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I find this to be pretty typical of Washington these days. Sad and comical at the same time Feds raid Gibson Guitars Are you a guitar owner? More important, do you own a guitar made by Gibson, one of the most well-known American guitar manufacturers? If so, listen up; you may be in Uncle Sam’s cross hairs – as a criminal.
Just ask Henry Juszkiewicz, Chairman and CEO of Gibson Guitars.
Last week, heavily armed federal agents raided two guitar manufacturing facilities in Tennessee owned by Gibson — one in Nashville, another in Memphis. The feds were not acting on a tip that an al Qaeda cell was holed up in the buildings; or that Mexican drug cartel gangs were lurking inside. It was actually something far more serious; far more serious, that is, to a bunch of federal bureaucrats with nothing better to do.
The raids were carried out because the Department of Justice and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service claim that parts of the iconic guitars manufactured in the plants contained the wrong kind of imported wood. And, although the feds have not made clear to Gibson just what it has done wrong, the government appears also to be claiming the guitar parts might have been exported to the U.S. contrary not to American laws, but to certain domestic laws of the countries exporting the parts to the United States!
One of the laws at play here is the hundred-year old Lacey Act, passed during the “Progressive Era,” and intended to promote conservation and as a crackdown on illegal trafficking in wildlife. The law also makes it a crime for a company to violate the laws or regulations of other countries. In this particular case, Gibson’s attorneys surmise it may be the law of India they are charged with misinterpreting or violating.
The Justice Department apparently believes the wood in question, used to construct fret boards for Gibson’s popular instruments, was imported from India without having first been “finished” by Indian workers; actions that could be considered a violation of that country’s byzantine legal code.
According to a press release from Gibson, the agents “seized several pallets of wood, electronic files and guitars.” Juszkiewicz estimated the loss of raw materials alone to be $1 million; obviously not including financial losses due to the inability to produce guitars from those materials.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time Gibson has been subjected to the overreaching, punitive arm of the federal government. In 2009, the Nashville facility was raided in similar fashion, based on accusations that rosewood imported from Madagascar and used in guitars, came from illegal logging. And, despite the fact that to this day, the government has not filed formal charges against Gibson, it has refused to return the company’s property.
Gibson has engaged in extensive and costly efforts to recover its property from that raid two years ago; including the filing of a civil lawsuit. In the civil proceedings, the company presented proof, including statements from the Madagascar government, that the wood was obtained legally. Still, the federal government refuses to budge; and now, with these second and third raids, appears intent on trying to put Gibson out of business completely.
These highly publicized actions by the federal government have ramifications for any musician owning a guitar made out of certain woods by overzealous federal agents of having been obtained illegally at some point in the manufacturing process (even if years ago and by a prior owner or manufacturer). The Wall Street Journal notes that owners of vintage guitars made out of now-banned or regulated woods had “better have correct and complete documentation proving the age of the instrument. Otherwise, you could lose it to a zealous customs agent – not to mention face fines and prosecution.”
Gibson’s obviously frustrated CEO, who noted during a press conference the day of the raid that every guitar his company builds could possibly be considered criminal in nature, given the widely disparate countries from which the various woods are imported and in various states of manufacture; and considering the difficulty – if not impossibility – of correctly interpreting every relevant law of every one of those countries.
The government’s treatment of this American company – one of the few bright spots in domestic manufacture of musical instruments – is disgraceful, counterproductive, and mean-spirited.
In 2000, Charlton Heston, then serving as president of the National Rifle Association, and fighting gun control proposals, held a flintlock rifle over his head and declared famously, “from my cold dead hands.” Gibson’s CEO needs to rally freedom-loving Americans similarly; raising a Les Paul Gibson guitar over his head. All Americans who believe in freedom and limited government should come to Gibson’s defense; not just those who are guitar players.
by Bob Barr — The Barr Code
So let me get this straight, our feds are telling us that, "Illegal" wood is wrong. Illegal aliens are okay. AND, AND, this wood demands a RAID? A Raid?? They couldn't have sent an attorney armed with a briefcase and legal papers?
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Legend
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Legend
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Amendments 4-7 were kind of overrated, anyway. 
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Hall of Famer
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Who did the heavily armed agents thing they might run into in those buildings??? 
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Hall of Famer
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It's a farce.
Mark Levin had the Gibson CEO on Tuesday night. You can hear his interview there.
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Hall of Famer
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Legend
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Legend
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This is really strung out.
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Legend
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Legend
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Legend
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Quote:
So let me get this straight, our feds are telling us that, "Illegal" wood is wrong. Illegal aliens are okay. AND, AND, this wood demands a RAID? A Raid??
But the wood is for the fingerboards! Which is a dirty job that none of the other woods wanted to do!
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Legend
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Legend
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This is probably because Gibson doesn't use labor from the local guitar makers union. 
yebat' Putin
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Hall of Famer
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Quote:
This is really strung out.
Seriously. We shouldn't fret so much . . .
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Hall of Famer
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But, I thought this would have struck a chord with you..
SaintDawg™
Football, baseball, basketball, wine, women, walleye
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Legend
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Legend
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IN-FREAKIN-SANE!
We protect another countries rights but won't go after those that infringe upon our rights?
Get the hell outta dodge..
I used to own a Gibson ES 335.. Vintage 1963. Sold it a long while back.. Now I wish I still had it so that if they tried to take it, I could do a Heston.. you can pry it from by Cold hands....LOL
EDIT: IS this a joke? or did it really happen
Last edited by Damanshot; 09/01/11 03:31 PM.
#GMSTRONG
“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.”
Daniel Patrick Moynahan
"Alternative facts hurt us all. Think before you blindly believe."
Damanshot
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Legend
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Legend
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if you work there, you may want to consider flying solo with your job.
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Hall of Famer
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In case you wind up in a jam . . .
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Legend
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And the government will whine and complain and blame the owners of the company when they move to another country ........ lamenting the loss of jobs, and calling the owners selfish and anti-American ........ 
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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Legend
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no... it's for real. There was a huge discussion about it on a cello board I frequent.
"too many notes, not enough music-"
#GMStong
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Legend
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Legend
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do you guys talk smack about the viola on the cello board?
Last edited by CleveSteve; 09/01/11 04:26 PM.
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Legend
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Legend
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Quote:
no... it's for real. There was a huge discussion about it on a cello board I frequent.
Have you checked the origin of the wood in your cello? Obviously we have started down the slippery slope... first guitars, then violins, can cellos be far behind?
yebat' Putin
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Legend
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Quote:
do you guys talk smack about the viola on the cello board?
nah.... it's too damned easy.
"too many notes, not enough music-"
#GMStong
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Legend
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Legend
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Violas are the Cincinatti Bengals of the Stringed Intruments Division.
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Dawg Talker
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Dawg Talker
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Quote:
The Justice Department apparently believes the wood in question, used to construct fret boards for Gibson’s popular instruments, was imported from India without having first been “finished” by Indian workers; actions that could be considered a violation of that country’s byzantine legal code.
I kinda like this law...the US should pass the same law that says none of our natural resources can leave the country without being finished into something.
Feds are stupid though. Screw with our businesses so they leave. Allow so many imports that they have leave to compete. Make them follow EPA laws that other countries could care less about.
We're gonna end up with no jobs left in this country.....oh wait a minute...that's already happening....
Attitude is everything....FEAR THE ELF!!!
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Legend
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Legend
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Quote:
Quote:
no... it's for real. There was a huge discussion about it on a cello board I frequent.
Have you checked the origin of the wood in your cello? Obviously we have started down the slippery slope... first guitars, then violins, can cellos be far behind?
The cello is 106 years old, and I have papers that attest to its country of origin, construction and provenance, so there's not much to worry about there. I do have to be concerned about any new materials that might be used in repairs or restorations. For instance- next summer I'll be getting a new fingerboard fitted. Madagascar ebony. I talked to Mark (my luthier), who actually showed me his file cabinet filled with the proper documentation.
Yesterday, I was in Grand Rapids MI to get some work done on my bow. Steve (the maker who carved it) enjoyed telling me how he obtained the raw goods for this magnificent piece I use. after we talked awhile, he suggested that if I ever travel abroad I shoul leave the bow at home. Even though I have papers similar to the ones I have for the cello, the possibility still exists that my stick could be confiscated by an overzealous customs agent. Even if I did everything right and travelled with my papers, I could still be separated from my bow! I could also be fined and prosecuted.
Bow:
Brazillian pernambucco from 80 year-old wood. Doesn't matter- pernambucco's a threatened species now.
Tip fasioned from ivory (Say no more)
Frog is a deep red 40-year old fashioned from tortoise shell (endangered species).
Mother-of-pearl and ebony inlays in the frog and tensioning button.
Essentially, I'm a felon just waiting to get caught.... all because of the murkiness of these laws. I'm not a smuggler of animal parts. I'm not a destroyer of rain forests. My rig is older than most of the laws which now hang over my head. It's stupid, and I should be able to ply my trade anywhere, but the mere threat of having my gear snatched by some gubmint functionary is enough to make me want to buy a carbon fibre Quintus cello and a Coda brand c.f. bow.
Musician boards have at least one horror story every 2-3 months of stuff just like this. Travelling is bad enough for most folks- it's even worse for musicians.
[shakes head]
"too many notes, not enough music-"
#GMStong
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Legend
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Legend
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Quote:
Violas are the Cincinatti Bengals of the Stringed Intruments Division.
"too many notes, not enough music-"
#GMStong
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Legend
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Quote:
Bow:
Brazillian pernambucco from 80 year-old wood. Doesn't matter- pernambucco's a threatened species now.
Tip fasioned from ivory (Say no more)
Frog is a deep red 40-year old fashioned from tortoise shell (endangered species).
Mother-of-pearl and ebony inlays in the frog and tensioning button.
Do you use baby panda tears and koala ear wax instead of rosin?
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Legend
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"too many notes, not enough music-"
#GMStong
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Legend
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Legend
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This is getting nuts.
Global Whining is out of control.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn. GM Strong ![[Linked Image]](http://www.dawgtalkers.net/uploads/small-gator-chomp.gif)
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Legend
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Legend
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Quote:
This is getting nuts.
Global Whining is out of control.
and yes, it's man made...
#GMSTRONG
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Legend
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Legend
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After reading this thread, my quesion is: was Ballpeen continuing the puns when he used the word "nuts"? If so, good one. I think I will hook up my Les Paul tonight and try to write a rocker about stupid bureaucrats
![[Linked Image from i28.photobucket.com]](http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c201/shadedog/mcenroe2.jpg) gmstrong ----------------- 2023: The year we got a legit D.
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