[meteorite-list] Darryl's edited NYT letter

From: Walter Branch <waltbranch_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2011 16:15:17 -0400
Message-ID: <C5858439DE6E449DA7A280D49817A17C_at_walterdesktop>

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

-Edmund Burke

-----------------------------------------------------
----- Original Message -----
From: "Meteorites USA" <eric at meteoritesusa.com>
To: <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2011 4:05 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Darryl's edited NYT letter


> All this "negative" talk about the "negative" talk Adam, doesn't help
> either.
>
> Doing nothing, accomplishes nothing. If we keep our mouths shut, the media
> tramples us with non-facts, and the uninformed public will believe it.
>
> We have a duty to the meteorite world to publish scientifically correct
> information and rebuttals and to keep it truthful and factual.
>
> Regards,
> Eric
>
>
> On 4/12/2011 12:57 PM, Adam Hupe wrote:
>> I agree with what Rob said about changing the context even slightly.
>>
>> I think it best to avoid all forms of media these days, good or bad.
>> Grave talk
>> of land-owner swindles, smuggling, black markets, fraud and lawsuits we
>> have
>> been exposed to lately in the press has already done an untold amount of
>> damage. It is unlikely that this avocation can survive much more of
>> this.
>>
>> The damage is real, accumulates over time and can't be done overnight.
>>
>> Adam
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----
>> From: "Matson, Robert D."<ROBERT.D.MATSON at saic.com>
>> To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> Sent: Tue, April 12, 2011 12:40:15 PM
>> Subject: [meteorite-list] Darryl's edited NYT letter
>>
>> Hi All,
>>
>> The main problem with the Times' editing of Darryl's submission is that
>> they altered his factually correct letter into an inaccurate (or at
>> best,
>> misleading) one. The following sentences appeared in the Times' edited
>> version:
>>
>> "As a result of the harvesting done by Bedouins, Berbers and others, 32
>> specimens from Mars and 43 specimens from the Moon have been discovered
>> in the deserts since the mid-1990s. The number of such specimens
>> recovered by scientists beforehand? Not one. Since the mid-1990s?
>> Just four."
>>
>> Now compare this with what Darryl actually submitted:
>>
>> " ... as a result of the harvesting done by Bedouins, Berbers and
>> others,
>> 32 istinct specimens of Mars and 43 distinct specimens of the Moon, as
>> well as other exotic samples, have been discovered in the hot deserts
>> since the mid-1990s---all of which have undergone study. Conversely, not
>> one such specimen was recovered by scientists IN THESE REGIONS [emphasis
>> mine] before this time, and since then scientists have recovered only
>> four such specimens."
>>
>> This significant error of omission invites researchers "in-the-know" to
>> accuse Darryl of being uninformed, and by inference unfairly calling
>> into question his credentials for opining on the subject. This is the
>> problem with journalists uneducated in scientific disciplines -- they
>> don't appreciate the nuances introduced by the seemingly harmless
>> removal of a word here, or a short phrase there. The sciences are not
>> like prose: every word is usually there for a reason.
>>
>> --Rob
>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________
>> Visit the Archives at
>> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html
>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>>
>> ______________________________________________
>> Visit the Archives at
>> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html
>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>>
>>
> ______________________________________________
> Visit the Archives at
> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Received on Tue 12 Apr 2011 04:15:17 PM PDT