One-third of American ivory illegal

Instead of worrying so much about things like nonexistent terrorist plots in Miami, or overblowing cases of domestic eco-terrorism, it seems like Customs should be worried about enviro-terrorism of African and Indian elephants, if that much American ivory is illegal

A survey conducted for the groups Care For the Wild International and Save the Elephants found that more than 24,000 ivory articles are for sale in the United States, making it the second biggest market in the world after China.

The survey of 657 outlets in 16 US towns and cities found that “perhaps 7,400 ivory items, or nearly one-third of the total, may have been crafted after 1989 making their importation illegal.”

Nearly all of the ivory items in the United States, or 95 percent, come from China, according to the study’s author, Esmond Martin, who has dedicated his 30-year career to ivory trade research.

Maybe we should search again the holdings of former Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small, who got busted several years ago for violating the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species. Small paid a fine after being investigated as to the provenance of bird feathers in his collection of Amazonian items, and pleading guilty to violating CITES and the Endangered Species Act.

FINALLY, Lawrence Small is gone from the Smithsonian

Greed and salary got the Smithsonian Institution’s secretary — it’s executive director, in essence — canned.

Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lawrence M. Small, whose pay and expenses were the subject of two recent investigations, resigned after seven years as head of the world's largest museum and research complex.

Although Small resigned two days ago, the Washington-based Smithsonian didn't announce the move until today.

Small's taxable income rose to $915,768 this year from $356,700 when he started the job, Smithsonian spokeswoman Linda St. Thomas said in a phone interview. A report by the museum's inspector general found that Small took an unauthorized charter flight to San Antonio that cost $14,509, seven times the amount of a regular first-class flight.

But he had more reason to get canned than that:

First, as I blogged before, there’s his uncritical support of intelligent design being displayed inside the Smithsonian.

There’s also his attempt to stifle the audit that led to him getting canned.


Finally, there’s his criminal conviction being displayed inside the Smithsonian.

Small was convicted in a misdemeanor plea agreement after federal investigators found that his 1,000-piece personal collection of Amazonian tribal artifacts held at least 219 items containing feathers protected under the Endangered Species Act, the Convention on Intentional Trade in Endangered Species or the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

It’s only been 3 and one half years since he was convicted, and he still hung on like old mold. Good-bye, as I called for at that time.