While on vacation I read the article in The Coastal Star about the collector of ivory. I am greatly offended that you would promote such a barbaric hobby and Mr. Weisblut should be ashamed as well.
    The primary source of ivory is the African elephant.  The numbers of these highly intelligent, gentle, family-oriented animals have been decimated by 80 percent within the last century. The cause of this is the harvesting of the tusks for the Chinese ivory trade.
    After the elephant is ambushed and killed and the tusks are hacked off, the remains rot in the African sun. These massive beasts are killed simply to provide trinkets for collectors.  The hunters receive less than a dollar a pound for their prize while Asians and Westerners pay thousands for an item to collect dust on a shelf. 
Ninety-nine out of 100 people could not tell the difference between a carved piece of porcelain or high-grade plastic and ivory. 
    If collectors continue their horrendous pastime, the only place you will see an elephant is in a zoo or on TV. 
    If people do not like to see how their sausages or steaks are made, I can assure you that most would not want to observe the origins of ivory. 


Ed Harris, Vice President
National Humane Society

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