Eco-zealous feds target Gibson guitars, antique piano sellers; Updated: Gibson explains, exposes DOJ overreach
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The real endangered species?
I’ve seen a lot of enviro-nitwittery over the years, but this takes the cake.
US Fish and Wildlife officials have raided the famous Gibson Guitars. And the instrument-maker isn’t alone. Antique piano dealers are also in the crosshairs. Why? Because rare, beautiful instruments made of ecologically incorrect materials must be sacrificed at the green altar. Talk about hitting a sour note.
Eric Felten at the WSJ reports:
Federal agents swooped in on Gibson Guitar Wednesday, raiding factories and offices in Memphis and Nashville, seizing several pallets of wood, electronic files and guitars. The Feds are keeping mum, but in a statement yesterday Gibson’s chairman and CEO, Henry Juszkiewicz, defended his company’s manufacturing policies, accusing the Justice Department of bullying the company. “The wood the government seized Wednesday is from a Forest Stewardship Council certified supplier,” he said, suggesting the Feds are using the aggressive enforcement of overly broad laws to make the company cry uncle.
It isn’t the first time that agents of the Fish and Wildlife Service have come knocking at the storied maker of such iconic instruments as the Les Paul electric guitar, the J-160E acoustic-electric John Lennon played, and essential jazz-boxes such as Charlie Christian’s ES-150. In 2009 the Feds seized several guitars and pallets of wood from a Gibson factory, and both sides have been wrangling over the goods in a case with the delightful name “United States of America v. Ebony Wood in Various Forms.”
The question in the first raid seemed to be whether Gibson had been buying illegally harvested hardwoods from protected forests, such as the Madagascar ebony that makes for such lovely fretboards. And if Gibson did knowingly import illegally harvested ebony from Madagascar, that wouldn’t be a negligible offense. Peter Lowry, ebony and rosewood expert at the Missouri Botanical Garden, calls the Madagascar wood trade the “equivalent of Africa’s blood diamonds.” But with the new raid, the government seems to be questioning whether some wood sourced from India met every regulatory jot and tittle.
Where are the waiver-dispensers when you need them? How about some relief for these American employers and small businessmen, President Obama?
***
Someone needs to rewrite that “United breaks guitars” song and update it to “Obama raids guitars:”
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Update: The ObamaFail blog has transcribed an interview with Gibson Guitar’s CEO Henry Juszkiewicz exposing DOJ overreach and mis-enforcement of other countries’ laws… Make sure you click through to listen to the entire interview.
As the ObamaFail blog explains:
The core issue is Gibson’s purchase of wood for use in guitar fingerboards. The wood is not raw, nor is it finished. Juszkiewicz explains that the wood is purchased from Madagascar when it is “two-thirds of the way” finished. Once purchased, the wood is brought to America, where it is finished by American workers. According to the Obama administration, purchasing unfinished wood is a violation of Madagascarian law…
But as Juszkiewicz said:
“So the government’s contention is that because American workers are working on that and finishing it, that it is not a finished product and, therefore, initially Madagascar law – and now I guess they’re contending Indian law – says you can’t remove unfinished product from the market. So in other words, if a person in Madagascar had completed the work on that blank, it would be legal. But the fact that American workers are finishing the work in the United States, makes it illegal, as far as their concerned.”
“The government’s position is, that is the law of the land in Madagascar and they are saying that is the law of the land in India. That is not the case. The fact is, we have affidavits from numerous government officials – and this court case, specifically now, is forMadagascar wood. We have affidavits from virtually every govt official saying that it is legal, that their definition of what is legal is a fingerboard blank and its been exported within every certification that is necessary. So they have the arrogance to interpret Madagascar law differently than the people of Madagascar.”
So the jackboots in the Obama administration are wrongly enforcing other countries’ laws and preventing American workers from doing their work here.
Typical DOJ: Ignore American laws. Foolishly enforce foreign ones at American companies’ expense.
Just wow.
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My guitars are guarded by Smith & Wesson. They may come looking for ebony and rosewood, but all they’ll be taking with them is lead.
There are so many things going on now that I never thought would happen in America. We are truly 1930′s Germany.
This, absolutely.
Apparently Obama has been exempted from having to do much of anything substantial in life.
This is the problem with BIG GOVERNMENT. It’s not crazy laws or crazy regulations or crazy departments. It’s the sheer weight of craziness.
I play trumpet. I pray there are no similar environmental restrictions on brass!
There will be one in 2013 if we don’t vote Obozo out.
I had a huge suspicion that this was also the reason why Toyota execs were made to suffer Congress’s hectoring and browbeating for the sudden acceleration issues they were having.
http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/08/autos/nhtsa_nasa_toyota_final_report/index.htm
Of course there’s Boeing and Delta, too, who are both non-union and have moved to more work-friendly states.
At last, an answer to the eternal question, “How much wood would a wood cop cop if a wood cop could cop wood?”
+1000 Hilarious!
Remember, folks, this is what happens when government bureaucrats get control of anything. Health care, anyone? Oh, yeah. We’ll have some pain if that doesn’t get repealed. And by the way, why the hell do we care about interpreting some other country’s laws? If it was legally exported by that country, doesn’t that put an end to the discussion? Not if you’re an Obamabot.
WOW…THIS OFFENSE IS RIGHT UP THERE WITH THE 5 YEAR OLD LEMONAIDE STAND, AND THE KID CLOSED DOWN FOR SELLING GREEN TEA.
WHEN ARE THESE ECO, BUREAUCRAT TAXATION CRAZY FOOLS GOING TO REALIZE THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO STAND FOR THIS ABUSE OF OUR CITIZENRY AND BUSINESSES ANY LONGER WITHOUT SOME MASSIVE RETALIATION AGAINST THE AGENTS THEMSELVES…TALK ABOUT A PERFECT KKK OPPORTUNITY!!
Ah yes, some diets need lead injections at around 1200fps.
They will have to pry my Martin out of my cold dead fingers.
And the CEO said Gibson has hired over 500 workers in the last two years. Manufacturing. In the USA. Growing. Can’t have that now in Obamaland!
Hopefully, Oklahoma’s SQ 755 would put a stop to this, because it prevents OK courts from considering foreign law.
Lee Stranahan (@Stranahan on twitter) is starting a contest for Youtube videos related to the Gibson raid. Winner gets a signed Les Paul Guitar.
See The Gibson Guitar Raid at Human Events for more background on this lunacy – read the whole thing if your blood pressure can stand it.
Son #2 is a guitarist, and he told me that musicians who own vintage instruments have to travel with documentation for their guitars that proves their provenance. Otherwise they can be subject to hefty fines and confiscation of their instruments.
It’s no laughing matter to a musician.
On August 26, 2011 at 12:41 pm, hawkeye54 said:
Well….that’s affirmative action for you. Give jobs to minorities who aren’t qualified and keep them “protected” when they fail. Pathetic…
Been thinking about picking up an acoustic-electric since for once in 40 yrs I’m without a six string…Guitar center here I come.
Les is turning over….
Uh oh, I feel another tune coming.
Belt out that music for the young lad and lass
The crescendos’ building to a critical mass
It’s time for the band to step on the gas
Let the snare go pop-pop and the cymbal go crash
Let’s jazz it up with some cool sounding brass
And a saxophone to add some real sass
With a back beating rhythm that’s tops in the class
And a bass thumping boogie that’s kicking some a$$
The vocalist’s crooning leave my music alone
I made it myself and want to keep it my own
Obamas czars waiting close to the phone
To kill brass he doesn’t like and make it his tone
The czar has no clue that much is known
They think that my talent they gave me on loan
So hands off my music, my talent, my brass
On government control, I’ll just take a pass
And if you think I am being a little too crass
Stand a little bit closer and I’ll kick your a$$
Me too. Could never get my hands wrapped around those Gibson “lumberjack” necks! That and they’re heavy. Met Kim Simmons of Savoy Brown ( lovely fellow ) but he has what I call a permanent “Les Paul Stoop” from having worn one all these years.
Sustain? What ME worry? ( My screen name is Marshall Will after all? But like you, I’m now willing to reconsider! ( I can always use it for slide? )
T-Bone, you are one talented dude! I write poetry too, but yours is ready for prime time!!
Precisely the same M.O the FDA employed in shutting down Maxam Neutrceuticals. To date, they’ve rec’d neither charges, exhoneration ( or their property )
Screw these Fed. ‘agents’, screw Obama and screw apologist water carrying TROLLS!
That reminds me – this guy rants and sells boatloads of good guitars.
Why isn’t Gibson illegally selling guitars to killers in Mexico?! Operations Fast, Fretted and Furious….
AlohaGuy,
I’ve bought off Ed Roman before. Great guy, great guitars. Vox White Shadow.
( What can I say, I’m a ‘Voxologist’! )
Found the name of my band for gigging the Tea Party events! You’re genius man.
By the by, I’m not only a Strat guy to the death, always preferred MAPLE fingerboards. Much lower maint. more precise vibrato and… I grew up worshipping Ritchie Blackmore and Slowhand. So SUE me!
Thanks Happy. I love to do it. Words (and tunes) are always jumping around in my head.
Good one.
Thats too funny. Don’t fret about it. Smart Tea Party people will get it.
I think the band name for the Dem convention should be “The Stash”.
Go for it! And thank you.
They’re also better if you’re a pancake guy…
I wonder what it was like to be an American when people were free.
I wish I had been an adult in the 1980′s (or 1950′s for that matter).
Infuriating, isn’t it? The fact that they’ve done it more than once to Gibson, but have yet to file any charges…well, it’s criminal!
Love AlohaGuys’s name for it – hope you do use it for your band. Wish I could get my son to log on to talk with you all about guitars. He plays acoustic, electric and bass – I’ve lost track of how many guitars he has (not counting the bass). And he’s just as, if not more conservative than I am!
Sounds like we are all in tune with each other. Duly noted.
If your a pancake guy. Classic.
Ironically, while that is a genuine Gibson SG pictured above, the neck pictured is actually maple…which is relatively rare for the SG’s. Ebony is the more popular choice for those higher-end axes because it is harder, smoother, and less grainy, making for a more comfortable play and less vibration (which adds to the overall tone, making it just a smidge brighter than maple or rosewood).
Either way, this is crap. I wish now that I hadn’t sold my Les Paul way back when. Every guitar company in America uses ebony for their higher-end guitars, and they all get the wood from the same place. Why is Gibson being singled out twice in two years?
and why I play the blues, I ain’t fast or furious anymore…lol
A new low for the Obama Brown Shirts… Tune in next week for another new low.
OT –
I hope you are following The Rules of the Blues
Your name starts off good with an “almost” infirmity, but needs a blues name, fruit and the last name of a President. I suggest TiredofIt Willie Grapefruit Clinton.
Unless it just crashed and you never made a backup.
I have my father’s Gibson Tenor guitar Django Reinhart’s model 1930. It was made with rosewood, ebony and precious woods from all over. Wanna take it, Obama and Holder? C’mon, I dare you. In fact, I defy you.
I’m officially jealous Marshall_Will. You met Simmons.
I started on an Echo violin bass then picked up a Hoffner at 16 years old. Played in a rocknroll band back then.
I have almost all the Savoy Brown Albums and I have the CDs also.
I did see in a very small guitar shop in Ohio one of the guitarist from Pure Prairie League, but that’s not Kim Simmons.
Paratus,
My SIL did a G&L S-500 just for Kim’s autograph. It’s in Corvette Yellow. It was a small venue ( Mac’s in Silverton, OR ) of only about 300 people.
I could’ve bent his ear for the whole break but so many people wanted to rub elbows w/ him. His accent is so thick, he can be a little ‘ard to understand but he’s so gracious w/ SB fans!
He played thru a Marshall JTM-45 and actually tuned up to “A” while doing “Tell Mama”. His Gibson Les Paul was flawless vintage. Hellbound Train was easily the highlight of the evening. Read the book if you get the chance. ( Robert Bloch also wrote “Psycho” )
Again, every time the topic comes up, it never ceases to amaze how many of Michelle’s fans are also MUSIC fans! I mean BigTime fans.
Yes, almost unheard of. Saw Buck Dharma of the Blue Oyster Cult play on live ‘once’ and never saw it again.
I hear what you’re saying. My concern was, high maint. for rosewood and ebony. In many cases ( unless a player is as finicky as me ) I can SEE all their favorite keys and positions by the build up of grit.
Maple makes it easier to spot. Just sayin’.
I have my late father’s Gibson Guitar, the original Gibson Amplifier, and the Matching Gibson Guitar Case … it is one of the earliest Electric Full Body Guitars that Gibson made (1940s) … it is serial numbered and registered …
They WILL NOT get this guitar … period
AlohaGuy (comment #126): At practically the same time you submitted your comment, Iowahawk tweeted a variant of the title you came up with. He deemed it “Operation Fast and Fretless.” Warped minds think similarly, I guess. He went on to write a post that expands on the theme.
PatriotGal2257 (comment #110): Thank you kindly. I was torn between that or an Anthony Weiner quip, but I try to keep things tasteful ’round these here parts. Most of the time, anyway.
a true conservative pres and congress is needed in 2012 or it is all over
As someone who was a teenager during the fifties my memory is most people believed Christianity was a good thing and Communism was bad.
Here in Florida the legislature passed and the Governor signed a law confirming that it was illegal for County and Municipal government to pass and enforce laws that violate the State’s preemption on firearms laws. This law also included penalties for those government officials who choose to violate the law anyway. A similar law or Constitutional Amendment needs to apply to the Federal Government on more than just firearms.
In addition to defanging much of the Federal Government by repealing many of the insane laws on the books and doing away with entire departments, we need to fine and jail Federal officials who overstep their authority. In addition to loosing their jobs, they need to know they’re going to feel some pain in the pocketbook, as well as fear the possibility of some jail time when they step out of line.
This is simply a fund raising scheme for Obama, just another version of the old Chicago protection racket, on a federal level using federal employees and resources. If Gibson had made the proper
bribescampaign contributions, they would not be having this problem. Gibson is keeping jobs in America and getting punished for it. If they moved manufacturing to Mexico, China or anywhere else, they wouldn’t be having this problem.And isn’t it up to Madagascar and India to enforce their own laws? The US does not have the authority to enforce any other countries laws, and can only extradite if they receive a request. This administration is certainly guilty oh hundreds of violations and should be prosecuted under the RICO act. But it will never happen.
I am so sick of attack the government blog posts that don’t name names. The bureaucrats always get cover. NAME NAMES!
I don’t believe for a moment that this has anything to do with wood…..it is a union thing? or some senators husband has made a deal with China to make guitars?….something else but it is fairly going unreported so no big deal? China will be happy for the jobs
I can honestly say I would love to name names as would love to name names, as would most of the people who read this Blog. Unfortunately, even very well funded organizations have a very difficult time obtaining that information from the government, especially the DOJ. FOIA requestat are frequently rejected or completely redacted and often require legal action to force compliance and they don’t reimburse you for legal costs when the courts rule in your favor. I’m sure Michelle & Doug would love to send you the information for sending money to file FOIA requests and the follow on legal actions generally required, although Michelle has done a pretty good job of naming names, have you read much on the site, maybe her book, “Culture of Corruption” by chance?
Mostly Annoyed,
Since it occurred in my home State of Oregon, the FDA raid at Maxam Neutreceuticals ( a freaking vitamin company OK! ) I actually took initiative to call them just to see if they’d talk to me in an effort to explain ‘their’ side of the story?
I was able to get the marketing mgr. on the phone and after a pretty lengthy I’m OK, You’re OK she finally opened up. Dude, it was a CIRCUS. The FDA agents showed up like they were DEA Agents. Stormed the place w/ warrants and basically put people up against the WALL.
One can only imagine the cost of 75 ‘agents’ ( agents of what? ) their cavalcade of vehicles and 18-wheeler blocking off the entrance to the Hood River, OR WALMART ran the taxpayers? All this over their supposed ‘labeling’ of vitamin products!
The mgr. explained they are a company of 9 employees and under a mil. in annual sales. So of course Bammie’s stormtroopers had to show up ARMED and in full force. Needless to say, agents don’t wear nametags and after composing herself, demanded to get names.
After all, she’d be on the hook for all the product and property they hauling off! She got nothing. When I shared this back in the Spring, our resident TROLLS pooh-pooh’d the whole thing. In their minds, ALL business people are shysters and this just comes w/ the territory?
Well I for one am not letting this rest. Since we know most trolls that post on Conservative blogs are PAID trolls, we can resume this little conversation on Monday when they clock back in. I’ll be waiting. Scumbags.
I hope you can get some straight answers. I’d missed your earlier posts about this back in the spring, but I agree that such tactics by the government are flat out wrong – they’ll do that yet won’t do anything about illegals driving illegally and drunk, even after someone is killed. They seem to think that some wood is more worthy of protection than a human being. I’m so disgusted by the whole thing.
So kudos to you for not letting it go.
If they are backing other countries’ laws, why they are not backing Mexico’s immigration law?
We now live in a Global Economic System and we must enforce the laws of each nation equally. I’m sure that there is some US Federal law that Gibson execs breached and there will be a full prosecution under the law. If we don’t obey the federal & global laws then we are no better then animals.
Michelle, all has been explained: Gibson was a Republican donor, while Martin Guitars, which uses EXACTLY the same wood while donating to Democrats, wasn’t raided.
Time to get out of DOJ.
So we can’t NAME NAMES but there is a US Attorney for this area that we could probably name and there is a head of the Marshall’s service that has a name.
US Marshall : http://www.usmarshals.gov/district/tn-m/general/marshal.htm
http://www.fws.gov/offices/directory/OfficeDetail.cfm?OrgCode=99460
http://www.justice.gov/usao/tnm/meetattorney.html
The USFWS says that Nick Chavez at 505-248-7889 is the official press and media .