In a move that should surprise nobody, agents of the Bush Administration are hard at work protecting business interests from the evils of upstart entrepreneurship by continuing to fight against private beef testing. It seems a Kansas meatpacker had the idea of testing every cow in their herd for BSE. And since the USDA doesn’t conduct such extensive tests, relying instead on sampling, said intrepid Kansans decided to do the testing themselves, spending lots of money on facilities and equipment to make that happen.

This was not meant to supplant USDA testing, but would be redundant testing, giving the ranchers a leg up on selling to the skittish Japanese market. But oh, no. No, no, no, said the USDA. You don’t have the right to test your own cattle under your own higher standards, said the USDA. And why? Because major meat packers like IBP, Cargill, and ConAgra don’t want to have to be pressured by consumers into spending the same kind of money for their massive operations, especially if consumers can hold “but those guys are doing it!” over your head.

Just like when they smacked California down for trying to toughen its auto emissions standards, just like when they tried to roll back safer arsenic levels in drinking water, the Bush Administration has shown time and time again that monied industrial interests take precedence over public safety, local self-determination, and even, it would seem, entrepreneurial capitalists (even ones who, in all likelihood, helped vote the bastards into power). All for the almighty dollar. Never mind things like fuel efficiency! Detroit still has just enough cash to continue fellating the White House into submission. Forget the fact that cellulosic ethanol is clearly more efficient, ADM wants to sell corn instead. Global warming? Fuck that, it might cut into profits! Some Kansas outfit might make the meat industry look bad by showing them up in food safety? Better put the kibosh on that.

It’s one thing for a lot of people to be sick of the Bush Administration and its regressive, robber baron policies. It’s quite another when a lot of people will literally become sick because of those same policies.