© UnknownIowa
Nine House Democrats joined all of the Republicans present to pass the bill in a 66 to 27 vote on Iowa bill H.R. 589.
Turns out your video camera or camera are now considered lethal weapons...the stuff of terrorism!
In an effort to protect industrialized CAFO operations, and unscrupulous corporate growers, Iowa is standing up to those activist citizens who document the abhorrent conditions on industrialized farms and ranches and also in some privately owned operations, claiming this somehow interferes with, or tampers with the property of another.
11A. "Record" means any printed, inscribed,
visual, or audio information that is placed or stored on a
tangible medium, and that may be accessed in a perceivable
form, including but not limited to any paper or electronic
format.
This means anything recorded on your film or camera that would adversely affect the profits of the person committing the abuse. This includes, video's, stills, pictures captured on your cell phone or any other documentation.
d. Disrupt operations conducted at the animal facility,
if the operations directly relate to agricultural production,
animal maintenance, educational or scientific purposes, or
veterinary care.
IF your pictures highlight the abuse, unsanitary conditions or what is referred to as educational or veterinary.....meaning drug testing, experiments, vivisection research, dissemination of disease for "research" or other inhumane activities under the guise of Education or scientific,......you too could be a unique terrorist with a camera. Animal maintenance is the catch-all phrase that covers abusive treatment, mistreatment, unsanitary conditions and lack of care.
And here is the coup de grace:
Sec. 9. NEW SECTION. 717A.2A Animal facility interference.
1. A person is guilty of animal facility interference, if
the person acts without the consent of the owner of an animal
facility to willfully do any of the following:
a. (1) Produce a record which reproduces an image or sound
occurring at the animal facility as follows:
(a) The record must be created by the person while at the
animal facility.
(b) The record must be a reproduction of a visual or audio
experience occurring at the animal facility, including but not
limited to a photographic or audio medium.
(2) Possess or distribute a record which produces an image
or sound occurring at the animal facility which was produced as
provided in subparagraph (1)
(3) Subparagraphs (1) and (2) do not apply to an animal
shelter, a boarding kennel, a commercial kennel, a pet shop, or
a pound, all as defined in section 162.2.
Wouldn't the more prudent thing to do here have been to enforce animal cruelty laws? How about all those fake food safety regulations? Would it be too much to ask that a higher, safer standard of animal care be enforced? Rather than criminalizing those who expose the corruption and abuse that occurs routinely in these facilities.
This bill, like so many others we are seeing from the Republicans is a direct assault on your first amendment rights; your right to free speech. They've already attacked workers rights, your right to alternative healthcare and now they want to stop you from documenting the corruption and abuse in corporate farming and livestock operations.
This works out really well . . . this way, you are prevented from gathering the evidence, producing the evidence and forcing them to acknowledge the evidence. Perfect scenario: Plausible deniability.
YES! Corporate protectionism is alive and well in Iowa! And why wouldn't it be? This is Tom Vilsack's home turf; a man, who if he was any closer to Monsanto and other bio-pirates would most likely have to give them their own key to his place. Apparently they already have the keys to Iowa.
____________________________________________________
Bill HR 589
Roll Call on bill vote
Bill history
that makes it all the more important to protect Wikileaks and their ilk, since they will be the ONLY way to get evidence out to the public. Assuming you are a wimp and afraid of bucking the assinine statutes. "There are evil laws as well as evil men. When a law is wrong, it is a person's duty to disobey it" - M.K. Gandhi