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Sat, 28 Mar 2009 11:30:40 -0500 |
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Hello Peter & All,
Peter said:
>> Same with CCD. Imagine if the government starts paying for hives dead
>> of CCD. Nobody knows what it is, but hell, everybody has dead hives,
>> why not cash 'em in!
* If* I understand what you are saying above you are against those U.S.
beeks which had dead hives (up to 2 beeks reporting around 10,000 dead
hives on
the CCD survey )even getting any money at all to rebuild? The reason being
you are afraid a few beeks might get paid for hives (still dead) which were
not CCD?
All of us which keep bees for a living ( very few on BEE-L) realize we
will
get a percentage of dead hives. The losses would have to be above each of
our normal figures before most of us would take the time to use an
indemnity
program. Mostly we would if we could not rebuild from our own bees which
would mean buying nucs,brood or package bees. Has only happened to me
three
times in fifty years. I never used the indemnity program.
Regardless of what killed those commercial beeks hives the first concern of
the USDA should have been to take care of
those beekeepers like they do their farmers. Make low cost loans available
to buy nucs/brood or packages. If a farmer goes into our local office the
farmer can get funds for what ever he needs in the way of seed, fertilizer
etc. .
disaster funding is also available to farmers but almost unknown to
beekeepers.
Farmers number 1
commercial beekeepers "The red headed step child of the USDA"
Commercial beekeeping is hard work. Commercial beekeepers are people which
put in long hours at times seven days a week doing the nations pollination.
Sending billions to wall street tycoons and not offering a hand up to hard
working people trying to survive the best way they can does not seem right.
America does not seem to be as concerned as they should be with the AIT
bonuses. One of those would have bought packages for all the CCD
beekeepers.
AIT is too big to fail we are told. AIT also gave $100,000 to both the
Obama
& Dodd campaigns while headed for bankruptcy. Both Obama & Dodd were slow
to speak out
against the bonuses' at first. Said they wanted to get all the facts first.
Hmmm.
Did not take me long to figure what happened.
I say commercial beekeeping is too valuable to the U.S. to let fail by
turning our backs on commercial beekeepers needing a helping hand. The
biggest help those beeks with the big CCD losses came from their fellow
beeks. When I had my three times needing help I was jumpstarted by fellow
commercial beekeepers. The help I needed was bigger than my area beeks
could
provide so I sought help from a Texas/Nebraska/ California beek and another
time from an Arkansas/California beek. Bell Hill Honey the last time.
Commercial beekeeping is kind of like when I buried my 10,000 pound four
wheel drive up to the axles in mud last week. Takes a bigger outfit than
yours to pull you out! A local wrecker would not touch the extraction
unless he could winch from the nearest highway and he did not have enough
cable. A
large farm tractor pulled me right out and only cost me a jug of local
honey.
bob
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