Homestead mailing list

[bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>]

Thanks Roxanne.  I'm still trying to learn about the ag business.  What you 
wrote makes a lot of sense.................................

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--- On Fri, 12/5/08, roxann <roxann AT ancientearthwisdom.com> wrote:

> From: roxann <roxann AT ancientearthwisdom.com>
> Subject: Re: [Homestead] You think they won't tax your 
> homestead...............
> To: bobford79 AT yahoo.com
> Date: Friday, December 5, 2008, 7:15 AM
> If this was limited to CAFO's I wouldn't have an
> issue with it. 50 cows in a 1/4 acre feedlot is very
> damaging to the environment. Even so, the fees in this
> proposal are outrageous. But 50 beef cows spread out on 200
> acres should not be the same scenario. Factory farms are not
> the same thing as homesteads or family farms, or even large
> farms. But it certainly would bankrupt a lot of our food
> suppliers and we would be importing more food, which I think
> is not a good thing. But if it encouraged more small farms
> to supply our food demand, it would be a good thing. The
> chicken barns out here in AR, where Tyson is king, are
> beginning to install air cleaners so that air released to
> the environment is cleaner. If you've ever walked or
> driven past a barn being 'aired out' you might not
> eat chicken any more. To expect farms to grow food in a
> responsible manner, for the animals, a quality product, and
> for the environment is not asking too much. Without
> regulations, corporations just seem to be interested in the
> profit and those pesky regulations are merely hassles.
> Something does need to be done about it, but I don't
> think taxes are the answer. We have a hog grower out here, a
> factory farm, and they have a huge sewer system installed to
> treat their effluent water. One of the ways they keep it low
> on bacteria is to pump tons of antibiotics into the hogs so
> that their guts are sterile. Might not want to eat pork
> anymore now, either. But at least their effluent is cleaner,
> bacteria-wise. The nitrates are still out of the roof,
> though. This is not a family farm, but a factory farm, and
> the two need to be categorized differently by the government
> and regulating agencies.
> 
> Roxann, NW AR
> http://blog.ancientearthwisdom.com (Ozark Musings from the
> homestead)
> 
>  -------Original Message-------
>  From: bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
>  Subject: [Homestead] You think they won't tax your
> homestead...............
>  Sent: 05 Dec '08 13:56
>  
>  I saw a similar article last week about small farmers in
> rural NY protesting about this very same issue.  They
> will  t*x our spit if they can figure a way.  This is
> just a proposal, likely to fail at first, just like all
> other t*xes started out as a 'likely to fail'
> proposal....