Aloha bee-l er's
        Can any one tell me the status of the efforts by the USDA to revisit,
reject, and rewrite the HONEY BEE ACT OF 1922.
The HONEY BEE ACT of 1922 was gutted of it's original intent 1995 ? to
allow the New Zealand honey bees to enter the State of HAWAII while in
transit to Canada, Korea and places North with no benefit to Hawaii or the
United States.This illegal gutting( rule interpretation) was done at the
request / demands of the NZ beekeepers with the threat of a complaint being
filed with the GATT / NAFTA board of appeals.The rule change was effected
under false pretense when the opening paragrah of the rule making process
contained the fraudlant lie that the "Secretary of Agriculture  of the USDA
had found the NZ bees to be free of disease and pests of honey bees".See
federal registry its on the books.
        I know this is old information for some and I felt compeled to refresh
some memories and bring the new readers up to speed. Hopefully some new
young blood will boil and new advocates will be born to SAVE OUR BEES ( S O
B ).
        Earlier this year Bob Flanders top man at the USDA in quaritine area and
the guy to contact if you give a rip about this issue.
If you don't give a rip you are a part of the very silent majority of US
beekeepers. Feelings of  impotence in trying to make a difference with
Government stuff is wide spread in America. Tod bad as I think in breeds
anarchay & abusives feeling toward government.
        Bob Flanders earlier this year let a few beekeepers know of his specific
intentions and plans to revisit the HONEY BEE ACT of 1922 this year with
final rule changes and writting to be completed this 1997 year. All at the
continued request / demands of the NZ bee folks wanting to force open the
US borders to allow for export of NZ bees to the US. Again under threat of
sanctions by GATT / NAFTA police. Funny no or not many US bee keepers are
demanding access to the NZ bees. I had a telephone conversation with Mr.
Flanders about the rule changes and suggested that a peer review panel be
assembled to study the proposals and to attempt to be objective. Government
seems to resist common sence ideas about peer review or they stack the
panel to achieve their goal. I also asked Flanders to please get the word
out to the US HONEY BEE Industry with some specific notifications to
National Magazines, Univercity, Bee clubs and others and he informed me
that it would only be posted in the National Registry as required by law.
Well this is my question is any postings have been in the National Registry
about this potentially very dangerous rule making.
        Don't be lazy and dismiss this issue thinking the the USDA bee men will
surely protect the US beekeepers. It's a done deal at USDA because no one
at USDA has any concerns about the introduction and SPREAD of honeybee
disease and pest that will occur with the rule revision. Just because we
have the AIDS virus in the US population we don't have open door policy for
all the AIDS victims of the world to come to the US. The top man at the
USDA bee research center accepted paid consultancy fees and travel to NZ in
the 1980's helping the NZ bee industry get ready to export their bees to
the world. possible loss of objectiity.This person was supposed to retire a
long time ago and continues to hang in there having no fear or concern
about blanketing the US with viruses. Bees with mites have some chance
(small ) to be saved, bees with mites and Kashmire bee virus have no chance
to be saved. Now we will hear how they have found KBV in 10 places in the
US and does that make it OK to allow for a import distributuin systemto
SPREAD KBV across the US and all US bee populations.
        Hoping to start a movement by concerned US Bee Men.
 
Aloha Walter