[meteorite-list] SENTENCE IN MOON ROCK SCAM

From: meteorites_at_space.com <meteorites_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:44:39 2004
Message-ID: <20010314212701.16403.cpmta_at_c000.snv.cp.net>

On Wed, 14 March 2001, Doug wrote:

>
>
> Steve wrote:
> >My question to you is, how would one know that it is an "obvious fraud?"
>
> Part of the reason it was an "obvious fraud" for me was this mans clumsy
> use of aliases, but just on the face of it, an unsolicited offer of
> material that should not be available... the unverifiable nature of
> specks did not really enter into it.
>
> In Tucson I heard that someone was selling "simulated" meteorites which
> without a microprobe were impossible to tell from the real thing... so
> maybe the specks have gotten much bigger...
>
> Here is my next question:
> If Steve Schoner was offering "certified" specks of his most precious
> meteorite would you buy it?
>
> I would.
>
> Doug
Thanks for the confidence, but if I were to sell "certified" specks, they would be just that "certified." This would involve some form of encapsulation, and certificate of analysis-- such as Steve Arnold did with some of his moon rocks.
That is the kind of thing that I would do should such a ultra-rare sample become available to me for sale. After all, I would not want to sell anything that was such that credibility for its identity was based only on my claim that that is what it is. Good thing that seller-scammer was caught-- and prosecuted. It puts out a clear message to anyone and everyone that would dare to do the same. In the long run it will help to keep our hobby clean.

Regards, Steve Schoner
PS-- I really don't want this to explode into another round of speck speculation and the hazzards thereof. ;->

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Received on Wed 14 Mar 2001 04:27:01 PM PST