Tonight...if you live in Christian County, this applies to you...
Christian County Planning and Zoning Commission meets tonight at the Christian County Courthouse at 7 PM in Room 208 (old courtroom).
They will be discussing rezoning 4381 Selmore Rd. from R-1 (suburban residence) to C-2 (general commercial)
They will also be discussing and possibly voting on new and/or revised definitions of recycling centers, junkyards and automobile graveyards and for what zoning district these might be appropriate.
So why is this important? Well, it has the potential to impede on personal property rights if not done properly. So the public needs to be there...and ready to speak out to make sure the commission makes regulations that are fair to all parties involved.
http://christiancountymo.gov/planningandzoning/agenda.pdf
Also tonight is the Ozark Board of Aldermen meeting at 7 PM in the Council Chambers of Ozark City Hall.
They will be discussing contracts to powerwash the water towers at Wal-mart and Tracker. They will also talk about an amendment to the city ordinances about Board of Aldermen meetings. I believe this is the ordinance that Mayor Pro Tem wanted to throw out completely and start over because there was an amendment to the amendment. These are open for public comment.
They will also be voting on a zoning change for 604 E. Jackson and a conditional use permit for 2114 E. Robin. They will also vote on amendments to the current year budget. These bills are final reading and not open for public discussion.
http://www.ozarkmissouri.com/archives/42/Board%20of%20Aldermen%20Packet%2011-21-2011.pdf
Crap. Now I have to decide which one to go to. Why do they both meet at the same time??
I'm leaning toward planning and zoning just because it seems property rights are a more pressing issue, but I know there will likely be people there that will represent my point of view. At the city council meeting, the only person there besides the council and people who are supposed to speak to the council will probably be the former mayor. That makes me think maybe I should go to Board of Aldermen...
OK well I don't have to decide right now...
Monday, November 21, 2011
Monday, November 7, 2011
Tragedy, property rights, building codes and Agenda 21
This is bugging me...
Did you hear about those boys in NYC who pushed a shopping cart off the 4th story of a parking garage and it landed on a lady and killed her? Fortunately, a doctor was right there and witnessed the whole thing and handed off their baby to his wife so he could do CPR. She was revived and taken to the hospital. The lady, Marion Hedges, had her 13 or 14 year old son with her, who was hysterical (understandably) so the wife of the doctor comforted him and helped him call his grandmother. Mrs. Hedges is still in critical condition according to the news reports I found in a Google search this morning.
A couple of things disturb me about this story. First of all, if these boys had no more sense to know that dropping a shopping cart four stories is a bad idea, they should have not been out in public without adult supervision. This has gotten a lot of media coverage and some sources describe the boys as good kids. I highly doubt that. Another source was surprised these kids hadn't been to juvie yet. That's more like it.
In spite of what happened to his wife at the hands of these little punks, Michael Hedges told the NY Daily News they would like to create a foundation to help kids like Jeovanni and Raymond, the "alleged perpetrators". My gut tells me tossing them off a four story building would be a good first step. However, they are just kids, and apparently they don't have a lot of supervision. Maybe we should chuck their parents off instead.
But wait...we have to find their parents first. Apparently these boys are growing up in the projects in Harlem and their daddies are long gone. One of the boys' moms spoke out and said she needs help, she's a single mom. Well, if she's living in the projects, chances are she's already getting some "help". Some Food Stamps, some Medicaid, some Welfare, some Section 8 housing. Could it be that all the "help" she's getting isn't really the kind of help she needs? Could it be that the kind of "help" the Feds have been doling out for over 40 years is hurting more people than it's helping?
I pray for everyone involved in this tragedy. The victim, her family, the kids who injured her, their families. The witnesses, the doctor and his wife who stopped to help. The older boy who tried to stop the boys from tossing a shopping cart to begin with and eventually turned them in when they ran away instead of taking responsibility for their actions.
So...how does this tie into property rights and building codes? And what does Agenda 21 have to do with any of it? Oh, oh, oh, I'm glad you asked!! I love it when I can tie it all together.
"The pedestrian walkway at East River Plaza was erected by a private developer, but if it had been owned by the city, builders would have been required to construct an 8-foot high fence over the wall, city officials said."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/tragic-error-city-loophole-led-cart-toss-horror-walkway-east-harlem-target-article-1.972201
The title of the article is "Tragic error: City loophole led to cart-toss horror on walkway at East Harlem Target."
Therefore, it's not the fault of the boys who threw the shopping cart. It's not the fault of the parents who were not supervising their children. It's the fault of the builder and the city. Really?
First of all, if you're going to have building codes at all, they should be consistent. Why should the city have to build thousands more into the budgets of their building projects for safety devices that privately-owned buildings are not required to have? Either it's needed or it's not, doesn't matter whether the government owns it or Donald Trump owns it! Second of all, you cannot legislate common sense. These boys had been in school for at least six or seven years, surely the schools there aren't so bad that they haven't touched on gravity and momentum in science classes. So I'm guessing they knew a shopping cart dropped from 40 feet was going to make a big bang. They'd already been dropping shushies and seen their cups exploding.
I guess technically if there had been an 8 foot tall one inch mesh barrier curved inward at the top, the boys would not have been able to toss a shopping cart over. OK I'm convinced. Totally not their fault they rolled a cart out from the store or parking garage, picked it up and chucked it over the 42 inch railing.
Since Bill Clinton had an office in Harlem, let's blame him. And Michael Bloomberg is mayor of New York, so it's his fault too. New York is in the United States, so let's not forget to blame President Obama while we're at it.
Agenda 21 proponents want us all in sustainable living zones. Big cities. Where you can go everywhere by foot, bicycle or train. Parts of New York are much like what Agenda 21 invisions...mass transit, high population density, tall buildings. But a tragedy like what happened at the East River Plaza could only happen in an Agenda 21 city. It couldn't happen in Ozark, Missouri. We aren't so crowded here that we have to build multi-level stores and parking garages. I'm safe from falling shopping carts here (I hope).
The UN and proponents of Agenda 21 (sustainable development) want all the people in human zones so the rest of the land can be used as appropriate to raise food. No family farms, no country life. No hunting and fishing for recreation and food. No raising a few chickens for the eggs and a couple of goats for the milk. No backyard garden for a few tomatoes and cucumbers.
Our Federal agencies are doing the best they can to burden farmers with so much regulation that they cannot survive. You have to know the rules to be able to play by them, and you can't understand all the bureaucracy and still have time to make a living. So you do the best you can until you get caught breaking one of their rules. Then they slap you with fines and put you out of business. A bigger operation buys up your land for the taxes and you move into one of the human zones.
Bureaucrats have taken what is supposed to protect our citizens and have turned it around to use it against them. Big commercial farming operations have lawyers to interpret and relationships with inspectors to make sure they stay out of trouble. I believe there have to be some rules in place to keep unsafe food off our tables. Unfortunately, food that may not have bacteria or bugs in it but has been filled with hormones, pesticides, antibiotics and other chemicals does make it to the store and there are no warning labels that say we don't know what this may do to you or your kids 20 or 50 years down the road. If I want to stay away from all this, I have to raise all my food myself. But I can't sell any of it to my neighbor because I have to play by all these rules. I can't band together with 50 other people and each raise something and trade with one another.
This is America! We have to wake up and defend the rights of people who may be doing things we don't agree with or would never do ourselves, but aren't hurting anyone else!
Did you hear about those boys in NYC who pushed a shopping cart off the 4th story of a parking garage and it landed on a lady and killed her? Fortunately, a doctor was right there and witnessed the whole thing and handed off their baby to his wife so he could do CPR. She was revived and taken to the hospital. The lady, Marion Hedges, had her 13 or 14 year old son with her, who was hysterical (understandably) so the wife of the doctor comforted him and helped him call his grandmother. Mrs. Hedges is still in critical condition according to the news reports I found in a Google search this morning.
A couple of things disturb me about this story. First of all, if these boys had no more sense to know that dropping a shopping cart four stories is a bad idea, they should have not been out in public without adult supervision. This has gotten a lot of media coverage and some sources describe the boys as good kids. I highly doubt that. Another source was surprised these kids hadn't been to juvie yet. That's more like it.
In spite of what happened to his wife at the hands of these little punks, Michael Hedges told the NY Daily News they would like to create a foundation to help kids like Jeovanni and Raymond, the "alleged perpetrators". My gut tells me tossing them off a four story building would be a good first step. However, they are just kids, and apparently they don't have a lot of supervision. Maybe we should chuck their parents off instead.
But wait...we have to find their parents first. Apparently these boys are growing up in the projects in Harlem and their daddies are long gone. One of the boys' moms spoke out and said she needs help, she's a single mom. Well, if she's living in the projects, chances are she's already getting some "help". Some Food Stamps, some Medicaid, some Welfare, some Section 8 housing. Could it be that all the "help" she's getting isn't really the kind of help she needs? Could it be that the kind of "help" the Feds have been doling out for over 40 years is hurting more people than it's helping?
I pray for everyone involved in this tragedy. The victim, her family, the kids who injured her, their families. The witnesses, the doctor and his wife who stopped to help. The older boy who tried to stop the boys from tossing a shopping cart to begin with and eventually turned them in when they ran away instead of taking responsibility for their actions.
So...how does this tie into property rights and building codes? And what does Agenda 21 have to do with any of it? Oh, oh, oh, I'm glad you asked!! I love it when I can tie it all together.
"The pedestrian walkway at East River Plaza was erected by a private developer, but if it had been owned by the city, builders would have been required to construct an 8-foot high fence over the wall, city officials said."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/tragic-error-city-loophole-led-cart-toss-horror-walkway-east-harlem-target-article-1.972201
The title of the article is "Tragic error: City loophole led to cart-toss horror on walkway at East Harlem Target."
Therefore, it's not the fault of the boys who threw the shopping cart. It's not the fault of the parents who were not supervising their children. It's the fault of the builder and the city. Really?
First of all, if you're going to have building codes at all, they should be consistent. Why should the city have to build thousands more into the budgets of their building projects for safety devices that privately-owned buildings are not required to have? Either it's needed or it's not, doesn't matter whether the government owns it or Donald Trump owns it! Second of all, you cannot legislate common sense. These boys had been in school for at least six or seven years, surely the schools there aren't so bad that they haven't touched on gravity and momentum in science classes. So I'm guessing they knew a shopping cart dropped from 40 feet was going to make a big bang. They'd already been dropping shushies and seen their cups exploding.
I guess technically if there had been an 8 foot tall one inch mesh barrier curved inward at the top, the boys would not have been able to toss a shopping cart over. OK I'm convinced. Totally not their fault they rolled a cart out from the store or parking garage, picked it up and chucked it over the 42 inch railing.
Since Bill Clinton had an office in Harlem, let's blame him. And Michael Bloomberg is mayor of New York, so it's his fault too. New York is in the United States, so let's not forget to blame President Obama while we're at it.
Agenda 21 proponents want us all in sustainable living zones. Big cities. Where you can go everywhere by foot, bicycle or train. Parts of New York are much like what Agenda 21 invisions...mass transit, high population density, tall buildings. But a tragedy like what happened at the East River Plaza could only happen in an Agenda 21 city. It couldn't happen in Ozark, Missouri. We aren't so crowded here that we have to build multi-level stores and parking garages. I'm safe from falling shopping carts here (I hope).
The UN and proponents of Agenda 21 (sustainable development) want all the people in human zones so the rest of the land can be used as appropriate to raise food. No family farms, no country life. No hunting and fishing for recreation and food. No raising a few chickens for the eggs and a couple of goats for the milk. No backyard garden for a few tomatoes and cucumbers.
Our Federal agencies are doing the best they can to burden farmers with so much regulation that they cannot survive. You have to know the rules to be able to play by them, and you can't understand all the bureaucracy and still have time to make a living. So you do the best you can until you get caught breaking one of their rules. Then they slap you with fines and put you out of business. A bigger operation buys up your land for the taxes and you move into one of the human zones.
Bureaucrats have taken what is supposed to protect our citizens and have turned it around to use it against them. Big commercial farming operations have lawyers to interpret and relationships with inspectors to make sure they stay out of trouble. I believe there have to be some rules in place to keep unsafe food off our tables. Unfortunately, food that may not have bacteria or bugs in it but has been filled with hormones, pesticides, antibiotics and other chemicals does make it to the store and there are no warning labels that say we don't know what this may do to you or your kids 20 or 50 years down the road. If I want to stay away from all this, I have to raise all my food myself. But I can't sell any of it to my neighbor because I have to play by all these rules. I can't band together with 50 other people and each raise something and trade with one another.
This is America! We have to wake up and defend the rights of people who may be doing things we don't agree with or would never do ourselves, but aren't hurting anyone else!
Friday, November 4, 2011
Priorities
I've been thinking a lot over the past year and a half about what is important to me. I guess losing your job and then having your health threatened will do that to you. I am thankful every day that when things started falling apart with me, DH was there to pick up the pieces and keep our family afloat. Since I've not been working, I've had a lot of free time on my hands. I've read books, watched a lot of TV, surfed the Internet, played games on my smart phone. I've been decluttering my house SLOWLY (too slowly for DH, he's ready to rent a dumpster and chuck it all!!) and cooking more. I've been trying to get away from using convenience foods. It really doesn't take much longer to make cheeseburger macaroni from scratch than it does to open a box of Hamburger Helper.
I'm trying very hard to buy local and buy more natural. I read labels of food, I look for more natural alternatives to some of the convenience shortcuts that are common in recipes. I recycle paper and try not to bring things into my home that I don't need, love or use.
And I've gotten more involved in my community. Not just in PTA, but church, the Republican Central Committee and the Ozarks Property Rights Congress. I'm going to public meetings, researching what I hear, blogging about what I think of what I hear. I'm trying to do something about the problems I see around me.
Education problems, erosion of freedoms, lack of personal responsibility. Decision making bodies who were ELECTED by the people rubber-stamping every proposal that comes before them from the superintendent or city attorney or health department director or city manager or planning and zoning administrator, without researching, discussing or getting the opinion of their constituents.
All these meetings are cutting into my TV time. The research I do has cut into my Facebook time. Meal-planning has taken me away from the book I've been trying to read for the past 3 months. Walking into the local coffee shop to get my caffeine fix takes longer than going through the McDonald's drive-thru. But I feel like I'm doing SOMETHING to improve things.
If people like me don't get involved in PTA, church and community/political organizations, then we will get what we've always got. You don't like the way things are going in your PTA? Get involved. Volunteer for stuff, maybe a job no one else wants to do. Let people get to know you. Work your way into becoming a decision maker. And then be a part of the change. Don't just walk away from the group because you don't like how it's going or one of the leaders. Help them see how it could be better. And work to make it better. Don't just complain.
You can replace "PTA" in the paragraph above with any other group you are or would like to be involved in. I use PTA as an example because it was the first organization I got involved in that I stuck around long enough to become part of the change, rather than just get frustrated and quit. And what I've learned from PTA I've taken with me to the other groups I've gotten involved with.
So what is important to me?
Family is at the top of the list. I want my kids to become independent, self-reliant adults. So they have chores and responsibilities around the house. I provide healthy food for my kids and I'm teaching them how to cook and prepare their own food. I tell them I love them every day. I give them opportunities to make choices so they will learn to make good decisions for themselves. I make sure they get to bed at a decent hour and are ready for school each day. I talk to them about what they are learning. I'm available to help with homework but they have to do it themselves. I try not to nag. That's hard. But much better for them to make mistakes now than when they are older and the consequences are greater.
When I think about it, EVERYTHING I do is for my kids. I want them to inherit the best country in the world. I want them to experience the freedom and prosperity that DH and I have experienced. It's an amazing feeling to get out of bed in the morning and know that if you want to pick up and move 1000 miles away, you can start planning and do it. You can get in your car and go anywhere you want. You can buy land and build a house or a barn. You can hunt and fish, own guns and shoot them. You can do almost anything if it doesn't hurt anyone else. Well, kind of.
In some places, you can't sell vegetables you grew in your garden or even give them to your neighbors. You can't milk your goats and sell the milk to someone who wants to buy it. I'm not talking about taking your tomatoes and raw milk down to Price Cutter and letting them sell them to the general public. I mean you can't put an ad in the newspaper or on Craigslist and someone come TO YOU and buy these items.
Why not? If you have something to sell, why can't you sell it? The "powers that be" talk about protecting the public health. They have a point...but at least if I buy milk from John or tomatoes from Bob, I can go back and tell John and Bob if said items made me sick. I have an actual connection to them. I bet John would even let me come look at his milking and bottling operation if I asked. I doubt I could go see where my gallon of milk from Wal-mart was produced.
Where DH grew up, there were multiple meat processing operations (when I say meat, it could be bovine, porcine or poultry, I'm not giving any other details). I know people who worked in some of these plants. I know the stories they have told about things that happened on the line. And the meat that was being processed still made it to grocery store cases, in spite of some questionable sanitary practices.
And I worked in restaurants. Don't even get me started on what I've seen or heard what has happened to food that was served to customers.
Seems to me if you actually KNOW your customers, you might be more likely to make sure you treated the food properly. If you knew your mom was the one who was going to eat that steak, you wouldn't pick it up and throw it on the grill when you dropped it taking it out of the fridge (that was one I actually witnessed for myself. I told the cook to throw it away but he just laughed. I told the manager. He laughed too).
So here's the deal. Give some consideration to your own priorities. What do you want for yourself, for your children, for your country? Do you think we are headed in the right direction? If you think not, get involved! Involvement can be as little as making a donation to a worthy organization or reading a news article or blog about what's going on. Or it can be as much as starting your own organization or your own blog and informing as many people as possible. Or anywhere in between. But I will warn you...once you start paying attention, you will have trouble stopping.
But in the long run, I think it will be more beneficial than keeping up with the Kardashians.
I'm trying very hard to buy local and buy more natural. I read labels of food, I look for more natural alternatives to some of the convenience shortcuts that are common in recipes. I recycle paper and try not to bring things into my home that I don't need, love or use.
And I've gotten more involved in my community. Not just in PTA, but church, the Republican Central Committee and the Ozarks Property Rights Congress. I'm going to public meetings, researching what I hear, blogging about what I think of what I hear. I'm trying to do something about the problems I see around me.
Education problems, erosion of freedoms, lack of personal responsibility. Decision making bodies who were ELECTED by the people rubber-stamping every proposal that comes before them from the superintendent or city attorney or health department director or city manager or planning and zoning administrator, without researching, discussing or getting the opinion of their constituents.
All these meetings are cutting into my TV time. The research I do has cut into my Facebook time. Meal-planning has taken me away from the book I've been trying to read for the past 3 months. Walking into the local coffee shop to get my caffeine fix takes longer than going through the McDonald's drive-thru. But I feel like I'm doing SOMETHING to improve things.
If people like me don't get involved in PTA, church and community/political organizations, then we will get what we've always got. You don't like the way things are going in your PTA? Get involved. Volunteer for stuff, maybe a job no one else wants to do. Let people get to know you. Work your way into becoming a decision maker. And then be a part of the change. Don't just walk away from the group because you don't like how it's going or one of the leaders. Help them see how it could be better. And work to make it better. Don't just complain.
You can replace "PTA" in the paragraph above with any other group you are or would like to be involved in. I use PTA as an example because it was the first organization I got involved in that I stuck around long enough to become part of the change, rather than just get frustrated and quit. And what I've learned from PTA I've taken with me to the other groups I've gotten involved with.
So what is important to me?
Family is at the top of the list. I want my kids to become independent, self-reliant adults. So they have chores and responsibilities around the house. I provide healthy food for my kids and I'm teaching them how to cook and prepare their own food. I tell them I love them every day. I give them opportunities to make choices so they will learn to make good decisions for themselves. I make sure they get to bed at a decent hour and are ready for school each day. I talk to them about what they are learning. I'm available to help with homework but they have to do it themselves. I try not to nag. That's hard. But much better for them to make mistakes now than when they are older and the consequences are greater.
When I think about it, EVERYTHING I do is for my kids. I want them to inherit the best country in the world. I want them to experience the freedom and prosperity that DH and I have experienced. It's an amazing feeling to get out of bed in the morning and know that if you want to pick up and move 1000 miles away, you can start planning and do it. You can get in your car and go anywhere you want. You can buy land and build a house or a barn. You can hunt and fish, own guns and shoot them. You can do almost anything if it doesn't hurt anyone else. Well, kind of.
In some places, you can't sell vegetables you grew in your garden or even give them to your neighbors. You can't milk your goats and sell the milk to someone who wants to buy it. I'm not talking about taking your tomatoes and raw milk down to Price Cutter and letting them sell them to the general public. I mean you can't put an ad in the newspaper or on Craigslist and someone come TO YOU and buy these items.
Why not? If you have something to sell, why can't you sell it? The "powers that be" talk about protecting the public health. They have a point...but at least if I buy milk from John or tomatoes from Bob, I can go back and tell John and Bob if said items made me sick. I have an actual connection to them. I bet John would even let me come look at his milking and bottling operation if I asked. I doubt I could go see where my gallon of milk from Wal-mart was produced.
Where DH grew up, there were multiple meat processing operations (when I say meat, it could be bovine, porcine or poultry, I'm not giving any other details). I know people who worked in some of these plants. I know the stories they have told about things that happened on the line. And the meat that was being processed still made it to grocery store cases, in spite of some questionable sanitary practices.
And I worked in restaurants. Don't even get me started on what I've seen or heard what has happened to food that was served to customers.
Seems to me if you actually KNOW your customers, you might be more likely to make sure you treated the food properly. If you knew your mom was the one who was going to eat that steak, you wouldn't pick it up and throw it on the grill when you dropped it taking it out of the fridge (that was one I actually witnessed for myself. I told the cook to throw it away but he just laughed. I told the manager. He laughed too).
So here's the deal. Give some consideration to your own priorities. What do you want for yourself, for your children, for your country? Do you think we are headed in the right direction? If you think not, get involved! Involvement can be as little as making a donation to a worthy organization or reading a news article or blog about what's going on. Or it can be as much as starting your own organization or your own blog and informing as many people as possible. Or anywhere in between. But I will warn you...once you start paying attention, you will have trouble stopping.
But in the long run, I think it will be more beneficial than keeping up with the Kardashians.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Upcoming events
Here's a couple of upcoming events...
The Christian County Chapter of the Ozarks Property Rights Congress will meet Thursday, November 3 at 7 PM at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 877 State Hwy JJ, Sparta (take Hwy 14 east through Ozark, turn north on JJ, church is about 3/4 mile on left). We meet in the fellowship hall unless the group is huge and we'll move to the sanctuary. This is not a church service, just a group of concerned citizens who have decided to DO something about our eroding personal freedom and big government encroachment on our property rights.
This month Doreen Hannes will be explaining Codex Alimentarius. If you've never heard of, this is directly from their official website:
"The Codex Alimentarius Commission was created in 1963 by FAO and WHO to develop food standards, guidelines and related texts such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme. The main purposes of this Programme are protecting health of the consumers and ensuring fair trade practices in the food trade, and promoting coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international governmental and non-governmental organizations."
Guess where this originates? (I'll give you a hint...the key words are "Programme" and "non-governmental organizations.") If you said United Nations, ding ding ding, you are correct!! A gold star for you.
So what's the problem? Don't we need safe food? Of course we do, but they keep over-reaching! Forcing private citizens to adhere to the same standards for their personal food supplies encroaches on individual rights. If I want to raise a cow or goat and drink unpasteurized milk from it, why shouldn't I make that decision for myself? Or if I want to buy unpasteurized milk from an individual, knowing the risks, why shouldn't I? There are certainly no labels on pasteurized cows milk that say we use hormones to make our cows produce more milk and we have no idea what problems this may cause in the future or in children who get much of their daily caloric intake from milk! But I digress.
She will also talk about the "China Hub," a plan to open up trade between China and the Midwest, using St. Louis Lambert Airport as the "hub." As usual, the devil is in the details.
Doreen knows these subjects inside and out and I'm looking forward to hearing what she has to say.
So be there!! Questions? Email help@StopFarmerCDLs.Com or klanehall@gmail.com or call Bob Estep at 417 844 8406 or Mike Wasson 417 634 5679
The other event is somewhat political in nature...
"The 7th District Congressional Republican Committee, the Missouri Federated Republican Women and the Evangel College Republicans will present an ABC (About Basic Campaigning) grassroots custom workshop for candidates, campaign workers, grassroots activists or any Republican interested in learning the political process of a successful campaign."
This will be held Saturday, November 5, 2011 from 8 am to 5 pm at Evangel University, Trask Hall Room 101, 1111 N. Glenstone, Springfield, MO
It's $25 but free for students with a current school ID (not just Evangel students or even college students...political teens welcome!!) The fee includes lunch. Casual dress.
I will be there and I just e-mailed Mavis Busiek this morning and there are still a few seats left. If you're interested, e-mail her at mbusiek@aol.com or call her at 417 864 4333 or find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Missouri7thDistrictCRC
School board and Bill Randles blogs coming soon...I promise!!
The Christian County Chapter of the Ozarks Property Rights Congress will meet Thursday, November 3 at 7 PM at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 877 State Hwy JJ, Sparta (take Hwy 14 east through Ozark, turn north on JJ, church is about 3/4 mile on left). We meet in the fellowship hall unless the group is huge and we'll move to the sanctuary. This is not a church service, just a group of concerned citizens who have decided to DO something about our eroding personal freedom and big government encroachment on our property rights.
This month Doreen Hannes will be explaining Codex Alimentarius. If you've never heard of, this is directly from their official website:
"The Codex Alimentarius Commission was created in 1963 by FAO and WHO to develop food standards, guidelines and related texts such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme. The main purposes of this Programme are protecting health of the consumers and ensuring fair trade practices in the food trade, and promoting coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international governmental and non-governmental organizations."
Guess where this originates? (I'll give you a hint...the key words are "Programme" and "non-governmental organizations.") If you said United Nations, ding ding ding, you are correct!! A gold star for you.
So what's the problem? Don't we need safe food? Of course we do, but they keep over-reaching! Forcing private citizens to adhere to the same standards for their personal food supplies encroaches on individual rights. If I want to raise a cow or goat and drink unpasteurized milk from it, why shouldn't I make that decision for myself? Or if I want to buy unpasteurized milk from an individual, knowing the risks, why shouldn't I? There are certainly no labels on pasteurized cows milk that say we use hormones to make our cows produce more milk and we have no idea what problems this may cause in the future or in children who get much of their daily caloric intake from milk! But I digress.
She will also talk about the "China Hub," a plan to open up trade between China and the Midwest, using St. Louis Lambert Airport as the "hub." As usual, the devil is in the details.
Doreen knows these subjects inside and out and I'm looking forward to hearing what she has to say.
So be there!! Questions? Email help@StopFarmerCDLs.Com or klanehall@gmail.com or call Bob Estep at 417 844 8406 or Mike Wasson 417 634 5679
The other event is somewhat political in nature...
"The 7th District Congressional Republican Committee, the Missouri Federated Republican Women and the Evangel College Republicans will present an ABC (About Basic Campaigning) grassroots custom workshop for candidates, campaign workers, grassroots activists or any Republican interested in learning the political process of a successful campaign."
This will be held Saturday, November 5, 2011 from 8 am to 5 pm at Evangel University, Trask Hall Room 101, 1111 N. Glenstone, Springfield, MO
It's $25 but free for students with a current school ID (not just Evangel students or even college students...political teens welcome!!) The fee includes lunch. Casual dress.
I will be there and I just e-mailed Mavis Busiek this morning and there are still a few seats left. If you're interested, e-mail her at mbusiek@aol.com or call her at 417 864 4333 or find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Missouri7thDistrictCRC
School board and Bill Randles blogs coming soon...I promise!!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Attention farmers!!
Attention farmers and anyone who has family farms or uses kids under the age of 16 to help haul hay, tend to animals, etc. The DOL is looking to put MORE restrictions on kids working on farms. Make your opinion known! We only have until November 1 to give comments.
Click on the above link to comment.
Here is the letter from Farm Bureau
MISSOURI FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
P.O. Box 658, 701 South Country Club Drive, Jefferson City, MO 65102 / (573) 893-1400
MEMORANDUM
October 19, 2011
TO: County Farm Bureau Leaders
FROM: Garrett Hawkins, Director, National Legislative Programs
RE: Urgent Action Needed!
The regulatory onslaught at the federal level continues, but this time itfs coming from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and agriculture is the target. Proposed changes in federal child labor rules, if finalized, will place more restrictions on what youth can do on the farm, increasing legal liabilities for farm families and forcing changes in the way some operators plant, harvest, handle livestock, etc. The regulations would also limit hands-on training opportunities afforded through high school agricultural education programs.
The negative impact of this rule would be felt as soon as it is finalized, and for generations of farmers to come. All farm and ranch employers affected by this proposal are encouraged to submit comments to the DOL and send copies to members of Congress. The deadline to submit comments is November 1.
Background and Potential Impacts:
This rulemaking has been in the works within the DOL for nearly a year and half and is the first significant update to the child labor rule since it was promulgated in 1970. DOL says the proposal continues to exempt family farms and does not provide protections for 16- and 17-year-olds. The changes apply to youth under age 16.
The DOL proposal could affect your operation by:
. Restricting the \Parental Exemption. rule so that farms operated by partnerships and corporations may not benefit. As a result, the rule does not take into account the ownership patterns and operations of family farms because many family farms involve different members and generations of the same family working on the farm. DOL wants to limit the \family farm. exemption solely to the children of the owner or operator of a farm. Other family youth.nieces, nephews or grandchildren.would be restricted in what jobs they could do on the family farm by this rule.
. Calling into question longstanding practices in agriculture, including livestock welfare, planting, operating a tractor, and harvesting of fruits and vegetables, working near grain bins & elevators, silos, and livestock barns.
. Affecting standard education and training for future farmers by reducing on-farm learning opportunities. A student-learner on a farm must satisfactorily complete at least 90 hours of systematic school instruction in agricultural education at or above the 8th grade level before working on the farm.and even then the exemption would only apply to power-driven equipment.
. Setting a maximum height restriction of 6 feet (no work on roofs, scaffolds, elevated farm structures, vehicles, machines and implements at elevations greater than 6 feet).
. Prohibiting young hired workers from engaging and assisting in many animal husbandry practices to include those than inflict pain upon the animal and/or are likely to result in unpredictable animal behavior such as, but not limited to, branding, breeding, dehorning, vaccinating, castrating, and treating sick or injured animals. The prohibition would also include herding animals in confined spaces such as feed lots or corrals, or on horseback, or using motorized vehicles such as trucks or all terrain vehicles.
. Potentially preventing youth from working under \extreme temperatures. (e.g., harvesting fruit) or being paid piece rate wages for such jobs. DOL contends it is seeking input to prevent heat-related illnesses and injury to workers in the field.
. The Department of Labor rule does not take into account the unique organization of family farms being owned and operated by many members and generations of one family.
. Farms and ranches provide a unique educational and training experience to learn about horticulture, animal care & welfare, equipment operation, environmental protection among other unique opportunities found exclusively on a farm.
. Traditional farm activities performed by youth are threatened by this rule.
. Family members and other workers on the farm are protected by numerous laws and regulations. Parts of this rule represent regulatory over-reach. It does not recognize the unique structure of today's family farm operations and the traditions that the family farm provides to all workers.
Click on the above link to comment.
Here is the letter from Farm Bureau
MISSOURI FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
P.O. Box 658, 701 South Country Club Drive, Jefferson City, MO 65102 / (573) 893-1400
MEMORANDUM
October 19, 2011
TO: County Farm Bureau Leaders
FROM: Garrett Hawkins, Director, National Legislative Programs
RE: Urgent Action Needed!
The regulatory onslaught at the federal level continues, but this time itfs coming from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and agriculture is the target. Proposed changes in federal child labor rules, if finalized, will place more restrictions on what youth can do on the farm, increasing legal liabilities for farm families and forcing changes in the way some operators plant, harvest, handle livestock, etc. The regulations would also limit hands-on training opportunities afforded through high school agricultural education programs.
The negative impact of this rule would be felt as soon as it is finalized, and for generations of farmers to come. All farm and ranch employers affected by this proposal are encouraged to submit comments to the DOL and send copies to members of Congress. The deadline to submit comments is November 1.
Background and Potential Impacts:
This rulemaking has been in the works within the DOL for nearly a year and half and is the first significant update to the child labor rule since it was promulgated in 1970. DOL says the proposal continues to exempt family farms and does not provide protections for 16- and 17-year-olds. The changes apply to youth under age 16.
The DOL proposal could affect your operation by:
. Restricting the \Parental Exemption. rule so that farms operated by partnerships and corporations may not benefit. As a result, the rule does not take into account the ownership patterns and operations of family farms because many family farms involve different members and generations of the same family working on the farm. DOL wants to limit the \family farm. exemption solely to the children of the owner or operator of a farm. Other family youth.nieces, nephews or grandchildren.would be restricted in what jobs they could do on the family farm by this rule.
. Calling into question longstanding practices in agriculture, including livestock welfare, planting, operating a tractor, and harvesting of fruits and vegetables, working near grain bins & elevators, silos, and livestock barns.
. Affecting standard education and training for future farmers by reducing on-farm learning opportunities. A student-learner on a farm must satisfactorily complete at least 90 hours of systematic school instruction in agricultural education at or above the 8th grade level before working on the farm.and even then the exemption would only apply to power-driven equipment.
. Setting a maximum height restriction of 6 feet (no work on roofs, scaffolds, elevated farm structures, vehicles, machines and implements at elevations greater than 6 feet).
. Prohibiting young hired workers from engaging and assisting in many animal husbandry practices to include those than inflict pain upon the animal and/or are likely to result in unpredictable animal behavior such as, but not limited to, branding, breeding, dehorning, vaccinating, castrating, and treating sick or injured animals. The prohibition would also include herding animals in confined spaces such as feed lots or corrals, or on horseback, or using motorized vehicles such as trucks or all terrain vehicles.
. Potentially preventing youth from working under \extreme temperatures. (e.g., harvesting fruit) or being paid piece rate wages for such jobs. DOL contends it is seeking input to prevent heat-related illnesses and injury to workers in the field.
. The Department of Labor rule does not take into account the unique organization of family farms being owned and operated by many members and generations of one family.
. Farms and ranches provide a unique educational and training experience to learn about horticulture, animal care & welfare, equipment operation, environmental protection among other unique opportunities found exclusively on a farm.
. Traditional farm activities performed by youth are threatened by this rule.
. Family members and other workers on the farm are protected by numerous laws and regulations. Parts of this rule represent regulatory over-reach. It does not recognize the unique structure of today's family farm operations and the traditions that the family farm provides to all workers.
Congressman Billy Long Listening Sessions this week around District 7
Congressman Billy Long is holding Listening Sessions around District 7 this week. He'll be in Nixa Thursday morning and Springfield Friday morning. We need as many people as possible to show up and let him know what we want him to do in Congress!!
Here is his newsletter.
October 22, 2011
The best policy doesn't start in DC; it usually starts in the District, with a common sense idea from a constituent. That's why we're making it easier for you to let us know your thoughts and hear your suggestions.
We'll be holding listening sessions all across the District next week. I hope you can drop by one next week as members of my staff will be in every county in the 7th District to personally answer any questions or concerns you might have. Below is the schedule and I encourage everyone to go and make your voices heard.
Monday, October 24:
9:00am – Newton
Newton County Courthouse, basement conference room, 101 S. Wood Street, Neosho
2:00pm – McDonald
McDonald County Courthouse, hallway outside Commissioner’s office, 602 Main Street, Pineville
Tuesday, October 25:
9:00am – Jasper
Joplin Public Library, Large meeting room, 300 Main Street, Joplin
2:00pm – Lawrence
Aurora Branch Library, Community Room, 202 Jefferson, Aurora, 65605
Wednesday, October 26:
9:00am – Barry
Cassville Library, Downstairs Meeting Room, 301 W. 17th St., Cassville
2:00pm – Stone
Stone County Library, 323 State Hwy. 248, Galena
Thursday, October 27:
9:00am – Christian
Nixa City Hall, Chamber Conference Room, 715 West Mt. Vernon Street, Nixa
2:00pm –Taney
Branson City Hall, Municipal Court Room, 2nd Floor, 110 West Maddux, Branson
Friday, October 28:
9:00am – Greene County
The Library Center, Meeting Room B, 4653 South Campbell, Springfield
2:00pm – Polk
Polk County Library, Meeting Room, 1690 West Broadway, Bolivar
Here is his newsletter.
October 22, 2011
The best policy doesn't start in DC; it usually starts in the District, with a common sense idea from a constituent. That's why we're making it easier for you to let us know your thoughts and hear your suggestions.
We'll be holding listening sessions all across the District next week. I hope you can drop by one next week as members of my staff will be in every county in the 7th District to personally answer any questions or concerns you might have. Below is the schedule and I encourage everyone to go and make your voices heard.
Monday, October 24:
9:00am – Newton
Newton County Courthouse, basement conference room, 101 S. Wood Street, Neosho
2:00pm – McDonald
McDonald County Courthouse, hallway outside Commissioner’s office, 602 Main Street, Pineville
Tuesday, October 25:
9:00am – Jasper
Joplin Public Library, Large meeting room, 300 Main Street, Joplin
2:00pm – Lawrence
Aurora Branch Library, Community Room, 202 Jefferson, Aurora, 65605
Wednesday, October 26:
9:00am – Barry
Cassville Library, Downstairs Meeting Room, 301 W. 17th St., Cassville
2:00pm – Stone
Stone County Library, 323 State Hwy. 248, Galena
Thursday, October 27:
9:00am – Christian
Nixa City Hall, Chamber Conference Room, 715 West Mt. Vernon Street, Nixa
2:00pm –Taney
Branson City Hall, Municipal Court Room, 2nd Floor, 110 West Maddux, Branson
Friday, October 28:
9:00am – Greene County
The Library Center, Meeting Room B, 4653 South Campbell, Springfield
2:00pm – Polk
Polk County Library, Meeting Room, 1690 West Broadway, Bolivar
Monday, October 17, 2011
Ozark Board of Aldermen 10/17/11
Generally speaking, I find most public meetings to be pretty boring. I think most people would agree with me. That's probably why there were only 8 people at tonight's Board of Aldermen meeting and 5 of those were on the agenda to speak. Two of those were city employees who were required to be there.
It was pretty much a boring, routine meeting. They passed a resolution to sign a cooperative agreement with the city of Springfield for pictometry for sectors of Greene and Christian Counties. That's fancy talk that means the city of Springfield is paying for aerial photos of the area and the city of Ozark is gonna pay them for our part. It's $5200, which seems like a bargain to me. And I guess it's precise enough to see if you've put in a swimming pool or a new deck on the back of your house so they can up your tax assessment. Of course I'm sure that's not the reason they're doing it.
They passed a couple of bills changing some language in the Code of Ordinances of the City of Ozark. That's when it got interesting, at least to me. Not because of the language changes...all they were doing was striking some old paragraphs and replacing them with some new paragraphs and changing "Mayor and Board of Aldermen" to "Board of Aldermen meetings." No, what interested me is that one of the aldermen, the Mayor Pro-Tem, according to his name plate, was ready to throw out the entire ordinance because there were a couple of amendments. The amendments were pretty minor. They had to do with whether absent aldermen could participate in meetings via electronic means and/or vote either by electronic means or by proxy.
My opinion of that is that there are very few times something must be acted on immediately. If they have a quorum they should do business as usual. If they don't have a quorum, really, what can't wait two weeks? I'm sure there are times when something can't wait, but I seriously can't think of any off the top of my head. Certainly members should not be proxy voting or voting by text, e-mail or fax except in extreme emergencies. The whole point of a public meeting is to hear discussion about an issue. If you're voting on it without hearing the discussion, what is the point of the discussion?
Finally they passed the amendments and eventually the ordinance. But I was surprised at the Mayor Pro-Tem's lack of knowledge of parliamentary procedure. Maybe they don't often amend ordinances or amend amendments to ordinances. Why not? Do they normally just rubber stamp everything as it comes from the city attorney and city administrator's recommendations? Surely not! I hope not anyway! A ordinance that comes before the board should be well thought out but the board has a responsibility to study the proposal and make changes as they discuss it and think about it. If they throw it out and start over every time there are amendments they are wasting a lot of time.
I recommend the Mayor Pro-Tem visit and get his very own copy of RONRIB (Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief) and brush up on parliamentary procedure. It's too bad he's not a PTA mom, he could have joined us in Columbia last weekend and saw excellent parliamentary procedure in action.
They plowed through lots of other business, approved buying a new zero turn lawnmower, got an update on the new utility billing cycles that start next month and then moved on to the most interesting part of the meeting.
A resident came and asked the city to fix the sidewalk in front of his house because he has been having drainage problems. He had already come before the Board of Aldermen two years ago asking for the same thing, and his request had been denied. But apparently, over the course of the time this guy has been seeking out assistance with this problem, he's been told yes the city will fix it, no the city will not fix it, yes they will, no they won't. And on and on. Certainly all involved will agree he's gotten the runaround.
But...and to me this is a VERY BIG BUT...he freely admits he has drainage problems both in his front yard and in the back. He's already obtained an easement across his neighbor's property so he can put in some drainage to tie into the city's storm drains. He's been having water problems with big rains for close to five years. I know in five years the Finley River has overflowed its banks and flooded the park at least once a year so I imagine he's had a lot of water over at his place multiple times as well. And he still hasn't done anything about it.
He's waiting for the city to lower the sidewalk in front of his house by anywhere from 1.2 inches to 3.6 inches before he puts in drains. Seriously? What if the city spends the time and money to do this and it still doesn't fix his drainage problems? Seems to me he should be a responsible landowner and do his part first. If he still has problems in the front yard, then he should approach the city.
He and the president of his homeowner's association seem to think because the city's building inspectors approved the sidewalk, they should fix it. However, the city did not build it, the contractor did. I guess if the contractor did it wrong and the city approved it, they are both in the wrong. I believe the reality is that this place was built when there was a construction boom in the area and I'm sure some things maybe slipped through the cracks. It's certainly possible there has been some erosion or settling in his yard, causing the sidewalk to be higher than the surrounding ground. Wouldn't you want the sidewalk higher? I honestly don't know. We don't even have sidewalks in my neighborhood. I'm not sure I've ever lived anywhere where there were sidewalks.
In any case, it's his property flooding! It's his property getting water damage! Is the city of Ozark going to come over here if my basement floods after a big rain and fix it? I highly doubt it. Oh, by the way, my basement is dry as a bone. If it wasn't, I'd fix it. OK well I wouldn't but I would pay someone who knows what they are doing to do it.
Two of the aldermen, one from Ward III and one from Ward I, both mentioned the idea of personal responsibility and gave examples of what they had themselves done to deal with stormwater problems. Ward III even went so far as to ask why Ozark taxpayers should have to pay for this. The Mayor also cited personal responsibility.
However, in the end, they decided to take it under advisement and come to a decision at the next meeting. I really hope they stick to their guns. To me it sets a dangerous precedent to for the city to go around paying for stormwater problems, especially when a landowner hasn't even made an effort to fix the part of the problem all agree is his responsibility.
I've lived here for eight years and this was my first Board of Aldermen's meeting. It won't be my last. I'm awake. I'm paying attention. And I'm not going away.
It was pretty much a boring, routine meeting. They passed a resolution to sign a cooperative agreement with the city of Springfield for pictometry for sectors of Greene and Christian Counties. That's fancy talk that means the city of Springfield is paying for aerial photos of the area and the city of Ozark is gonna pay them for our part. It's $5200, which seems like a bargain to me. And I guess it's precise enough to see if you've put in a swimming pool or a new deck on the back of your house so they can up your tax assessment. Of course I'm sure that's not the reason they're doing it.
They passed a couple of bills changing some language in the Code of Ordinances of the City of Ozark. That's when it got interesting, at least to me. Not because of the language changes...all they were doing was striking some old paragraphs and replacing them with some new paragraphs and changing "Mayor and Board of Aldermen" to "Board of Aldermen meetings." No, what interested me is that one of the aldermen, the Mayor Pro-Tem, according to his name plate, was ready to throw out the entire ordinance because there were a couple of amendments. The amendments were pretty minor. They had to do with whether absent aldermen could participate in meetings via electronic means and/or vote either by electronic means or by proxy.
My opinion of that is that there are very few times something must be acted on immediately. If they have a quorum they should do business as usual. If they don't have a quorum, really, what can't wait two weeks? I'm sure there are times when something can't wait, but I seriously can't think of any off the top of my head. Certainly members should not be proxy voting or voting by text, e-mail or fax except in extreme emergencies. The whole point of a public meeting is to hear discussion about an issue. If you're voting on it without hearing the discussion, what is the point of the discussion?
Finally they passed the amendments and eventually the ordinance. But I was surprised at the Mayor Pro-Tem's lack of knowledge of parliamentary procedure. Maybe they don't often amend ordinances or amend amendments to ordinances. Why not? Do they normally just rubber stamp everything as it comes from the city attorney and city administrator's recommendations? Surely not! I hope not anyway! A ordinance that comes before the board should be well thought out but the board has a responsibility to study the proposal and make changes as they discuss it and think about it. If they throw it out and start over every time there are amendments they are wasting a lot of time.
I recommend the Mayor Pro-Tem visit and get his very own copy of RONRIB (Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief) and brush up on parliamentary procedure. It's too bad he's not a PTA mom, he could have joined us in Columbia last weekend and saw excellent parliamentary procedure in action.
They plowed through lots of other business, approved buying a new zero turn lawnmower, got an update on the new utility billing cycles that start next month and then moved on to the most interesting part of the meeting.
A resident came and asked the city to fix the sidewalk in front of his house because he has been having drainage problems. He had already come before the Board of Aldermen two years ago asking for the same thing, and his request had been denied. But apparently, over the course of the time this guy has been seeking out assistance with this problem, he's been told yes the city will fix it, no the city will not fix it, yes they will, no they won't. And on and on. Certainly all involved will agree he's gotten the runaround.
But...and to me this is a VERY BIG BUT...he freely admits he has drainage problems both in his front yard and in the back. He's already obtained an easement across his neighbor's property so he can put in some drainage to tie into the city's storm drains. He's been having water problems with big rains for close to five years. I know in five years the Finley River has overflowed its banks and flooded the park at least once a year so I imagine he's had a lot of water over at his place multiple times as well. And he still hasn't done anything about it.
He's waiting for the city to lower the sidewalk in front of his house by anywhere from 1.2 inches to 3.6 inches before he puts in drains. Seriously? What if the city spends the time and money to do this and it still doesn't fix his drainage problems? Seems to me he should be a responsible landowner and do his part first. If he still has problems in the front yard, then he should approach the city.
He and the president of his homeowner's association seem to think because the city's building inspectors approved the sidewalk, they should fix it. However, the city did not build it, the contractor did. I guess if the contractor did it wrong and the city approved it, they are both in the wrong. I believe the reality is that this place was built when there was a construction boom in the area and I'm sure some things maybe slipped through the cracks. It's certainly possible there has been some erosion or settling in his yard, causing the sidewalk to be higher than the surrounding ground. Wouldn't you want the sidewalk higher? I honestly don't know. We don't even have sidewalks in my neighborhood. I'm not sure I've ever lived anywhere where there were sidewalks.
In any case, it's his property flooding! It's his property getting water damage! Is the city of Ozark going to come over here if my basement floods after a big rain and fix it? I highly doubt it. Oh, by the way, my basement is dry as a bone. If it wasn't, I'd fix it. OK well I wouldn't but I would pay someone who knows what they are doing to do it.
Two of the aldermen, one from Ward III and one from Ward I, both mentioned the idea of personal responsibility and gave examples of what they had themselves done to deal with stormwater problems. Ward III even went so far as to ask why Ozark taxpayers should have to pay for this. The Mayor also cited personal responsibility.
However, in the end, they decided to take it under advisement and come to a decision at the next meeting. I really hope they stick to their guns. To me it sets a dangerous precedent to for the city to go around paying for stormwater problems, especially when a landowner hasn't even made an effort to fix the part of the problem all agree is his responsibility.
I've lived here for eight years and this was my first Board of Aldermen's meeting. It won't be my last. I'm awake. I'm paying attention. And I'm not going away.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Introduction
A year ago at this time, I was an unemployed RN fighting breast cancer. I was recovering from surgery, smack in the middle of chemo. Definitely one of the low points of my life. Today, I'm a year older and trying to become somewhat wiser.
In the fall of 2010, my children's school district decided to implement International Baccalaureate as an educational opportunity for juniors and seniors. Having been somewhat of an overachiever in high school myself, I was excited about the prospect of bringing such a prestigious program to our school. And we were in luck, because my son's class would be the first class to be able to participate.
However, our school board seemed like they were being a little sneaky in implementing the program, since it was presented, with no opportunity for public input, and then voted on in the same meeting. With other new programs in the past, usually the proposal was presented and then voted upon at the next meeting, with time for people to comment if they signed up to be on the agenda to speak either for or against the proposal. So when our school board pushed it through, if you will, there was some understandable public backlash.
A high school teacher got very involved with trying to get the word out that maybe this program was not the best choice for our school. He started a local campaign to question IB. Of course, he and the public were informed that it was a done deal; they had already started the application process and allocated the funds to support it. It kept coming up though, and the school board invited a prominent physician from the big city who had previously served on the big city school board where one of the schools had had IB for about twenty years. The physician's son, now an attorney in the prosecutor's office, had graduated from the program. They both spoke at length about how wonderful the program was and how it was so beneficial to his education. He even said IB was harder than law school.
Wow. That's hard. I assume, since I've never been to law school. Maybe I would have been better prepared for college had I taken such rigorous coursework in high school. Maybe my son would get into a better school or even do better in college if he got an IB diploma. I was sold.
But some nagging doubts kept popping up. It always bothers me when an organization pushes something through, and this certainly concerned me since they were discussing decreased state funding and impending budget cuts in our schools. With all these cuts, it seemed a little fishy that they wanted to add another program, one that realistically would only benefit a few students. So I started doing some research and I found that the IB program seemed to be deeply ingrained in United Nations values. In fact, UNESCO did indeed initially fund the program until 1976 (along with the 20th Century Fund and the Ford Foundation). Now schools with IB pay a subscription fee to use the program.
I personally believe the UN wants to make the standard of living in every country the same, not by raising Third World nations up, but by bringing developed nations down. If you read Agenda 21 on the UN's own website, they spell it out quite plainly that "the developmental and environmental objectives of Agenda 21 will require a substantial flow of new and additional financial resources to developing countries, in order to cover the incremental costs for the actions they have to undertake to deal with global environmental problems and to accelerate sustainable development," (Agenda 21, Preamble, paragraph 1.4). In other words, income redistribution. I hate poverty as much as the next guy, but I don't think I should have to become poor so that someone else can be less poor.
In any case, it looks like this wonderful educational "programme" may only serve to brainwash my children in globalism and undermine their belief in American exceptionalism. It seems that liberal ideas work their way into the middle of the country by saturating the East and West Coasts first and honestly, IB is just one more way to achieve the goal of creating global citizens.
America didn't get to be the best country in the world, the nation where people everywhere aspire to go, the leader in technology and innovation and the world's only superpower by allowing other nations to decide what we need to do. We started out as a colony, fought the tyranny of King George, revolted and developed our own unique government and when it wasn't working, reconvened to form "a more perfect Union." Our forefathers worked and fought and bled and died to give us the freedom most of us take for granted. They came up with a simple, concise document, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and a manual to use it, the Federalist papers. Other nations study these documents and other revolutionaries have looked to our example when throwing off tyranny themselves.
Call it what you will, but Providence or God or the Man Upstairs allowed the pieces to come together and through the hard work and perseverance of patriots the United States of America came about. But for most of the past sixty years, we have allowed globalists to slowly erode our sovereignty, passing resolutions and ratifying treaties that serve to benefit other nations while putting the US at a distinct disadvantage.
Over the past year, as I've learned more about IB and watched how our nation has spiraled out of control, with soaring unemployment, rising fuel and utility prices, and dwindling economic opportunities, I've felt compelled to get involved. To do something. To turn off stupid reality TV and start paying more attention to politics and public policy. A few months ago I happened to see a hand painted sign giving information and directions to a meeting about property rights. I was intrigued. Then I ate breakfast at my favorite little cafe here in town and saw a postcard laying on the counter when I went to pay that was talking about this same meeting. Then I drove down the road and saw another sign. And I decided maybe all these were coming together to give ME a sign, that I should go check it out.
At first I wasn't sure what to think...they were talking about a lot of things that have nothing to do with me. I live in town, I'm not a farmer, I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist. But I listened, I took notes, I wrote down the names of websites, books and radio shows. I went home and Googled some of the topics discussed and I read over the pages and pages of information they had at the meeting.
Initially some of it seemed a little nutty...but when you meet real, live, normal people who are personally being harassed by the USDA and fined thousands of dollars (which has since turned into millions) for not having a license to sell rabbits WHEN THEY HAD BEEN TOLD BY THE USDA THEY DIDN'T NEED ONE, you start to realize that something is seriously wrong with this system. Then I started digging in to Agenda 21. I've begun looking into the voting records of my representatives, both at the state and national level. I'm paying attention to what the county commission is and is not doing.
And I'm getting involved. Right now our group is pretty loosely organized. We've got people who are passionate about many different issues and we have lots of ideas of where things are headed and what we need to do to rectify the situation. We each have our own perspective and skill set to bring to the table and I believe we are starting to gel into a group that will bring about powerful changes not only to our county, but to our state and our nation as well.
I've been paying attention to politics since Mondale ran against Reagan in 1984 (my daddy was a southern Democrat, but he's since reformed). I don't think I've ever seen an election where the candidates were in such a spotlight this early in the game. The debates and the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street seem to be waking up the sleeping giant, the American people. This is good, this is progress. It's about time!
OK back to IB. I've now decided I will leave it up to my son whether he wants to participate in the program, and at this point I believe he's leaning toward not. I will support his decision either way and he still has plenty of time to change his mind. But all this IB talk has made me realize I need to pay attention to what they are learning in school. I want my kids to learn about history and economics the same way I did, within the framework that our system, a republic and capitalism, are the best in the world. I don't like the idea of teaching our kids that the US is an evil bully. I want them believing we are the best country in the world, not because someone told them but because they've studied our history in light of other countries' histories and our economic system in light of other systems. I want them to learn about the multiple failures of socialism and communism and the successes and downfalls of the Greeks and the Romans. I want them to see where we have been and where we are headed. And I want them to be optimistic about the future. I want them to know they can make a difference.
And so that's why I'm here, why I started this new blog that better reflects what's going on with my life right now. I will still discuss the cancer stuff as it comes up on my other blog, but I'm not sure it's the right place to discuss political strategy and bureaucratic nightmares.
In the fall of 2010, my children's school district decided to implement International Baccalaureate as an educational opportunity for juniors and seniors. Having been somewhat of an overachiever in high school myself, I was excited about the prospect of bringing such a prestigious program to our school. And we were in luck, because my son's class would be the first class to be able to participate.
However, our school board seemed like they were being a little sneaky in implementing the program, since it was presented, with no opportunity for public input, and then voted on in the same meeting. With other new programs in the past, usually the proposal was presented and then voted upon at the next meeting, with time for people to comment if they signed up to be on the agenda to speak either for or against the proposal. So when our school board pushed it through, if you will, there was some understandable public backlash.
A high school teacher got very involved with trying to get the word out that maybe this program was not the best choice for our school. He started a local campaign to question IB. Of course, he and the public were informed that it was a done deal; they had already started the application process and allocated the funds to support it. It kept coming up though, and the school board invited a prominent physician from the big city who had previously served on the big city school board where one of the schools had had IB for about twenty years. The physician's son, now an attorney in the prosecutor's office, had graduated from the program. They both spoke at length about how wonderful the program was and how it was so beneficial to his education. He even said IB was harder than law school.
Wow. That's hard. I assume, since I've never been to law school. Maybe I would have been better prepared for college had I taken such rigorous coursework in high school. Maybe my son would get into a better school or even do better in college if he got an IB diploma. I was sold.
But some nagging doubts kept popping up. It always bothers me when an organization pushes something through, and this certainly concerned me since they were discussing decreased state funding and impending budget cuts in our schools. With all these cuts, it seemed a little fishy that they wanted to add another program, one that realistically would only benefit a few students. So I started doing some research and I found that the IB program seemed to be deeply ingrained in United Nations values. In fact, UNESCO did indeed initially fund the program until 1976 (along with the 20th Century Fund and the Ford Foundation). Now schools with IB pay a subscription fee to use the program.
I personally believe the UN wants to make the standard of living in every country the same, not by raising Third World nations up, but by bringing developed nations down. If you read Agenda 21 on the UN's own website, they spell it out quite plainly that "the developmental and environmental objectives of Agenda 21 will require a substantial flow of new and additional financial resources to developing countries, in order to cover the incremental costs for the actions they have to undertake to deal with global environmental problems and to accelerate sustainable development," (Agenda 21, Preamble, paragraph 1.4). In other words, income redistribution. I hate poverty as much as the next guy, but I don't think I should have to become poor so that someone else can be less poor.
In any case, it looks like this wonderful educational "programme" may only serve to brainwash my children in globalism and undermine their belief in American exceptionalism. It seems that liberal ideas work their way into the middle of the country by saturating the East and West Coasts first and honestly, IB is just one more way to achieve the goal of creating global citizens.
America didn't get to be the best country in the world, the nation where people everywhere aspire to go, the leader in technology and innovation and the world's only superpower by allowing other nations to decide what we need to do. We started out as a colony, fought the tyranny of King George, revolted and developed our own unique government and when it wasn't working, reconvened to form "a more perfect Union." Our forefathers worked and fought and bled and died to give us the freedom most of us take for granted. They came up with a simple, concise document, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and a manual to use it, the Federalist papers. Other nations study these documents and other revolutionaries have looked to our example when throwing off tyranny themselves.
Call it what you will, but Providence or God or the Man Upstairs allowed the pieces to come together and through the hard work and perseverance of patriots the United States of America came about. But for most of the past sixty years, we have allowed globalists to slowly erode our sovereignty, passing resolutions and ratifying treaties that serve to benefit other nations while putting the US at a distinct disadvantage.
Over the past year, as I've learned more about IB and watched how our nation has spiraled out of control, with soaring unemployment, rising fuel and utility prices, and dwindling economic opportunities, I've felt compelled to get involved. To do something. To turn off stupid reality TV and start paying more attention to politics and public policy. A few months ago I happened to see a hand painted sign giving information and directions to a meeting about property rights. I was intrigued. Then I ate breakfast at my favorite little cafe here in town and saw a postcard laying on the counter when I went to pay that was talking about this same meeting. Then I drove down the road and saw another sign. And I decided maybe all these were coming together to give ME a sign, that I should go check it out.
At first I wasn't sure what to think...they were talking about a lot of things that have nothing to do with me. I live in town, I'm not a farmer, I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist. But I listened, I took notes, I wrote down the names of websites, books and radio shows. I went home and Googled some of the topics discussed and I read over the pages and pages of information they had at the meeting.
Initially some of it seemed a little nutty...but when you meet real, live, normal people who are personally being harassed by the USDA and fined thousands of dollars (which has since turned into millions) for not having a license to sell rabbits WHEN THEY HAD BEEN TOLD BY THE USDA THEY DIDN'T NEED ONE, you start to realize that something is seriously wrong with this system. Then I started digging in to Agenda 21. I've begun looking into the voting records of my representatives, both at the state and national level. I'm paying attention to what the county commission is and is not doing.
And I'm getting involved. Right now our group is pretty loosely organized. We've got people who are passionate about many different issues and we have lots of ideas of where things are headed and what we need to do to rectify the situation. We each have our own perspective and skill set to bring to the table and I believe we are starting to gel into a group that will bring about powerful changes not only to our county, but to our state and our nation as well.
I've been paying attention to politics since Mondale ran against Reagan in 1984 (my daddy was a southern Democrat, but he's since reformed). I don't think I've ever seen an election where the candidates were in such a spotlight this early in the game. The debates and the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street seem to be waking up the sleeping giant, the American people. This is good, this is progress. It's about time!
OK back to IB. I've now decided I will leave it up to my son whether he wants to participate in the program, and at this point I believe he's leaning toward not. I will support his decision either way and he still has plenty of time to change his mind. But all this IB talk has made me realize I need to pay attention to what they are learning in school. I want my kids to learn about history and economics the same way I did, within the framework that our system, a republic and capitalism, are the best in the world. I don't like the idea of teaching our kids that the US is an evil bully. I want them believing we are the best country in the world, not because someone told them but because they've studied our history in light of other countries' histories and our economic system in light of other systems. I want them to learn about the multiple failures of socialism and communism and the successes and downfalls of the Greeks and the Romans. I want them to see where we have been and where we are headed. And I want them to be optimistic about the future. I want them to know they can make a difference.
And so that's why I'm here, why I started this new blog that better reflects what's going on with my life right now. I will still discuss the cancer stuff as it comes up on my other blog, but I'm not sure it's the right place to discuss political strategy and bureaucratic nightmares.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Agenda 21, or I'm madder than hell and I ain't gonna take it no more (part 1)
Over the past year, in addition to dealing with fun stuff like unemployment and breast cancer, I've received a crash course in the hidden agenda of the United Nations, specifically Agenda 21.
Now if you Google “Agenda 21,” the first website that comes up is the UN page describing Agenda 21. And if you click through, you can link to read the entire document. It's long, boring and uses terms like “inter alia” and “sustainable development.” And it's all right there on their website, so it's not a “hidden” agenda at all. Right?
Wrong.
The part that's hidden in fancy catchphrases that sound reasonable, such as “sustainable development,” is the erosion of property rights and taking from the “rich” to give to the “poor” so that everyone will be equal. I'm all for helping the poor. I know charitable contributions are vital to the survival of many organizations that do legitimate good works to help those in need. For several years we gave money to Heifer Project International yearly because we believe it's a good program. They help people by giving them animals so they can raise them for food, eggs and milk. The recipients of the animals are then required to pass on an offspring of their animals so others can benefit. In other words, pay it forward.
I like that. God helps those who help themselves. The Heifer Project people also teach them how to manage the land and take care of the animals to make them more environmentally conscious. That's good too. I like the idea of ending hunger, empowering people and saving the world all at the same time.
And then they went and did it. Busted out that “sustainable development” term. It sounds like a good idea, making sure we don't run out of natural resources, making sure the world is still around and usable for our children and grandchildren. It SOUNDS good, but if you dig a little deeper, you find that these schemes serve to limit what we can do with our own private property.
If the best practices of raising livestock and crops are known, and they are not cost prohibitive, most landowners are going to do the right thing. If I have a family farm I plan to pass on to my children, I want it to be usable. I want my children and their children to be able to get as much use as possible out of it. I don't want to pass on a worthless piece of land to them.
But the UN thinks otherwise.
“The broad objective is to facilitate allocation of land to the uses that provide the greatest sustainable benefits and to promote the transition to a sustainable and integrated management of land resources. In doing so, environmental, social and economic issues should be taken into consideration. Protected areas, private property rights, the rights of indigenous people and their communities and other local communities and the economic role of women in agriculture and rural development, among other issues, should be taken into account.” (Agenda 21, Section II, Chapter 10, paragraph 10.5)
In layman's terms, they want to make it easier to make sure land is used with the most sustainable benefits. What's wrong with that? Say you own 1000 acres. In your area, you need roughly one acre per head and you want to raise 1000 head of cattle. Or you could raise corn and yield 160 bushels per acre. Shouldn't you be able to decide what you'd like to raise? What works for your family and your bottom line? Maybe you'd make more money from one but your family has raised the other for four generations?
Enter “sustainable development.” Experts in the Department of Agriculture have determined that your land is best suited to raising corn, and more people can be fed with that corn. So under Agenda 21, they can come in and tell you that you must raise corn. Think it won't happen? I mean, after all, the paragraph quoted mentions “private property rights...local communities and...other issues.” However, look what else was mentioned: the rights of indigenous people (of which 94% of the world's population is NOT), protected areas (government controlled lands, such as national parks, state forests, the city park and the latest trickeration, national heritage areas) and women in agriculture. So if you are say, a white (or black or Hispanic or Asian) male in Missouri, you may not have any property rights if this goes through.
But we live in the good ol' US of A! This can't happen here! Wrong...it already is. Review current planning and zoning policies and practices in your area. Note the mention of sustainable development or sustainablity. It's the latest catchphrase. Sadly, many of the county commissioners, city councilmen, state senators and Congressmen who vote for sustainability don't really even know what it means. But once the terms have worked their way into law, you can bet the people who stand to benefit from the policy change will be first in line to let us know exactly what it means. Look out for organizations such as PETA and the HSUS and environmental wackos who would like nothing more than to send us back to the 19th century. Maybe throw a little Communism in there...From each according to his ability, to each according to his need (Karl Marx, Critique of the Gotha Program, 1875)
“All countries should, as appropriate and in accordance with national plans, objectives and priorities: Promote the use of labour-intensive construction and maintenance technologies which generate employment in the construction sector for the underemployed labour force found in most large cities, while at the same time promoting the development of skills in the construction sector” (Agenda 21, Section I, Chapter 7, paragraph 7.69e)
“Promoting efficient and environmentally sound urban transport systems in all countries should be a comprehensive approach to urban-transport planning and management. To this end, all countries should: integrate land-use and transportation planning to encourage development patterns that reduce transport demand; adopt urban-transport programmes favouring high-occupancy public transport in countries, as appropriate; encourage non-motorized modes of transport by providing safe cycleways and footways in urban and suburban centres in countries, as appropriate” (Agenda 21, Section I, Chapter 7, paragraphs 7.52a-c)
We can all ride our bicycles or the train from our apartments to our inefficient, green jobs (such as swinging a hammer to build a house instead of using a nail gun) so that everyone has a job and no one has any more than anyone else. Hmmm, what does that sound like?
Communist Russia, maybe??
Certainly not the United States of America, founded by Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Not the country that was torn apart by the War Between the States but came back together and within 50 years was a superpower. Not the nation that survived two world wars, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Civil Rights Movement. Not the sovereignty that rose from the ashes of the terrorism of September 11, 2001.
Not my country.
Now if you Google “Agenda 21,” the first website that comes up is the UN page describing Agenda 21. And if you click through, you can link to read the entire document. It's long, boring and uses terms like “inter alia” and “sustainable development.” And it's all right there on their website, so it's not a “hidden” agenda at all. Right?
Wrong.
The part that's hidden in fancy catchphrases that sound reasonable, such as “sustainable development,” is the erosion of property rights and taking from the “rich” to give to the “poor” so that everyone will be equal. I'm all for helping the poor. I know charitable contributions are vital to the survival of many organizations that do legitimate good works to help those in need. For several years we gave money to Heifer Project International yearly because we believe it's a good program. They help people by giving them animals so they can raise them for food, eggs and milk. The recipients of the animals are then required to pass on an offspring of their animals so others can benefit. In other words, pay it forward.
I like that. God helps those who help themselves. The Heifer Project people also teach them how to manage the land and take care of the animals to make them more environmentally conscious. That's good too. I like the idea of ending hunger, empowering people and saving the world all at the same time.
And then they went and did it. Busted out that “sustainable development” term. It sounds like a good idea, making sure we don't run out of natural resources, making sure the world is still around and usable for our children and grandchildren. It SOUNDS good, but if you dig a little deeper, you find that these schemes serve to limit what we can do with our own private property.
If the best practices of raising livestock and crops are known, and they are not cost prohibitive, most landowners are going to do the right thing. If I have a family farm I plan to pass on to my children, I want it to be usable. I want my children and their children to be able to get as much use as possible out of it. I don't want to pass on a worthless piece of land to them.
But the UN thinks otherwise.
“The broad objective is to facilitate allocation of land to the uses that provide the greatest sustainable benefits and to promote the transition to a sustainable and integrated management of land resources. In doing so, environmental, social and economic issues should be taken into consideration. Protected areas, private property rights, the rights of indigenous people and their communities and other local communities and the economic role of women in agriculture and rural development, among other issues, should be taken into account.” (Agenda 21, Section II, Chapter 10, paragraph 10.5)
In layman's terms, they want to make it easier to make sure land is used with the most sustainable benefits. What's wrong with that? Say you own 1000 acres. In your area, you need roughly one acre per head and you want to raise 1000 head of cattle. Or you could raise corn and yield 160 bushels per acre. Shouldn't you be able to decide what you'd like to raise? What works for your family and your bottom line? Maybe you'd make more money from one but your family has raised the other for four generations?
Enter “sustainable development.” Experts in the Department of Agriculture have determined that your land is best suited to raising corn, and more people can be fed with that corn. So under Agenda 21, they can come in and tell you that you must raise corn. Think it won't happen? I mean, after all, the paragraph quoted mentions “private property rights...local communities and...other issues.” However, look what else was mentioned: the rights of indigenous people (of which 94% of the world's population is NOT), protected areas (government controlled lands, such as national parks, state forests, the city park and the latest trickeration, national heritage areas) and women in agriculture. So if you are say, a white (or black or Hispanic or Asian) male in Missouri, you may not have any property rights if this goes through.
But we live in the good ol' US of A! This can't happen here! Wrong...it already is. Review current planning and zoning policies and practices in your area. Note the mention of sustainable development or sustainablity. It's the latest catchphrase. Sadly, many of the county commissioners, city councilmen, state senators and Congressmen who vote for sustainability don't really even know what it means. But once the terms have worked their way into law, you can bet the people who stand to benefit from the policy change will be first in line to let us know exactly what it means. Look out for organizations such as PETA and the HSUS and environmental wackos who would like nothing more than to send us back to the 19th century. Maybe throw a little Communism in there...From each according to his ability, to each according to his need (Karl Marx, Critique of the Gotha Program, 1875)
“All countries should, as appropriate and in accordance with national plans, objectives and priorities: Promote the use of labour-intensive construction and maintenance technologies which generate employment in the construction sector for the underemployed labour force found in most large cities, while at the same time promoting the development of skills in the construction sector” (Agenda 21, Section I, Chapter 7, paragraph 7.69e)
“Promoting efficient and environmentally sound urban transport systems in all countries should be a comprehensive approach to urban-transport planning and management. To this end, all countries should: integrate land-use and transportation planning to encourage development patterns that reduce transport demand; adopt urban-transport programmes favouring high-occupancy public transport in countries, as appropriate; encourage non-motorized modes of transport by providing safe cycleways and footways in urban and suburban centres in countries, as appropriate” (Agenda 21, Section I, Chapter 7, paragraphs 7.52a-c)
We can all ride our bicycles or the train from our apartments to our inefficient, green jobs (such as swinging a hammer to build a house instead of using a nail gun) so that everyone has a job and no one has any more than anyone else. Hmmm, what does that sound like?
Communist Russia, maybe??
Certainly not the United States of America, founded by Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Not the country that was torn apart by the War Between the States but came back together and within 50 years was a superpower. Not the nation that survived two world wars, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Civil Rights Movement. Not the sovereignty that rose from the ashes of the terrorism of September 11, 2001.
Not my country.
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