HJR 7&11 and SJR 22 “forever guarantees”

From the Heartland, Margot McMillen writes: We have a fight on our hands. Missouri Citizens v. Missouri lawmakers. It’s truly appalling how these Missouri legislators and senators, elected on platforms of local control, have fallen for the corporate factory farm lines. We have to phone, e-mail, fax them and stand up to this kind of misrepresentation! HJR 7 & 11 and SJR 22 are marching through the halls, as far as I can tell the lawmakers haven’t read them and the lobbyists are saying the bills do what the citizens want! That means they promote “No regulation!” But even the most cursory read reveals that these take away property rights and turn our freedoms over to the corporations. They will result in constitutional amendments that change rather than protect the constitution! These vaguely worded constitutional amendments could strip Local Control from Missouri counties (both urban and rural), taking away their power to protect constituents, family farmers and Missouri citizens from the negative impacts of corporate controlled agriculture through Local Control. HJR 7&11 and SJR 22 “forever guarantees” “modern farming practices” under the constitution. Neither current, nor future “modern farming practices” are defined in these bills. So, these “future” undefined practices could be anything (from robot tractors to unhealthy chemicals to corporate controlled CAFOs, to cloned animals, to complete control of the seed supply…). “Forever” protecting future unknown and undefined “modern” ag and food practices is completely irresponsible and should not be in our constitution. HJR 7&11 and SJR 22 could give corporate agri-business the complete and unbridled right over Missouri counties to exploit any future “agricultural technologies” simply to increase their profits, even if it comes at the expense of family farmers, our food system, property rights and rural economies.