Mutant E. Coli Strikes Europe - Do Something, Government!

Mutant E. Coli Pegged To Deadly Outbreak In Europe: World Health Organization

This Canadian Press article in the Canadian section of HuffPo says:

So far, the mutant E. coli strain has sickened more than 1,500 people, including 470 who have developed a rare kidney failure complication, and killed 18, including one overnight in Germany, the country hit hardest by the outbreak.

Germany -- and more specifically Hamburg -- seems to be the point of origin, and suspicion is being directed at vegetables contaminated by animal manure. But our globe-hopping ways make the spread of exotic diseases rapid and widespread:

Nearly all the sick people either live in Germany or recently travelled there. Two people who were sickened are now in the United States, and both had recently travelled to Hamburg, Germany, where many of the infections occurred. British officials announced four new cases, including three Britons who recently visited Germany and a German person on holiday in England.

Germany's neighbors are issuing bans on the import of German vegetables; Russia has extended its ban "immediately and indefinitely" to all of the EU. Other EU nations are criticizing this measure as harsh and unnecessary.

But the point is that everybody is depending on government to DO SOMETHING! Neighbors want import bans imposed; Germans want the source of the infection found, isolated, and eradicated. And everybody wants fast, efficient, effective government action.

But in the U.S., everybody conservatives want to cripple and defund the agencies that perform these functions. Here's a statement from Wenonah Huter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch, at the Clean Food Earth site dated Wednesday, May 25, 2011:

USDA -SLASHES INSPECTION BUDGET - CUTS LIVESTOCK INSPECTORS

House Subcommittee Budget Bill Would Hurt Consumers, Producers 

WASHINGTON - May 25, 2011 - “Yesterday the House Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies approved a budget bill for FY 2012 that undermines the federal government’s ability to protect consumers from unsafe food. It would keep independent farmers and ranchers under the thumb of corporate meatpackers, and would fail to protect hungry people around the world from Wall Street speculation that puts food out of reach for millions.

“The cuts made by the House subcommittee are not about balancing the budget. They are ideological attacks on the ability of government agencies to do their jobs. Slashing the budgets of the agencies responsible for keeping our food supply clean, safe and accessible is short-sighted and irresponsible. The rest of the House and the Senate should reject the cuts to these vital programs laid out in the subcommittee’s bill to make sure the budget bolsters our ability to provide Americans with a food system that is safe for consumers and fair to producers.”

Here's a link to an article by Ron Smith in the Southwest Farm Press dated May 13, 2011: Deep cuts would hurt state ag and health agencies:

Potential deep cuts in two Texas state agency budgets could pose serious challenges to assuring food safety, market enhancement and agricultural economic development.

The Texas Department of Agriculture could see funding cuts ranging from 41 percent to 45 percent, Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples said at the Texas Food Safety Conference at Austin.

His counterpart in the Texas Department of Health, David Lakey, M.D., said his department also faces deep cuts, especially for funding approved during the last legislative session to support additional personnel to deal with an increased number of license requests.

The conservative ideological mindset extends not only throughout the area of food and water inspection but is pervasive throughout government. These people believe two things:

1. That government regulation is bad in itself, since the free market must be unfettered;
2. and that regulation requires a bloated bureaucracy that is also an onerous burden on the taxpayer.

Therefore, GOVERNMENT REGULATION MUST BE CUT.

Things like safety inspection and fire insurance are a costly, unneccessary burden -- until you need them.