[meteorite-list] West Specimen for sale AD

[Dave Gheesling]

Rob & All,
Classification material has already been submitted.  I respectfully
disagree.  Whether they are sold early or not isn't as big of an issue as
how they are curated, etc.  It's a great thing that we have treasure hunters
out in the field -- I'm not one, by the way -- and the fact that people are
willing to pay good money for meteorites has led to increased recoveries
well beyond the expectation of the scientific community itself.  There are
those who would love to acquire an early find from West, Texas, and those
who do are actually fueling further recoveries in the process.  Good hunting
to all in West!
Dave
www.fallingrocks.com 

-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of Rob
McCafferty
Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2009 7:42 PM
To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] West Specimen for sale AD



I don't know if I'm the only person who feels this or not.
I personally felt that the offering of this new material before it was
officially classified was distasteful. 

Collectors are constantly being branded as "bounty hunters" or "treasure
seekers". Surely, all collectors can see that to obtain virgin material
before it can be officially classified or examined is against scientific
principles.

I realise that some collectors may have more money to hand than museums. I
also realise that the hunters have overheads to cover but the offering of
material to collectors before it is offered to science just seems wrong to
me.

My hobby is other peoples livelyhood and this action just does not sit well
with me and I'll wager it does not sit well with the general public, either.
How does this help us?

Rob McC



      
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