More info on a small Gem, Mineral, and Jewelry show in Tucson…

Last week, I talked about a couple of small shows upcoming in southern Arizona, pre-Denver. I now have a bit more info on the show in Tucson on Sept. 11. It will be from 9 AM to 4 PM at 439 N 6th Avenue (Southwest corner of 6th & 6th) in Tucson.

Vendor list:

Andy Anderson
B & L Minerals
Belkis Minerals
Catalina Minerals
David H. Garske
mineralspecies.com
Mineral Zone
Udachnaya

This should be a great little show with an excellent variety from some people who always have some interesting items. So, if you are in S. Arizona that weekend, stop by. Might be just the thing to stop those withdrawal pains for those of you who can’t make the trip to Denver for the big show up there the following week.

For those of you in the Phoenix area, 2 weeks before this show is the one put on by Evan Jones that I mentioned in last weeks blog, so there’s something nice for you Phoenicians, too.

I’ll end with some eye-candy for mineral enthusiasts, a large-cabinet Wulfenite specimen from China, newly listed on our website.

Serpentine, Science, and the politics of fear

Some of you may have been following the ongoing issue in California over SB 624, the bill to remove Serpentine as the state rock of California. For those of you who haven’t heard the story, State Sen. Gloria Romero (D, Los Angeles) introduced this legislation, presumably at the behest of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO). They believe that since the rock serpentine sometimes contains the asbestiform mineral Chrysotile, that it is dangerous and that “California should not designate a rock known to be toxic to the health of its residents as the state’s official rock.”

Since this bill was introduced, MANY people have commented in the print and electronic media about it. The overwhelming sentiment from the scientific community is that the basic premises of the ADAO and Sen. Romero are just plain WRONG scientifically, and there is no reason to remove serpentine as California’s state rock.

Now, on other venues I have made my feelings known, suffice it to say that when non-scientists attempt to write legislation with scientific verbiage, what results is frequently what the Marines call a ‘clusterf***’ and this is exactly what happened in this case. The bill, and the ensuing defenses of it by Sen. Romero and the ADOA are so rife with inaccuracies as to be laughable. For more detail on this, I direct you to a few good sources:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=132118583490156&v=info

www.fakeminerals.com

http://geotripper.blogspot.com/2010/08/power-of-words-debate-over-serpentine.html

www.the-vug.com

So why am I blogging about this? Not because I want to champion the cause of serpentine, others (who actually live in California) are doing a fine job of that. I am following this saga because I am interested in the outcome. The bottom line is that Sen. Romero and the ADAO are quite simply fearmongers, and I’m interested in seeing if their tactics, playing on people’s emotions and fear, will triumph over overwhelming scientific facts in this case. What’s really interesting is that, despite many, many people contacting her, Sen. Romero quite simply refuses to even respond to the science and the scientific community. They just keep repeating the words asbestos and cancer, and are apparently hoping that by appealing to people’s basest fears, they will win the day.

By repeatedly mouthing inaccuracies and flat-out lies, and steadfastly refusing to even listen to anyone opposing her position, Sen. Romero has joined my long list of politicians who make me shake my head and say “Who VOTED for that idiot?”

I’ll close with an interesting side-note; those (few) who have followed my previous posts (“Origins”) may remember a picture of a piece of Jade (Nephrite) which I collected in my younger days at Jade Cove, in the Los Padres National Forest near Big Sur. Much of this area has serpentine for its bedrock, and the Jade itself forms in veins in serpentine, and breaks off and washes up on the beach. I suppose that, according to the ‘reasoning’ of Sen. Romero and the ADAO, I should be worried about contracting Mesothelioma due to the time I spent there collecting, not to mention having this “toxic” mineral in my house…..

A couple of small shows coming up, keep me from withdrawals before Denver

I was excited to hear of a couple of small shows in late August and early September here in southern Arizona, will keep me from having withdrawals before the Denver Show in September.

Evan Jones and 3 other dealers are having a show in Gilbert, AZ at the Gilbert Historical Museum on August 28. That should be a nice little show, as Evan, De Natura, the Slaughters, and IC Minerals are four reputable dealers with quality stock at reasonable prices. Well worth the drive to Phoenix.

Then, on Sept 11, Marcus Origlieri (Mineral Zone) and a few other dealers (don’t have any other names yet) are having a small show/sale pre-Denver in Tucson, and Marcus always has a really nice variety. Don’t have the info yet on exactly where that will be for any of you in S. Arizona, but you could always contact Marcus through mineralzone.com and ask if you want more info, and I’ll also post it here later.

More later, meanwhile, here’s a pretty for you to look at:

Rare Plumbogummite on Pyromorphite from China, just listed on our website today.
Find it HERE