Protesting Farmers Spray EU Parliament with Milk

Farmers used a platform to hose the European Parliament with milk

Angry farmers protesting at falling dairy prices in the EU have sprayed fresh milk at the European Parliament and riot police in Brussels.

Thousands of dairy farmers, accompanied by hundreds of tractors, descended on the Belgian capital on Monday for two days of demonstrations.

Disruption has continued, with EU officials hindered from reaching their offices by tractors blocking roads.

Farmers want an increase of up to 25% in their prices to cover costs.

EU milk is often sold at below production costs due to a drop in international demand and increased competition.

The European Milk Board (EMB), which is co-ordinating the protest, says small farmers are being forced out of business.

In Belgium, for example, the wholesale price for a litre of milk is 0.26 euros (£0.21; $0.34) but the cost of producing it is 0.40 euros, the board said.

Dairy farmers in Shropshire, England, recently won a price increase to £0.29 (0.36 euros) per litre from a leading processor but reported that the cost of production was still £0.31 (0.38 euros).

The EU is the world's largest milk producer and in 2010 nearly 47% of its 123bn euro budget went on subsidies and other forms of financial aid for farmers, including dairy producers.

'Killing us'
 
Police guarding the European Parliament found themselves being squirted with jets of milk on Monday as protesters directed hoses at the building.

 A trailer of hay was set alight on the nearby Place du Luxembourg, where a mock gallows was erected with what appeared to be a hanging dummy of a farmer.

"Politics are really killing us," Belgian farmer Julien Husquet was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.

"It has to change very quickly at the European level. The way it is going, we are in big trouble."

"It's very simple: you can't live off milk anymore," French farmer Leopold Gruget told AFP news agency.

"If I go on, it's thanks to European aid... If they do it [phase out subsidies] there will be no more small and medium producers here in five years."

Some of the largest farmers' contingents have come from Denmark, France, Germany, the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain, the EU Observer reports.

Erwin Schopges, head of the EMB in Belgium, said Tuesday's protests would be "symbolic" and calmer.

Arafat's Widow Speaks Out After Exhumation

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Government Tells NJ Hurricane Victims to Demolish Their Homes Immediately or pay $2,000 Per Week

By JG Vibes
theintelhub.com


After hurricane Sandy hit the east coast, all of the mainstream media sources were praising FEMA and the governments overall response to the disaster.

However, since the dust has settled and reality has set in, it seems that most of the actual help is coming from people in the community and the government is actually doing more harm then they are doing good.
 
This week, residents of one of the most hard hit areas on the east coast, Seaside Heights, New Jersey, were told that they had to demolish their homes or face heavy fines.
According to a local newspaper:

“This weekend, Joe Biden visited this oceanfront community in Ocean County, but local residents, some who saw their homes for the first time, were also greeted by demolition notices.
Dated November 13th, one noticed by a resident who wishes to remain anonymous, stated “Your structure has possible structural of footing failures.”

It went on to say the structure would be demolished by November 30, 2012, just 17 days from the notice.   The order allowed the residents to request a hearing, but also threatened by fines of up to $2,000 per week if they did not comply with the order and fix their homes before the 30th.

To date, homeowners have been allowed to hire contractors for damage assessments, quotes, winterizations and insurance inspections, but no plans have yet been made for any reconstruction, leaving homeowners in a difficult position with very little time to decide what to do before their homes are demolished by the township.”

People should be able to move at their own pace with this, especially because these are decisions that are being made with their own property.  The government has no right to tell these people what to do with their property.

FEMA shut down a few weeks ago “due to bad weather”, during which time Occupy Sandy and other independent voluntary organizations continued to provide aid to hurricane victims.

Although mainstream media sources have been reporting that FEMA has done a great job, people who are actually forced to interact with FEMA have an entirely different story.

Some people who have no choice but to live in the “tent cities” set up by FEMA say that they are treated like criminals and actually feel like they are “in a concentration camp”.

Many on the east coast are still without power, lighting or housing and it seems that in many ways the natural good will of peaceful human beings is outshining the inefficient programs that are put forward by corrupt governments.