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For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.WESTFORD -- Sheep will be sheared, horses will be mounted, and local youths will display prowess honed with a multitude of other beasts and crafts when the 48th annual Middlesex County 4-H Fair opens tomorrow. But the fair and the 4-H Youth and Family Development Program may be an endangered species. "4-H is very much in limbo-land right now," says Mary McBrady, executive director of the Massachusetts 4-H Foundation, a non-profit organization that holds fund-raisers to support 4-H training and after-school programs statewide. 4-H is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture,...

FReepers, I found this in my "in-box". I ask Michigan Freepers to take a moment to write, call, fax, e-mail, whatever it takes. 4-H is a family oriented, CONSERVATIVE group that deserves our support. My daughter is mildly autistic and 4-H has done her a world of good! Having to talk to judges, work as a team, complete projects and work with a large, cranky animal has ALL done her a world of good ! She has blossemed! And this is REAL confidence she has grown, not some "self-esteem" crap. Sorry for the crummy formatting. I am SO upset just...

Opposition Swamps Sweeping Farmland BillA barrage of final-hour opposition overcame the most sweeping California farmland protection bill in a generation, scuttling it on the brink of its first hearing. Builders, real estate agents and California cities mounted vigorous opposition in recent days to SB-898l by state Sen. John Burton, D-San Francisco, that would have created some of the nation’s toughest barriers to growth on millions of acres of the state’s best farmland. California reportedly paves over 50,000 acres of irrigated farmland yearly. The bill called for new growth restrictions on 8.1 million acres until 2015, and portrayed farmland preservation as...

Fly-in Focuses On Grassroots Advocacy By Julie Clausen, Executive Director The Eighth Annual Fly-In hosted by the National Grange in May was attended by Grange members from 16 states. Items on the agenda included sessions on Grassroots Legislative Programs, Transportation Policy for Rural America, Addressing the Needs of Rural Victims of Crime; The National Victim Services in Rural Law Enforcement Grant Program, and Pending Legislation to Reform Federal Health Care Programs and their Impact on Rural America. Jerry Hagstrom, Senior Agricultural Reporter for the National Journal spoke on The Politics of Agriculture Today in Washington, D.C. State Master Leo Bergeron,...

Local Empowerment Key In Fighting Federal And State Bureaucracy"We want to keep what rightfully belongs to the people from coming under the command and control of the federal government,” stated Ric Costales in introducing the Grange-sponsored Western Lands Use Conference (WLUC) in Klamath Falls, Oregon. For two days, February 22 and 23, those attending the WLUC were shown case law, U.S. Supreme Court rulings, and Constitutional guarantees that make local government the lead agency in any federal or state projects, including environmental regulations or land takings. Ric Costales and Kathy Van Tuyl at a planning session. They are the Master...

National Grange Legislative Action Alert 2003 A special update of timely issues for e-mail subscribers to "View from the Hill" 4/10/2003 In this Issue: Support Sound Science for Endangered Species Act Planning Act of 2003! On April 7, 2003, Rep. Greg Walden introduced “Sound Science for Endangered Species Act Planning Act of 2003” to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior to give greater weight to scientific or commercial data that is empirical or has been field-tested or peer-reviewed. The bill number is H.R. 1662 and is attached in a pdf file. Please...

We Hope War with Iraq Will Be Resolved As Quickly As Possible! The National Grange National President, Kermit Richardson, sent a letter to President Bush Regarding Grange’s position on the war with Iraq. His letter is as follows:------------ March 27, 2003 The Honorable George W. Bush Executive Office of the President 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Bush: When we last contacted you in January regarding your State of the Union Address, the National Grange expressed support for whatever actions you deemed necessary to meet the threat of an impending war with Iraq. Although it has been...

<p>Jody Mason of Olympia is locked to the Washington State Grange office building Tuesday to protest war. He intended to chain himself to a federal Department of Energy office building, but discovered he was at the wrong location.</p> <p>OLYMPIA -- A man spent hours chained to the wrong building Tuesday in an ill-planned effort to protest war with Iraq, police said. Jody Mason padlocked himself to an entrance of the Washington State Grange building at 924 Capitol Way S., thinking it was a sub-office of the U.S. Department of Energy.</p>

National Grange Responds to State of the Union Address The National Grange sent a letter to President George W. Bush commending him for his recent State of the Union Address. This provided the National Grange an opportunity to express their support to the President while making suggestions regarding the ways in which the objectives outlined in the State of the Union Address can be expanded and applied to meet the needs of rural Americans. One of the concerns shared by Grange members and discussed by the President was the issue of tax reform. To ensure the viability of American agriculture,...

National Grange Legislative Action Alert 2003A special update of timely issues for e-mail subscribers to"View from the Hill" 2/26/2003 Oliver H. Kelley Farm in Minnesota Should Stay Open! Under the 15% Funding Cut of the budget of the Minnesota Historical Society in the MN Governor Tim Pawlenty’s Proposed FY 2004-2005 Budget, Oliver H. Kelley Farm Will be Closed on June 30, 2003. Since 1962 The National Grange Has Worked with the Minnesota Historical Society to Develop and Maintain the Kelley Farm as an Educational Living History Farm that Celebrates Grange Heritage. Please Contact the Members of the MN House of...

National Grange Unveils It's "Blueprint for Rural America 2003" For over a century, the National Grange has served as a political advocate for the rural community. Every January, the National Grange releases a priority issues document that helps focus the Grange's political advocacy efforts for the coming year. The "Blueprint for Rural America" consists of a ten-point plan that outlines for Granges key issues on which to base grassroots activity. With each passing year, the "Blueprint" is updated to reflect those changes that have occurred over the previous year while maintaining objectives that are still relevant. 1. Return Prosperity to...

Habitat conservation plans impose unnecessary new burdens on land owners without corresponding benefits Comments and analysis regarding habitat conservation plans By Bob PerkinsMarch 12, 2002 Prior to becoming executive director of Monterey County Farm Bureau, Bob Perkins served for 22 years as executive manager of Riverside County Farm Bureau, where he represented farmers and ranchers in stakeholder committees and discussions of four habitat planning efforts.  This is a compilation and explanation of notes, issues and recommendations accumulated from those habitat plan discussions.“I would always recommend that local government avoid habitat conservation plans and that citizens challenge adoption of habitat conservation plans until...

Bob Stallman President American Farm Bureau By Bob Stallman President, American Farm Bureau Low commodity prices, rising input costs and productivity-sapping government paperwork challenge us to run our operations as efficiently and professionally as possible. We do. We produce abundant, affordable and healthy food and fiber. The vast majority of consumers in this country respect our efforts, when they ever think about it. Most of the time, they do not have to because the shelves are full, the price is right-for them. A vocal few, though, are having more of an impact on agriculture than any other time I...

Report by J.J. Johnson Published 04. 15. 02 at 10:21 Sierra Time MEDFORD, OR - With a goal of taking the message against radical environmentalism to the public, the grassroots organization, People for the USA (PUSA), used the power of country music to spread its message. Over 1200 fans attended the Jackson County Expo Center to hear country legend Joe Diffe, and help Restore the Spirit of America. The Saturday event began with Helen Chenowith-Hage stating, "we are at war" against the radical environmental movement. Her discourse focused on water rights and emphasized, "water is like gold." Hage motivated...

<p>President Bush's budget includes a conservation tax credit that gives a 50 percent capital-gains-tax break on land sold to the government or land-trust groups.</p> <p>The budget describes the incentive as a "cost effective, non-regulatory, market-based approach to conservation."</p> <p>But private-property activists, who typically support the Bush administration, say the tax incentive benefits environmental groups over the private sector and ultimately puts more property and wealth into government hands.</p>

Grange Supports High Speed Internet Access for Rural America (Washington, DC) December 3, 2001--One hundred years ago this year, the Grange was instrumental in winning Rural Free Delivery Mail service. That legislation opened vast new opportunities for communication and commerce for millions of Americans living on our nation’s farms and in rural communities. Today, the Grange wants to celebrate that victory by supporting HR 1542, the Internet Freedom and Development Act of 2001, legislation that will help bring high speed Internet access to rural America. “The Grange believes that rural Americans deserve access to the same basic public and ...

<p>WASHINGTON - The "Eggplant Caucus" is gathering recruits in a drive to upset the congressional apple cart delivering billions of dollars to Midwestern farmers.</p> <p>The caucus is an alliance of Eastern senators bent on reshaping the new farm bill to spread around the government subsidies enjoyed primarily in the central and southern United States.</p>

News - Sierra Times.com NRA: Heroes and Zeroes By Mike Hardiman - American Land Rights Association 11.08.01 The National Rifle Association's Board of Directors met on November 3 and placed new restrictions and qualifications on its support for the &quot;CARA&quot; Land Grab bill. Below is what various Board Directors and others had to say about CARA. CARA is HR 701, the Conservation and Reinvestment Act. But our nickname for it is CARA - the Condemnation and Relocation Act, since it provides over one billion dollars per year for state and federal government agents to condemn private property. IMPORTANT: The ...

The Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) is on its last legs, at least for this session of Congress. However, we can’t celebrate quite yet. Congress will most likely remain in session until after Thanksgiving, and considering lawmakers’ current raid on the treasury, the pork-barrel beast is still very much alive. This is the time of year, when Congress is winding down, that lawmakers rush to cut backroom deals and ram pet legislation through at the last minute. Considering CARA is a 15-year, $45 billion, land grab trust fund, it is enticing to many Congressmen who may be hungry for ...