[meteorite-list] It is a sad day.....

[Meteorites USA]

Jason,

You can't group all meteorite hunters into one group. You alienate the 
professional hunter who records the data like you do.  I commend you on 
your dry lake bed finds and the data you gathered! I wish all hunters 
did that. I hunt with and know many that do. But to say what you said so 
matter-of-factly is unfair to the rest of the hunting community that 
does care about preserving meteorite/strewnfield data.

Your comment "appropriate scientific programs" ??? What, so only 
scientists are worthy to preserve data? This again I believe is the 
wrong philosophy and alienates the guys that actually get out there and 
spend thousands of hours in the field and record the data that is so 
very valuable to science.

"...This, in my mind, is what many people are doing today in the field 
of meteorites. Yes, many meteorites are being recovered, but look around 
you at the staggering scientific losses that are occurring 
simultaneously..."

You're confusing NWA meteorites with USA meteorites. Big difference. ;)

All hunters I know and hunt with record ALL data from their finds and 
report this data to the scientific community. Regretfully, there are 
those that don't care about data, and they don't collect it, they are 
just after the money. But you can't have a free society and expect 
everyone to follow all the rules. There are going to be "bad apples" 
that spoil the bunch. Don't fall into the trap of grouping everyone 
together to make the decision process easier, that';s how we got in this 
mess to begin with. Again you're grouping responsible hunters with 
irresponsible ones and that's not fair or honest.

Meteorite information needs to be protected, but there has to be another 
way that will allow both responsible meteorite hunters and scientists to 
continue to work together to preserve the data and NOT exclude any one 
group of people. It is after all taxpayer dollars that paid for that 
federal land and EVERY citizen of the United States has every right to 
hunt that land. They own it, the government only governs it, with our 
permission, we dole out or relinquish that permission with lobbying and 
voting our conscience and beliefs.

Regards,
Eric



On 3/8/2010 10:43 PM, Jason Utas wrote:
> You tell me what's better: the right for irresponsible hunters to lose
> information, or the protection of this irreplaceable  scientific
> information.