I viewed the burning of ivory with mixed emotions. I understand why it’s done. It’s done to make a very dramatic statement. It’s done to demonstrate primarily to poachers and those who buy poacher materials, that there is no hope for the future of ivory. But then I look at the millions of dollars worth of raw ivory that literally went up in diesel smoke. And I think there must be a better way to use this material in a sustainable way since it’s in a stockpile, to benefit the countries that are involved, because we’re talking about developing nations, where there aren’t even adequate supplies of portable water. We’re talking about nations where there isn’t even a minimal level of healthcare and has anybody ever a good, bad or indifferent has anybody ever sat down and said, “Wait a minute, instead of burning it, isn’t there a way we can put it into the market, put it into the market, generate these dollars so that we can do some of these human-related needs without increasing the need for it.” And I don’t know what the answer to that is. It’s very dramatic to see that the tusks and the horns are burned up.
