[meteorite-list] Technical question about NomCom and Bulletin

[Impactika at aol.com]

Hello Jeff, and List,

Like you I have watched with interest this discussion. And now I would like 
to give you my personal opinion.

I most certainly agree that all meteorites should be classified, and 
published. With no exceptions, regardless of the country of origin and the local 
laws. 

But those local laws are a fact, they exist, are real, whether we like it 
or not, and publishing them does not mean that we approve or oppose them; it 
only means that we acknowledge their existence. The Meteoritical Bulletin's 
purpose, I believe, is to inform the readers by publishing all the relevant 
facts about each meteorite, and the local laws are as much a fact relevant 
to that meteorite, and meaningful to the Meteorite Community, as the 
circumstances of the discovery or the coordinates.     

I would therefore suggest that they be published. It could be a simple 
sentence in the geography section of the page or a link to the relevant 
information published elsewhere. The Meteoritical Society is a large organization 
with members in most countries of the world, I would believe that the members 
could do the appropriate research in their own countries, and supply you 
with the relevant information. Obviously it would have to be factual, truthful 
information; publishing rumors, hearsay and unverified facts would certainly 
defeat the purpose. 

Thank you for listening to my opinion. And I certainly hope that you will 
eventually tell us yours.

Anne M. Black
www.IMPACTIKA.com
IMPACTIKA at aol.com
Vice-President of IMCA
www.IMCA.cc 


In a message dated 06/05/10 06:12:32 Mountain Daylight Time, 
jgrossman at usgs.gov writes:
Martin and list, 

No, votes do not have to be unanimous.  No meteorite has even been 
rejected on this basis.  There are ongoing discussions both within the 
nomenclature committee and between the committee and council about 
ethical issues like this, and I would characterize several committee 
members as "deeply concerned." But right now, it has not affected the 
operations of the committee. 

I think it would be a good discussion topic for the List.  Some 
questions could be, "Is it ethical for the Meteoritical Society to 
approve and publish the names and data about meteorites for which there 
may be doubt -- or just lack of information -- about whether they were 
legally removed from their country of origin?  Does such endorsement and 
publication potentially provide some degree of support for illegal 
activity?" 

These are not easy questions.  Note that the activities of the Society 
only involve dissemination of information... the Society does not buy, 
sell, or trade meteorites, nor directly support research done on them.   
It is also a non-profit organization in the US with unpaid board and 
committee members. 

I would be glad to answer questions, but I will not participate in any 
discussion on the List.  I will listen. 

Jeff 
-- 
Dr. Jeffrey N. Grossman       phone: (703) 648-6184 
US Geological Survey          fax:   (703) 648-6383 
954 National Center 
Reston, VA 20192, USA