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WARNING
Mar 7, 2013 21:40:35 GMT -8
Post by papilio28570 on Mar 7, 2013 21:40:35 GMT -8
There is an ad in the classifieds seeking lepidopterist collectors for filming of a documentary which reads as folows:
"Hi All! My name is Shannon. I am a student filmmaker who is filming a short documentary on butterfly collecting/mounting. I am looking for collectors, mounters, or suppliers who are willing to appear on film; this would include a short interview and a tour of your collection. Please email me if you are interested! "
I assume, from the email address given, it is his project while attending Colmbia University in New York.
I, for one would steer very clear of this since whoever is being filmed has zero control over the end result. Don't fall into the belief that this is a sincere desire for knowledge and to educate viewers, or that it is a project to fulfill lab credits for grade. Columbia is a very liberal school and New York is a very liberal hotbed and I can only think such a documentary would not cast butterfly collectors in a good light.
I have dealt extensively with the media and often a film project begins with an agenda and a predetermined outcome. Comments are taken out of context and video clips are interspersed with clips from elsewhere to craft an image fitting the bias. Your drawers of species may be filmed while the voice-over audio may speak about the decline of the butterfly population in general or in a specific area.
Of course, this all speculation on my part, but I'm just throwing my thoughts and experience out there for consideration.
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WARNING
Mar 7, 2013 22:58:10 GMT -8
Post by lamprima2 on Mar 7, 2013 22:58:10 GMT -8
papilio28570, I believe that you warning is absolutely reasonable, especially because it is based on a personal experience. Anyway, what “liberal school” and “New York’s liberal hotbed” has to do with anti-entomology sentiment? Are knuckleheaded cons from Texas more favorable to our passion? Best, Sergey
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Post by Christof on Mar 8, 2013 3:20:54 GMT -8
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Post by papilio28570 on Mar 8, 2013 7:08:35 GMT -8
"Are knuckleheaded cons from Texas more favorable to our passion?"
No. Knuckle-headed conservationists are the same all over. New York is like bee hive of them compared to widely dispersed digger wasps (Sphex ichneumoneus) in Texas. California and Oregon fall into the same camp as NY, except they are on steroids on the west coast.
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 11:01:14 GMT -8
Post by admin on Mar 8, 2013 11:01:14 GMT -8
papilio28570, Anyway, what “liberal school” and “New York’s liberal hotbed” has to do with anti-entomology sentiment? The 'environmentalists' usually come from the political left. The extreme ones are opposed to catching and killing butterflies. We call them 'butterfly huggers'. The OP could be right in his analysis of this ad: it could be a trap.
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 11:31:39 GMT -8
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 8, 2013 11:31:39 GMT -8
I see there is also another thread in the same Open Topics section "Hi I'm the new guy" which seems to be fishing for information to vilify collectors.
The paragraph "also if anyone knew where I could find some numbers about how much the industry makes in a year selling to collectors. I have got some data from the beetle pickers in Cameroon, but that is about it so far." seems to imply that is his aim.
I'll assume his misspelling of Teinopalpus was just a typo; however many years ago I was interviewed by a journalist about living in Thailand with everything recorded, but they still got the facts wrong and twisted things round to read as if I was only here for the women. There are no plurals in Thai, so maybe it was a deliberate attempt to catch attention in the headline. Of course in the text it mentioned that I am married to a Thai, but there was no excuse for getting the other facts wrong.
Adam.
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 12:13:02 GMT -8
Post by lamprima2 on Mar 8, 2013 12:13:02 GMT -8
"...compared to widely dispersed digger wasps (Sphex ichneumoneus) in Texas."
Not sure about political orientation of Texan digger wasps, but the tarantula hawk (Pepsis) is definitely affiliated with GOP.
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 15:13:04 GMT -8
Post by pittendrighinsects on Mar 8, 2013 15:13:04 GMT -8
It is sad how the public wants to portray us, just look at the example of Yoshi (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2007-08-18-butterfly-smuggler_N.htm), who was villified in this article...my advice is the same, don't give them any info.
Quintin
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 15:29:28 GMT -8
Post by papilio28570 on Mar 8, 2013 15:29:28 GMT -8
I think a written reply on this forum is fine because you have control over content and you have documentation. I would never do a phone or video interview and strongly advise against it. I replied to his questions in his "I'm new here" thread.
I hope others, more knowledgeable, will add web links about the loss of our rain forests around the world. The destruction taking place in Indonesia for palm oil plantations is gut wrenching. I think it was lepidofrance who posted aerial photos of some of the regions. And, I believe Jan Pasternak has a lot of documentation regarding this.
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WARNING
Mar 8, 2013 16:07:46 GMT -8
Post by admin on Mar 8, 2013 16:07:46 GMT -8
It is sad how the public wants to portray us, just look at the example of Yoshi (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2007-08-18-butterfly-smuggler_N.htm), who was villified in this article...my advice is the same, don't give them any info. Quintin I used to go out in the field collecting with Yoshi here in SoCal. He was a great guy. I loved him. He showed me so many things. I don't know how he thought he could get away with dealing in protected species. But as it turned out his father was also a collector/trader out there in Asia, back in the day when there was no CITES. So I guess the son was still living in the glory days of collecting birdwings (in his mind) and that's why he ignored those laws. No excuse though. I'm just having some fond memories of him.
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