Oh, so an older guitar might get you into trouble when you cross an international boundary if it contains illegal ebony wood or ivory.
That is ALMOST as scary as the Wall Street Journal makes the story out to be. But it turns out that no one is coming after your old musical instruments or even cares what is in them unless you take them on an international trip.
It does make for a good 'government as scary boogie man' story, but like most of these stories, it isn't as scary as the scare mongers make it out to be.
steamed
Surprisingly, musicians, who represent some of the most savvy, ecologically minded people around, are resistant to anything about changing the tone of their guitars... You could mark that up to hypocrisyartsy do-gooders only too eager to tell others what kind of light bulbs they have to buy won't make sacrifices when it comes to their own passions.