Dairy Alarmism

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Replies

  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member
    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    I can't think of many industries that would welcome full access to the public that was just curious how things worked there...especially an industry that by its nature, and no matter how well they did things, was known to have people that disagreed with everything they stood for and their entire reason for existence.
  • Marcia315
    Marcia315 Posts: 460 Member
    This will probably get lost in this long *kitten* post so here goes.

    With every cent you spend on dairy, you are supporting a cruel industry that abuses animals. (This goes for eggs and meat too.) Health benefits aside, this is all the reason I need to stay away from the stuff.

    Taking a crazy guess here.... You've never been on a dairy farm, have you?

    Yeah, you do know that every farm operates like the one they feature on an agenda pushing documentary right? Visiting a real farm to get actual facts is out of the question, I mean how the hell would that support a failing argument?

    =D
    Visiting a real dairy farm IS out of the question. Big business is in bed with the g-ment, and has created many laws disallowing you from knowing what is going on behind closed doors. In many states, ag-gag laws make it a crime to use surreptitious means to get onto a farm, make it crime to whistleblow about bad conditions for both the workers and the animals, and good luck getting an invite.

    Go ahead and call up a large farm and say "I'd like to visit your farm to see what conditions the animals/workers are experiencing" and see how quickly you get hung up on.

    Some smaller farms might let you on, and if you continue to eat dairy, those would be the farms to patronize. Like Joel Salatin's farm.

    Yes, as a business owner, I let random strange people mill about my property, not knowing if they will mess with my inventory, steal from me, or break some of my machinery. My $1,000,000 investment is irrelevant here.

    And BTW, I have large commercial dairy farms as client. The do allow tours. You just need to ask them.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    I can't think of many industries that would welcome full access to the public that was just curious how things worked there...especially an industry that by its nature, and no matter how well they did things, was known to have people that disagreed with everything they stood for and their entire reason for existence.

    True, but how many industries have laws on the books to protect their secrecy? There are some obvious examples, like those related to national security, but what is the justification for silencing whistleblowers when it comes to Ag?
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member

    True, but how many industries have laws on the books to protect their secrecy? There are some obvious examples, like those related to national security, but what is the justification for silencing whistleblowers when it comes to Ag?

    I would guess lab animal facilities might have similar laws to protect them.
  • fheppy
    fheppy Posts: 64 Member
    I love dairy. When i was younger and lived with parents/grandma i often drank 2litres of milk + cheese + cottage cheese + ice cream in a day.

    Now i have less dairy as i read dairy contains animal hormones which stimulate more testosterone in the body and as someone with PCOS i do not need extra testosterone, i got more than enough.
    I did not read scientific study about it though, so i can't say its 100% true. but its makes sense to me the same way as tap water contains hormones which arenot/cannot be filtered no matter how much chloride you use to clean the water to make it safely drinkable.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    I read what it's about and it mentions you can't go there and video tape/take pictures. No where did I see that people aren't allowed in.

    I didn't realize it was contagious, but it looks like you caught my quoting problem.

    I didn't see anything against going in either. I read just one of the articles, an article from Forbes, thinking they'd be the most Ag-friendly, but they weren't in this case.

    Whether or not you can legally visit one of the sites may be beside the point, since I'm pretty sure you'd still need explicit permission from the owner or face jail time for trespassing. But laws prohibiting photography is alarming, IMO. Even a pro-Ag person should be wondering what they're trying to hide.

    Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    This will probably get lost in this long *kitten* post so here goes.

    With every cent you spend on dairy, you are supporting a cruel industry that abuses animals. (This goes for eggs and meat too.) Health benefits aside, this is all the reason I need to stay away from the stuff.

    Taking a crazy guess here.... You've never been on a dairy farm, have you?

    Yeah, you do know that every farm operates like the one they feature on an agenda pushing documentary right? Visiting a real farm to get actual facts is out of the question, I mean how the hell would that support a failing argument?

    =D
    Visiting a real dairy farm IS out of the question. Big business is in bed with the g-ment, and has created many laws disallowing you from knowing what is going on behind closed doors. In many states, ag-gag laws make it a crime to use surreptitious means to get onto a farm, make it crime to whistleblow about bad conditions for both the workers and the animals, and good luck getting an invite.

    Go ahead and call up a large farm and say "I'd like to visit your farm to see what conditions the animals/workers are experiencing" and see how quickly you get hung up on.

    Some smaller farms might let you on, and if you continue to eat dairy, those would be the farms to patronize. Like Joel Salatin's farm.

    Yes, as a business owner, I let random strange people mill about my property, not knowing if they will mess with my inventory, steal from me, or break some of my machinery. My $1,000,000 investment is irrelevant here.

    And BTW, I have large commercial dairy farms as client. The do allow tours. You just need to ask them.

    Imagine that. :smile:
  • JenSD6
    JenSD6 Posts: 454 Member
    This will probably get lost in this long *kitten* post so here goes.

    With every cent you spend on dairy, you are supporting a cruel industry that abuses animals. (This goes for eggs and meat too.) Health benefits aside, this is all the reason I need to stay away from the stuff.

    Taking a crazy guess here.... You've never been on a dairy farm, have you?

    Yeah, you do know that every farm operates like the one they feature on an agenda pushing documentary right? Visiting a real farm to get actual facts is out of the question, I mean how the hell would that support a failing argument?

    =D
    Visiting a real dairy farm IS out of the question. Big business is in bed with the g-ment, and has created many laws disallowing you from knowing what is going on behind closed doors. In many states, ag-gag laws make it a crime to use surreptitious means to get onto a farm, make it crime to whistleblow about bad conditions for both the workers and the animals, and good luck getting an invite.

    Go ahead and call up a large farm and say "I'd like to visit your farm to see what conditions the animals/workers are experiencing" and see how quickly you get hung up on.

    Some smaller farms might let you on, and if you continue to eat dairy, those would be the farms to patronize. Like Joel Salatin's farm.

    Yes, as a business owner, I let random strange people mill about my property, not knowing if they will mess with my inventory, steal from me, or break some of my machinery. My $1,000,000 investment is irrelevant here.

    And BTW, I have large commercial dairy farms as client. The do allow tours. You just need to ask them.

    And can you imagine how fast a farmer would be facing a law suit if, god forbid, someone who shouldn't be on their farm gets hurt? People shouldn't just be randomly wandering around the big equipment and big animals. That's asking for an accident to happen.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member

    True, but how many industries have laws on the books to protect their secrecy? There are some obvious examples, like those related to national security, but what is the justification for silencing whistleblowers when it comes to Ag?

    I would guess lab animal facilities might have similar laws to protect them.

    I got more or less the same response from QuietBloom:
    "Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed. "

    It seems you two assume that any controversial industry or organization will have specific laws guarding their secrets. Is that true? Do we have laws preventing access to and photography of abortion clinics? Churches? Oil wells? Gun manufacturers? National borders? The list could go on forever.

    I know that in some cases access is restricted, and for good reason, but it's done by individual owners. But I'm not aware of any laws prohibiting photography, nor any laws beyond general trespassing/ consent of owner regarding access.

    Are there any such laws that you're aware of, or are we just going to assume that there aren't because it suits your pre-existing opinions?
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    And can you imagine how fast a farmer would be facing a law suit if, god forbid, someone who shouldn't be on their farm gets hurt? People shouldn't just be randomly wandering around the big equipment and big animals. That's asking for an accident to happen.

    There are all kinds of reasons to restrict access to any business or property. My company doesn't allow people to just come in and wander around. I wouldn't let strangers into my house either, whether they're curious or not. A potential intruder to either my company or home is a trespasser. But my company needs no specific legislation. There is nothing legislated that makes us or me in my home special.

    Note: And anybody can apply for a job, whether they actually want a job here or not. We don't give out sensitive secrets to interviewees. But again, there is no specific legislation taking things to a higher level (fraud) if someone interviews for a job and then doesn't take the job when & if offered.

    Why does Ag need extra levels of protection?
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Visiting a real dairy farm IS out of the question.

    Hunh, I get emails from a farm I often buy from all the time inviting customers out for events and tours and such like. I guess they didn't get the memo.
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  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member

    Links to where we can read those laws?
    "Just google ag-gag laws. I know that my home state, Iowa, has laws like that. I know that Colorado has some ag-gag laws, and so does Idaho. Most of them are relatively new. Even without the law, the businesses wont let you in to see their operations."




    Interesting.

    I mean, in spite of the crickets-chirping-dead-silence-from-the-fact-hungry, it's interesting.

    Ag-gag is a term used for a variety of anti-whistleblower laws in the United States of America

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ag-gag



    Yes, these laws exist, but here in Missouri, you can definitely visit dairy farms to see how they operate. Before my uncle passed, we visited his often. Honestly, though, my favorite part was the hay barn (for playing hide and seek) and his big "Murphy's Law" poster by his desk in the dairy barn.



    Here is the law in my state:
    Missouri's bill:

    A person commits the crime of agricultural production facility fraud if he or she willfully obtains access to an agricultural production facility by false pretenses or knowingly makes a false statement or misrepresentation as part of an application for employment at an agricultural production facility with the intent to commit an act not authorized by the owner.[62]

    Basically, it reasserts that fraud is a crime.

    I'm guessing your uncle would grant access to anyone curious about the inner workings of his operation. But other operations that are separating mother from calf and/or artificially inseminating cows and/or using antibiotics and/or .... The other guys would just deny access.

    And the Missouri law you quoted I still find troubling. Why does that law exist? Are there similar laws for office parks, industrial complexes, pizza houses, retail stores, etc.? Why does Ag need protection?

    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    Anyone would just have to ask, and he would have been happy to show them around. He was proud of his farm, with good reason.

    The law exists because government likes duplicity. Instead of simply saying fraud is illegal, they have to codify it and make it specific to any potential situation. It is likely that a lot of trespassing has occurred - somewhere - and that people committed fraud as well in order to get blogged about, etc. I'm in favor of simplifying all of our laws so that common people can know them, understand them, and follow them. With government running things, that's not going to happen.
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member

    I got more or less the same response from QuietBloom:
    "Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed. "

    It seems you two assume that any controversial industry or organization will have specific laws guarding their secrets. Is that true? Do we have laws preventing access to and photography of abortion clinics? Churches? Oil wells? Gun manufacturers? National borders? The list could go on forever.

    I know that in some cases access is restricted, and for good reason, but it's done by individual owners. But I'm not aware of any laws prohibiting photography, nor any laws beyond general trespassing/ consent of owner regarding access.

    Are there any such laws that you're aware of, or are we just going to assume that there aren't because it suits your pre-existing opinions?

    If you get to speculate reasons as to why they would have these laws because "they might need to hide something", then I think it's only fair to speculate as to why the laws might be "needed". Neither one of us sat in on the drafting or signing into law of those.

    I would guess gaining access for photos/videos by people faking credentials was a problem in the industry necessitating an actual law on the books. I think that's a fair speculation.
  • Honestly, if there is a food product out there, you can find arguments for and against eating it. I'm getting numb to the nonsense.

    Regarding dairy, my feeling is that if you digest it without issues, enjoy! Growing up, my mom bought up to 4 gallons a week for a family of four. My 94 year old grandmother consumes a gallon of whole milk or more every week.

    But, my household is slightly different. My two sons both have Crohn's disease and I was diagnosed as gluten sensitive a couple of years ago. Our ability to digest large servings of dairy is gone. My older son gave it up completely. The younger son drinks 8oz a morning with cereal. I only cook with milk & butter. Rarely, do I drink it plain. Pre-diagnosis, I made the mistake of ordering a tall chocolate malt milkshake. I thought I was going to die. "My first clue"

    My feeling is that go ahead and drink it. I think the best stuff is grass fed, non-ultra pasteurized organic. It is expensive but has more of the good bacteria in it. Ultra-pasteurization makes it almost white water with no real nutritional value in my mind.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    I can't think of many industries that would welcome full access to the public that was just curious how things worked there...especially an industry that by its nature, and no matter how well they did things, was known to have people that disagreed with everything they stood for and their entire reason for existence.

    I know that when I was a kid, we toured a lot of businesses in various industries. Random people...full access to the public....not so much....but established tours to see how things work...yep. All the time...especially school kids and their parents.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    I can't think of many industries that would welcome full access to the public that was just curious how things worked there...especially an industry that by its nature, and no matter how well they did things, was known to have people that disagreed with everything they stood for and their entire reason for existence.

    True, but how many industries have laws on the books to protect their secrecy? There are some obvious examples, like those related to national security, but what is the justification for silencing whistleblowers when it comes to Ag?

    I'm still trying to figure out what they could possibly be keeping a secret. One secret might be the amount of milk that gets wasted, but again, that's the problem of over-reaching government. If they were allowed to operate in a free market, then we'd see less waste and lower prices. (But I'm getting off-topic, to be sure)
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Honestly, if there is a food product out there, you can find arguments for and against eating it. I'm getting numb to the nonsense.

    Regarding dairy, my feeling is that if you digest it without issues, enjoy! Growing up, my mom bought up to 4 gallons a week for a family of four. My 94 year old grandmother consumes a gallon of whole milk or more every week.

    But, my household is slightly different. My two sons both have Crohn's disease and I was diagnosed as gluten sensitive a couple of years ago. Our ability to digest large servings of dairy is gone. My older son gave it up completely. The younger son drinks 8oz a morning with cereal. I only cook with milk & butter. Rarely, do I drink it plain. Pre-diagnosis, I made the mistake of ordering a tall chocolate malt milkshake. I thought I was going to die. "My first clue"

    My feeling is that go ahead and drink it. I think the best stuff is grass fed, non-ultra pasteurized organic. It is expensive but has more of the good bacteria in it. Ultra-pasteurization makes it almost white water with no real nutritional value in my mind.

    Interesting....my husband has Crohn's and has no issues with either diary or gluten. His "trigger foods" are certain spices, excess fiber, and alcohol.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member

    I got more or less the same response from QuietBloom:
    "Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed. "

    It seems you two assume that any controversial industry or organization will have specific laws guarding their secrets. Is that true? Do we have laws preventing access to and photography of abortion clinics? Churches? Oil wells? Gun manufacturers? National borders? The list could go on forever.

    I know that in some cases access is restricted, and for good reason, but it's done by individual owners. But I'm not aware of any laws prohibiting photography, nor any laws beyond general trespassing/ consent of owner regarding access.

    Are there any such laws that you're aware of, or are we just going to assume that there aren't because it suits your pre-existing opinions?

    If you get to speculate reasons as to why they would have these laws because "they might need to hide something", then I think it's only fair to speculate as to why the laws might be "needed". Neither one of us sat in on the drafting or signing into law of those.

    I would guess gaining access for photos/videos by people faking credentials was a problem in the industry necessitating an actual law on the books. I think that's a fair speculation.

    PETA...

    Good point. In the information age, it is all too easy to fake information. (which is also fraud, but let me not digress again)
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member
    I'll just throw out some of my "big ag" bias. I grew up in rural NE LA (the state, not Los Angeles). Farming is about the only thing going in the area. I worked for an LSU ag experiment station in the summers.

    I hear arguments about how evil "big ag" is, but I just sometimes see (hypothetically) people just spitting in the faces of my classmates and their parents and grandparents.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    I'll just throw out some of my "big ag" bias. I grew up in rural NE LA (the state, not Los Angeles). Farming is about the only thing going in the area. I worked for an LSU ag experiment station in the summers.

    I hear arguments about how evil "big ag" is, but I just sometimes see (hypothetically) people just spitting in the faces of my classmates and their parents and grandparents.

    My dad grew up on a farm and was an ag major until he switched to accounting at the end of his sophomore year. I don't think any farm is the problem, in and of itself, no matter how big that farm is or what they are producing/cultivating. I see the USDA as a much bigger problem. The USDA picks winners and losers and uses our tax money to accomplish it. I don't see anyone crying about that though. :ohwell:
  • TriShamelessly
    TriShamelessly Posts: 905 Member
    Eat and drink on! I raise my glass of milk with one hand, and my pound of cheese in the other, to you in salute!
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member

    I got more or less the same response from QuietBloom:
    "Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed. "

    It seems you two assume that any controversial industry or organization will have specific laws guarding their secrets. Is that true? Do we have laws preventing access to and photography of abortion clinics? Churches? Oil wells? Gun manufacturers? National borders? The list could go on forever.

    I know that in some cases access is restricted, and for good reason, but it's done by individual owners. But I'm not aware of any laws prohibiting photography, nor any laws beyond general trespassing/ consent of owner regarding access.

    Are there any such laws that you're aware of, or are we just going to assume that there aren't because it suits your pre-existing opinions?

    If you get to speculate reasons as to why they would have these laws because "they might need to hide something", then I think it's only fair to speculate as to why the laws might be "needed". Neither one of us sat in on the drafting or signing into law of those.

    I would guess gaining access for photos/videos by people faking credentials was a problem in the industry necessitating an actual law on the books. I think that's a fair speculation.

    I've been waiting for someone to come along and point out the error in my thinking, someone who will point to other legislation that mirrors the special protections afforded the Ag industry. But the longer I wait, the more I'm thinking there are no such laws.

    Stringing a set of assumptions together until they fit your opinion may work for you, John, but they're not making a very convincing argument.

    So far there hasn't even been a good argument as to why the Ag industry should be treated so differently.

    But if somebody more knowledgeable than me comes up with something, I'll be glad to hear it.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    And the Missouri law you quoted I still find troubling. Why does that law exist? Are there similar laws for office parks, industrial complexes, pizza houses, retail stores, etc.? Why does Ag need protection?

    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    They exist as a reaction to activists or journalists pretending to be employees to get access to information. There are probably laws that cover other forms of lying on employment applications, depending on the job, or otherwise obtaining certain kinds of information, but that's usually going to be information that is entitled to some kind of confidentiality.

    That said, I dislike the laws. But also the blanket claim that no one can visit a dairy farm is obviously false. If you care about the humane treatment of animals and other related issues and want to visit a farm and ask questions, you obviously can. Not every farm, but presumably that would be a factor in whether a person so interested would buy from that farm. I totally understand having problems with the way that animals get treated in industrial farming in the US, as I do myself. I also totally understand having an ethical objection to ALL eating of animals and animal products, even if they are humanely treated as I personally would define that term, and respect people who choose to live by those beliefs, but I don't happen to share that quite broad objection and have found a way to eat meat and dairy and eggs that I think is ethical. YMMV and all that.

    Anyway, like I said, agreed that ag-gag laws are bad news, but Rocbola's effort to use them as support for his claim that laws prevent everyone from visiting a dairy farm ignores some key facts: (a) they don't; (b) even as to what they do, they are new and the Constitutionality is still being litigated; (c) they exist only in a small minority of states so far, so it is not true to claim they exist across the board like that (especially since there are people here who don't even live in the US); and (d) they were even defeated in the same farm state Rocbola claims as his current residence (my state also and yours too, it appears).
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member


    [/quote




    I'm guessing your uncle would grant access to anyone curious about the inner workings of his operation. But other operations that are separating mother from calf and/or artificially inseminating cows and/or using antibiotics and/or .... The other guys would just deny access.

    And the Missouri law you quoted I still find troubling. Why does that law exist? Are there similar laws for office parks, industrial complexes, pizza houses, retail stores, etc.? Why does Ag need protection?

    Again, it makes me think that there is a deliberate effort to hide the actual operations from the general public.

    Did you ever consider that it might be an insurance issue? Farms are dangerous places, and not for people that don't know their way around animals and machinery. My dad had to save a "city-slicker" from losing his arm once.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member

    True, but how many industries have laws on the books to protect their secrecy? There are some obvious examples, like those related to national security, but what is the justification for silencing whistleblowers when it comes to Ag?

    I would guess lab animal facilities might have similar laws to protect them.

    I got more or less the same response from QuietBloom:
    "Probably nothing. But some organizations (*cough* PETA *cough*) would just love to get some footage they could snip and paste together to suit their agenda. Heck, they can take a dog training video and make it look like abuse. In fact, they think owning animals as pets should be outlawed. "

    It seems you two assume that any controversial industry or organization will have specific laws guarding their secrets. Is that true? Do we have laws preventing access to and photography of abortion clinics? Churches? Oil wells? Gun manufacturers? National borders? The list could go on forever.

    I know that in some cases access is restricted, and for good reason, but it's done by individual owners. But I'm not aware of any laws prohibiting photography, nor any laws beyond general trespassing/ consent of owner regarding access.

    Are there any such laws that you're aware of, or are we just going to assume that there aren't because it suits your pre-existing opinions?

    No 'pre-existing opinions', but rather first had information. When I worked in a lab animal facility 20 years ago, we could adopt the animals out after they were done with a study, or if a cat had kittens, we could take them home, etc. Now, thanks to PETA, every lab animal facility has to be a lock down facility or else they would be breaking in, damaging equipment, stealing animals, etc. It's about protecting private property (including animals) and avoiding expensive lawsuits from people who hurt themselves on your property, whether they are there legally or not.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    They exist as a reaction to activists or journalists pretending to be employees to get access to information. ...

    Anyway, like I said, agreed that ag-gag laws are bad news, but Rocbola's effort to use them as support for his claim that laws prevent everyone from visiting a dairy farm ignores some key facts: (a) they are new and the Constitutionality is still being litigated; (b) they exist only in a small minority of states so far, so it is not true to claim they exist across the board like that (especially since there are people here who don't even live in the US); and (c) they were even defeated in the same state Rocbola claims as his current residence (my state also).

    Unless you can substantiate the bolded claim in some way, I'm not buying it. It sounds like another assumption. (Forgive me if I'm wrong.)

    I like your last paragraph. That sounds like solid info and offers a good perspective.
  • jenn26point2
    jenn26point2 Posts: 429 Member
    I didn't read the whole thread so this may have been touched on already... Dairy allergy goes beyond lactose intolerance. Casein and whey intolerances are also possible. Some are significant (constant respiratory illnesses, crazy out of control eczema, and a few other things), some are mild. My intolerance/sensitivity to casein and/or whey is pretty minor - so minor I didn't know they existed until I stopped drinking milk for a while. Suddenly, my seasonal allergies went away... no more sneezing, no more stuffy nose, no more overall congestion, no more need to forcefully clear my throat/cough all the time to rid myself of the phlegmy feeling in my throat, and this blotchy red irritation that I thought was rosacea went away... bring dairy back 30 days later and all those symptoms returned. The respiratory symptoms don't bother me as much as the eczema (what I thought was rosacea) b/c the eczema appears on my face as red splotches with dry patches on them (it's been confirmed by a doctor to be eczema, not rosacea or straight up dry skin/acne). It's noticeable enough that people ask about it, so I avoid dairy as much as possible. There seems to be a threshold in the amount I can consume without it affecting my skin negatively - the trick was finding that threshold.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    No 'pre-existing opinions', but rather first had information. When I worked in a lab animal facility 20 years ago, we could adopt the animals out after they were done with a study, or if a cat had kittens, we could take them home, etc. Now, thanks to PETA, every lab animal facility has to be a lock down facility or else they would be breaking in, damaging equipment, stealing animals, etc. It's about protecting private property (including animals) and avoiding expensive lawsuits from people who hurt themselves on your property, whether they are there legally or not.

    Fair enough, but you're missing my point. I keep asking it over and over again, and you're not the only one who keeps missing it:

    What makes the Ag industry so special? Why do they (Ag) have laws on the books regarding photography and fraudulent interviewees when your animal facility does not? Just about every single business in the country has good reasons to restrict access and protect information, and just about every single business addresses those concerns individually, using existing trespassing laws, which local police and court systems will readily enforce.

    What makes Ag so special?

    It's the high level of security/protection/secrecy that has me wondering. I'm not much for conspiracy theories, but something seems all wrong here.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Unless you can substantiate the bolded claim in some way, I'm not buying it. It sounds like another assumption. (Forgive me if I'm wrong.)

    I'm not sure why that would be so hard to accept. Laws are generally not passed, especially not all of a sudden after an industry has existed for years, without some reason that makes people think it's needed (even if needed for bad reasons, as one can argue here).

    All the coverage of it I've seen, including from the anti-gag side, which is the side the press as a whole is on--again unsurprisingly, the press obviously has reason to hate gag laws--says it was a reaction to some high profile exposes by people posing as employees. One example is this Atlantic piece:

    http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/03/the-ag-gag-laws-hiding-factory-farm-abuses-from-public-scrutiny/254674/