Fleist[/b]]Random thought:
1.5 years ago I bought my haku cluster. I didn't level up alchemy to 90+, nor did i farm the 6-8 eyes needed for the synth (which could have taken anywhere between 5-10 hours easily). I bought it from a bazaar, and I really wouldn't know if that bazaar was involved in RMT. Am I ignorant? Probably. By standards writen above, I didn't earn my optical hat because I didn't camp 5-10 hours worth of time and spend a couple million gil to level alchemy to 90+ for my Rare/EX item. I did pop the Haku, killed the bastard, and sure enough I got my hat. I even asked Kisada to help tank it because I had no Ninjas in my LS at the time. I guess I didn't earn it, right?
Now, apply the same concept to basis of this thread, and it fails. The effort used to make the gil to purchase the stone is equivalant to the market value of the stone. Who cares where it's from? It's there. You don't have the gil? Camp it. Everything has a price.
Don't get me wrong, I do NOT condone RMT activities. In all honesty, what my LS does with gil is our business, and it's Kaizen's business for what they do with the gil they EARN.
Who are any of you to make such comments? I bet you all have optical hats, a couple mages have rostrum pumps, maybe purchased imperial currency from the AH to get that nice Wal. Turban because u didn't get enough xp from imperial standing? You all know very well that some of these items on the AH or in bazaars may very well be involved in RMT activities. Ignorant? Probably.
But whatever, I'm just one person.