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Date: | Tue, 21 Jan 1997 10:15:24 EST |
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Susan Snow presented a picture of the review-and-compliance
archaeologists in Iowa that probably pretty well describes the
ungodly task such folks have to deal with everywhere. She applaudfs
them, and so do I. That they are overworked and underpaid and cannot
afford the time or money to travel to a bunch of conferences and keep
up with a huge range of literature is completely understandable. They
are experts in their own professions: that of review-and-compliance.
My point is not to knock these hard-working and highly capable folks,
it is to debunk the notion that they either can or should be expected
to make the final decisions about significance (research value) of
archaeological properties. That is what the consultants are hired to
do. The SHPO people need to concentrate on making certain that
Secretary of the Interior's standards and guidelines were followed,
that PIs were qualified to do the work, etc. Susan is saying the same
thing I am: these folks cannot be expected to be up-to-snuff on the
arcanties of academic archaeology. BUT that makes such judgements
more properly the domain of academic archaeologists or private
consultants who are involved in and up on contemporary research
issues.
Dan
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