"The article
(http://www.naturalnews.com/035920_beekeeper_Illinois_raid.html) says that
the comb sample tested positive for 'foulbrood'. The article does not say
which type but if it was AFB (and assuming that the report is true), then
no, this was not 'government tyranny' but the proper functioning of the
government in a public health situation. Under Illinois law, the only
allowable abatement for AFB is burning. (BEES AND APIARIES ACT, [510 ILCS
20/1 et seq.], Section 60.50 Diseased or Parasitized Colonies)"
Yesterday, at the Heartland Apicultural Society meeting in St. Louis, I had
a chance to talk with two of Illinois' bee inspectors (including Susan
Kivikko, the point person in the story). The state has not issued an
official statement due to the litigation (much to Monsanto's chagrin), but
these two ladies had a good deal to say about it.
Their story is that Ingram had long been rumored by other area beeks to have
AFB, and was spreading it by working with lots of beginners (using
unsterilized tools) and selling bees in his used equipment. He repeatedly
refused to submit to state inspection as required by law, but finally
approached Kivikko at a picnic, handed her a frame and said here, you want
to test my stuff, test this. She sent the frame to the Beltsville bee lab
and they diagnosed AFB. These two inspectors then went through a batch of
his hives (I think they said 10) and all but two had obvious AFB. Samples
were taken and others in the department concurred. IL law requires burning
AFB hives and he again repeatedly refused, so the IL ag director ordered
inspectors to pick up the hives, take them and burn them themselves. They
left the two that didn't look infected, and did not confiscate any research
of any kind -- he had not produced any, and was not even home the day they
showed up.
That's their side of the story. It is of course subjective, but it was not
presented in the very one-sided articles I've seen on this to date.
I have to say, I'm still not completely comfortable with the whole
situation. As a beekeeper I understand why the department did what it did,
but the libertarian in me cringes at the idea that the state can come onto a
guy's land and destroy his property without what most people consider to be
due process. But then, I read a story in this morning's paper about the feds
selling off the property of a woman accused of embezzling funds from the
city of Dixon, IL. The story said that if she's convicted the proceeds will
go to restitution. If she's convicted???
Eugene Makovec
Missouri USA
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