Jim and Paul and List, WHAT!
Meteorite Times is ending? Over egos, personality conflicts, and "business." It is of course, it is your right end your website but let me tell you, I think Meteorite Times is (or now, was) one of the best, most entertaining, most informative and "freshest" sites devoted to meteorites. I will surely miss the site, as will others. The highest compliments I receive regarding my own site are from teachers who tell me they use my site as part of their curriculum on space and astronomy. I am often asked by teachers to recommend other sites, and Meteorite Times quickly became a part of my "must visit" sites. It is a shame that this resource will no longer be available. Many times, we don't realize that these websites we have created extend beyond those of use who spend our hard-earned money to collect these rocks and beyond the Meteorite Central list server. Still, I understand Jim and Paul's reasoning. I just have one request to make. Jim or Paul, please email me privatly. I would like to know the individuals responsible for causing you so much grief. Whomever they are, I want to to ensure that their particular egos receive no more of my money. I am really upset over this. -Walter ------------------------------------------------ Walter Branch, Ph.D. 322 Stephenson Ave., Suite B Savannah, GA 31405 www.branchmeteorites.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "James Tobin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Meteorite List" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2003 1:54 AM Subject: [meteorite-list] Another mag bites the dust! > > Dear List, > After a brief conversation with Paul it was agreed that we would pull the > MeteoriteTimes magazine down off the web and pick up our toys and go home. > And I had a neat article already written for next month. > > We tried to offer valuable information and good science. What we fought the > whole time was a battle to keep out the personal agendas of dealers who > were contributors. Editing and worrying about any information concerning > pricing. Careful that there was never mention of others dealers names by > dealers, and ebay auction results and many more things. That is beside the > fact that some of the material submitted was just badly thought out and > poor science. > > Well, whether out of rushing around with the holidays and trying to get an > issue out; we missed a couple things this month. They became matters of > concern to certain individuals. Frankly, I have spent the week moderating > the disputes of dealers in the meteorite business over things that we had > little or no involvement in, except that they were written or done by > contributing writers. > > This was never what the magazine was to be about. None of this has anything > to do with the joy of studying meteorites and sharing stories. It involves > egos and business. So when Paul called today with another problem created > by one of our contributors, we came to the easy decision to drop the > magazine. This reflects our general philosophy of life. As hard as we work, > if the things we do in our spare time are not fun, we don't do them. > > Both of us have very little spare time. I work on average 55 hours a week > in a high stress environment. Responsible for the entire operation of the > production floor of a large printing company. He is working similarly > stressful hours. > > As has so often be seen on this list, we are a community with some > individuals who do not always work and play well with others. I have this > week (and so has Paul) been in the nasty position of trying to balance long > standing dear friendships with disputes created because we provided a place > for the exchange of ideas. I will never choose losing friend over anything. > It is my hope that when the dust settles that these individuals that I care > deeply about will still choose to call me friend. I choose not to be > hardened and ignore that there are friendships at stake. One meteorite > investigator offended a dealer who is his friend. It occurred because of a > photo used on our magazine. I took the blame for not seeing the offending > element in the picture. But the thumbnail in our article did not have the > element. The larger picture linked to our thumbnail which is not on our > server was different. I took the blame I should have looked at every link > to see what was there, probably a hundred links in this issue. Today, it > is an argument over one person taking unfair advantage to promote > themselves and their business; while not mentioning the activities of a > similar kind by someone else. And these individuals are all good friends of > ours. > > After raising four children and now having five grandchildren, I have > despite my old nature become a pretty open person about my feelings. And > all this saddens me and is frankly breaking my heart. To say the least it > has taken the joy out of doing the magazine. > > With that said I offer an apology to anyone feeling slighted by anything we > offered in the magazine. I have felt all week that there were maybe still > black feathers in my mouth from the big meals of crow I have been eating. > > Paul and I spoke as I said rather briefly to agreed to this, and ended by > saying we would send messages from our guts to the list, without discussing > our posts with each other. I'm am just as interested as you to read what he > says. > > Art I apologize to you also, this is the first non-meteoritic email I have > ever sent, breaking one more rule today. > > Jim Tobin > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > The Meteorite Exchange > > > > > ______________________________________________ > Meteorite-list mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list > ______________________________________________ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
