Are you Kidding Me!!! Senate Bill 510 - Organic Farmer Fined 5000 For Growing Crops On Own Land

I ran across this video today and almost fell out of my chair. DeKalb County, GA is suing a local farmer for growing too many vegetables, but he said he will fight the charges in the ongoing battle neighbors call “Cabbagegate.”

In these times of economic crisis, rising poverty, and diet-related health problems, you'd think local governments would have bigger priorities than counting the number of squash and broccoli plants on people's lawns. Unfortunately that's not the case for Georgia resident Steve Miller, a landscaper by profession and organic farmer by heart, who's been caught tomato-red-handed growing a downright offensive number of vegetable plants on his property outside of Atlanta. (The exact number of criminal plants unknown.)

Dubbed "Cabbage-Gate" by friends and neighbors of Miller, officials in Dekalb County, Georgia, are suing him for $5,000 in fines for not having his land properly zoned to grow such an apparently ridiculous number of vegetables -- even after he stopped growing them and got rezoned.

If the county is suing this long-time hobby farmer for growing too many vegetables, how many are "acceptable" anyway? Twenty? Eleven? As many as you want as long as that doesn't include cabbage?

(Thanks to Grist Twitter follower @rvagreendrinks for the tip!)

The law was supposed to stop large commercial operations in residential areas, but is being used against a 2-acre farmer who sells to neighbors and farmers markets.

I really don't know how far this current state of government affairs will go, but I can tell you this every politician supporting, passing, and enforcing these laws will be exposed in the upcoming municipal elections as well as the 2012 election. I guess it's their last gasp before the wind blows in their face while they spit. This invasion of individual liberty is reprehensible.



Court documents from the case: Here and Here

And......furthermore, if you peruse Connie Stokes' website (one of the Great Commissioners involved) you find this quote "Connie Stokes has a proven record of working to create jobs through supporting the development of small businesses. She is keeping her promise to recruit new businesses and to expand existing business in our community." Yeah right!!! There you have it, more hypocrisy. She was defeated in 2010 in the Democratic party primary against incumbent Hank Johnson (D) with 19% of the vote.