[meteorite-list] It's now an even sadder day...what happened toethics??

From: Martin Altmann <altmann_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 9 Mar 2010 19:34:35 +0100
Message-ID: <009801cabfb7$2dcb77b0$07b22959_at_name86d88d87e2>

Hi Dennis,

the problem is, that meteorite are found by private individuals.
The American people wouldn't have almost any meteorites, if not people like
Nininger, Ward, or today Clary, Verish and all these hunters, who would
banned by such laws, would have found them.

See Australia, when I bought my first meteorites 30 years ago,
Australia ranked on place number 2 in meteoritics and had so many new finds.
They made laws,
now less than 1 meteorite is still found per year on the whole continent,
while in USA, where private hunting and ownership is liberal, many dozens
new classified finds were made per year, and even more not yet classified
and new main masses of old finds were recovered like Brenham, like Glorieta,
and also much less specimens of the big showers like West, or the new
Arizone strewnfield would be on public display and in the institutes, if not
these private hunters would have hunted them.

Australia btw. where so strict laws are in force, has the much better
hunting grounds than the U.S.
Dennis, seen the explosion of finds during the last 15 years, in Sahara, in
Oman and in USA,
it is really like that, that Australia without these laws, could have now
already several lunaites, Martians, Rumurutiites, ACAPs and how the
scientifically especially interesting meteorites types all are called, in
their national collections and museums.
Iiiiif only they would allow private hunting.

The personal gain... the best US-desert hunters don't even make the minimum
wage which is mandatory in some of the federal states with their finds.
Simply because you have to pick up hundreds of meteoritic stones first,
until you have your first eucrite and thousands, if you want to have a
planetary one.

The right way, to get meteorites in public collections is to encourage and
to support private meteorite hunting!

Dennis, I don't know, where you live - and which is your next major public
meteorite collection. Let it be the Field museum, the AMNH in New York, TCU
Fort Worth, New Mexico... almost all meteorites displayed there do stem
originally from private collectors, private finders, private dealers and
private hunters.

And to support private meteorite hunting and to take the stones into the
institutes and museums doesn't cost a thing.
E.g. we here in Europe - an episode only in history - had once the EUROMET
project. These made btw. two of the three last official expeditions in
Australia.
They had only personnel costs - only for personnel - of 15-20 million todays
USD per year.
Dennis - there aren't found enough meteorites on Earth per year, that you
could spend 20 millions a year.

Well, and such laws do not protect meteorites, neither do they protect
property of the people,
what they do is, to protect meteorites from being found.

Without meteorites, you can't do meteorite science, whithout finding them,
the people has nothing.

The solution is relatively simple,
We wouldn't have to discuss about laws,
If the nations would equip financially their universities and national
meteorite collections in the same way again like the 150 years before.

Cause then, we all can turn back to business as usual.

Best!
Martin


-----Urspr?ngliche Nachricht-----
Von: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] Im Auftrag von Dennis
Beatty
Gesendet: Dienstag, 9. M?rz 2010 18:46
An: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Betreff: [meteorite-list] It's now an even sadder day...what happened
toethics??

I have sporadically read the comments regarding the implementation of
new (or newly enforced) BLM rules...and am saddened and disappointed
at the overall tone of the responses. What is it about us and our
love of meteorites that gives us the right for personal gain?? As I
understand it, any item found on public land belongs to the American
people not some lucky individual that happens to stumble across
something of value. I have read several posts where fellow collectors
have stated that should they find a meteorite on public land, they
will merely "refind" it on private land. Sheesh!! I will be going
back through this thread much more carefully and if those types
comments are tied to any dealers, I will definitely not patronize
them. And were is the IMCA on this?? Isn't ethical dealing one of
their mainstays??

Perhaps I am naive, but I had envisioned our group as seekers of
knowledge rather than modern day anti-government, do as I damn well
please rustlers.

Well, there goes two cents...

Dennis Beatty
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Received on Tue 09 Mar 2010 01:34:35 PM PST