Activist Scam

I was reading Sarpy Sam, one of my very favorite bloggers, this morning and found this post. It contained a link to a scare story about antibiotic residue in beef. There is a loud movement afoot to blame farm and feedlot use of antibiotics for the current trend of pathogens becoming resistant to these medicines. It is a serious issue that deserves serious attention. However, as is so often the case, agriculture is being blamed without much evidence to support the activist smear tactics.

I got all fired up and started thinking up answers to the accusations put forward in the story. Then I read a little farther and saw who the author was quoting. The Center for Science in the Public Interest. Aw, heck, another pile of nonsense from a thinly disguised animal rights, anti-agriculture, pro-vegetarian activist group with an impressive-sounding name. CSPI was founded by a vegan who likens our favorite caffeinated drink to "such a blight on civilization that he complains about people socializing over coffee." (He feels we should patronize carrot juice bars instead.) That kind of calls his credibility on the beef and antibiotics issue into question for me at least.

There are so many similar groups. Another is Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Not many doctors, lots of zealots. “Less than 5 percent of PCRM’s members are physicians,” Newsweek wrote in February 2004."
Not many scientists at CSPI either, but plenty of control freaks.

Whenever there is an opportunity, these groups seize on the crisis of the day and try to change the way we live and think. They wish to control what we eat, the way we drive our cars, heat our homes, and especially how we care for our land and animals. The press finds them eager to offer sound bites that seem plausible, so they quote them early and often. Thus when spinach is contaminated with a deadly bacteria, cattle farmers are soundly blamed. Even though later the trespass of a wild pig is found to be to blame, that information is lost in the hubris. Everyone remains convinced that evil farmers are at fault.

These groups all sound believeable; they all have the same agenda. Get rid of farms, farmers, meat eating, chemicals, biotechnology and SUV's. Of course they have no alternative to eating and driving, but most of them seem to actually wish the earth could go back to the days before there were humans all at.
We need to be aware, when we read the newspaper or listen to the TV news, who is being quoted and what they want from us. At the Center for Consumer Freedom's sister site, Activist Cash, you can discover the origin and actual agenda of most activist organizations. Take a look; you will be amazed!

****On this same topic there is a meeting in the works here in our area to alert folks to just what is happening with all these seemingly different, but actually cohesive, activist groups before it is too late for our farms. I will keep you posted.