer. It's hypocritical and unfair -- and you can cite eBay's justifications all day long without ever changing that fundamental truth. Which, of course, is why I said sellers have more influence on eBay policies than sellers do. And, of course, the bottom line is the bottom line -- eBay does what is best for eBay's income, regardless of whether it is fair to the buyers or not.

>> ... most buyers respond reasonably, accepting the rules as they are, not
>> getting their undies in a bunch just because the seller changes his mind.

George Bernard Shaw once said something which is an appropriate response to that observation:

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progess depends on the unreasonable man." ----- jim o\-S