These days the sale of a dinosaur fossil for millions of dollars seems to take precedence over what scientific information may have been lost by its crude excavation, or even whether it will end up in a proper museum to be cared for and preserved for all time...In October 1996 rare dinosaur footprints were stolen from an isolated beach near Broome in Western Australia. Not only was the scientific world horrified by the theft, but it was also a violation of an Aboriginal sacred site. In an attempt to recover the stolen footprints, Australian palaeontologist John Long teams up with specialist US fossil cop Sgt Steve Rogers. Their hunt for the missing fossils will take them around Australia and on to Europe and the United States. Together they explore the secretive world of international fossil trade and visit the world's largest fossil trade show, where dinosaur dealers offer priceless scientific treasures for thousands of dollars. While undercover, Long and Rogers interview shonky dealers with criminal backgrounds, exposing the illegal world of fossil poaching and smuggling. This is an adventure, with discovery and danger along the way-but when you de
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About the Author
John Long is a paleontologist at the Western Australian Museum. He is the author of Mountains of Madness.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
A fine scientist gets bedazzeled by a cop and a camera crew,
By
This review is from: The Dinosaur Dealers: Mission: To Uncover International Fossil Smuggling (Paperback)
I admire the work of paleontologist, John A Long, and gave a very enthusiastic review of his fine book, The Rise of The Fishes. Unfortunately, Long, like a few other academic paleontologists, has dropped the requirement of scientific accuracy, in favor of a biased polemic when it comes to the subject of fossil ownership. For the record, I have no problem with private ownership of fossils legally collected on both private and public lands. Regardless of where you stand on this controversial issue, readers of this book will be disappointed to discover Long's gullibility as he follows "America's self appointed, "top fossil cop" on an around the globe boondoggle to construct a documentary film. That officer, Steve Rogers, has Dr. Long hoodwinked into imagining shady characters at every location. At one point, he's even advised to glance at customers shoes in a fossil shop, because, according to Officer Rogers, high-roller fossil thieves are particularly keen on expensive footware. Trust me, the paranoid "cloak and dagger" scenarios become laughable in short order.
The whole mess of a book winds up at the Tucson Fossil Show where Long enjoys the company of friends he asserts are "legit dealers"- who, nonetheless, market fossils to the general public. At the show, he expresses childish delight in securing a fine fossil fish for his museum collection - an option I assume he would deny others without academic credentials. Reader's should remind themselves that fossils kept in private collections are not usually lost, and that most of the world museums are filled with specimens donated by private collectors. The record of major museums in documenting and maintaining collections has been spotty, at best. There are fewer and fewer displays of fossils available to the general public. More specimens are stored in basement boxes than can ever be displayed. Dr. Long never mentions the fact that many of the illegal or stolen specimens he describes - most notably from Russia and China - were removed from institutions by those scientists and curators in charge of protecting them. While on the subject of protecting fossils, we should consider that our own Smithsonian Natural History Museum has a loathsome policy that states, if a fossil is no longer needed, it must be destroyed rather than sold. (Note: Unless the original donor can be located or another recognized public institution will accept the specimen as a donation - a time consuming task that is not likely to occur unless the specimen is a major find worth a great deal of money) In the end, Long suggests that academics, governments, commercial fossil dealers and collectors open new lines of communication to work together and find a common ground where all can benefit. The inaccuracies and tone of the Dinosaur Dealers is hardly a step in the right direction.
10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Silly Socialists Chase Dragons,
By
This review is from: The Dinosaur Dealers: Mission: To Uncover International Fossil Smuggling (Paperback)
This book needs to be taken with a huge grain of salt. Long, an Australian paleontologist, has a very different view of private property than most Americans and this socialist outlook tends to color an otherwise potentially interesting book. While most of us would be horrified at the idea of allowing the government to arbitrarily seize private property, Long continually espouses the view that "science" should take greater precedence than property rights in regards to fossils without ever actually making a convincing case for why this slippery slope should even be considered. He seems to think it is self-evident that citizens have no right to private property if a paternalistic government thinks your property has significance to an elite few who study an otherwise highly esoteric subject that contributes little real value to society. Over and over he argues that the United States should adopt laws like South Africa (the originators of apartheid -- good choice Mr. Long) where the government has the right to seize what private citizens find on their land so that people like Long can study it. Clearly, we don't allow the government to uproot yew trees from our yard just because the taxol in them can make cancer drugs, so exactly why does the interest of a group of people who study dead animals override the long history of private property in the United States? We are never told. I suppose if you ARE a member of that elite it's just obvious.Because of this paternalistic socialist attitude, he takes the claims of opponents to the private ownership of fossils at face value without checking his facts on such a regular basis that the book attains a silly, preachy tone well before getting half way through it. In one bizarre example that should be an insult to American veterans, he cites well a known blowhard Wyoming policeman who claims to have been awarded the US military's Purple Heart medal for participating in a fossil "sting" operation in Wyoming that didn't involve the military at all! The same policeman claims to have netted over [money amount]in illegal fossils in a single day, yet a quick internet check of the Congressional Record shows the sting in question netted only about [money amount]worth of fossils in ALL OF 1995. Long also fails to mention that this same sting operation fell apart at one point when it was discovered that a fossil assumed to be stolen had actually been legally purchased from a private quarry. Still more obfuscation comes when Long fails to mention that of the various potheads and rednecks this backwoods investigation successfully prosecuted, virtually every one was for things unrelated to fossil theft! In fact, the Congressional Record indicates that Long's figures regarding how many people were prosecuted at all is wildly inflated. Long claims over 100 people were prosectued -- the Congressional Record for 1995 says 2. Hmmm....someone seems to have pumped up the number a bit. Obviously, if Long can't even check his most basic facts there can be little doubt that while his book reads like an adventure, it's really little more than propaganda disguised as a detective story. I have no doubt this book will be used as a rallying cry for all sorts of draconian government regulations attempting to criminalize a perfectly legal trade, but then again it wouldn't be the first time a bunch of hogwash has been used to justify the use of stormtroopers.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Silly Socialists Chase Dragons,
By
This review is from: The Dinosaur Dealers: Mission: To Uncover International Fossil Smuggling (Paperback)
This book needs to be taken with a huge grain of salt. Long, an Australian paleontologist, has a very different view of private property than most Americans and this socialist outlook tends to color an otherwise potentially interesting book. While most of us would be horrified at the idea of allowing the government to arbitrarily seize private property, Long continually espouses the view that "science" should take greater precedence than property rights in regards to fossils without ever actually making a convincing case for why this slippery slope should even be considered. He seems to think it is self-evident that citizens have no right to private property if a paternalistic government thinks your property has significance to an elite few who study an otherwise highly esoteric subject that contributes little real value to society. Over and over he argues that the United States should adopt laws like South Africa (the originators of apartheid -- good choice Mr. Long) where the government has the right to seize what private citizens find on their land so that people like Long can study it. Clearly, we don't allow the government to uproot yew trees from our yard just because the taxol in them can make cancer drugs, so exactly why does the interest of a group of people who study dead animals override the long history of private property in the United States? We are never told. I suppose if you ARE a member of that elite it's just obvious.Because of this paternalistic socialist attitude, he takes the claims of opponents to the private ownership of fossils at face value without checking his facts on such a regular basis that the book attains a silly, preachy tone well before getting half way through it. In one bizarre example that should be an insult to American veterans, he cites well a known blowhard Wyoming policeman who claims to have been awarded the US military's Purple Heart medal for participating in a fossil "sting" operation in Wyoming that didn't involve the military at all! The same policeman claims to have netted over [money amount]in illegal fossils in a single day, yet a quick internet check of the Congressional Record shows the sting in question netted only about [money amount]worth of fossils in ALL OF 1995. Long also fails to mention that this same sting operation fell apart at one point when it was discovered that a fossil assumed to be stolen had actually been legally purchased from a private quarry. Still more obfuscation comes when Long fails to mention that of the various potheads and rednecks this backwoods investigation successfully prosecuted, virtually every one was for things unrelated to fossil theft! In fact, the Congressional Record indicates that Long's figures regarding how many people were prosecuted at all is wildly inflated. Long claims over 100 people were prosectued -- the Congressional Record for 1995 says 2. Hmmm....someone seems to have pumped up the number a bit. Obviously, if Long can't even check his most basic facts there can be little doubt that while his book reads like an adventure, it's really little more than propaganda disguised as a detective story. I have no doubt this book will be used as a rallying cry for all sorts of draconian government regulations attempting to criminalize a perfectly legal trade, but then again it wouldn't be the first time a bunch of hogwash has been used to justify the use of stormtroopers.
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