Legislation doesn't control food in U.S.

After reading Bette Spaargaren's letter about Senate Bill SB 510, the "Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010," I went to the Internet to read the actual legislation.

It does not make it illegal to grow, share, trade, transport, sell, feed or eat homegrown food.

It talks about "food producers" but farms are specifically excluded, and there's no mention of homegrown foods at all. (If you decide to start making 500 pounds of cheese a week in your kitchen to sell at the farmer's market you've become a food producer, but that should be obvious to all.)

It doesn't extend control over all food in the United States, or violate the fundamental human right to food.

The only mention of the Department of Homeland Security is a system by which department will be the lead agency if the terrorists decide to attack us through our food, which eliminates "turf battles" between the Food and Drug Administration and Department of Homeland Security ... "It's a terror attack, so it's ours," screamed the DHS guy while "it's food, so it's ours" screams the FDA guy while people are dying in the streets from the poisoned foodstuffs.

They should still vote no, because the bill isn't as good as House Resolution 825, the last bill conservatives killed by fooling people into believing it was going to ban tomato plants on the front porch. That bill would have split the FDA into a food agency and a drugs agency, which is necessary because the FDA is run by doctors for doctors; medicines rather than foods are the FDA's focus.

I'd like an agency that does nothing but food, and it won't cost us very much because the people who would be doing the work are already on the payroll. They'd just be led by a farmer or a food industry professional.

JIM MOWREADER

Hayden