The lesson I was trying to draw from the collapse of the cod fishery was 
that leading industry players insisted they were right and theirs was the 
only opinion that mattered. As it turned out they were wrong on both 
points. 

I think this is a clear situation where the market system failed. If 
government had stepped in and regulated things properly, there would still 
be a cod fishery today. Letting the industry implode because certain 
individuals were philosophically opposed to government intervention 
doesn't seem very bright to me.

Fortunately we are dealing with insects not fish. Insects are a lot 
tougher than fish and I doubt we can kill them off despite our best 
efforts.

I think Adony has raised some very important points on determining 
sustainablity. I would like to see more research in this area.

Leaving that aside for the moment, I will risk Alan's wrath by playing 
Nostrodamos yet again. I think it is fair to say that migratory beekeeping 
increases stress on bees and exposes them to increased invasion by pests 
and diseases. To combat this, the beekeeper has to use more drugs more 
often. Sooner or later this is going to result in contaminated honey. If 
we ever lose the healthy reputation our product has in the public mind we 
will have nothing but pollination to live on. Therefore I think it is 
prudent to discuss how this might be avoided.

I thought Peter Dillion made some good observations about our industry. I 
hate this border debate because for years now it has diverted all energy 
and attention away from equally important issues. It may be that Canadian 
beekeepers decide the benefits of an open border outweigh the risks. But I 
think it is the beekeepers who should decide, not the almond producers 
in....where is California, anyway?

BTW Alan, there are no ancestral homes in Dog Creek. Ancestral dogs, but 
no houses.

Ted   

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