I have heard of sellers who very much prefer not to be PowerSellers as they feel - rightly or wrongly - that it negatively affects how their potential buyers would assess them and be willing to buy from them.
I have no doubt that an "I am just your friendly next-door seller" approach works for some. For others, the "I am a trusted powerseller with experience here" works better. It depends on the potential customer base, and the type of items being sold, I think.
As far as I'm aware, Ewok, a seller can opt out of being a PowerSeller. But I can't speak from experience... No one's offered me PowerSeller status! (Of course, I admit that it would be very weird if they did - I don't sell on eBay!)
I am a little surprised, though, that Paul Hassing wanted to list items at 99 cents. The attraction of 99 cent free listings seems to me to appeal primarily to sellers who are "newbies" - who are lured by the promise of no listing fees but haven't actually sat down and worked out that the Final Value Fee is higher than if they'd listed for $1. I know that if I were selling (listing and expecting to sell), I'd much prefer to have a low FVF for the whole thing than save a token amount as the listing fee. There's also that risk of listing at a price at which I wouldn't be willing to sell.
Is the golden rule not that, unless you've got a rare golden egg on your hands (something you KNOW is in extraordinary demand and will definitely, absolutely, positively receive megabids), you should list at a price that is effectively your reserve?
Paul Hassing is right, though, in talking about his perception that he was punished for his loyalty. eBay has the right, of course, to hand out whatever special treatment it wants to whomever it wants, and to exclude PowerSellers from such offers - but it can certainly leave a seller confused and deceived and upset to have RECEIVED AN EMAIL in which a special offer was effectively offered, but from which he was excluded in the fine print. eBay shouldn't have sent him an email with the offer if it didn't apply to him.
It seems to be one of those weird glitchy who-can-work-it-out things with regard to the sending out of such emails. If people have multiple eBay accounts, I am aware that some of those accounts receive the offers while others don't. And it's not always related to PowerSeller status or purchase history or selling history... In fact, it's a mystery to which it IS related!