I Wonder – Thoughts From The Middle of Nowhere

Same cattle controversy that has been playing itself out in the farm media has made it to the Gazette today. The people interested in <a href="http://www.billingsgazette.com//index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2005/04/21/build/opinion/40-guest-op.inc" target="_new">safe beef</a> versus those who are more worried over <a href="http://www.billingsgazette.com//index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2005/04/21/build/opinion/45-guest-op2.inc" target="_new">trade issues</a>. You all know where I come down on this so i won't elaborate but reading the articles did bring a question to my mind. n nR-calf's position and lawsuit are based on the fact that they feel the <acronym title="United States Department of Agriculture, Bought and Paid for by The Big Meat Packers">USDA</acronym> is to quick to label Canada as a "minimal-risk country" for <acronym title="Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy">BSE</acronym> and that they don't meet these requirements. While waiting for the full hearing on this issue the Canadian cattleman have decided to sue their own government over failure to control the <acronym title="Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy">BSE</acronym> problem as I mentioned <a href="http://nowherethoughts.net/sarpysam/archives/876-Suing-Everyone.html" target="_new">here</a>. This finally leads to my question. Doesn't the Canadian cattlemen suing their own government claiming <acronym title="Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy">BSE</acronym> is a problem the government let happen just play right into R-calf's position that there is a problem with <acronym title="Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy">BSE</acronym> in Canada and it isn't a "minimal-risk country?" Sounds to me like they are shooting themselves in their own foot and admitting there is a problem therefore bolstering R-calf's argument. Not too smart if you ask me, but I'm not a lawyer and understand these things. n nWise men profit more from fools than fools from wise men; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the successes of the wise. Cato the Elder