permaculture

[Killian O'Brien <admin@pri-de.org>]

Here's a quick plea based on an article on the food bill found here: 
http://www.seismologik.com/journal/2010/12/3/unconstitutional-food-bill-driven-by-big-food-lobby-dollars.html

I'm having an "Oh, sh1+" day. It's one thing to think time is short and we, 
as a city, as a nation, as a global village, are making all the wrong choices 
and it's another to see confirmation day after day, snowballing into one long 
"oh, sh1+" moment.

The cause? The food bill. This bill will literally take away the one answer 
we have to all the problems we face: regenerative agriculture.
http://networkedblogs.com/blR8M

It will require regulation that virtually none of us can afford or manage. 
The Tester amendment doesn't prevent that, only some of it, and not enough. 
The exemption must be total. If not, regenerative ag will not become the norm 
and localization and healthy food will become illegal. And that, as they say, 
will be that.

""In order to qualify for exemption, he points out that small producers
must file three years of detailed financial records, detailed hazard
analysis plans, and detailed proof of compliance with local, county and
state laws. Then, the Secretary of Health and Human Services must
approve each exemption.

...How many "food producers" who donate food to the homeless, or who
supply homemade products at bake sales, county fairs, church bazaars,
and community picnics are going to bother with such hyper-regulation?"

There is no more important issue facing us other than the management of 
carbon, itself, but even that can only be a byproduct of regenerative 
agriculture because regenerative ag alone can sequester up to 40% of the 
carbon we produce. 

Let me say that again, regenerative ag ALONE can reduce GHG emissions by 40%. 
And that doesn't include turning our lawns into gardens. Lawns in the US = 3x 
the acreage used for corn production.

We can change the world. We can save the world. But not if doing so is 
legislated into criminality.

Peak Oil was five years ago.
http://www.energybulletin.net/stories/2010-11-11/iea-acknowledges-peak-oil

Climate tipping points seem to have been reached in 1998, based on the steep 
decline in Arctic sea ice since then.
http://climateprogress.org/2009/03/17/media-copenhagen-global-warming-impacts-worst-case-ipcc/

My urgency must be your urgency. This isn't something we can continue to 
pretend is off in the distance that we can fix with a grant or two among a 
cadre of the usual suspects. We need massive change and we needed it ten 
years ago.

Time is short.

Cheers,

Killian O'Brien
PRI-De
admin@pri-de.org
(313) 647-4015

killiankob@yahoo.com
(760) 617-4693

-----Original Message-----
From: permaculture-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org 
[mailto:permaculture-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Lawrence F. 
London, Jr.
Sent: Friday, December 03, 2010 12:36 AM
To: permaculture
Subject: Re: [permaculture] Major Victory for family farmers, sustainable 
agriculture: Food Safety Bill Passes with Family Farm Protections

On 12/2/2010 3:51 PM, jamesdavid Sneed wrote:
>
> Perhaps the crux of the problem lies within the description and
> duties of "the secretary" and any other appointed official. An early
> version of the bill (and maybe the one that passed) allowed nearly
> unlimited power to both the secretary of ag and the position that has
> been dubbed "food afety czar". Have any of the amendments changed
> this?

Here's another partial answer to your question:


food safety bill | Government Takeover of Your Garden? What the Food 
Safety Bill Really Means | Rodale News
http://www.rodale.com/food-safety-bill
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