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Nais is an all or nothing type of deal.

Just like controlling head lice in a school. Or the vaccination programs in our school kids.

While there are a _very_ few who don't comply, these things have to get near 100% or they are worthless programs. We are finding that with polio & other outbreaks that are showing up of late.

There is no volintary nais.

You are asking for a totally different program, not nais at all?

Containing a livestock disease outbreak, while still supplying food to a nation & world, when we have such rapid travel & global travel.... That's a real tough deal. Look at what Great Britan & Canada have been through.

No nais is fine & all, but what would you replace it with? How would you help the world? Being anti-something is kind of a safe thing - you don't have to be for anything.

How do you make the world a better plave? You can't by just being negative. You are 'for' things that help you personally - less government. But what are you 'for' that helps others?

No nais - how do you keep the world food supply safe, cheap, and available? 6-8 billion people are depending on you......

--->Paul

NAIS is not a food safety program. USDA says that. The systems in place work great.

Guess what folks, it doesn't matter if NAIS is a good idea. There is NO money!

There are thousands of great ideas for the government to do, even with good intentions. Where do we get the money? Borrow from China? Print more money resulting in inflation? Someday we'd better wake up to the bigger picture.

Yes, there are thousands of threats and boogeymen to fight. Now we have to go after North Korea, as they are a threat - probably cost us another trillion or two. Swine flu was supposed to be a huge threat - billions spent.

Social Security and Medicare are going down the tube. Last I heard there are about $60 trillion dollars of obligations that are unfunded.

And yet, we continue to add more to the list of terrible crises that need emergency programs. Yes, we need to eliminate all risk - cradle to grave. Any possibility whatsoever of harm requires a permanent and endless bureaucracy. Eventually, with enough money and time spent, we'll be completely safe.

There used to be a little piece of paper called a Constitution that limited what the government could do. If we wanted to expand it's powers, a process of passing an amendment was put in place. But that is now considered inconvenient, so we do whatever we feel like in the name of safety. The following explains this clearly and should be mandatory reading for anyone qualified to vote. After all, we elect people who take an oath to support and defend the Constitution.

http://www.hoover.org/publications/p...w/3566517.html

It would be great if the government billed citizens specifically for each program they use and promote. Unfortunately now, those who benefit are getting money from those who don't. Another form of stealing.

DJ, you bring up a lot of good points. There seems to be a lot of grey area, in this black & white world we live in.

If only 'I' (whomever is talking...) could be king for a day, and make the world right & sensible....

Nais was kinda started with a lot of support from livestock producers, and govt ran with it. Turns out there are more sides to an issue, it was thought at the beiginning that everyone would like the positives of the program. Typical govt paperwork ideas.

The only thing for sure; It does not work at all as a volintary program - it's an all or nothing deal.

An alternative would be to ground all airplanes, and curb this global travel. It would save a lot of greenhouse gases, save fuel, save on medical costs & exposure, and cut down on epidemic exposure. Since I don't travel, wouldn't bother me at all, has a lot of pluses for society at this time.

--->Paul

True, "we" have no money, but that inconvenient little fact wont stop the abuse and unconstitutional spending of the scum in congress.

I'm also anti-NIAS. If you think that once NAIS is in place that it will not eventually (or immediately) affect the private, personal property of small farms or at-home food processing you must not be paying attention to the way government works. And speaking of how government works, is there anyone that can honestly say that they will be financially responsible with this program? There is no incentive to be fiscally responsible, or moral, if it's money taken by force (tax dollars).

There is slim-to-nothing that the private industry cannot do better or cheaper than the government. Why not let private, maybe even with SOME government oversight, businesses take on the testing or tracking of the animals for mass food production & distribution? Then those growers who CHOOSE to have their food tagged & inspected could put some sort of seal on their product. Then, those who feel that the "seal" meant something, they could CHOOSE to buy that product.....or not.

But the government won't let that happen. Too much money to be made for their "friends" in the loop already, mouths drooling over all the government money they will receive.

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I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them. - Thomas Jefferson

Because there is money to be made (for the gov't) in the horse industry, and horses are used for food.

I'm of the mindset that NAIS is just another way for gov't to get more control and get bigger. I don't like that. How about getting USDA inspectors to actually do their job and keep sick animals from entering the slaughter house. That might help a bit. NAIS is just going to hurt the small farmer and the individuals who raise livestock to feed their own families.

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Kelly R.
Please visit my Etsy store KWRosasCreations

If you've been involved in NAIS, you've probably heard of Doreen Hannes. Check out her testimony to NAIS a couple weeks ago at

"keep sick animals from entering the slaughterhouse"?????
How is that humanly possible? There are plenty of animal diseases that don't show up by test or observation. We've been thru this a few times already, you can't afford to test every animal for every possible disease all the time. NAIS isn't about keeping eColi off a side of beef. It is animal health, locating where the disease might be. Not too long ago two cows in Nebraska were found to have TB. Wildlife has been checked, no TB found. All they know is that the cows came from an Auction Sale somewhere in Nebraska. Follow up that lead would you? If those cows would have had an ear tag that told where they had been, the search would have been easy, resulting in less cost and smaller government.
Much of the meat in this country is processed by a few huge companies. You want then to run the traceback program? That'll surely shut the little guy out of any chance to market his cattle.

"Because there is money to be made (for the gov't) in the horse industry, and horses are used for food."
We should always suspect that the government is out for the money. But with NAIS, there isn't a profit available. It is just a database and the ear tags are on the open market and are cheap. No windfall there. Horses are not used for food in this country and it has been years since they were allowed to be slaughtered in this country. A more likely reason to include horses is because horses carry diseases and many horses are valuable. Stopping the spread of disease is the goal of NAIS. Recently there was an outbreak of a sexually transmitted disease in some high priced race horses. Tracking down all of the exposed horses is the only way to stop the spread of this disease.

Let the horse owners voluntarily keep track of their horses however they want to. It has nothing to do with my animals. Keep out of my business and away from my property.

Horses are included....because the system is "designed" to trace disease - think strangles and other equine contageous diseases. Therefore, horses must be a part of the system.

Frequently Asked Questions (continued)

Q: Will I have to report every time my horse moves off its premises?

A: Not EVERY single movement of your horse will have to be reported. This would obviously be an unrealistic

goal. Movements such as local trail rides, shows or ropings would not be required reportable events. It

is likely that the movements that would be reportable would be when horses are transported interstate or to a

premises where a brand inspection, Certificate of Veterinary Inspection or other health papers are required.

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Yes, according to the plan, every time the horse leaves your property it will have to be reported. The guidance you're referencing was not published in the Federal Register.

I undserstand you oppose nais, and that is fine. Not trying to change your stand on that.

But, the above quote - I'm confused in 2 ways?

One of the options of the Nais database was to actually keep it a private thing - that would keep it out of the hands of the public. So, they were considering doing it in a way you are talking about????

What you are describing is like organic produce, or the 'Natural' (Natuarally Grown, or????) certification that is out there.

Those programs are cool. I like them, and their optional nature. That works well for what they hope to acheive.

But - how could that work with a disease tracking program? If you and 9 neighbors have livestock: 5choose to be a part of Nais, and 5 choose not to.

If there is a disease outbreak of Hoof & Mouth or TB in your state, how does your optional program & certified stickers help anyone?

How is anything achieved with a few stickers? All 10 herds of livestock are now 'unknown' because of the 5 that are not part of the program. Those 5 people who opted to be a part of the certification & sticker program you describe are no better off that the 5 who are not part of the sticker program. Those 5 who are not part of the program bring everyone in the area back to square one - totally unknown.

What good is it?

--->Paul