No hope

As I listen, day after day, to the increasingly grim financial news and forcasts, our newly elected President blaring alarm and fear nonstop, and the whopping bail out bills (which we cannot pay for in even two lifetimes), plus the President's pledge to provide health care and a college education to everyone.....I look and look for things to hope for.

I am not finding anything except the coming of spring to Alaska.

Inventories are dropping almost everywhere, as stores are unable to get credit. This is causing a ripple effect as marginally profitable stores fold and more people lose their jobs. WalMart, of course, has increasing sales but eventually they too, will have troubles filling the shelves as their suppliers fail. Locally, I am already seeing a reduction in selection at the grocery store, as less popular items are disappearing, to replaced with multiple facings of recognized brands.

In Washington, a couple of bills that will have a tremendous impact on our nations' food supply are HB 875 and HR 1105.

1105 is the NAIS funding request, which includes language making the program mandatory. This means that every single animal (even exotic animals not normally considered farm animals) must be tagged with an RFID chip, and you must register your "premesis" (farm, ranch, subdivision lot, etc) with the USDA, plus maintain all records and report all movements, under penalty of fines. Fees are not determined yet, but those states with mandatory NAIS are already taking people to court for noncompliance-after warrantless search and seizure, btw. Yes, this means YOU with one chicken! And you must have a scanner to read it too, plus the vet out to put it in, etc. And no I am not crazy, it is actually true. Do read up at www.nonais.org, and www.naisinfocentral.com There is a deadline coming up on the 16th of March for comments. (I will include the text of my letter to Sec. Vilsack below)


Then there is another monstrosity: HB 875. On the surface this also sounds reasonable, especially the title: "Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009".

Isn't that warm and fuzzy? What it does is enact the "Food Safety Administration". This is a whole new government department, geared towards food production. Apparantly the various health departments, APHIS, USDA and assorted other licensing and inspection agencies are not enough-nope, we must have another NEW bureaucracy to make sure they know all about every single place that provides food is categorized and identified.

This means *your* garden, on your property, where you grow greens for a salad, try for the Alaska State Fair title, or just grow flowers to enhance and enjoy.

Like the saying goes: Just because you are paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get you.

These two bills, if passed and funded, all control over our own food supply is handed over to the government. NAIS will force the majority of hobbyists and small farms out of business. This will only serve to concentrate the holdings of the large agribusinesses. Centralization of our food is a very risky course to take, and why I must have my own garden registered with the federal government, I do not know.

But this leaves me very little hope.

I do not want to have premesis ID. I do not want to spend over $2000 a year, chipping and reporting on my animals. I do not want the US government to have the power to come onto my property and just take my computor, my records, my animals-without a warrant. I most especially do not want my government to know what I grow in my tiny patch (nothing illegal either!) as I grow to augment my family's diet. Because if they know what I grow, the day will come when they take it-to share with others, because some computor model said I grew more than I needed.

No hope, and very scary times :(

________________________________

My letter to Sec. Vilsack:


Dear Secretary Vilsack

I am contacting you today, to express my deep concerns over an item hidden within the Omnibus Spending Bill, HR 1105, pertaining to the USDAs National Animal Identification System (NAIS) program.

I have been following the developments of this proposed system for some time, and with increasing alarm. As I watch states enter into Co-operative Agreements with the USDA, accepting funds to implement this, I became aware of the true costs associated with NAIS. And some disturbing consequences associated with its implementation.

Mr. Secretary, are you aware that as a hobbyist, the cost for complying with this is over $1,500 per person per year that owns a single horse, goat, sheep, cow, or chicken in America? (Amortized over three years, mind you).

Are you aware that the Premeses ID contract entered into, has given the USDA the power of warrantless search and seizure of private property?

Are you aware that many people are being "signed up" for this without their knowledge, or consent?

Are you aware that the assignment of a PremesisID is permanently attached to the real property thus identified? In any definition, this amounts to a legal emcumbrance and has not been addressed fully.

NAIS was originally conceived by those that will stand to benefit the most-the large agicultural businesses, companies that sell RFID chips and scanners, data base management companies. There was no input from small farmers or hobbyists whatever. Thus, the cost burden for one laying hen, is the same that a large commercial producer with thousands of animals. Yet, the large commercial chicken operation, gets one single "lot" ID number, whilst a grandmother with three hens, a couple of ducks and a pony for her grandchildren, must have one for each animal. And a computor, internet access, the necessary programs and maintenance of such programs, the veterinarian out to put in the chips, the scanner, and unknown demands on time to report each and every movement within the allowed time. At this time, the fees for each report are unknown, but the fines for noncompliance are very substantial.

This will place a large financial hardship upon hobbyists and animal owners of all types, those with religious convictions which prohibit such "numbering", and will do nothing whatever to provide the "trace back" that is the USDA stated goal. Our nation's largest food threats currently stem from the processing-as evidenced by the number and scope of recent outbreaks and recalls. The millions of dollars allocated to NAIS would be better spent by investing in more trained USDA inspectors and enforcing those regulations already on the books. Traceability already exists, and the hobbyist and small farmer already knows exactly where their animals originated-something our largest CFAO's cannot. The focus here should be concentrated on the large "factory" producer and the processor, not demanding rural Americans enter into contracts that allow search and seizure without warrants (that the USDA can change at a whim), that impose huge fines for noncompliance, and which will not protect our food supply in any way.

NAIS, if implemented, will create a large, expensive bureaucracy to maintain those millions of records-the security of which is marginal at best. In these economic times, the costs outweigh any benefits the public could expect to gain. It is at direct odds with President Obama's goals of encouraging small farming in America, and promoting regional and local food systems.

What NAIS effictively does, is concentrate the nation's food supply (as people leave farming due to the intrusion of government on their activities) into the hands of just a few companies. And their track record is dismal at best.

The long term ramifications of this program are easy to extrapolate: Concentration of the nation's food supply into fewer, larger commercial operations. I fail to see how any reasonable person can conclude this is a good thing for America. Small farmers are the backbone of rural agriculture in the US, and this provides animal population diversity and a measure of safety should the larger commercial producers become a source of disease or outbreak.

Mr. Secretary, this program, with it's unanswered legal questions, does nothing whatever to protect the nation. It does not promote economic development, it does not enhance the security of our food supply, it does not benefit any hobbyist or small farmer at all. And it does not benefit myself, or my family in any way. As it stands now, the costs associated with this, will only serve to enhance the bottom lines of those companies who presented the concept of NAIS. When the legal challenges arise and work their way through the courts, as they surely will, this program will be exposed for the onerous, expensive boondoggle it is.
This is one American voter who is firmly, steadfastly, opposed to this program, and I urge you, in your capacity, to stop this bill in its tracks.

Signed,

(blogger)
Wasilla, Alaska

Projected NAIS cost:

Laptop, scanner, chips, programs, net access, vet fees, etc: $2,600.00 (7 animals-no reportable events figured)