Only time will tell whether Jim Fischer's observations and predictions are true or will become true. I am amazed at how clear his vision is from so far away. Or maybe Jim was at the Fall Meeting incognito?

As I think I said in one of my other Posts, if you don't like the way things are get involved. Join the association and make your views known and see where the chips fall. Squeaky wheels get greased. There is no conspiracy there.

ESHPA membership have never supported the idea of mandatory registration of apiaries and a fee. Jim is throwing up something similar to the fear mongering "Obama is coming for our guns." tactic.

Cornell has nothing to do w/ the NYS Apiculturalist. Seems as though there is some confusion between an employee position in NYS Ag&Mkts and a Professorship at Cornell. Two different positions.

I predict that once our current Apiculturalist retires we won't have a new one and we won't have any Apiary Inspection. Times are tough in Albany and like before when the Inspection budget was cut to save money the same thing will happen again. Beekeeping, the bastard child of agricuture, is easy to cut, easy to ignore.

Having the business meeting on Saturday is fine w/ me. I have even proposed that meetings be held on Saturday and Sunday. But under previous Boards that idea has never gained any support. Who knows. Maybe it will be tried  some day.

As to the idea of having positions w/in ESHPA held by each and every Bee Club in the State, that has been talked about many times over the years to the best of my recollection. One thing I have noticed over the years is that Local Clubs are prone to ignore communications from ESHPA. There are plans to do more outreach this year and next. Let's see how that goes.

Were we to become a NYS Beekeepers Congress that would take change in membership and change in the By Laws which I don't see happening w/out a great deal of new membership showing up and voting. So again, get involved, become a member. Change what is from w/in. 

Discount the votes of those that Jim considers bought and what would have been the results of the election?

On a personal note. I did not run for office. A small scale beekeeper/member and a commercial beekeeper/member thought I should. They put my name on the Ballot. I had no desires or aspirations over the outcome. Had I not been elected, that would have been fine. I would have been fine and ESHPA would be fine. I am and it is. Predictions of its demise are premature at best. 

ESHPA is what it is and will be what it will be. What that is and will be are not under my control any more than they are under any one persons control. The membership decide. Those that care enough to show up anyway. A legal established quorum, just like any other organization.

The membership decides. Those that show up to vote do so by their being there and voting. Those who don't show up do so by not. It is that simple. If the membership doesn't like the current situation they can make their opinions known. They can call me or any of the Officers and Board members and tell them so. They can come to any and all of the three Board Meetings and tell us so. They can attend the General Membership meetings and tell us so. Otherwise how is anyone to know? By the grumblings of a nonmember? That's not a very efficient or effective way to get a message across.

So get involved. The work gets done by those who show up. Show up.

ps:were I more computer savvy I would be better able to address each of Jim's points, but I'm not. so if there is anything which anyone would like me to address specifically, let me know. or maybe I should not assume that Jim was addressing me in the first place.

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html