Rand and Ben:
The prohibition against discussing active auctions is one born of self-preservation for this forum. Two staff members (myself and Mark) are US lawyers, and all-too familiar with the litigious nature of our society.
As you've noted, dicussion of active auctions can affect the outcome of those auctions, for good or for bad, depending on one's perspective. This interference can give rise to a number of legal causes of action, including Tortious Interference and Defamation.
For instance, a seller may have a sale or reputation ruined. Even if the result was justified, a lawsuit or claim can be brought, and defending even frivolous claims is prohibitively expensive and annoying. So much so that it could conceivably shut down a small operation like this.
Andrew
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