> We have ten million immigrants in the US that 
> aren't American Born. They do not hold the same 
> moral values as most of those that I know who are
> native born. They are simply here for the wealth
> they might acquire by any means possible. 

Stan, I'm shocked! I can't believe you just branded our ten million
immigrants in the U.S. as crooks!  I hope you realize how bigoted such a
statement is, whether intended that way or not. It's no different from
saying that all 36 million blacks in America love fried chicken and
watermelon, or all 6 million Jews in America are miserly bankers. There are
plenty of crooks and plenty of good, hard-working people among our immigrant
population, just as among our native-born population.  I'm really don't want
to touch off an off-topic firestorm that ends up requiring moderator
intervention (which is how these things usually end up). But at the same
time it would be morally wrong for me to remain silent and let such a
statement go by without voicing my very strong objection.

As for the money order issue, unfortunately fraud is a significant risk with
virtually all forms of payment. There are fraudulant bank checks and money
orders. There are rubber checks. There is the possibility of counterfeit
bills (although I've never received one that I know of). There are hijacked
Paypal accounts. Someone tries to rip off The Bus Depot at least twice a
month, usually but not always with a stolen credit card. (Our
address-verification requirement catches virtually all of them.)  Some are
foreigners; some are not. Usually they try to order parts for VW's other
than Busses or Vanagons; they want something they can resell easily, and
stolen Golf/Jetta parts are more easily fenced.

The safest methods of accepting payment as a private individual are probably
cash from a bank, postal money orders (if you cash them at the post office
prior to delivering the goods), Western Union (again, if you pick up the
cash before delivering the goods), Paypal (if you ship the goods to a
confirmed/verified U.S. address, can prove delivery, and are covered by
their Seller Protection plan), and C.O.D. cash-only. Any other method
involves some percentage of risk, although the risk can vary. As a buyer,
your safest method of payment is credit card (other than debit card)
wherever possible, or as a second choice possibly Paypal (with funds sourced
from your credit card). 

- Ron Salmon
  The Bus Depot, Inc.
  www.busdepot.com
  (215)  234-VWVW

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Toll-Free for Orders by PART # :  1-866-BUS-DEPOT