Excellent note Randy and Juanse,  Much appreciate the update and the comment. 
    
"Fountain of funding" a very nice term.   I have been struggling with that the last cpl days (a good term)   I just read Keith Deplaplane's  column in ABJ,  and was very disturbed by it.   The only question I have was what happened Keith's opinion also or was he just reporting the committees work?

Basically for those who haven’t read it,  they came up with a report for the state of Georgia on the "plight of the pollinators"  In it once again,  they blame the Farming and AG for the decline.  (much like the Ontario ________)  One group refused to endorse  unless they  also made two notes.  One   That this was (in reference to CCD losses) not the first time a serious bust has occurred in bees,  the second was to change the term  "Pesticide poisoning",  to  "unintentional pesticide poisoning"

Basically  they told the group tough luck,  Were not going to change the wording because that’s not what the idiots in Washington want to hear,  and it may screw up our funding.

What  bugs me is The emperor has no clothes.  And the bright minds out there KNOW this....  Keith of all people knows that the Huge decline (cited in his graph) is almost strictly social economic issues.  He mentions it.  But ignores it.  Cheap sugar,  artificial waxes,  these are the cause for declines in managed colonies.

Any serious beekeeper can tell you,  beekeeping is a LOT of darn work...with little payback,  The last few years being an exception.  If you have never worked all night to load a semi,  or spent a 100 degree day in a bee suit pulling honey,  then you wouldn't understand.  It takes a special passion to do this on a large scale.

We are headed down a path where beekeepers are not going to be welcome in the farming communities.  And why??  That’s the part that TICKS me off...  for research funding....  nothing more.   

Separate plug here,  one of the few doing real beekeeping work is Randy,  his work is what we call practical.  It helps beekeepers...  Others work  such as the recent Smart Paper,  serve no real help to the bee world as its pointed in completely the wrong direction....not to help anyone,  but to throw rocks at our benafactors....



Charles

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