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04/27/2012 1:41 PM | Julia Landress
I'd like for TOFGA administration to send out e-blasts to all members on actionable items such as the following: http://www.beyondpesticides.org/organicfood/action/index.htm

This vitally concerns us all, and we have until May 3rd to make comments to the The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB).  We're out of business if our standards don't mean anything to the public.
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  • 05/28/2012 12:35 AM | John Stelfox
    My Dear Fellow North Americans and Politicians,

    Not long ago in earth's history, the miniature ice age in Europe created famine, starvation, disease, pestilence, wars and its resultant depopulation. Clearly, the results of this colder climate created a marked reduction of food production. Today, we homo sapiens of North America, and the world are faced with the opposite, a much hotter climate, but the results may be the same as Europe's ice age, if we do not act now! It is my personal belief that the present world's "Global Warming" is created to a greater degree by our sun's increased solar activity and the earth's resultant geothermal activity, than minor influence that we humans have on the earth's climate. That being said, there is something that we can do in North America for our children and grandchildren to help insure their safety, comfort and prosperity, if we act now!
    We have the ability to change our microclimate, and our economies in North America by combining the resources and technologies of the people of Canada, the United States of America and Mexico in a joint collaborative effort. What is it? It is the North American Water and Power Alliance (NAWAPA). It was developed by two engineers from California in 1960 to divert 20% to 22% of the runoff of major rivers within the western North American chain of mountains and store that water in man made reservoirs within the folds of the mountains. With a series of pumping stations the water would be hopscotched from Alaska to Mexico through a series of reservoirs of varying elevations. Branching out from these reservoirs would be a series of irrigation canals, feeding the Great Plains, southern deserts and Mexico with fresh water for farming, industrial and community development. Soon in North America our new gold standard will be the blue standard, or water standard. The water standard will fuel the next standard, which will be the green standard, or food standard. We all know, without food and water we don't survive. For those of you living in Alaska, British Columbia and Washington you may be asking yourself why do I need to worry about this? I've got plenty of water! You may have plenty of water but you mainly rely on the food produced on the Great Plains, southern United States and now more than ever before on Mexico. Those same places are experiencing a diminishing of their water supply and productive agricultural land, because of it. So you may want to either consider building greenhouses, root cellars and canning preserves, and stocking up on guns and ammo to prepare for the potential upcoming famine and resulting wars or consider diverting 20%-22% of your major rivers runoff, which I don't suspect you will even miss for a second, so you can still buy fresh produce at your local grocery store in the middle of your frigid winter.
    If this concept was developed in the 1960s, why haven't we heard of it and why hasn't it been implemented? I was too young to have heard about it then and I suspect this vast project fizzled because of the Vietnam War and President John F. Kennedy's assassination. JFK championed this alliance, with Canada and Mexico coming on board. It is now fifty years later and we need this alliance now, more than ever. What can you do? I encourage you to email, tweet, twitter or warble this to your friends, colleagues and political representatives and let them know you support this project and want it to move aggressively ahead. You can read the details of this alliance by going to www.larouchepac.com. When their home page comes up, look to click on the NAWAPA heading in the top center of the page, where you can download the ninety-two page report.
    Like any loving father I have, until now, been greatly concerned about my children's and grandchildren's future. This report provides hope for their well being and economic future. Please, I beg of you, please read this report, if not for my children, for your children and grandchildren! I implore politicians to use these same heartfelt considerations. Please do not be swayed and intoxicated by the political system, its special interest groups and corresponding financial and campaign incentives. Vote your conscience, your heart and grandchildren's future.
    I have emailed LaRouchPAC and asked them to consider some changes to the reports proposals. The report claims that more water could be diverted to irrigate farmland if we used nuclear power to power the water pumps at the various pumping stations rather than wasting water in the production of hydroelectricity used to power the water pumps. I mentioned to them that Japan has just shut down all 60 of their nuclear power plants, with two of their reactors still in meltdown mode with radioactivity still spewing out. I asked them to consider having the alliance commission approach Alaska and commit to purchasing a portion of the vast deposit of natural gas at Prudoe Bay. This may provide the financial incentive to allow Alaska to proceed with the much debated second pipeline that would parallel the first from Prudoe Bay to Valdez. Natural gas could be converted to liquid petroleum gas (LPG) and shipped by water, rail and road to the various pumping stations to fuel the water pumps. For those environmentalist that may be concerned about the impact of the LPG carbon footprint used at the pumping stations please consider the increased carbon sink the increased vegetation will produce as this irrigation water causes the plains and desert to bloom with trees and plants. I also suggested that the alliance commission set in place a rebate package for farms that grew and were certified "Organic" and used heirloom seeds to break the monopoly that Monsanto is quietly developing of our worlds food supply, by buying up seed supply companies around the world and then hybridizing the seed so the only way we can grow next years crop is by purchasing seed through their monopoly. The "Organic" farm rebate would be a monetary rebate providing an incentive to farm organically.
    Providing the money for this massive undertaking will not be a major hurdle if the politicians implement the monetization suggested in the report that has been historically successful in the past. The cost of this project will be more than paid for by the increased revenues of farming, fishing, recreation, mining, manufacturing, transportation, construction and service businesses that would benefit from the cheaper water, electricity and transportation routes that would be developed by this project. As I see it, our greatest hurdle is to change our massively restrictive environmental laws that have a stranglehold on our economy. It is time to stand up to the environmentalist that have gone too far and swing the pendulum to sound conservational principals. Maybe we need to form a conservational movement to lobby our elected representative if they are not aware that the majority of their constituents want sound, conservative, conservational principals implemented and not radical principals like throwing us back into the Stone Age while the earth's population is reduced by 80%.
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    • 02/06/2013 12:37 PM | Katherine "Katy" Fusselman Master Gardener-Burnet County, Texas
      WEll, I couldn't help noticing your letter, JOhn Stelfox, about damming up rivers from Alaska on south and using the water to irrigate the Great Plains and even Mexico. I guess I may be a bit too young to have heard of that before. I have degrees in biology and the equivalent of a master's in chemistry and love organic gardening!

      There are ways humans can increase and restore normal rainfall. Bands of trees planted at least five abreast and pointed at oceans or large lakes or even in diamond patterns with the points toward bodies of water, will attract rain. With huge conglomerates buying out family farms and cutting out the fence rows which used to hold trees, shrubs and vines that attracted and protected wildlife and planting corn, wheat and soybeans right up to the fence line, we humans have contributed to desertification. Not to mention a monoculture prone to plant diseases. Forest areas especially with the addition of small surface ponds and reservoirs attract rainfall. There should be bands of trees planted on whatever edges of the fields face toward oceans or large lakes.

      The ancient Catholic monks in Ireland and elsewhere built towers with windows strategically placed to act as rain antennas, causing rain to fall more to either side and north of these towers. In order for this to be effective, certain kinds of rock have to be used. More information on building natural stone rain antennas can be found in a book SECRETS OF THE SOIL by Tompkins and Byrd. How this works is by simple physics of electromagnetism. It is not magic or something weird. Somehow these ancient Christians understood how to use the earth's magnetic field to grow better pasture and crops. Probably other ancient people knew this as well. The "rain antennas" described also moderated the rainstorms to make them less severe and with fewer high winds. The best trees to use for living "rain antennas" are your faster metabolizing trees, but any trees and shrubs are better than none. The trees planted outside field crops could be food-producing or lumber producing as well.

      As to global warming, a native American website shows a chart of all of the Ice Ages and global warm periods. There was a period in earth's history when it was much warmer than it is right now. Plus, there were almost no humans around at all when it was much warmer. These are natural cycles that the earth goes through. There will be a warm period called an "interglacial" followed by rapidly falling temperatures and a new Ice Age, then warming temperatures followed by another ice age. The earth does this on her own whether there are any humans around or not. Of course, the more trees, shrubs and vines we plant, the more we moderate the entire planetary climate.

      I believe we would be moving forward as a country if we were to re-ruralize America. A farmer who owns a small to moderate amount of land can go out and watch his or her land, observe the health of the plants and soil and take action on small problems before they become big problems. In Europe family farms were handed down through generations. It was a matter of pride for a farmer to leave the land in better condition with more top soil than the predecessor. In such ways there was less runoff and less damage to the land. Farms in Europe have been producing for hundreds and hundreds of years. Farmland and ranchland can be restored. When Amish people buy an over-chemicalized, worn-out "ruined" farm they can have it healthy and producing well in five years by the organic methods they use. If they can do it, so can the rest of us! One famous agricultualist once said "A nation or civilization lasts as long as its topsoil."

      Building dams for irrigation is a great idea, but there are things that can be done right now to address the root problems and stabilize the climate that are simple and as easy as planting rows of trees, shrubs and vines.
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  • 02/06/2013 11:55 AM | Katy Fusselman Master Gardener Burnet County, Texas
    Hi, I couldn't find a place to start a new line of comments. I have a question. I have been trying to find out for four days what the cost of just attending the Seed Swap on Friday evening hosted by Texas REady Seeds is going to be. I have searched this website all over and cannot find this. My husband and I are temporarily low income and cannot afford to attend the entire conference, but we have some nice heritage seeds and would like to come to the seed swap. Also, we are both available to work. I have several degrees in biology; my hubby is a machinist and metal worker who can build most anything. We have been organic gardening/farming/ranching over 20 years. Also, I am a research dietitian working with healing herbs and native Texas plants. WE desire to add value to this planet. Thanks, Katy at americanequine@yahoo.com
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