I don't think it's a matter of laziness.

For me, it's a matter of liability.

A small item, easily replaced, with minimum loss to me, I'll gladly ship first class intl as inexpensively as possible - although I will admit to ship a single EPROM overseas now costs about $13 in postage alone for first class.

The challenge with larger items is my liability. Over the years, I've had many items not get delivery confirmation or tracking scanned or updated. I've had items get stuck in customs in several countries (although Italy always seems to be the worst) for a month or longer. And in this time, the purchaser gets upset and wants me to do something about it, and eventually files a claim and often gets refunded.

Many times, the tracking # scans 'delivered' a day after the claim is processed and they are refunded, or sometimes, a few days later.

Sometimes, the customer is honest, and sends the money back. Other times, it's a freebie for them.

Say instead of a $10 item, that's a $200 board. A $200 board can quickly turn from a $50 profit to a $150 loss if something like this happens. The item is a huge liability.

It hurts the sellers, too, though. Many people shop looking at the total cost - example, this item isn't $35 + $20 shipping, it's $55. If it costs me $5 to ship, I get $50 for my item. If it costs $30 to ship, I get $25.

You may be honest, I may be honest, but not everyone is honest. With the Global system, my liability ends when a well packaged item arrives at the forwarding center and gets scanned. If the shipper smashes it between the shipping center and your country, it's on them.

It is expensive, though, no argument.