Pat's Note: I don't agree much with some of this article, you can read
it for yourselves.

But what it does illustrate is the influence that the British 2001 FMD
epidemic had and still has in the US. For good or ill, they swallowed
the various Maff-Defra fabrications whole and built the conclusions
into their Homeland Security.

Giving the poor old British public cock and bull stories to cover
veterinary crime and incompetence is one thing, misleading the Yanks
is quite another.

They are soon going to find out that they have been consistently lied
to for more than a decade and that the majority of risk comes from
live animal movements into the country, not cans of corned beef that
happen to come from your competitors.

The business of shipping Canadian pigs over the border for fattening
and the risks involved are well understood by everyone in the trade
and will be publicised in the COOL complaints and counter charges.

They are not going to be best pleased when they get the whole story of
what has been going on in the UK.

 If I was a member of the RCVS and planning a trip to Disney World in
Florida, I'd learn French quickly and rebook for  Paris.


http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recid=91673

OSU team speaks on dangers of agroterrorismby Janice Francis-Smith

The Journal Record August 27, 2008

OKLAHOMA CITY – Andrew Keighley, age 33, hanged himself at his
father’s farm on a Monday morning in May 2001. His suicide note
revealed he blamed himself for spreading foot-and-mouth disease among
farm animals throughout his community. Keighley had worked odd jobs at
nearby farms after losing his job at the local auction mart, which
after his departure was shut down due to an outbreak of
foot-and-mouth. Keighley left behind two young daughters, according to
BBC News.

Derrell Peel, Disaster Education and Assistance team leader for
OSU-Oklahoma City, speaks about terrorism threats in the realm of
agriculture Tuesday at the state Capitol. (Photo by Maike Sabolich)

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Keighley was one of 60 farmers and ranchers who committed suicide in
the aftermath of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease among cattle in
the United Kingdom, Derrell Peel of Oklahoma State University told
members of the state House Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday. The
U.K’s foot-and-mouth epidemic cost the country the equivalent of
US$6.9 billion – the second-greatest economic disaster the country had
ever seen, bested only by World War II. The animals from 12,000 farms
were “depopulated” in a country roughly the size of the state of
Oregon, said Peel. 

“There isn’t just an economic impact, there are societal impacts to
something like this,” said Peel. “We know of the 60 who committed
suicide, but how many divorces, how much domestic abuse or depression
or drug and alcohol abuse came from this?”

Peel is leader of the Disaster Education and Assistance team at
OSU-Oklahoma City. The team is prepared for a wide range of
agricultural emergencies, from natural disaster to agroterrorism and
criminal incidents, plant and animal disease outbreaks, accidents,
contaminations and toxic spills.

Leslie Cole, also of the OSU team, said foot-and-mouth currently does
not exist in North America thanks to the vigilance of agricultural
groups and government agencies. ....

-- 
Regards
Pat Gardiner
Release the results of testing British pigs for MRSA and C.Diff now!
www.go-self-sufficient.com  and http://animal-epidemics.blogspot.com/