Please email John Stossel (2020@abc.com) at ABC 20/20 to let him know about the USDA’s proposed intrusive, wasteful, unconstitutional program that will destroy small farms and hurt homesteaders. Ultimately consumers will pay the piper with less selection and higher food prices as control of our national food supply is consolidated into the hands of fewer and fewer large corporations.
The National Animal Identification System (NAIS) should be a 100% voluntary, market driven solution, not a heavy handed government mandate. If he needs a quick overview, ask him to read the handout http://NoNAIS.org/handout. In addition to an executive summary of the harm of NAIS to small farmers, homesteaders and consumers, the handout also contains links to the USDA documents. Additional government documents can be found in the Technical Documents section of the right sidebar of NoNAIS.org.
Remember, storm alerts are an attempt to politely reach people who can help get the word out about NAIS and stop it. Keep it civil.
Done. Sent 20 pages should be enough for them to do it right. Also told them fox was too chicken to take it on were they?
Comment Sue Karber — May 12, 2006 @ 12:25 pm
Using the media to get the word out about the idiotic NAIS is an excellent approach. The more Americans know about this intrusion upon our private lives and jeopardizing our livelihoods, the better!
Keep up the good fight!
All the best,
Bonnie Knight
Comment Bonnie Knight — May 12, 2006 @ 1:40 pm
This is a cause the media needs to take up. Small farmers, ranchers and livestock owners will suffer unduly from misguided legislation. Once again, the powers that be are proving they have no concern for the common citizen
Comment Jane Primerano — May 12, 2006 @ 6:23 pm
I am sitting here at 1:00 am, and trying to figure out what has happened to our little farm. Last Tuesday morning at 5:30 am a Game Warden arrested my husband on a Class 2 Misdemeanor for having a mammilian shooting enclosure without a permit. That was followed by agents from the USDA swooping in (9 different vehicles) and begining the slaughter of our hogs. It is almost one week later, and it is still going on. We have 24 hour armed surveilance, we are not allowed on our preserve, we are not allowed to do our own testing, and they have killed 2 of our pet hogs that we had in a totally seperate pen. We are in shock. My husband has had a hunting club for 1 years and out of the blue, our lives have been taken over and our rights taken away. WE are being treated like drug dealers by the agents. The Game Wardens are stunned at the way this all happened and have said they have never seen anything like this. Even one of the USDA’s agents from Ohio said he has never witnessed anything like what is going on here. We are not a secret society…we advertise on the web at www.willisriver.com, in Woods and Waters Magazines and by brochures. For 16 years my husband has enjoyed his hobby along with guys from the Pentagon, Quantico, etc.
What is happening to this country? Why were we not notified or given the opportunity to deal with any “supposed” disease? We cannot do our own testing and they are incenerating the “evidence”. I am at a total loss.
Any advise?
Thank you,
Cindi Henshaw
Comment Cindi — September 18, 2006 @ 11:06 pm
I just submitted a comment and saw a typo…my husband has had his hunt club for 16 years…not 1 year!
Cindi Henshaw
Comment Cindi — September 18, 2006 @ 11:09 pm
Cindi, can you be a little more clear about what is happening?
You said your husband has had his hunt club; but no shooting enclosure permit? Is this permit new?
If he was arrested for no permit; then what is the slaughter about?
I know you must feel very overwhelmed by all of this; but we can be at least a little helpful by spreading the word.
Comment Breederville — September 19, 2006 @ 6:31 am
He was the very first private hunt club for wild boar in Virginia, 16 years ago. It went through all the proper channels at that time (Commonwealth’s Attorney, game warden’s, etc.) He did have a business license while we were in Cumberland County. When we moved to Buckingham County 5 years ago, there was no business license requirement. He was grandfathered in from his original contacts.
We have lived here in peace, been great neighbors, and take VERY good care of our hogs. The original hogs were from Canada and had tags, but they have bred since and our herd was healthy. They showed absolutely NO symptoms of disease.
The Quarentine Order was handed to us Tuesday, September 12 at the time my husband was arrested on a Class 2 Misdemeanor for “operating a mammilian hunting enclosure without a permit”. It stated on his warrant that a USDA agent had hunted here on May 20 and the animal tested for psudeo rabies. The same agent returned here September 9th to “hunt”, killed and animal and left. Naturally, this was done undercover… On Tuesday morning all heck broke loose. No less than nine cars/trucks pulled up our mile long driveway, lights glaring and we were roused out of bed by the local Game Warden, whom we know and adore. He was sick about it and said he was just notified earlier that morning. He HAD to take Danny in. As they were pulling down the driveway the USDA people could be heard over the scanner saying,”Okay, we can go in now, he’s off theproperty”. Mind you I was at the house not knowing what the heck to do.
3 hours later the GW brought Danny home. In the meantime the State Vet representative had come, the official vet was at a “command post” nearby, and the hogs that had been killed to that point were taken for testing. I was told that it would take a couple of hours and they would let me know the results. Also, the GW’s were poted to 24 hour gueard duty to keep everyone off the preserve; even us. They said they would first kill 10 hogs and if they came back okay, they would kill 10 more. If those came back okay, they would kill up to 30 to determine if the herd was infected. No results were ever given to us, nor were we allowed to do any testing…you must know that at this point I do not trust ANY results they say they have.
(I will continue this latter…I have to take my husband to the doctor…)
Comment Cindi — September 19, 2006 @ 6:43 pm
This is OUTRAGEOUS, Cindi! When I first read your comments last night, it was so stunning I almost didn’t want to believe it. I will pass on your story to others, for this could happen to anyone, you know. God be with you, and the rest of us, as we fight to keep this from becoming usual procedure.
God Bless
Comment Goatman — September 20, 2006 @ 3:39 am
Was your ranch ever tested or vaccinated against pseudo rabies?
Was this permit new or was this part of your grandfathering from Cumberland Cty?
Comment Breederville — September 20, 2006 @ 5:38 am
We now seem to have confirmation from VA–the US is a police state! The Bill of Rights, the Constitution are out the window.
It’s Cowboys and Indians once again. The Cowboys are the same–it’s the rest of us should have reservations.
On what planet does the USDA and the Game warden have the authority to attack like this? Did they have warrants? And if they didn’t, why sty-brain said they didn’t need them?
I think the ACLU needs to step in to this one. I hate lawyers and the corrupt legal system, but something has got to be better than nothing.
This sort of self-righteous, arrogant behavior in Government officials is exactly what we are supposed to be protected from. Otherwise anyone with a grudge can play Marshall Law.
If this sort of thing keeps up there’ll be alot of armed resistance and then what?
Comment Podchef — September 20, 2006 @ 2:27 pm
Re: post 10
Podchef:
>>>On what planet does the USDA and the Game warden have the authority to attack like this? Did they have warrants? And if they didn’t, why sty-brain said they didn’t need them?178 page investigative report has a bit of enlightening information:
Excerpt from that PDF:
The SPCAs are accountable to no governmental authority. Because there are no standards, rules or guidelines governing their composition, operation, training or activities, there is no consistancy or uniformity in their make-up, functioning or enforcement of the laws. These autonomous organizations present a true hodgepodge of extreme diversity and a danger to the state’s structured system of law enforcement. Once individuals in a county receive a charter from the state SPCA, they control the selection, discipline and removal of their members, officers and agents; the election of terms of office of members of the board of directors; the content of any by-laws; the formulation of any rules or regulations; what training, if any will be provided; how they will enforce the animal cruelty laws, and how they will spend the income. As a result, the SPCAs run the gamut in effectiveness of operation, scrupulousness in financial matters and enforcement of the cruelty laws. While some are operated in a highly professional manner, according to set rules and regulations, others are run as the personal domain of a well entrenched few who discard the rules on whim. Many individuals involved in these societies are dedicated to the welfare of animals and committed to functioning within an organized, structed environment, while others are ‘wannabe cops’ or motivated by personal gain. Because the SPCAs operate outside the realm of government, they have become havens for those who cannot obtain legitimate law enforcement positions.
(snip)
This book of animal laws, since it lists PETA, Humane USA, USDA, Agents, et al, together strongly suggests they are all just spin offs of each other.
Anyone know what it means when something like an ’spca’ gets it’s charter? What does charter mean?
Thanks.
Comment Breederville — September 20, 2006 @ 8:47 pm
In British law, it use to mean official sanction of the Crown. A special dispensation if you will. Not sure here.
respects, Wm
Comment Mr Dirty Nails — September 21, 2006 @ 2:42 pm
definitions of ‘Charter’
http://www.answers.com/charter&r=67
numerous sources, one URL
respects, Wm
Comment Mr Dirty Nails — September 22, 2006 @ 8:28 pm
Comments are closed on this article. Please move discussion of the Henshaw incident to this article.
Comment walterj — September 29, 2006 @ 7:31 am