The Poll (fwd)

[San Diego Natural History Museum <libsdnhm@xxxxxxxxx>]

Forwarded at the request of Mike Woodburne.

Sally Shelton
Director, Collections Care and Conservation
Chair, SVP Outreach Committee


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                           ABOUT THE POLL

Writing as a member of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
who is familiar with the discussions concerning the recent public opinion
poll conducted by MKTG, Inc., I would like to set the record straight.

In this poll, directed at the American public, not at any special subset
of it, the American public strongly supported the view that fossils of
scientific significance collected on Federal public lands should remain in
the public domain.

The poll was taken in response to discussions among the Dinosaur Society,
the Paleontological Society, and the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology.
These discussions, which still are going on, are aimed at finding a
positive, fair, and acceptable policy for fossil management on federal
public lands.  In that all of the above-named societies count avocational
paleontologists among their members, the concerns of this community are
recognized in these discussions.

The poll was done gratis by MKTG, Inc.  The purpose of the poll was to
get a sense of public opinion generally, not simply among those with vested
interests, ours included.  The poll results are what they are, carrying all
the vagaries of polling that any well-conducted poll does.  Nevertheless,
the poll was conducted with the highest professional standards.  A
randomizing procedure made it equally likely for every telephone in the U.S.
to be contacted.

The order of questions also was randomized so that a given question would
not encourage a given response to the next question.  Whether or not skeptics
wish to believe it, the poll was conducted in such a way as to receive an
unbiased response.

Regardless of the results of this, or any other, poll, the Society of
Vertebrate Paleontology encourages the participation of amateurs in science.
Education is a major function of paleontologists.  The SVP opposes
commercial collecting of vertebrate fossils from federal public lands
because it removes public property from education, museums, and research.
The operative word is "commercial."  The SVP encourages the use of fossils
from federal public lands to obtain maximum good for kids, teachers, museum
visitors, enthusiasts, and researchers.  Selling off America's fossils does
not further those goals.  Responsible management of fossils does.

             Michael Woodburne


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University of California
Riverside, CA  92521