I don't want to make a big deal out of this, but I am concerned about the
use of chemicals in our bee hives, 'advice' given here and the possibility
that it will be accepted as gospel, and on a very wide scale our society's
increasing tendency to make all of us a part of a 'nanny state'.

A 'nanny state' is one where people no longer are considered capable of
determing right or wrong on their own and instead must rely on 'the state'
(read State, Federal or Local regulation or law) to tell them what to do and
to not do.

Peter asks me if I am going to tell customers that I use an unapproved
chemical in my bee hives?  I'll take that as a rhetorical question, as I am
well aware that many 'regulators' read postings on this list.  But a
corresponding question is should beekeepers tell the public that they are
using approved insecticides in their bee hives?  Including one that if used
in the wrong dosage and formulation could cause brain damage?

I don't know of another animal used in food production where chemicals are
used that poison the areas where the animals store their food and raise
their young.  Is the use of these chemicals sane just because some
government agency said it was ok?

Since its use will reduce or perhaps eliminate the use of insecticides for
some beekeepers I advocate the use of Oxalic Acid to control varroa,
provided the dosages, formulas, and methods of application are consistent
with those accepted in Europe and well described in the archives of this
list and others, most notably BeeSource.   At least one well respected US
entomologist specializing in beekeeping has duplicated many of those
techniques and travels the country telling of their success, and the safety
of the techniques, but saying he cannot advise others to use Oxalic Acid
until it gets approved by the Nanny State.  I do not apologize for my
avocation, and I vote for those who dare to say we have too much of a Nanny
State.

Taking the objection to its extreme, one could take the position we should
not stop using a very dangerous product  and substitute a benign product
until the State tells us it is ok.  That is insanity.

But good people can disagree and still be good people.

-- 
Lloyd Spear
Owner Ross Rounds, Inc.
Manufacture of equipment for round comb honey sections,
Sundance Pollen Traps, and producer of Sundance custom labels.
Contact your dealer or www.RossRounds.com <http://www.rossrounds.com/>

******************************************************
* Full guidelines for BEE-L posting are at:          *
* http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm  *
******************************************************