Discussion Board

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?secti ... id=8637832

then later they dropped it after pressure from farming families

http://hotair.com/archives/2012/04/26/l ... n-parents/

Too bad a lot more kids aren't outside working instead of growing up like hot house plants. My kids were outside most of the time. They learned about animal care, gardening, and the beauty and power of nature. No one wants child abuse in the work place, but for heaven's sake, let us not "protect" them out of the opportunity to learn and use their muscles as well as their brains. May Future Farmers of America and like organizations continue to help grow our children.

My sense of it is that the law as proposed requires some tweaking... but it is a step in the right direction in ceasing the exploitation of children in the work place...

Thank goodness for the help of our 4 kids on our farm and thank goodness for our grand kids stepping up too! Don't know what we'd do without them! Farming always has been a family endeavor. Let's keep it that way. Kids learn so many good things that will help them in adulthood.

Shirley

In full agreement Ginger!!

Working on our family's small farm as a kid was the best thing that could have happened to me. Of course I hated it at the time (most kids do) but as an adult I realize that the knowledge and experience was priceless!

There is a huge difference between child exploitation and giving kids an education. I hope that it's not a bunch of city folk deciding this law...

My son graduated with a degree in economics. He then decided to join the Peace Corps. Were they interested in his economic degree??? No, they signed him up because of his knowledge of animal husbandry which he learned from his dear old MOM!
All that grumbling about feeding, watering, cleaning, and managing the goats, chickens and horses......(do not get the picture that this poor lad was out there doing all this by himself!!) Now he is a paramedic and I absolutely believe that a relatively small part of his knowledge is scientific/medical and a large part is the framework of how to give care, and came from learning in real life. A sick goat can teach you a lot!