SKILLMAN TO LEAD MORE JOBS OUT OF INDIANA

Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman – aka Outsourcing Annie – will lead a 26-member delegation of Indiana food and agribusiness leaders to Mexico. Indiana Agriculture Director Andy Miller will join the traveling party. The group will visit a pork processing plant and the largest dairy operation in Latin America as well as meet with representatives from grain and biotechnology industries.

See a trend here – anyone? Anyone? Daniels and Skillman unleashed the Possibilities Unbound Plan in 2005 which triggered the filing and approval of hundreds of CAFO permits to operate confined operations to meet the goal of doubling hog production within a few years. The visits to the pork processing plant operation will no doubt be to work out agreements for processing the pork product or to open the possibility to contract for raising hogs in Mexico. But why would outsourcing processing even be needed?

Wasn’t one of the Guv’s goals in doubling pork production to increase economic benefit to Indiana? The next excuse we will hear from the Guv and Skillman is that we just don’t have the capacity to handle all the processing.

In addition to outsourcing possibilities visiting pork and dairy locations, one of the foremost topics appears to be “rural development.” This is code for “rural exploitation” of Mexican agricultural areas; obviously we are not discussing rural development here in Indiana. Much of the country is too arid or too mountainous for crops or grazing, and it is estimated that no more than one-fifth of the land is potentially arable. However, Mexico’s burgeoning population has made it a net importer of grains.

Add to this mix the fact that NAFTA, which was implemented 14 years ago, required the lifting of tariffs on corn and beans by early 2008, and it looks like the Guv and Skillman will be some of the first to exploit the elimination of the tariffs by shipping Indiana grain to Mexico.

Again, more exploitation of the Mexican people and land. Note that Emily Otto-Tice of the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Corn Alliance is one of the 26-members making the trip.

Photo Credit: Photovault.com

_________________________________________________________________________

With much of the land too arid or too mountainous for grazing, it also raises the prospect that Mexico would be an excellent experiment in building and running CAFOs since CAFOs do not require a large number of acres to operate. Build CAFOs in Mexico, ship Indiana grain to Mexico to supply the necessary feed, and ship the finished product to the growing middle classes in countries such as China. With states and local communities becoming ever more wary of the environmental dangers of CAFOs, why not use Mexico with its less stringent environmental standards.

Skillman has previously led separate missions to Taiwan and Vietnam and to Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panama. All countries which produce all those lovely, cheap products competing for the American consumers’ attention. So, while Indiana’s economy is not faring so well and the United States appears headed into a recession, the Guv sends his right-hand woman on another field trip with 26 cohorts at the expense of the taxpayers.

The following are those individuals who owe us thanks for their memories in Mexico since I assume the Hoosier taxpayer is again paying for the privilege of losing jobs. I have underlined and bolded those names connected with agriculture. Notice that two areas are predominantly represented: grains and pork. Connect the dots: Mexican rural development – exporting crops and outsourcing meat production and processing.

• Lt. Governor Becky Skillman
• Andy Miller, Director, Indiana State Department of Agriculture
• Juana Watson, Senior Advisor to the Governor on Hispanic Affairs
• Steve Akard, Director of International Development, Indiana Economic Development Corporation
• Angela Coats, Press Secretary, Office of the Lt. Governor
• Bart Lomont, Special Assistant to the Lt. Governor of Indiana
• Matt Harrod, Assistant Director of Policy and Research, Indiana State Department of Agriculture
• Lesley Taulman, International Trade Program Manager, Indiana State Department of Agriculture
• Dale Whittaker, Associate Dean for Academic Program, Purdue University College of Agriculture
• Guillermo Vasquez de Velasco, Dean, College of Architecture and Planning, Ball State University
• Susan Sutton, Associate Vice Chancellor of International Affairs and Chancellor’s Professor of Anthropology, IUPUI
• Dr. David A. Bathe, Chancellor, Ivy Tech Lafayette
• Don Villwock, President, Indiana Farm Bureau
• Mike Platt, State Executive Indiana Pork Producers Association
• Terry Vanlaningham, Indiana Pork
• Emily Otto-Tice, Director of Grain Marketing, Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn
• Fayte Brewer, Indiana Grain Producer
• Jim Eichhorst, Manager, State Government Relations, Midwest Region, Biotechnology Industry Organization
• Ted McKinney, Leader, U.S. Food Chain and States Affairs, Dow AgroSciences
• Andres Felix, Legal and Government Affairs Lead, Latin and North America, Monsanto
• Angel Saavedra, Regulatory and Government Affairs Manager, Dow AgroSciences, Mexico
• Mike Murphy, President, Murphy Partners, LLC
• Beth Bechdol, Director of Agribusiness Strategies, Ice Miller LLP
• Terry Anker, Chairman, The Anker Consulting Group
• Steve Churchill, President and CEO, PreferredPartners

GE TO CLOSE BLOOMINGTON PLANT

The Indianapolis Business Journal reports that General Electric Company will close its massive refrigerator plant in Bloomington by the end of 2009, displacing about 900 employees. Apparently, the Bloomington operation lost about $45 million last year, thanks to declining side-by-side refrigerator sales and rising material and labor costs.

Kent Suiters, the plant manager said that despite continued investment by the company and hard work by the union leadership and GE employees, they can no longer effectively compete.  Effectively compete against what or who?  Could it be that this is another example of corporations sending their work to other countries to reap ever-wider profit margins?

The union that represents the plant’s 837 hourly employees will have a limited amount of time to offer competitive alternatives to the closure. A final decision on the closing of the 1 million-square-foot plant will be made after those talks. The shutdown would wipe out 1 percent of the total work force in the Bloomington area and 8.7 percent of workers in the area who make durable goods – refrigerators and other products expected to last at least three years.

The last few years have been rough for GE employees in Indiana. In March 2005, the company laid off 470 workers at the Bloomington refrigerator plant, leaving about 1,000 employees. At a later date, the company said it planned to let go of 365 of its 750 employees at an electric motors and transformers plant in Fort Wayne.

But, what will probably happen is that Daniels will hop up on his magic podium and announce more jobs for the year 2011 – that three-year stretch that he seems to favor. Daniels seems to know how to manipulate the media to make it look like he is doing so much for Indiana when all the while we are losing jobs that may not be replaced for years. Sure won’t do the GE workers any good.

EDWARDS IS OUT – NOW WHAT?

My choice for president is now out of the race. And, I am not happy with either remaining choice – Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. I am weary of Obama’s claim that he “has been against the war from day one.” Fine, but he wasn’t in office, so to say that he would have voted against the war is a moot point and shouldn’t even be considered. He wasn’t there, so he wasn’t faced with the same choice that others had to make. And besides, in one of his first speeches, he stated he wasn’t against war, he was just against this war. So, one has to wonder which wars – if any – in the future would he support?

Obama has also said repeatedly that while he would have voted against the war in 2002 based on what he knew at the time, he could not be sure that classified intelligence reports made available to senators wouldn’t have changed his mind. Thus, Obama himself acknowledges the possibility that he might have been convinced had he been in the Senate at that time.

Clinton, on the other hand, voted to give authorization to use military force against Iraq. Any attempt to explain her vote away by morphing her justification for her vote into “I thought the inspectors were going back in” is ludicrous. S.J. Res 46 is titled: A joint resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq. Now how can that be any clearer?

Both Obama and Clinton have voted in favor of bills which continue to support funding for the troops. However, in a switch, the May 2007 vote found both senators waiting until the last minute to vote “no” on the funding bill. Obama voted first, followed a few minutes later by Clinton. As far as I am concerned, neither one has shown much leadership on the issue of getting us “unstuck” from the quicksand of Iraq.

Photo Credit: Select 2008

__________________________________________________________________

Much as people make fun of Dennis Kucinich, he has consistently stood by his convictions from day one and not only voted against authorization to use military force but also voted against increased funding for the war.

So, I am in a quandary right now. Neither Clinton nor Obama has been consistent on Iraq and that is a tremendous disappointment to me. As the weeks go by, I will need to research more and more into the positions held by each. I may not make up my mind until I walk into the voting booth on May 5, 2008.

ANIMAL CRUELTY – HYPOCRISY AS A NATION

Recently, the Humane Society of the United States (USUS) released results of an undercover investigation at the Hallmark Meat Packing Company in Chino, California. It garnered attention on the nightly news for oh, let’s say, about one night. But underlying this mistreatment of the downed cattle shown in the picture below and the video I have included, is a pervasive distinction and yes, hypocrisy, in this country between animals designated as “pets” and those not fortunate enough to generate that moniker.

Photo Credit: Humane Society of the United States

_____________________________________________________________________

A pet is “any domesticated animal kept as a companion.” If animals are labeled as pets, they are coddled, pampered, spoiled, decked out in special outfits, taken on trips, fed like royalty, inoculated against diseases, taken for regular health checkups, and left bequests in wills. If, on the other hand, animals are labeled as part of the food chain, they are prodded, shocked, beaten, kicked, stomped, and slaughtered. The only distinction? Their categorization – either as a pet or a food product. How is it we justify two entirely different treatment systems for animals?

_______________________________________________________________________

An animal is an animal is an animal – the classification shouldn’t matter. I have been around both categories of animals. I have had dozens of pets over the years: dogs, cats, ferrets, and a wolf. I also have been around farm animals for about half of my 60 years – first, with my great grandfather and his farm, and later with my ex-husband and his farm.

I am a vegetarian and have been one since March 1990. I cannot imagine ever eating meat again; however, that is my choice. I do not expect to change anyone who is not willing to change. But I am absolutely outraged – vegetarianism aside – that we, as a nation, would tolerate the cruel treatment of cattle, pigs, chickens, turkeys, or any other “food chain” animal in such inhumane ways simply because they are designated as non-pets.

It makes me sick to watch the USHS video and think that there are those people out there who have so little respect for a living creature that they would torture it before its death. I know people who do not know and do not care from where their meat products originate. They simply state that it comes from the store in a neatly wrapped package. The store is simply the last step in the chain to your table and stomach.

Fast Food Nation provides a glimpse behind the scenes of slaughtering and “preparing” animals for human consumption.

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

While I have no illusions as to changing any minds as to their choice of protein sources, I hope that you will watch the two video clips and come away with a sense of our hypocrisy when it comes to treatment of animals – is it a pet or is it not?