[NowAgeMin] USDA Won't Let US Beef Companies Independently Test For Mad Cow

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Misty L. Trepke

http://www..com

 

In a week that was chuck full of captivating and important news, a

story of interest seems to have fallen through the cracks.

Apparently, the U.S.D.A. does not want an American rancher to

independently test 100% of their cattle for Mad Cow disease.

According to a story from /Reuters:

 

 

" The U.S. Agriculture Department will not allow American beef

companies to independently test their cattle for mad cow disease to

appease Japanese concerns, an agency official said on Friday...

 

 

.... The USDA rejected a request by Creekstone Farms Premium Beef to

allow 100 percent testing for the brain-wasting disease, a step the

privately owned company deemed necessary to resume trade with

Japan. " (1)

 

 

Last week was an action packed week. With the situation in Iraq,

AO's (Anointed One) stand-up act (they billed it as a news

conference), and the 9-11 Commission, my A.D.D was turbo charged.

But I managed to stay focussed enough to catch the story about the

rancher and the U.S.D.A. And by Sunday, so did the NY Times'

editorial page. As usual, me and the Times saw things a bit

differently.

 

 

While the Times editorial touches (ever so gently) on the possible

justification for the U.S.D.A.'s behavior as related to the fear of

finding more infected cows, they give the government the benefit of

the doubt by more forcefully suggesting that it's a question of

economics. If Creekstone raises the bar for testing, the rest of the

industry will need to follow, and that's just bad for business.

 

 

When I read the Creekstone story, however, my thoughts went

immediately to the notion that testing 100% of the nation's cattle

will confirm what many already suspect, but few are willing to

speak: that Mad Cow disease is rampant in America, and has been on

the rise for at least the past decade. Sure, my suspicious and

conspiratorial leanings can also be suspect, there are, however,

some interesting dots to connect around the theory.

 

 

Check this out from a recent piece from Alternet:

 

 

" Over the last 20 years the rates of Alzheimer's disease in the

United States have skyrocketed. According to the CDC, Alzheimer's

Disease is now the eighth leading cause of death in the United

States, afflicting an estimated 4 million Americans. Twenty percent

or more of people clinically diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease,

though, are found at autopsy not to have had Alzheimer's at all. A

number of autopsy studies have shown that a few percent of

Alzheimer's deaths may in fact be CJD. Given the new research

showing that infected beef may be responsible for some sporadic CJD,

thousands of Americans may already be dying because of Mad Cow

disease every year. " (2)

 

 

In another story last week, there is evidence that the F.D.A. tried

to keep suppress their own research showing a link between

antidepressants and suicide in children (I know I've been pounding

this issue for the past several weeks, but c'mon, isn't it a bit

troubling?). The article states:

 

 

" A U.S. congressional probe has raised " troubling questions " about

whether regulators tried to keep secret information about a possible

link between antidepressants and suicidal behavior in children, a

lawmaker said on Thursday. " (3)

 

 

In his stand-up news conference last week, AO explained that he knew

Saddam was guilty because he believed he was hiding something. He

said, " A country that hides something is a country that is afraid of

getting caught " . Interesting. I wonder if that's also true for the

AO administration's hiding of Mad Cow, antidepressants and suicide,

Cheney's Energy Panel, and their once secret plans to wage war

against Iraq, even before they stole office?

 

 

AO wants you to believe he's protecting you to get your vote. But if

you look at the issues mentioned above, and their environmental

mismanagement, it's clear, as I've said before, that the only

America AO is interested in protecting is Corporate America. With

dangers like these, who needs terrorists?

 

 

-Craig Gordon

 

www.NowAgeVillage.com