A Beehive in their Bonnet, from The Netly News

[Declan McCullagh]

***********

http://cgi.pathfinder.com/netly/opinion/0,1042,1509,00.html

The Netly News (http://netlynews.com/)
October 20, 1997

A Beehive in Their Bonnet
by Declan McCullagh  (declan at well.com)

	John Caldeira's remark in a beekeeper's discussion
	area on Prodigy seemed innocuous enough: It
	described how to rid honeybees of parasites. "Two
	ounces of Mavrik mixed with one gallon of water and
	sprayed on the bottom boards of one's hives several
	times a year. It is reportedly very effective,"
	Caldeira wrote.

        Honey may attract flies, but this discussion about its
	production drew swarms of bureaucrats. The Texas
	Department of Agriculture charged Caldeira with
	violating a state law banning unapproved discussions
	of bee medicines and fined the 42-year-old hobbyist
	$600. A draft statement from the department
	complains that Caldeira was "criticizing
	regulations" and improbably argues that "the honey
	market in the U.S. could become depressed because
	of widespread concerns about its safety and due to
	Mr. Caldeira's suggestion that commercial beekeepers
	are using Mavrik in their hives."

        But the Texas bureaucrats have a problem: The law
	seems to violate the First Amendment's guarantees
	of freedom of speech. "There is absolutely no doubt
	that John Caldeira's speech is -- and should be --
	protected speech under the First Amendment to the
	U.S. Constitution," says Mike Godwin, staff counsel
	to the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

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