Editor’s note: The following was written in response to a letter to the editor (Family farm victory, Globe, June 4).
Missourians for Animal Care Coalition supports the extensive federal and Missouri laws already in place, which enforce guidelines for responsible farming and animal care.
The bill, HJR 86 was not an attempt to set limits on regulation, but intended to protect all Missouri farmers, large and small, from the potential threat of outside interests dictating how Missourians shall raise their animals.
The bill’s purpose was to keep the debate of these issues in the Missouri Legislature where it belongs, where it can receive vigorous debate and consideration to do what is right for all Missourians. To say that the language in the bill, “Right to Raise Animals,” was a “pro-corporate move” to eliminate local control is false and very naive. By preventing HJR 86 from passing, organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States can now bypass the constitutional legislative process eliminating the checks and balances that are intended to protect all Missouri citizens. This leaves the door open to attempts at legislating through referendum vote, where emotion and misinformation rule the day instead of thoughtful consideration by our elected legislators.
The misguided attempt by organizations such as the Missouri Rural Crisis Center to block HJR 86 not only puts the farmers who they represent at risk, but will also increase the cost for all farmers to continue to produce our safe and abundant food supply, and reduces the availability of domesticated animals with such costs being passed on to consumers.
Missouri corporate farms, family farms and animal breeders are already regulated by some of the strictest guidelines in the country and are overseen by agencies such as the Missouri Department of Agriculture, the United States Department of Agriculture, the Department of Natural Resources, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Missourians need to wake up to the broader agenda promoted by radical animal rights organizations, such as the Humane Society of the United States, which is intended to further regulate farmers, livestock producers and domesticated animal breeders in an onerous, prohibitive and costly manner that will result in the complete elimination of all pet and livestock breeding, farming and agriculture in America.
Mindy Patterson is with Missourians for Animal Care, a nonprofit coalition made up of Missouri livestock, agriculture, companion animal, research and educational organizations.
Opinion
Mindy Patterson, guest columnist: Bill wouldn’t hurt our farmers
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Our View: Victims should come first
Millions of dollars in donations have poured in from around the world since the May 22, 2011, tornado. Those donations represent money from lemonade stands, charity auctions, corporate gifts and celebrity checks, just to name a few. In fact, one year later donations continue to come to Joplin.
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Beth Meeker, guest columnist: Same-sex marriage battle a quest for equal rights
I would like to take a moment to reply to guest columnist Anson Burlingame’s, “The Marriage Debate” (Globe, May 13).
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Sunday Forum: 2012 graduation speakers key on tornado, mall school and president’s visit
Editor’s note: In addition to speeches by President Barack Obama and Gov. Jay Nixon, Joplin High School’s top students addressed graduates, faculty, parents and other guests packed into the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center on the Missouri Southern State University campus. Following are the text of those speeches.
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Geoff Caldwell, guest columnist: Pack mentality takes truth as a casualty
President Obama’s Joplin graduation speech Monday showed that while there’s the political “right,” there’s also a very active “rabid” political right.
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Your View: ‘Study’ can mean anything
A few evenings ago, I watched a television program on the science of marriage.
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Our View: Support for museum
How can you tell the story of Joplin without the accounts of its mining history?
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Our View: Finding middle ground
The G-8 summit held last week in Camp David ended as expected.
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Anson Burlingame, guest columnist: Class of 2012 upholds character, hope
My oldest granddaughter was part of the class of 2012 from Joplin High School, and I attended the ceremony on Monday night.
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Scott Charton, guest columnist: 'Deadline in Disaster' film a story about storytellers
Local newspapers are at their best when they help their communities confront, understand, endure and overcome shared challenges.
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Our View: Make voting easiser
This year’s ballot will not include a proposed constitutional amendment that photo identification be required at the polls in Missouri. Good.
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