Friday, December 17, 2010

Let Them Eat Grass.....

I've moved the blog to a wordpress site. There seems to be a little more ease of using applications there and I can upload documents, so....please go check out my new article, which will be on News With Views and is on Liberty News Radio, at Truth Farmer, the new site! Granted, O have to figure some things out yet, but I think it will be more user friendly to some degree.

Be blessed!

Doreen

Thursday, December 9, 2010

How the Cow Ate the Cabbage

Morningland Dairy Gets Ready to Go to Court—

And the Cow Eats the Cabbage!


December 9th, 2010
©Doreen Hannes

As many have been watching Senate Bill 510 for the past several weeks, going from hither to yon with much angst amongst the various food activist groups regarding the ability of the Tester Amendment to ‘help’ (or NOT) independent agriculture, other things have been going on in the real food arena. Morningland Dairy, for instance, has entered the next phase of their fight to be able to continue to make cheese that the FDA thinks “poses an acute and life threatening danger” because it is made from raw milk, and hasn’t had a single report of illness associated with the dairy in 30 years of production. (You can read more about it here)

Morningland is charged with three violations by the Missouri Attorney General’s office on behalf of the Missouri Milk Board. They are charged with, “Unlawful Sale of Dairy Products”, “Failure to Comply with a Destruction Order”, and “Unlawful Interference with Milk Board Duties”. The Missouri Milk Board claims that there is no procedure in place to appeal the decision of the Milk Board, and that belief is actually responsible for all three charges levied against Morningland Dairy, since they haven’t made or sold any of their cheese since the Milk Board first placed an embargo on their product on August 26th.

Last week the State of Missouri brought in their first expert for a deposition. This was John Frank, who reportedly was to demonstrate that Morningland Dairy’s cheese should all be condemned because it is a single line production facility. It’s my understanding that his deposition didn’t actually prove that to be the conclusion a reasonable person would arrive at when considering the evidence in the case.

Next, the State desires to depose the principals Of Morningland Dairy. Those being Joseph and Denise Dixon, co-owners and General Managers of Morningland Dairy, and Jedadiah York, the Plant Manger. Mr. York and Mrs. Dixon are readily available for deposition, but Morningland’s attorney, Gary Cox, of Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund wants to be present at their depositions to be able to assert proper procedure in defense of his clients. He is only able to be present for a few days in December and early January, and the Missouri Attorney General’s office isn’t pleased with such limited access to the objects of their affection....so they have requested that the counsel sponsoring Cox into Missouri take the position of defending Morningland in their depositions.

The Missouri Attorney General’s office is going to have a bit more difficulty in getting a deposition from Joseph Dixon in this suit. As if having to dump their milk for nearly six weeks wasn’t enough, the Missouri Milk Board has prohibited Morningland from resuming production to keep this family run farmstead cheese plant providing for the families dependent upon it for their livelihood. Mr. Dixon insisted that their counsel inform the Attorney General’s office that he was unavailable for deposition in the following manner:

“Unfortunately, Joe Dixon is not available for deposition. Since the state has put his family’s cheese making business out of business Joe has to work out of state to support his family. This week Joe is working in Maryland, next week he is working in Alabama and the week after that I understand he is working in Florida. To give you an idea of what the state has done to the Dixon family, Joe has to leave his family on the weekend, travel all night to get to his place of work, then work all week before returning home on the weekend. He then leaves home again, let’s say for Maryland, and drives all night to get to his place of work. Thus, Joe is not available for depositions unless you wish to travel to Maryland, Alabama or to Florida after first serving him with a subpoena. Moreover, Joe finds it perverse that he has to work to support his family and then the state collects taxes from him so that those tax dollars can be used by the state to harass he and his family and deprive them of a livelihood. Finally, any information you would need from Joe would be available from Denise.” (emphasis added-otherwise sic)

In the Deep South, there’s a colloquialism that is used to sum this kind of statement up... With the actions of the Congress and the agencies they empower, it sure looks like many more of us will have the opportunity to use this expression...”And that’s how the cow ate the cabbage!”

(The Howell County Circuit Court has set January 11th and 12th as the initial dates for this court case. The outcome of this case is terrifically important for food freedom advocates and anyone who thinks they have the right to decide what they wish to eat. Please support Morningland Dairy as they strive to set precedent that in this country you DO have the right to have redress on an agency decision. Morningland is asking for a jury trial.)

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

They've Rolled 510 into the Funding...

Food Safety Bill Shenanigans from Campaign for Liberty.....and confirmed.

Posted by Tim Shoemaker on 12/08/10 12:19 PM
Last updated 12/08/10 12:35 PM

The Bill Number is HR 3082, and it is 423 pages, you can find it here....maybe today only.



Sources on the Hill have informed us the Food Safety Bill was folded into the House Continuing Resolution, which authorizes the funding of government into 2011.

As you may remember, the Food Safety Act was "blue slipped" by the House Democrats, after the Senate passed it, because Harry Reid included a section that raised taxes (which the Constitution requires to begin in the House).

Additionally, the House will consider Rep. Slaughter's "Martial Law / Same Day Authority Rule through Dec. 18" H. Res. 1752, which will allow the Democratic majority to bring bills up with almost no notice through Dec. 18.


This is nothing more than an attempt to keep the American people in the dark and prevent them from mobilizing in opposition to their statist power grabs.

Contact your Congressman today and tell them to take the Food Safety language out of the Continuing Resolution and to oppose H. Res. 1752, which would allow the Democrats to ram through their statist agenda with little transparency.




One method to use....but CALL often!!!


RalphFucetolaJD
Newton, NJ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/568/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=12 00289

S.510: Hidden in House Amendment to Senate Amendment to House Bill! HR 3082 now hides S 510! Well, It's Not Hidden From US! Take These 3 Steps NOW to Protect Food Freedom

1. Take Action NOW for each member of your household to tell your Representatives that you STONGLY OPPOSE adopting the language of S. 510 in this or any other amendment or bill:

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/568/p/dia/action/public/?action_KE Y=5303

2. Visit http://www.congress.org/congressorg/directory/congdir.tt, enter your zip code to find your Representative's name and phone number. CALL IT! Yes, the line may be busy. Keep trying. Give the person who answers this message:

"I am calling to strongly opposed adopting the language of S. 510, the so-called Food Safety Modernization Act. This language is currently attached to 'CR/Food Safety House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 3082 - Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011/FDA Food Safety Modernization Act'. I urge Representative [name] in the strongest possible terms to vote against this amendment and to oppose this language in any bill or amendment."

The phone lines may be busy. Keep trying. This is literally an 11th hour attempt by Big Agribiz to control every bite you eat, and make sure it is to their liking, not yours.

3. Using Social Media like Facebook and Twitter, using your phone lists and your email contacts, get the word out, urging everyone you can contact to do the same:

1. Take the Action Item

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/568/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY =5303

2. Call the House of Representatives to deliver the message above

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/directory/congdir.tt

3. Take the message viral to THEIR contact and so on....post and cross post, please.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

We're from the Government, and We're Here to Help you

America’s Done---Stick a Fork In Her!
S. 510 Hits a Snag, But Be Wary

©Doreen Hannes 2010

Senate Bill S 510, the Food Safety Modernization Act, passed the Senate on November 30th, 74-23. Not a single Democrat crossed party lines. This bill is the coup on food in the US. Even though the Tester Amendment was included to dupe those who think it will stop small farmers and processors from being put right out of business, it will only slow down the demise of some small farms.

Then it came to light that a Constitutional issue that had been staring all of us in the face was present. The Senate did not pick up HR2749, which passed the House in July of 2009; instead they took up their own monster in S 510. They also began revenue generation in the Senate (Section 107 of the bill), which is expressly forbidden by the Constitution.

Faced with a patently un-Constitutional bill, that violates Constitutional process, we have to remain vigilant until BOTH houses have adjourned for the winter recess prior to the next session of Congress. Talk about roller coasters.

If the Constitution means anything at all, the House should “blue slip” S. 510, which would preclude them from taking the bill up and very likely run out the clock for passage in this session.

However, there are four choices available for the legislation to move forward before they adjourn on December 24th. The first is for the Senate to bring it back and get unanimous consent to remove the offending section. Since Senator Coburn of Oklahoma will not consent, that avenue is cut off.

Second is for the Senate to bust S. 510 down to the original “compromise” amendment, remove the funding section and the Tester amendment and try to ram it through the entire senate process again before the 24th. This seems unlikely, but don’t trust them as far as you can throw a semi trailer loaded with lead.

Third, the Senate could take HR2749, which has already passed the House, and rush it through the Senate, and it would go straight to the President’s desk with no process with the House necessary. This also seems rather unlikely. The bills are very similar and would have the same detrimental effects for everyone, but the Senators are not familiar with the bill, so it could be really tough.

Fourth, the House Ways and Means committee could pass the bill through and forgive the Constitutional infraction and refuse to blue slip the bill, then vote on it before the 24th and we’d have the bill albeit there would be legal issues brought forth that could possibly ensnare the regulations they want to write under this bill. This appears to be the most likely potential for S. 510.

Make no mistake about this, SB 510, or HR 2749 are worse than the Patriot Act, the Health Care bill, and the Federal Reserve Act combined. We can all live without little pieces of paper, and many of us can live without doctors, and we have been living with the increasing police state since 911, but none of us can live without food and water. If we lose food and water, we won’t be able to fight anything else.

The Tester-Hagan Amendment—Lipstick on a Pig


The largest deception played on the public in S. 510 is the inclusion of the Tester Amendment. This amendment was sold as the complete exemption for all small farms grossing less than $500,000 per year. But if one reads the actual amendment, it is evident that it will not do what it is purported to do for the vast majority of small producers.

The Tester Amendment has strident restrictions on those who may be “exempted” from HACCP (Hazard and Critical Control Point) implementations. HACCP is 50 pages of instructions that require a certifier to sign off on the plan, and a team to be trained in ensuring the plan is followed on the farm. The requirement of this plan put about 40% of small meat processors out of business several years ago. If you fall under the “protection” of the Tester amendment, you won’t have to do it....but let’s see how protective the Tester Amendment really is.

First, the Tester Amendment purports to exempt farms with less than $500,000 in sales from the requirements of S.510. However, to be “exempt” one must sell more than 50% of their products directly to consumers or restaurants within a 275-mile radius from production, and keep records substantiating those sales. The records are open for inspection and verification of the exemption. In other words, you have to prove you are playing by their rules through record keeping and approval of those records, or meet the more onerous requirements of S.510.

You must “apply” to be included in the “protections” of the Tester amendment. You must substantiate through your records for three years that you fit the category of selling more than “50% of average annual monetary value” within this 275-mile radius. So, if you sell on the roadside or at a farmers market, you must have a map handy and ask for ID from everyone who purchases from you or lose your exemption. Nice, huh?

Proof of Residence for Food? Really?


I can see it now....A lovely early June day, with the birds singing and the smell of freshly mown hay hanging in the air like the best memory from childhood. A young mother pulls into the Farmers Market and readies herself for a wonderful shopping experience.

She approaches the first stand with her mouth nearly watering at the bright display of fresh produce. “I’d like 3 cucumbers, please”, says the lady with her 3 kids and cloth grocery bag.

“Great! Can I see your ID?” replies the guy in bibs.

“Oh, I’m paying with cash” she replies with a smile.

“No matter”, says the farmer, “We have to make sure you’re within a 275 mile radius of our farm in order to sell to you”.

She looks perplexed and says, “Well, we aren’t. We’re on our way to visit my parents and I wanted to make a special dinner for all of us, using their locally produced foods so they could remember how good home grown veggies are....So I can’t buy from you without an ID?”

The farmer scratches his head and says, “Now see, I have to be very careful. I belong to a CSA that sells to a Chipotle that’s 276 miles from us, so all of my sales at market have to be local or I lose my exemption and will have to hire 5 people to take care of the paper work and then I just go out of business. So no, I can’t sell to you. What’s more, all the vendors here are part of the CSA, so no one here can sell to you. You have a nice day now!”


No Surprises-It’s Locally Global


What we have in Tester is local Agenda 21 Sustainable Development. In sum, “control over all human impact on the environment”. Everything will need to be within the ‘food shed’, and if you are outside of the food shed, too bad for you. It’s a great way to surveille and monitor food production and distribution. And you still fall under the broad based “reason to believe” of the Secretary with the Tester amendment. If the “Secretary”, meaning the head of the FDA or HHS thinks you may have a problem, or deems what you produce to be ‘high risk’, you will be shut down until they say you can begin again. All of your product is subject to mandatory recall; that’s why you have to keep records of everyone you sell to. And you will have to register as a facility under the Bioterrorism Act of 2002, referred to as Sec 415 throughout the bill. (Knock knock---this is “premises identification” as in NAIS)

So please, don’t tell me how great the Tester Amendment is, and that the expansive powers being granted to the DoD, DHS, HHS, FDA and USDA in this bill will be helpful to small farmers and local food production and make my food safe. Wake up and smell the coffee!!! Oh, wait. The only state that could produce coffee within 275 miles of itself, is Hawaii. Never mind. Wake up, and smell the tyranny, please.


(The best thing to do right now is to call the members of the House Ways and Means Committee as well as your own Representative and tell them they MUST blue slip S. 510. While I know it gets frustrating to call the Congress critters, the more they know that we know, the better the chance at slowing down the destruction they have planned for us. The switchboard number for Congress is 202-224-3121.)