Part 8 – Integrity and Transparency in Government Introduction

Does the public have any meaningful participation in Tompkins County’s policies?

Is the county being run for the health and well-being of all the people?

Are the county’s policies formulated for long term sustainability, or short-term gain?

In each blog, I will focus on an actual incident or issue that raises questions about the conduct of those who have been entrusted with the welfare of the public at large.

The questions and facts of the case will be included in a letter sent to the persons responsible for regulatory oversight, as well as to our elected representatives. The body of the letter will be disclosed in each blog, and the results of these letters and the names of recipients will be posted as updates.

At the end of the series, I will summarize the findings as to whether the response of Tompkins County public officials has been consistent with their duty to protect the public at large.  

Coming next week: Part 8a — Deadly Drift  

New “Factory Farm Fun Book” Update

The layouts for two-thirds of this 100 page activity book have been completed. Below is a second sampling of pages.

Mortality Maze
Pandemic Sing-a-long
Hatch and Release
Rural Sorrow Hopscotch
The Urban Dairy
Follow the Regulator
The New Food Pyramid
Farm Harm Poster – Respirators 101
Farm Harm Coloring Page – Blue Babies

The next blog series, Part 8 – Disclosure, Ethics and Image: Honesty in Government & Agriculture, is moving slowly towards posting. This series will be a departure from earlier blogs, and will signal a change from commentary to a call for action.

Blog Special – Book Publication Announcement and New Book Preview

“You Know You Live near a Factory Farm When Your Kids Go Fishing with a Pool Skimmer”

In Rural America the biggest threat to the health and well-being of the community is the same activity that once strengthened and nurtured it — farming. Industrial farming is rolling the dice against a dystopian future of environmental meltdown, antibiotic-resistant pathogens, and genetically modified organisms in a race to quickly amass wealth. Using a simple picture-book style, and the buoyancy of humor, this book navigates the flood of destructive farming practices that have already engulfed the rural community, and are spreading.

Print and eBook available at

Amazon.com

Barnes and Noble.com

 

eBook available at

          Kobo

     Apple

And other retailers worldwide

 

A preview of the second book in the Factory Farm series:

“The Factory Farm Fun Book”

Over a hundred pages of jokes, riddles, games and activities, mazes, poems, sing-a-longs, connect-the dots, humorous stories and more!

 

Escape from the Factory Farm board game from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

Herbicide Drift Maze from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

GMO Corn Maze photo-spread from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

How Many Toxic Gas Plumes [are escaping from this manure pit?] game from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

Pin the Tail on the Legislator party game from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

Corporate Pushback Balloon Relay game from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

Factory Farm Days article from the “Factory Farm Fun Book”

Part 7b – A Cyclic History: Pollute, Distort, Pacify, Repeat . . . In an Ag Zone, No One Can Hear You Scream

Early Sunday morning, June 4, 2017, I was sicker than I had ever been before.

Too sick to even bend over, as I vomited all over the toilet, myself, and the bathroom floor— and I didn’t even care.

Part 7b – A Cyclic History – Pollute-Distort-Pacify-Repeat –In an Ag Zone – No One Can Hear You Scream

Continue reading Part 7b – A Cyclic History: Pollute, Distort, Pacify, Repeat . . . In an Ag Zone, No One Can Hear You Scream