Canada has announced their 8th case of BSE. The USDA and proponents of NAIS will undoubtedly tout this as reason for a National Animal Identification System in the United States. But that’s bogus.
1. BSE is not transmitted between animals. BSE is acquired by cows eating cows. Don’t feed cows to cows. It is that simple.
2. This animal with BSE was old! It was over 8 years old which puts it beyond the time of Canada’s ban on feeding cows to cows. Don’t eat old cows. Don’t eat downer cows. Its that simple.
3. NAIS doesn’t stop BSE. The government enforcing the ban on feeding cows to cows would be more productive. Even better is if the feedlots were abandoned and cows were raised on pasture like they should be. Factory farming and feedlots are a problem. Traditional farming is not the issue. Its that simple.
So why doesn’t the USDA get it? Because they are in the pockets of Big-Ag that has a vested interest in controlling markets so they make a profit off of everybody. They don’t like people being independent.
Don’t let the USDA hoodwink people into thinking NAIS is about disease prevention. It isn’t. NAIS and Premises ID are about control over farmers and homesteaders. They are taking away our traditional right to farm and replacing it with a privilege to farm. Once they do that they will start charging you money for that privilege. Then they’ll start taxing that privilege on an annual basis per head. The last thing we need is more government, more regulations, more taxes and more micro-management in our lives by the Ninny State.
There is no need for NAIS. If the exporters and big producers want a trace-back system for their customers then let them create a voluntary, market driven, non-governmental system of animal ID and trace-back. Taxpayer money should not be wasted on it and nobody should be forced into it. Mandatory is fascism plain and simple. Let the market decide - that’s good capitalism and what this country was founded upon.
Right on! Government has no place whatsoever in the barnyard!
Walter, you stated the whole thing so clearly even an idiot should be able to understand it. (Or a government official!)Later, Diana
Comment Diana Flanary-Bray — August 24, 2006 @ 2:37 pm
It is time our state officials said NO to the federal bullies and stop this nonsense. Stay out of my pasture Uncle Sam! We deserve the right to be self sufficient without your interference. No new taxes on the little people. Spend the money on securing our borders!
Comment Goatster — August 24, 2006 @ 4:25 pm
The USDA Animal and plant health inspection Service has named Global Animal Management INC. a wholly owned subsidiaryof SCHERING-PLOUGH Animal Health, as an interim animal tracking database participant for the NAIS
Comment Monte Waldron — August 24, 2006 @ 6:06 pm
Our State Rep & Ag Secratary the other day tried to deflect questions and suggestions about securing our borders against animal movements from outside the USA as one way of not needing the NAIS. To which he gave an “easy” example of how “difficult” that would be–what if. . .a calf was born in the US and shipped to Canada to be raised and then sent back to the US for Processing. Which country does the animal “belong” to?
Firstly, why do we need to send a calf to Canada to be raised? Secondly, if this is an “easy” example, I really don’t want to know what a complex example is. Although, I think I do–we import 40% of our beef from elsewhere and it is stamped USDA without any further thought or concern about how it was raised, handled or processed, once it has crossed our borders.
Nevertheless, borders should be tightened, quarenteens employed and cross-border trade of livestock for other than breeding purposes and heritage-breed preservation should be limited. To answer the State Ag. dude’s question–the calf, now all growed up is Canadian–pure an simple. It’s been fed God knows what while on its vacation up North and there is no telling what diseases it has picked up or what hardware has been inserted in it. It should be treated as a foreign animal. If that were the case, perhaps American ranchers would think twice about bouncing animals around the globe to fatten them up for cheap.
Comment Podchef — August 24, 2006 @ 7:07 pm
No one will ever convince me the USDA does not know how BSE is spread. If they don’t, they’re even more stupid than I give them credit for. This whole %$#@* program is such a ruse!!!
(It’s the duty of the patriot to protect his country from his government. ~ Thomas Paine)
Comment Mari Dickson — August 24, 2006 @ 7:09 pm
Just as an aside, BSE is THOUGHT to be caused by cows eating disease-carrying animals. This hasn’t been proven, but if it is true, then why doesn’t every animal in the herd, exposed to the same feed, contract BSE? Why only one? Using BSE to justify NAIS is absurd.
Connie
Comment Connie — August 24, 2006 @ 7:09 pm
This is interesting. . .you’ve really got to wonder what goes through peoples heads while they’re messing with our lives. . . .
Comment Podchef — August 24, 2006 @ 7:20 pm
Podchef…and where have ALL the BSE cows come from? Our friends up north in Canada.
[Celeste, is this really correct? I believe there was one in Alabama and one in Texas that did not come from Canada. Perhaps others? -WJ]
What is interesting to look at is the fao.org website (under auspices of the UN), then go to Biosecurity. On the main page is declares they are introducing plant and animal diseases and pests. AND deploying genetically modiefied organisms into our forests. Is this so they can ride in eventually with their white hat and save us all? Deploy is military terminology. Don’t take my word for it go to the site yourself.
Comment Celeste — August 25, 2006 @ 5:58 am
Podchef,relating to that links story. I bet the “evidence” in that case is long gone. Wouldn’t it be great if we as indiviuals could hold off investigators for months if we were being investigated? Just another example of the ineptitude of the govi-corp and big agribiz.
Comment LEE — August 25, 2006 @ 9:27 am
Celeste–Scary stuff. And why is it found under “Agriculture 21″? Is this a hat-tip by FAO to Agenda 21? What’s the “21″ anyway? And why do our forests need biosecurity? This really is the beginning of a hellish nightmare where the earth ends up a burnt-out shell with robotoids battling it out for the last human blood. . .
Lee– I noticed the delays too. Would that regular citizens could put off stuff like that: IRS audits, taxes, death, airport security checks, cancer results. . . I’m embroiled in a scandal right now which should, by rights, cost several high-ranking local government employees their jobs. Within 12 hours they had closed ranks and obfuscated the issues so much it will be months before the case gets dealt with, if it ever does. There is no truth anymore, just layers of beauraucracy.
Comment Podchef — August 25, 2006 @ 1:02 pm
Your’e all most likely aware of the USDA/agribiz claim that NAIS is nessessary to combat the threat of bioterrorism. I would like to bring up the recent news about Bayer crop sciences admission that their bio contaminated rice was “accidently” released into the food supply. It seems to me that the BigAg crowd has done more real / potential damage to the food supply (”agriterrorism”) in the last few years then the whole rest of the world combined. I mean think about it, if a small farmer, maybe a pig farmer, sold a hog that he knew was “poisoned” into the food supply,( and that poison had the ability to spread) he would be crucified as a threat to humanity, BUT a huge corporation does basicly the same thing and it is made out to be “safe”. Remember “star-link” corn? It cost the US a huge chunk of the world market and polluted gene pools all over the planet,the same is true for GE wheat, cotton and soy, Well, US rice is worth a billion dollars a year and many countrys have served the USDA notice in the past that they will buy no US rice if we use any GE modified seed. Did I just hear the death scream of the US rice farmer? Johanns ( US AG SEC) is now doing damage control to insure world markets that all is under control ) This is the type of thing that has been going on for years, big agribiz destroys agriculture and then pushes for Laws (NAIS) to protect our country s ag from the likes of you and I , small sustainable farmers where we do not mix the genetic substance of our animals together in a petri dish or a bucket and then say “oops” we boo-booed.And what about the FDA okaying the “virus soup” a mix of 5-6 bacteria eating viruses now okayed to be sprayed on hotdogs, lunchmeats and so on? What kind of “evolving” of viruses could take place with this foolishness? And they tell us to worry about bird flu mutating? I am way past being “fed-up” with the double standard that is applied to giant chemical/Ag companies on one hand and the other to all the small ag entities, If terrorism is the use of “Fear” or “terror” to advance an agenda then I suggest to you that it is the USDA and their corporate cronies who are the threat to our food supply and not some nameless terrorists.
Comment LEE — August 25, 2006 @ 3:34 pm
That’s Corporativism fer ya Lee:(
“Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power.”
respects, Wm
Comment Mr Dirty Nails — August 26, 2006 @ 2:58 pm
This is true,Mr Dirty Nails,I believe it was Mussolini (Italys WWII facist dictator) who made the statement to that effect,and he is considered the father to “facism”.Free enterprise is a wonderful thing but when “corporate” interests get hold of it then it is no longer “free enterprise” as they take total control of a market and squeeze out the little guy, and they tend to use the power of the “govt” to give them this leverage; all in the name of lower prices and better selection (hogwash). The point is that this is what is behind this NAIS, “Greed and Power” in the form of govi/corp. We need to get back to the free market; truely free.
Comment LEE — August 27, 2006 @ 8:18 am
A case in point would be the swiss drug maker “Roche” the tamiflu makers. Their first quarter profits were up more than expected 22% to 7.7 billion (as per Forbes.com Matthew Herper 4/27/06) (yes,billion with a “B”) on “fears” (not proof) of a bird flu outbreak. That is one drug maker out of many, and that is just for one business quarter, multiply the above figure by hundreds of companies and many quarters and you begin to get a picture. So it is easy to understand (when this kind of cash is at stake, based only on a rumor/scare) why the govi/corp is very interested in perpetuating anything that will generate lots of cash (they say “sex” sells,but I”d wager “fear” sells as much or more) This is what is behind say ; oil prices, “Oh my, some president said somthing stupid (no suprise) against the world, volia’ the price of oil jumps $5 bucks a barrel. Or a storm cloud was detected off the coast of Africa headed this way, BAMM!, the price of oil jumps another 4.50 a barrel; amid “fears” of a supply cut. You see how this works? And there are many more examples of this process all over the place, business is making money, and the gov’t is broke, business wants more money, gov’t wants some, business says to govt’ and govt says to business “Let us conspire together to milk the uddermost farthing from yonder peasants purse” So it goes,and they come up with idiotic (our point of view) things like NAIS (brilliant) from their perspective to scare the wits out of the average person so that they (govi/corp) can step in and save the day, and laugh all the way to the bank as they rob us blind, but we “feel” safe. Oh, and by the way, some of our great leaders have some very deep stock interests and business connections to these companies, suprised? I hope not. Remember,its not truth that sets us free; it is the truth we know and understand the sets us free!
Comment LEE — August 27, 2006 @ 12:43 pm
I’m not sure where it is located, but I commented o few days ago about the USDA and the GE rice getting out from under their control, well check this out, link
I am doing good to even be able to turn on this computer so I haven’t yet learned how to post a link other than to paste it, but that aside this piece in a British paper about GE rice and our gov’t, may open some eyes and show how the NAIS will not be able to help in the real world. Thanks.
Comment LEE — August 27, 2006 @ 2:13 pm
Unfortunately Lee, I could readily add to your apt example. And you again after that, and so on …
The problem I see is how to mobilize a broader spectrum of the citizenry. As you illustrate, NAIS is but one piece in a puzzle designed for tyranny.
The second being what might occur were we to succeed.
And yet we must …
respects, Wm
Comment Mr Dirty Nails — August 27, 2006 @ 7:48 pm
So the disease is being imported by the big agricultureal companies in to the USA and then they are implementing a NAIS to track the diseased animals inside this country so that 48 hours after you dye from the BSE they can trace it back and freek out all the other people who ate the same cow or any cow that was in the same stockyard as the bse cow. Brilliant. Control the food. Control the people.
Comment Henry O'claire — January 22, 2008 @ 12:23 am