Raw Milk Monday. "Happy" ? Memorial Day.

Please note: If you are new to my blog you can catch up on the reasons for my raw milk passion and the struggles our own farm have experienced, by reading any of the previous posts on the topic I have written over the last 3 years . To do so, simply enter "Raw Milk" in the search bar under the picture of our house, on the right.

 

It seems odd and disrespectful to say "Happy Memorial Day"

Especially to those who have lost someone they dearly love to a war, friendly fire, unfriendly fire, military accidents and again more war.

So many sacrifices that get forgotten in the midst of steak grilling, volleyball playing and potato salad consuming and beef slurping. Perhaps it would be more meaningful if we were walking about telling the survivors of our hero's "I'm so sorry, I'm so sad. I'm so grateful. I'm so guilty, I'm so proud"

Anything, I think would be better than telling a survivor to be "Happy"

But then again, I am very happy to be an American (most days)
I am very happy to have the right to speak my mind.
I am very happy to be able to make my living the way I choose.(so far)
I am very happy to be able to own a gun.
I am happy to be able to stand up to a government who wants to take away my choice of food

I am very happy to be free.

Last week I spent two days in Baraboo, Wisconsin lending what support I could to Vernon Hershberger Family. I met with some awesome freedom fighters like  Mark Kastel of the Cornucopia Institute, Mark Baker of Bakers Green Acres, the Michigan farmer fighting hoof and tail to be able to raise the type of hog he chooses and Liz Reitzig the home-schooling mother of five who sacrifices her own family time and finances to organize events like that one.

Vernon's trial  took place those five days last week and I had the opportunity to sit in court and watch a ridiculous judge make an ass of himself as he evicted those from the room who used words like "liberty" Yes. Liberty. or "Raw milk"

But as obviously narrow minded and one sided the judge was, the jury showed substantially  more brains, courage  and common sense. In the end Vernon was found guilty on just 1 of the 4 criminal counts against him and will be allowed to continue to grow and sell his farm raised milk and meat to his private club members.

Which was all he wanted to do in the first place.

Too bad it only cost him and The Farm to Consumer Defense Fund THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of dollars for his defense the last 3 years. Too bad he still had to pay taxes during that time to the state and county who used that same money to pay the salary of the judge who wouldn't know what real food was if it walked up and shook his hand.

Too bad that when a jury finds a defendant not guilty, the courts are not forced to repay him the money& time spent defending himself. Not to mention the sleepless nights of worry about his family should he have to go to jail.

If that were true then morons like those in the Wisconsin DATCP might not be so eager to ruin the life of a God Fearing, Country Loving,  Family Devoted Man like Vernon Hershberger.

Still, even though the system is imperfect it is better than any in the world. And every day I am genuinely thrilled to be an American, eternally grateful for those who have served and are currently serving. But we cannot leave it to them alone. It is no longer enough.

We must stand up for our rights right here on our own land. Enemies of our Constitution do not solely exist in other countries. They walk right here, along side of us in the grocery store, sitting next to us in church, teaching our children in school and of course they have the gall to threaten us on our own farms.

The best way we can thank those who sacrificed their lives for our freedoms is to be brave enough to fight back on the smaller, more intimate scales. Be it the right to consume the food you choose, to grow the livestock that is best for your farm, to sell your milk to those who ask for it we must say "NO!"

For every day we remain passive, for every minute we sit back and let someone else take on the battle for us, we are that much closer to losing what all those beyond brave men and woman fought for. How shameful that would be.