Had someone email me the other day asking if I had any new insights on the HR669 discussions that have been going around. The answer is yes, and no.
I spoke with Andrew from USARK a couple of weeks back for a few minutes about this PIJAC conspiracy theory. Didn’t get very far at all. The true politician, he had no comment other than what his own position was. Certainly no “bad mouthing” or other competitive hype. Fair enough.
I know for a fact through personal conversation with the proprietor of one moderate sized “snake farm” in central Florida a few years back that he would like to see the basement breeder eliminated. It somehow cuts into his livelihood or some such convoluted logic. This particular individual is also good buddies with a not so small “snake farm” right up the road from him. Hopefully the feelings are not mutual between them though the rumor mill in Florida says they are. Who knows.
What does this tell us?? Well, it tells me that there are some legislation minded individuals that carry pretty good weight in this industry among us. Scary. Unlike some of the conspiracy theory crazy’s out there in the forums I will not jump to the conclusion that these larger breeders are ACTING on some of their outlooks. There are a lot of things in life that people may ponder or believe that they are smart enough to know shouldn’t happen. Legislation that is friendly to the biggest of the breeders may sound pretty good to them but I would like to think that they are smart enough to realize the long term impact of such an outcome. Once you get the government in on something it is near impossible to get them out. Why invite the run away train into your livingroom even if the short term outcome looks positive? I think that in some ways this parallels the health care debate currently going on. I think most would agree all is not as it should be but do you invite the government into the game to fix it?? Sounds great- everybody is covered but does anyone really buy that?? The lottery here in NC was supposed to fund the schools but magically, it does not- who would have seen that coming?? You get the idea………
In conclusion- We need to watch this nonsense closely. Rumors are worthless and often started by morons and people with nothing better to do with their time. The internet is an awesome tool to get info out there to the masses and rally the troops but it is also our worst enemy at the same time. Many with a keyboard considers themselves an expert and more than willing to stir the pot for personal satisfaction and the need to see there name in print. I do know that Andrew at USARK is on the game and doing a very effective job thus far. Lets let him do his job and support him. He does not seem to be shy, if there is a bonafide conspiracy that comes to light I expect we will hear about it from him.
I went up to the Hamburg show in PA a couple of weeks ago. As usual there, it was hot. Kind of a marginal turnout for that place but not too bad. That show is amazing- it has been around since nearly forever and continues to have an amazing turnout of vendors and customers. Some shows are obviously better than others but overall that one has been pretty consistant over the years. Pretty impressive. I will say venomous keeping seems to be in a downward spiral, not much there anymore. Back in the good ole days it was half the show. Now it is about 1/5. Much of it is not that impressive at that.
White Plains NY is the next big one for us in mid July. I am starting to get orders for that one- now is the time! If you want something get on the list! We start building for that this coming week.
The trailer is about sold out for Daytona. Got room for a few odds and ends but I would guestimate we are about 7/8 of the way full. GET YOUR ORDER IN! We may end up with multiple vehicles going down this year, not sure yet, but it is possible we may have more room. If we can fill Franks van as well then so be it. Along comes the van. I look forward to getting the show program in the near future and see what Wayne Hill has done with the layout. I like the idea of having everyone in the main room, no more tables in the halls, bathrooms, lobby, roof, etc. I am hoping it will be real impressive. I am also hoping that the trend of more variety will continue. I like BP’s as much as the next guy but there is a lot of neat stuff out there besides them. Lets see some of it.
As always, if you need racks/caging check out the show list on the website. We have people hitting many of the shows on the east coast and we can arrange delivery, even to some of the smaller ones.