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Re: Re. Monahans article

Ah the passion of the collector!  Lets keep our cool here folks.   This is
an interesting field.  The unique chunks of the universe have a magic about
them.  So do the rocks beneath our feet.  They have the same origin.  We
pursue various things in our collections.  Years ago I collected watches.  I
was robbed one night and no longer collect watches.  Now my shelf has funny
looking rocks on it.  In the last analysis,  they are all" things."  We will
depart this world and the things will be of no consequence to us.  Step back
and take a deep breath.  Are these things we collect worth hurt feelings and
public embarrassment?   Lets follow our interests and let Steve, Michael ,
et.al follow theirs. Some will agree and some disagree, but in 7 billion
years(approx.) this will all be over and who paid how much for what ever
will be forgotten.  Sometimes it helps to think of the Trilobite.  It
dominated all the oceans of the world for longer than any other species (300
Million Years)  Where are they today...?  Who thinks about them?  They died
out and Time, the great leveler, moved on.  The meteorites they collected
and what they paid has been forgotten.  Take the long view and relax.  Enjoy
the auction or ignore it... it'll be alright either way.
Ken Carpenter

----Original Message-----
From: STUARTATK@aol.com 
To: meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com

Date: Friday, July 24, 1998 11:17 AM
Subject: Re. Monahans article


>Hi All,
>
>So far everyone seems very restrained about this article... well, I'm
sorry,
>but I'm not going to be. Someone has to say something in defence of the
many,
>unseen "little people" on this list who have been insulted by the
references
>in the article in question.
>
>But first of all, I have to say that the subject of the auction itself is
so
>far over my head - the politics, personal issues, legal ins and outs, the
>fairtyale figures, all of it is just *so* not a part of my life that I can
>dismiss it. For God's sake, just sort yourselves out, okay? This is a
>dreadful, shameful mess, very sloppy, and reflects very badly on us as a
>community. I share Julia's concerns. It's worrying, as she points out, that
>meteorites and investment are joined at the hip in the article... don't
want
>to, but I have to say "I told you so" and people argued against it. Okay,
WE
>know they're NOT a good investment, but people with money to spare aren't
>going to know that, and are going to scan articles like this in their
papers
>and on the net and just see the $$$$$$ signs and go in search of meteorites
of
>their own. That will suit the big dealers just fine, maybe that's just what
>they want, but it will mean there'll never be a hope in hell of all us
little
>guys adding to our collections, because it'll become a chain reaction, a
>buying frenzy: the genuinely rare pieces will go first, as they have the
>largest prices, and then investors' attentions will turn to "what's left",
and
>eventually even pieces of Canyon Diablo and Sikhote Alin etc will be priced
>beyond the range of beginning or even modest collectors.
>
>I'm also concerned and distressed about the way we will be portrayed in
future
>- as greedy, etc - because that's just not fair! I've made so many friends
on
>this List since joining, several people have been outstandingly generous to
me
>- and they know who they are - so I recoil from the word "greed" because it
>only applies, I think, to a very few people. But it's been used, and will
be
>used again, so I think that we really, really should consider some sort of
>response to the article, or ask for a right of reply, I'm not sure which
would
>be best.
>
>Call me naive, but I can't help feeling very sad about this. This whole
thing
>should have been a classic "meteorite fairy tale": kids find meteorites,
get
>shafted by local govt, public stand beside them and they win... meteorite
>becomes famous and community gains... instead we have this whole "greed"
thing
>taking over, creeping over us and our dealings with each other like some
>escaped martian lifeform ( :-)  ) and we look like a bunch of
money-obsessed
>fanatics. There's a lot of jealousy, personal dislike, indignation and
>discomfort here which I don't pretend - and have no desire - to understand.
I
>just know that there's something... I don't know... "grubby" about this.
>
>As for the poor, innocent meteorite itself - oh my god yes, that's right,
>there IS a meteorite at the heart of this story! - well, it sounds like it
>could be special, with those crystals and all, and we should be filling our
>postings with discussions about its structure, appearance and origins - you
>know, stuff about meteorites..? As for its contamination, well, I've been
>following both sides of this argument, ducking as each accusation whistles
>over my head, but I'm in no position to comment on if it's been damaged or
>contaminated or not because I wasn't there and haven't seen the pictures
yet
>cos I've been to busy with my REAL life to check them out. If it has been
>damaged in any way then that's a great, great shame, and the people
>responsible for that damage should be ashamed and remind themselves just
how
>important these wonderful things are. Damage - to the meteorite for the
sake
>of a good photo must be considered a crime against science, surely?
>
>And one sentence leapt out at me: "Scientifically there's a limit to its
>value." WHAT?? Did I really just read that??? What "limit" is this? I
thought
>we were all being told how rare and exciting it was, and how the blue
crystals
>are exceptional... who knows what we might learn from studying this
meteorite,
>what questions it might answer? What new questions it might pose? Is there
a
>"scientific limit" to the value of the lunar rocks brought back by the
Apollo
>crews? (See ya Al, take care Out  There... and thanks...!) Would there be a
>limit to the scientific value of samples returned from Mars? Has the limit
of
>the "scientific value" of the Viking, Voyager and Galileo images been
reached
>yet? Should we just throw out all the unprocessed data? Good grief... I
really
>can't believe I read that...
>
>But what has REALLY annoyed me is the article's derogatory reference to
>meteorite collectors, specifically the less financially secure collectors.
>Maybe this is a veiled personal attack on just a couple of people but I
don't
>care, it tars us all with the same brush. How dare he say that! Damn, what
>business is it of *anyone's* how much money someone else makes? I'm well
aware
>that there are some people on this list who I would consider to be VERY
>wealthy, but I haven't read any postings from them bragging about that. Me,
I
>earn next to nothing for a crummy job, so I value the few meteorites I
posess
>even more because I've sweated for them, personally. I admit it, I don't
have
>two nickels to rub together, and the only way I could afford to bid in the
>"auction" would be if a) I won the Lottery this weekend, b) an SNC fell in
my
>backyard, tonight, or c) I rubbed at that dusty old oil lamp on the shelf
over
>there and saw purple smoke start to come out. But that doesn't mean I'm not
>allowed to give an opinion!! Just because I don't earn big bucks doesn't
mean
>I'm not allowed to voice my comments on and concern over this issue! (Hey,
>Art, maybe access to the List should be permitted only to those who can
prove
>they earn over a certain amount? Or maybe after running  a Credit Check?
What
>do you think?) I may have missed something here, but if that *is* the case,
>then does the fact that I scan the aisles at my local store looking for
items
>with "Reduced" stickers on mean I'm not allowed to join in conversations
about
>such things as food safety, world hunger or disarmament? Last time I
checked
>the size of your bank balance didn't dictate the level of your
participation
>in democratic discussions. Duh. Stoopid me.
>
>Sorry if you think I'm ranting but... well, no, actually I'm not sorry, not
at
>all, I'm very annoyed about this. How much money I earn is no-one's
business.
>Just because I can't afford to bid in the auction doesn't mean I can't
express
>an opinion about it, just the same as I can moan about CD prices even if I
>can't afford one.
>
>Anyway, that's how I feel. Feel free to write and condemn me for over-
>reacting, I'll live with it.
>
>I just feel like I need a shower right now.
>
>Stuart A
>
>
>
>
>
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