On Monday, December 1, a
SWAT team with semi-automatic
rifles entered the private home of the Stowers family in LaGrange, Ohio,
herded the family onto the couches in the living room, and kept guns trained
on grandparents, their daughter-in-law (whose
husband is currently serving as a U.S. Navy Seabee in Iraq), their children
and grandchildren for four hours. The team was aggressive and belligerent.
The children were quite traumatized. At some point, the “bad cop” SWAT
team was relieved by another team, a “good cop” team that
tried to befriend the family.
The Stowers family has run a very large,
well-known food cooperative called
Manna Storehouse on the western side of the greater Cleveland area for
many years. [See video:
The Stowers tell their story]
There were agents from the Department of
Agriculture present, one of them identified as Bill Lesho. The search warrant
is
reportedly suspicious-looking. Agents began rifling through all of the
family’s possessions, a task that lasted hours and resulted in a complete
upheaval of every private area in the home. Many items were taken that were
not listed on the search warrant. The family was not permitted a phone call,
and they were not told what crime they were being charged with. They
were not read their rights. Over ten thousand dollars worth of food
was taken, including the family’s personal stock of food for the coming
year. All of their computers, and all of their cell phones
were taken, as well as phone and contact records. The
food cooperative was virtually shut down. There was no rational explanation,
nor justification, for this extreme violation of Constitutional rights.
Presumably Manna Storehouse might eventually
be charged with running a retail establishment without a license. Why then
the Gestapo-type interrogation for a 3rd degree misdemeanor charge? This
incident has raised the ominous specter of a restrictive new era in State
regulation and enforcement over the nation’s private food supply.
For verification see this
court filing showing that government exceeding its authority
This same type of abusive search and seizure
was reported by those innocents who fell victim to oppressive federal drug
laws passed in the 1990s. The present circumstance raises the obvious question:
is there some rabid new interpretation of an existing drug law that considers
food a controlled substance worthy of a nasty SWAT operation? Or worse,
is there a previously unrecognized provision(s) pertaining to food in the
Homeland Security measures? Some have suggested that it was merely an out-of-control,
hot-to-trot ODA [Ohio Department of Agriculture] agent, and, if so, this
would be a best-case scenario. Anything else might spell the beginning of
the end for the
freedom to eat unregulated and unmonitored food.
One
blogger familiar with the Ohio situation has reported that:
“Interestingly, I believe they [Manna
Storehouse] said a month or so ago, an undercover ODA official came
to their little store and claimed to have a sick father wanting to join
the co-op. Both the owner and her daughter-in-law had a horrible feeling
about the man, and decided not to allow him into the co-op and notified
him by certified mail. He came back to the co-op demanding to be part
of it. They refused and gave him names of other businesses and health
food stores closer to his home. Not coincidentally, this man was there
yesterday as part of the raid.”
The
same blog also noted that the Ohio Department of Agriculture has been
chastised by the courts in several previous instances for its aggression,
including trying to entrap an
Amish man in a raw milk “sale,” which backfired when it became known
that the Amish believe in a literal interpretation of “give to him that
asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away”
(Matthew 5:42)
The issue appears to be the discovery of
a bit of non-institutional beef in an Oberlin College food service freezer
a year ago that was tracked down by a county sanitation official to Manna
Storehouse. Oberlin College’s student food coop is widely known for its
strident ideological stance about eating organic foods. It seems that the
Oberlin student food cooperative had joined the Manna Storehouse food cooperative
in order to buy organic foods in bulk from the national organic food distributor
United, which services buying clubs across the nation. The sanitation
official, James Boddy, evidently contacted the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
After the first contact by state ODA officials, Manna Storehouse reportedly
wrote them a letter requesting assistance and guidelines for complying
with the law. This letter was never answered. Rather, the ODA agent
tried several times to infiltrate the coop, as described above. When his
attempts failed, the SWAT team showed up!
Food cooperatives and buying clubs have been
an active part of the American landscape for over a generation. In the 1970s,
with the rise of the organic food industry (a direct outgrowth of the hippie
back-to-nature movement) food coops started up all over the country. These
were groups of people who freely associated for the purpose of combining
their buying power so that they could order organic food items in bulk and
case lots. Anyone who was part of these coops in the early era will remember
the messy breakdown of 35 pounds of peanut butter and 5 gallon drums of
honey!
These buying clubs have persisted and flourished
over the years due to their ability to purchase high quality organic foods
at reduced prices in bulk quantities. Most cooperatives have participated
greatly in the local agrarian economies, supporting neighborhood organic
farmers with purchases of produce, eggs, chickens, etc. The groups also
purchase food from a number of different local, regional and national distributors,
many of them family-based businesses who truck the food themselves. Some
of these food cooperatives have become large enough to set up mini-storefront
operations where members can drop in and purchase items leftover from case
lot sales. Manna Storehouse had established itself in such a manner, using
a small enclosed breezeway attached to their home. It was a folksy place
with old wooden floors where coop members stopped by to chat and snack on
bags of organic corn chips.
The state of Ohio boasts the second largest
Amish population in the country. Many of the Amish live on acreages where
they raise their own food, not unlike Manna Storehouse, and sell off the
extras to neighbors and church members. There is a sense of foreboding that
this state crackdown on a longstanding, reputable food cooperative operation
could adversely impact the peaceful agrarian way of life not only for the
Amish, but homeschoolers and those families living off the land on rural
acreages. It raises the disturbing possibility that it could become a crime
to raise your own food, buy eggs from the farmer down the road, or butcher
your own chickens for family and friends – bustling activities that routinely
take place in backwater America.
The freedom to purchase food directly
form the source is increasingly under attack. For those who have
food allergies and chemical intolerances, or who are on special medical
diets, this is becoming a serious health issue. Will Americans retain
the right to purchase food that is uncontaminated by pesticides, herbicides,
allergens, additives, dyes, preservatives, MSG, GMOs, radiation, etc.? The
melamine scare from China underscores the increasingly inferior and suspect
quality of modern processed institutional foods. One blog, commenting on
the bizarre and troubling Manna Storehouse situation, observed that:
“No one is saying exactly why.
At the same time the FDA says it is safe to eat the 40% of tainted
beef found in Costco's and Sam's all over the nation. These farm
raids are very common now. Every farmer needs to fully equipped [sic]
for the possibility of it happening to them.
The Farmer To Consumer Legal Defense Fund was created just for this
purpose. The USDA just released their plans to put a law into action
that will put all small farmers out of business. Animals for the sale
of meat or milk will only be allowed in commercial farms, even the organic
ones.”
December 3, 2008 7:09 PM
"The police paramilitary
units also conduct training exercises with active duty Army
Rangers and Navy SEALs. State and local police departments
are increasingly accepting the military as a model
for their behavior and outlook.... The problem is that the mindset
of the soldier is simply not appropriate for the civilian police
officer. Police officers confront not an 'enemy' but individuals
who are protected by the Bill of Rights. Confusing the police
function with the military function can lead to dangerous
and unintended consequences...." (Diane Cecilia Weber, Cato
Institute, "Warrior
Cops: The Ominous Growth of Paramilitarism in Police Departments")
Updates:
December 26:
Declaration of Intent, Notice & Demand:
See the last document in this pdf file -- a letter from Mrs. Stowers dated December 10.
Global Food Control.
Raid
on family's home and organic food co-op challenged:
"The Buckeye Institute's 1851 Center for Constitutional Law
today took legal action against the Ohio Department of Agriculture
(ODA) and the Lorain County Health Department for violating
the constitutional rights of John and Jacqueline Stowers
of LaGrange, Ohio.... ODA and Lorain County Health Department
agents forcefully raided their home and unlawfully seized the
family's personal food supply, cell phones and personal computers.
... The Buckeye Institute argues the right to buy food directly
from local farmers; distribute locally-grown food to neighbors;
and pool resources to purchase food in bulk are rights that
do not require a license. In addition, the right of peaceful
citizens to be free from paramilitary police raids,
searches and seizures is guaranteed under the Fourth Amendment
to the United States Constitution and Section 14, Article 1
of the Ohio Constitution.
'"The Stowers' constitutional rights were violated over grass-fed
cattle, pastured chickens and pesticide-free produce.... Ohioans
do not need a government permission slip to run a family farm
and co-op, and should not be subjected to raids when they do
not have one. This legal action will ensure the ODA understands
and respects Ohioans' rights.'...
"On the morning of December 1, 2008, law enforcement officers
forcefully entered the Stowers' residence, without first
announcing they were police or stating the purpose of the
visit. With guns drawn, officers swiftly and immediately
moved to the upstairs of the home, finding ten children in the
middle of a home-schooling lesson. Officers then moved Jacqueline
Stowers and her children to their living room where they were
held for more than six hours."
(Farm-to-Consumer
Legal Defense Fund) TCLDF Joins Buckeye Institute as Co-Counsel
in Civil Suit over Manna Storehouse Raid:
"The complaint claims that the Stowers’ due process, equal protection
and other constitutional rights were violated when their house
was raided by representatives from various state and local governmental
agencies, including the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
...several of whom had guns drawn and who treated the Stowers
family like drug dealers. ...one of the deputies even snatched
a cell phone out of the hand of a teenage son who was attempting
to call Mr. Stowers....
"FTCLDF General Counsel Gary Cox said 'this is an example where,
once again, the government is trying to deny people their inalienable,
fundamental right to produce and consume the foods of their
choice. The purpose of our complaint is to correct that wrong.'
The complaint also seeks a preliminary injunction against the
Department of Agriculture and declarations stipulating that
Manna Storehouse and the Stowers are not a 'retail food establishment'
under Ohio’s Food Safety Code. As a private cooperative, Manna
Storehouse is exempted from the Food Safety Code."
December 11:
A media response
to this article repeatedly refers to Manna Storehouse as a "business,"
not a food cooperative. That distinction may be part of the
problem. Perhaps the government wants to redefine a legal co-op
as a "business" -- and is therefore using Manna Storehouse as
a warning to other long-established co-ops. The
Sheriff's report doesn't clarify this issue. But it does
mention that one of the eleven "assisting officers" was
wearing "raid pants" as "a member of the
Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force."
Until
now, rural co-ops like Manna
Storehouse have been operating
freely. For a glimpse of how they might function, look at this
definition by
"United
Buying Clubs:
"A buying
club is a group of people who pool their time, resources,
and buying power to save money on high quality healthful
foods. Members of a buying club share the work and expenses
involved in acquiring and distributing the food to their
group. Each member contributes to the buying club by doing
at least one job, and the buying club in turn benefits from
the talents and skills of many. Members divide the work
equally among themselves, trading their time for the lower
prices. Members also enjoy the camaraderie of working with
other people in their community."
Most
of the cooperatives buy produce, eggs, and a variety of meats
from local farmers. This is part of their commitment to a simple
and sustainable lifestyle, a goal many Christians share
with environmentalists. Co-op members seek to reduce the costs
of energy & transportation. And they like to know WHERE & HOW
their food is grown, so they can avoid questionable food and
ingredients from countries such as China.
What's
at stake here is the freedom to purchase food directly from
the farmer, or directly from one middleman. Can we no longer
buy eggs or chicken from a neighbor? Would this become a crime?
When does the traditional practice of communal sharing become
a formal BUSINESS? If a few friends get together and split a
few cases of honey and soy milk, should that be defined as a
BUSINESS?
Does
the local police have the constitutional right to treat peaceful,
unarmed families as dangerous enemies?
It's not surprising that the mainstream news media is downplaying
and distorting this event. The
fact that the initial "belligerent"
SWAT team was replaced by a "good cop team" that tried to befriend
the family -- and the lack of specific data on the
sheriff's report --
suggest that someone recognized
the threat to the public image of "law enforcement" and
chose to conceal the most damaging data.
Since globalist leaders plan
to control
food and supplements,
water,
physical
and mental health,
energy, and "human settlements"
– and as the unthinkable global
standards and surveillance
system are being implemented -- they will obviously need
paramilitary forces to control the unhappy masses.
The Stowers family has been financially devastated
by this atrocity. As far as they know, they have broken no law
-- no charges have been filed -- yet they lost all of their
computers, phones [some have now been replaced] and personal
food for the coming year. They are not asking for help, but
if you can help them, you can find contact information
at:
www.mannastorehouse.com
|
“The Lord is my light and
my salvation; whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? ...
Though an army may encamp
against me, My heart shall not fear;
Though war should rise against me, in this I will be confident."
Psalm 27:1-2
Comments:
From Jo Lewis: My sister used to belong to a
co-op. I went over one week when she was helping with the delivery. We went
to a church early in the morning and set up tables and got ready for the
semi to arrive with all the supplies.
We had a section of the room set aside for each family
who had ordered items. Cold items were held in individual coolers until
each family came to p/u. I was fascinated as I had no idea how organized
and clever it all was until I witnessed it. I was very interested in starting
one here but no friends were willing to form a co-op.
