Posted on 01/18/2008 11:41:34 AM PST by BGHater
A federal database of animals to fight disease outbreaks is a threat to privacy and family operations, critics say.
WASHINGTON — After days of parading around her beefy black steer in the dung-scented August heat at the Colorado State Fair, Brandi Calderwood made the final competition. For months, the 16-year-old worked from dawn well past dusk, fitting in the work around school, to feed, train and clean her steer. But just before the last round, when the animals are sold, fair officials disqualified her.
They alleged that Brandi had not properly followed a new and controversial rule that required children to register their farms with a federal animal tracking system. After heated words, the Calderwoods were told to leave. A security guard trailed Brandi and her mother, even to the restroom.
"Emotionally she went through the wringer and didn't get the honor of showing in the sale. For a 16-year-old, that's a big deal," said Cathy Calderwood, Brandi's mother.
A Bush administration initiative, the National Animal Identification System is meant to provide a modern tool for tracking disease outbreaks within 48 hours, whether natural or the work of a bioterrorist. Most farm animals, even exotic ones such as llamas, will eventually be registered. Information will be kept on every farm, ranch or stable. And databases will record every animal movement from birth to slaughterhouse, including trips to the vet and county fairs.
But the system is spawning a grass-roots revolt.
Family farmers see it as an assault on their way of life by a federal bureaucracy with close ties to industrial agriculture. They point out that they will have to track every animal while vast commercial operations will be allowed to track whole herds.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
I don't feed my animals ground up dead animal parts and, therefore, have virtually no chance of ever getting BSE in my herd. While there may be many economies realized by huge cattle feeding operations, the ultimate cost of their more deleterious practices should be borne by them, not their smaller, family owned competitors.
But, back to the subject of this article, it was wholly legitimate of the fair board to require that entrants be able to prove where the contest animals came from. It would shock many of our suburban brethren, but some little girls don't really raise their own 4-H steers.
A government which controls access to food, can absolutely control its population. EG, Zimbabwe today, the Ukraine in Stalin's time
That’s true...they set the rules, so she has to abide by them. Although if I were on the board, I’d ask if maybe a compromise could be made, and verification could be done by some other means. If she doesn’t have any verifiable records, then yeah...don’t give her the award.
When my kids had entries at the county fair, the extension agent would come around months before the show time and tag the entered animal. With the advance of technology sine then, I wouldn’t that that some sort of DNA swab would be too unreasonable. But, as you pointed out, it’s the appearance of heavy handedness here, not the goal of maintaining the value of the US herd, that’s objectionable.
Obviously, it takes a fairly large and technically sophisticated operation to process that sort of stuff into feed.
Yep...know all about it. It’s the pilot for the version they’ll use for humans...mark of the beast. Which if they DO follow, we really can call it mark of the “beast”. Very, VERY bad news.
I worked in the medical library at a hosptial. I found the information in books on CJD - Crutzfedlt Jacobs Disease, caused by folded proteins. Two doctors at the hospital had been in England the previous year and verified that, to their knowledge, the information was correct.
I worked in Environmental Qualifications at the Trojan Nuclear Plant, Goble, Oregon, 1986 - 1993. Yes, all welding rods have to have quality related documents that follow them from manufacuring to when used in the field.
So sorry, but you are mistaken.
Here's the section of the Wikipedia article on prions regarding "Sterilization":
"Infectious particles possessing nucleic acid are dependent upon it to direct their continued replication. Prions however, are infectious by their effect on normal versions of the protein. Therefore, sterilizing prions involves the denaturation of the protein to a state where the molecule is no longer able to induce the abnormal folding of normal proteins. However, prions are generally quite resistant to denaturation by proteases, heat, radiation, and formalin treatments,[31] although their infectivity can be reduced by such treatments.
"Prions can be denatured by subjecting them to a temperatures of 134 degrees Celsius (274 degrees Fahrenheit) for 18 minutes in a pressurised steam autoclave.[32] Ozone sterilization is currently being studied as a potential method for prion deactivation.[33] Renaturation of a completely denatured prion to infectious status has not yet been achieved, however partially denatured prions can be renatured to an infective status under certain artificial conditions.[34]
Note that "resistant to" is not the same as "impervious to" various sterilant agents.
Also note that 134 degrees Centigrade is not a particularly high temperature in chemistry, though it may be considered so in hospital sterilization.
So I say again--a sufficiently high temperature WILL denature the "prionic proteins", rendering them non-infectious.
And in fact, I recall one article from Britain saying that no evidence of prion-transmitted diseases among cattle were observed UNTIL the relevant regulatory department in charge of rendering plants LOWERED the recommended cooking temperature and time. With the higher temperature, there had been no problem.
See post 50. A temperature of 134 degrees Centigrade isn't particularly high by chemistry standards.
So, if farmers cremate all manure as soon as it starts to drop from their animals, they then won’t have to worry about folded proteins being picked up by grazing livestock.
What would beef cooked in a 274 degree steamer for 18 minutes taste like?
Actually, it kinda does. Both a diseased cow and a radiation release present potential public health and safety issues.
(Note: the tracking of all welding rods, both during construction and maintenance and modifications after the plant is online, is more for Foreign Material Exclusion concerns. Individual welding rods aren't numbered.)
Sorry for the length of this post, but I have a neighbor who raises pigs, horses, cattle, goats, dogs and some other livestock on their property. I read on FR about this NAIS system about 2 years ago and I sent this email to them:
*** http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002780418_danny03.html
“What next: animal mug shots?”
“She’s talking about an extraordinary plan under way to register, and track, every livestock animal in the U.S. That’s all the cows, horses, sheep, goats, chickens, turkeys, pigs, even llamas. It’s called the National Animal Identification System.”
<<< Read more at the link. And just in case you figure that this is just one isolated idea some nutcase legislator from Massachusetts is floating, here’s a few more links to similar info.
*** http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/science/05/24/animalidentification/index.html
“USDA steps up efforts to track livestock”
“Cows may soon have ID similar to Social Security number”
<<< Oh well it’ll just apply to cows and after all, it for our own good... read on:
*** http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1563271/posts
<<< Another Clinton “legacy”, hmmmmmmm? Much like the stained dress, huh?
“Animal Tagging and SCHOOL LUNCHES???”
*** http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1561077/posts
*** http://nationalpropertyowners.org/nais.html
<<< Of course, this only applies to big farms and feed livestock, right? Some of the highlights:
“Animal Identification originated as a result of the United States making trade agreements with the European Union and WTO”
“All pets must be electronically identified according to our EU/WTO”
“The government can hold, seize, quarantine, treat, destroy, dispose of, and take other ‘remedial action’ with respect to animals—US Code Title 7 Chapter 109, 8306.a.1.B”
“The government may do the above with or without a warrant.—US Code Title 7, Chapter 109, 8307.(b.1-3). (c.1)”
“Homeland Security Act being amended to transfer bio-security to From Dept of Ag to Dept. of Homeland Security-Introduced March 9, 2005”
*** http://www.state.tn.us/agriculture/news/01252006.html
“NASHVILLE, Tenn. – State Agriculture Commissioner Ken Givens today announced Tennessee’s participation in a voluntary regional program aimed at making it easier for horse owners to transport equine interstate.”
“The New Florida Equine ID Cards For Intrastate And Interstate Movement”
“The Division of Animal Industry of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is now offering laminated cards, containing digital pictures of the horse, as a voluntary alternative to the current paper EIA test document (VS Form 10-11) and the Equine Event Extension.”
<<< **INTRA*** state movement??? So little Susie rides her horse over to the neighbors, and gets stopped by a passing deputy. She hasn’t registered her movement of her horse with the gummint, so she gets a ticket. Then the deputy calls for animal control to “impound” her mount, since it’s illegally being “transported intrastate”. Far fetched? Just ask anyone who had their car impounded in any traffic offense.
<< So far it’s voluntary, but it’s slated to be mandatory in 2009 for any animal that moves from one property to another (i.e. if they’re sold, borrowed, displayed at a fair, or just wander around a lot.) Not necessarily.
“Two States Set Premises Registration Deadlines; USDA Launches ID System Web Site”
“Both Wisconsin and Indiana have set deadlines for registering livestock premises as part of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). Wisconsin, the first state to mandate premises registration, has set a Nov. 1, 2005, deadline, though they have proposed a “compliance window” after that date with certain groups being phased in. See their web site for details: *** http://datcp.state.wi.us/ah/agriculture/animals/premises/premises_registration.html
“In Indiana beginning Sept. 1, 2006, premises registration will be required for ‘each person that buys, sells or exhibits livestock’.
“Individuals must obtain a premises ID number for each of their Indiana premises. Certain species, including camelids are exempt from this deadline, though they may register voluntarily. See their web site for details:
*** http://www.in.gov/boah/
“Currently, premises registration is underway in 46 states with registration systems expected to be fully operational in all 50 states by the end of 2005.”
<<< Just what companies are involved in this idea?
*** http://nationalpropertyowners.org/Digital_Angel.doc
*** http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1564815/posts
<<< So maybe it won’t just be for pets and livestock!
“...his guest speaker one particular night was Florida Based Applied Digital Solutions Owner. This man stated that the microchip was not to be implanted in humans. It will be on a watch for people to wear. After September 11th Alex Jones had the owner of the Digital Angel Company back on his show. The man now states that, because of 9-11 we are going to implant the chip into the humans, because if the people in the World Trade Center would have had these chips we could have found all of them and known their names, social security number and medical records.”
“The Digital Angel is a satellite that in action it is an end-to-end system that starts with a monitor that clips on to an individual.”
<<< Just in case you think that my tinfoil hat is on too tight and cutting off the blood flow to my brain, here’s this:
*** http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technology/human_tracker_000814.html
“Relaying a steady stream of data on the location and health of its host to ground stations using the Global Positioning System (GPS), the dime-sized chip is intended to be worn externally, such as on a wristwatch or implanted under the skin.”
<<< Note that that article is dated 15 August 2000 at SPACE.com. Apparently this has been in the works for a while.
“Human ID implant to be unveiled soon”
“Developed by Applied Digital Solutions, the device is said to be the first-ever operational combination of bio-sensor technology and Web-enabled wireless telecommunications linked to global positioning satellite location-tracking systems.”
<<< Read the latest directly from Digital Angel here:
*** http://www.digitalangelcorp.com/about_press.asp
*** http://www.digitalangelcorp.com/about.asp
*** http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-11-2005/0004086760&EDATE=
*** http://www.adsx.com/people.html
“Applied Digital”
“People. Locate. Identify. Protect.”
“Every day, the unexpected and sometimes unthinkable occurs. An elderly patient in a nursing home wanders off. A baby is abducted from a maternity ward. An incapacitated patient is brought into an emergency ward without any identification.”
“At Applied Digital, we specialize in helping to safeguard people with the most advanced identification technology.”
<<< The USDA, State and Local levels are presenting this as a FEDERAL program.
*** http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/hpdata2010/abouthp.htm
“...the School Nutrition Policy is an effort of another initiative called Healthy People 2010. The Model School Nutrition Program is the first implementations of the Healthy People 2010 Project.”
<<<Oh, “it’s fer the chilllllddddrennnnnnn!” That makes it OK.
“The CDC says it is a Non Governmental Organization.”
“The Goal of the Healthy People 2010 Project is to have all our health and food safety needs tracked in a National Database by 2010. The school children’s lunches are the first steps.”
<<< Will little Susie be required to register for the rest of her life in the “Illegal Animal Transporters” database? Don’t laugh... it will probably be *worse* than that...
<<< If they haven’t already, the nice men in brown shirts and black hightop boots will be by your place soon to make sure you *and all of your animals* are in compliance with the regulations.
<<< Oh, and by the way, just in cased you missed it in all the verbiage in all of those links, NOT COMPLYING WITH MICROCHIPPING IS A FEDERAL CLASS C FELONY. You will lose your rights to bear arms and vote.
<<< Feel free to pass this along to anyone you know who “owns” livestock. Or pets. Or a goldfish.
<<< But don’t feel all left out... this ID tagging is coming soon to humans.
<<< And I can’t even *guess* what level of FELONY it will be to not comply.
“We’re from the Government. We’re here to help you.”
“I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.”
—James Madison
“Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms [of government] those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.”
—Thomas Jefferson
“Experience should teach us to be most on our guard to protect liberty when the government’s purposes are beneficent.”
— Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis 1928
“Good intentions will always be pleaded for any assumption of power. The Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters.”
— Daniel Webster
“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
—Benjamin Franklin, 1759
“Posterity, you will never know how much it cost the present generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in heaven that ever I took half the pains to preserve it.”
— John Adams
#8^P
Nope--wrong. There is ZERO evidence of transmission by excretion products---ONLY by direct consumption of affected organ materials (specifically brains and spinal cords).
Unless your cows are chomping off each others heads, there will be no transmission.
I agree with you, but what you describe isn’t “free market” as much as it is “intense local concern”. Farmers don’t have to do much of what they do, but they understand the consequences if they don’t, and strongly want to avoid them. If some individual doesn’t want to take proper precautions, he can do so for a while, but everyone around him will shun him to protect themselves and their animals.
NAIS was poorly planned, but *something* with some of the elements of NAIS are needed; again, only peripherally managed by the federal government. This is why I recommended veterinarians as the expert middlemen—much like how human doctors act as middlemen with the Public Health Serice.
What the feds want is some way of backtracking, literally from meat sold in stores back to an individual farm and even a particular animal. Too ambitious for them for them to do, for reasons you pointed out. But they feel that is what the public is demanding.
And it isn’t going to happen. Biology just doesn’t work that way, much less animal husbandry. So the question becomes how can NAIS be changed to work, without just being an onerous, bureaucratic, and expensive as hell paper drill?
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