solari action network - food

[Guest guest]

O THE SOLARI ACTION NETWORK October 18, 2005 Special Thanks to

Franklin Sanders of the Money Changer and Sam Smith of Progressive

Review for bringing this to our attention. This is a reminder of

the urgency of decentralizing all of our attention, time and money

flows. If you still bank at one of the Tapeworm 20 banks, PLEASE

switch to a well-managed local bank. Persuade your friends and

family to do or time to major universities, large foundations and

charities, the two largest political parties, STOP! Better yet, tell

them why. Freedom starts with a fresh, decentralized food supply.

The New World Order is committed to micromanaging our food and

health systems. Cutting off the financial gas we put in their gas

tank is an essential component of regaining the leverage we need to

stop this descent into food fascism and worse. Catherine

EXCERPTS http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/10/17/01223/213

DAILY KOS - Poultry fanciers and keepers of small flocks are facing

a grave threat from a proposed government intrusion into their

innocent choice of pastimes and way of life. For several years, the

USDA has been working with the largest-scale animal industry

organizations (for example, the National Pork Producers, Monsanto

Company, and Cargill Meat) to develop a mandatory " National Animal

Identification System " . However, most small scale livestock

producers, people who raise animals for their own food, and people

who keep horses or livestock as companion animals do not know about

the USDA's plans. The NAIS will drive small producers out of the

market, will make people abandon raising animals for their own

food, will invade Americans' personal privacy to a degree never

before tolerated, will violate the religious freedom of Americans

whose beliefs make it impossible for them to comply, and will erase

the last vestiges of animal welfare from the production of animal

foods. . . Every person who owns even one horse, cow, pig,

chicken, sheep, pigeon, or virtually any livestock animal, will be

forced to register their home, including owner's name, address, and

telephone number, and keyed to Global Positioning System

coordinates for satellite monitoring, in a giant federal database

under a 7-digit " premises ID number. " . . . Every animal will

have to be assigned a 15-digit ID number, also to be kept in a

giant federal database. The form of ID will most likely be a tag or

microchip containing a Radio Frequency Identification Device,

designed to be read from a distance. . . The plan may also include

collecting the DNA of every animal and/or a retinal scan of every

animal. . . The owner will be required to report: the birthdate of

an animal, the application of every animal's ID tag, every time an

animal leaves or enters the property, every time an animal loses a

tag, every time a tag is replaced, the slaughter or death of an

animal, or if any animal is missing. Such events must be reported

within 24 hours. . . Third parties, such as veterinarians, will be

required to report " sightings " of animals. In other words, if you

call a vet to your property to treat your horse, cow, or any other

animal, and the vet finds any animal without the mandatory 15-digit

computer-readable ID, the vet may be required to report you. . .

If you do not comply, the USDA will exercise " enforcement " against

you. The USDA has not yet specified the nature of " enforcement, "

but presumably it will include imposing fines and/or seizing your

animals. There are no exceptions -- under the USDA plan, you will

be forced to register and report even if you raise animals only for

your own food or keep horses for draft or for transportation. . .

Eradication of Small Farms - People with just a few meat animals or

40-cow dairies are already living on the edge financially. The USDA

plan will force many of them to give up farming. The NAIS is

touted by the USDA and agricorporations as a way to make our food

supply " secure " against diseases or terrorism. However, most people

instinctively understand that real food security comes from raising

food yourself or buying from a local farmer you actually know. The

USDA plan will only kill off more local sources of production and

further promote the giant industrial methods which cause many food

safety and disease problems. Extreme Damage to Personal Privacy -

Legally, livestock animals are a form of personal property. It is

unprecedented for the United States government to conduct large-

scale computer-aided surveillance of its citizens simply because

they own a common type of property. (The only exceptions are

registration of motor vehicles and guns, due to their clear

inherent dangers - but they are registered at the state level, not

by the federal government.) The NAIS would actually subject the

owner of a chicken to far more surveillance than the owner of a

gun. Surveillance of small-scale livestock owners is like the

government subjecting people to surveillance for owning a couch, a

TV, a lawnmower. Will the government next want to register all

cats, dogs, and parakeets, and demand the global positioning

coordinates of their owners' houses and apartments?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/10/17/01223/213