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By JOHN KAHLER
I SEEMS to be impossible to
avoid the narch of progress
these days. City people, bog-
ged down by the frustrations of
urban living, often reflect a de-
sire for a return to the country-
side, where life is more simple
and organic You can h a v e
eighty acres, a cow and some
chickens, and a pleasant, non-
capitalist life.
So: Welcome to the world of
corporate agricalture, America's
answer to the problem of feed-
ing the world. You have instead,
2,000 acres, 1,200 cows, and a
daily wire to the Chicago Com-
modities Exchange.
There is some ambigitity of
terms here between the (am-
ily farm and corporate agricul-

tare. Most corporate farms ote
single units operated by one
family, but there is a difference
in scale and style that set them
apart from the classic "ftmily
farm."
One could get into a sociolo-
gical explanation, but put sim-
ply, the difference is that the
family farm was a home, vhle
the corporate farm is a busi-
ness.
BIG AGRICULTURE was a
logical response to the economic
realities of American agricul-
ture in this century. Until re-
cently, the rise in farm prices
has not kept pace with the rise
in price of everything else. De-
clining profit margins squeezed
smaller farmers off the land,

and made survival of the big-
gest an economic law.
American agriculture is now
producing more food efficiently
than ever before. With the spec-
tre of famine looming this is
a pleasant thing to think of.
But what is efficient today
may not be so for tomorrow,
or even desirable for the pre-
sent. A few examples should be
enlightening. .
Sanilac county used to be
known as the pheasant capital
of the state, a mecca for hunt-
ers every October. The pheas-
ants used to breed in the high
grass along fencerows, feed on
grain from nearby fields, and
prove themselves a tasty dish
when shot.
BUT WITH the consolidation
of farms in the county, and a
subsequent shift from dairy to
cash crops, fewer fenceraws
were needed, since they took up.
land that could be used for rais-
ing navy beans. Deprived of
their breeding grounds, t h e
pheasant population took a dras-
tic plunge, and has not yet
recovered.
Perhaps the fate of the pheas-
ant can be excused, since the
bird is not a native of the state,
anyway (it was introduced to
provide a source of additional
tourist money). Only those erol-
ogists who would prefer to see
children starving than to see a
bird habitat destroyed w a u I d
argue with the necessity of nro-
diwing more food.
But the soil itself is not being
snared. Recently, scientists at
Michigan State came out with
a plastic foam that, when rned
with compacted soil, estores
the original soil structure.
(A short word on agricultural
science. For maximum yields,
crops must be planted as early
as possible. Since Michigan soils
tend to drain poorly, this means
that heavy machinery will be
getting into fields that are still
quite wet.)
(The result is soil compaction,
with reduced aeration of the
soil, and subsequently, reduced
yields. Hence the need for the
MSU foam.)
LIKE ANY large scale indus-
try, Big Agriculture lends itself
well to the apolications of mod-
ern science, most dramatically
in the raising of animals. More
is known about the nutrition .of
cattle than that of humans, but
to agricultural science, this is
merely a small achievement.
Once the technique for freez-
ing semen was perfected, one
eenetically superior bull could
sire thousands of offsnring fromm
cows scattered around the globe.
Letter,,
invitation

9 Range,
But the best of cows could pro- buy
duce, in a lifetime, at the most har
ten calves. see
This was an obvious waste of colt
genetic material, so scientists 1
perfected the technique of trans- ene
planting zygotes from superior bee
cows into scrub cattle, w h e r e mo
gestation was completed. In the ed
course of these experiments, it eff
was discovered that one did not ica
even need the nurse cow; that all.
calves could be raised in a S
totally artificial womb.. soil
THE WONDERS of hormones use
have, been fully exploited, , o ope
that now, with the proper dos- toz
. ' Thi
age, a dairyman (in experiTh
meats) can get milk production one
from virign heifers and male 1
ariimals, a considerable saving by
in convenience. It should be phi
pointed out that if this were arr
tried commercially right now, no
it would depress the price of ind
cattle and be counterproductive. wa
But, as they say, you can't Ni
fool Mother Nature, and side ef-
fects are already developing in the
the cattle industry. With artific- oth
ial insemination, dairy cows t
spend their entire lives without im
any contact with males of their put
fr
species. fed
After generations in this tot- tio
ally unnatural environment, wh;
changes in the reproductive cy- and
cle of dairy cows have recently at
been noted, according to an ar- duc
ticle in Hoard's Dairyman. The Gir
cows display "lesbian tenden-
cies" which results in difficulties
in conception, which is vital to a far
successful dairy operation. mo
A good bull is expensive to loa

Inc.
, and a difficult beast to
idle. Corporate agriculture
ms to prefer to risk of breed
lapse.
RECENTLY, Canada threat-
d to reject any American
f that had traces of the hor-
ne DES, which has been link-
to cancer formation. The
ects of DDT and other chem-
1 sprays are well known to
prays, feed additives, a a d
l-compacting tractors are not
d on small farms because the
rations are not big enough
make the expense worthwhile.
ere is no such inhibition when
is farming on a large scale.
'arming has been co-opted
capitalism, with all it im-
es in terms of exploitation,
ogance, and callowness. It's
concidence that the dairy
ustry was one of the groups
iting in line. to buy Ri-ard
on in 1972.
HE FUTURE holds m-e of
same. Ford, which among
er things is a large f a r m
plement manufacturer, h a s
lished a pamphlet on "the
m of the future". Cattle are
scientifically balanced ra-
ns in skyscraper feedlots,
ile robot tractors move back
d forth through endless fields;
wheatfield Rouge Plant, pro-
cing food fit to be made into
oburgers and Big Macs.
SO PASSES the American
m. Say a prayer in its cme-
ry the next time you buy a
f of bread.

Michigan Daily
Edited and managed by Students at the
University of Michigan
Saturday, July 13, 1974
News Phone: 764-0552
The Subect Was Rape
THE STATE SENATE yesterday approved a bill, which
if signed into law by Governor Milliken, will make
Michigan a leader in progressive gape legislation.
Michigan's present law, which is well over, a century
old, has proven to be totally ineffectual. While the num-
ber of reported rapes has escalated yearly, the number of
convictions has been dropping steadily.
The difficulty of proving rape under the current state
statute is a major factor in the extremely low conviction
rate.
Not only does the woman have to prove that she re-
sisted to the utmost-even when threatened with serious
injury-but her past sexual history is admissable as
evidence. Consequently, if a woman is deemed "promis-
cuous," it is often interpreted as meaning she willingly
consented.
However, the bill approved by legislature not only
facilitates the prosecution of alleged rapists, but also
gives the victim much more legal protection.
ADMISSION OF THE victim's past sexual activities dur-
ing the trial is strictly prohibited and there is also
a provision for a person to charge his or her spouse with
sexual assault.
Further, the bill divides the crime into four crimes and
classifies it as a crime of assault rather than a sex
crime.
We strongly commend the action of the legislature in
overwhelmingly passing a bill which will remove the
focus of the trial from victim by prohibiting admission
of prior sexual contact and, which does not require that
he or she prove they resisted to the point of physical
injury.
We hope that law enforcement officials will follow the
sentiment of this strong legislation, and make Michigan
known as a state that will not tolerate rape.
-MARNIE HEYN and CHERYL PILATE

the a merica n ization of sony
MARK TWAIN once said, "East is east and west is west,
and never the twain shall meet." But a small group
of talented American teachers of English from Sony Lang-
uage Laboratory, a subsidiary of mammoth Sony Corpora-
tion of Japan, have contradicted Twain by forming the first
union of foreign workers employed by a Japanese corpora-
tion in Japanese labor history.
The American teachers, about one quarter of them grad-
uates of the University, formed the Sony LL Workers Union
January 19, 1974, and joined the General Council of Trade
Unions (Sohyo), Japan's largest labor federation with more
than 8 million members. The union is affiliated with the
National Union of General Workers, South District, Sohyo.
They have raised seminal questions about the social respon-
sibility of multinational corporations in bargaining sessions
with Sony: affirmative action bring programs for women and
mnority group members, an end to slaughter of whales, and
reform on Sony's concept of education.
On Tuesday, we will begin a series on the history and
philosophy of the teachers' union, and an examination of
Sony's corporate practices.
-Mark Lavelle,
Director, Institute of Multinational
Corporate Research
so e al


To The Daily:
TWO DAUGHTERS of the late
Chilean President Salvador Al-
lende - Beatriz and Isabel -
as well as Patricia Manns, a
Chilean artist and writer, have
been invited by a national soli-
darity committee to speak at
several gatheringsacross the
United States beginning t h is
month. If allowed into t h is
country, these Chilean leaders
would speak directly to the
American people about the cur-
rent situation in Chile and the
growing struggle against the
anti-democratic, reactionary,
and oppressive military junta.
To date,tthe Department of
State of the Utnited States guy-.
ernment has not issued the re-
quired visas. Moreover, there
are precedents involving other
Chilean leaders whose requests
for the appropriate kind of visas
have been denied (They need
visas which would not restrict
their ability to speak to the gen-
eral public). Unless support is
forthcoming, it is doubtful that
we will be able to hear what
they have to say.
The organization that invited
these leaders, an ad hoc group

called the Committee for July
26 (P.O. Box 738, Old Chelsea
Station, New York 10011), be-
lieves that they will be allowed
to enter the country if,"and only
if, a significant number of
people write, cable, or call their
representatives and senators in
Washington as well as Mr.
George Lgter of the State De-
partment. These are some ad-
dresses and phone numbers of
officials in a position to help:
Representative Marvin Esch
412 Cannon Building
Washington, D.C. 20512
(202-225-4401)
Senator Philip Hart

Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20025
(202-224-3121)
Mr. George Lister
Department of State
2201 C Street
Washington, D.C. 20520
We are all probably aswure of
the distortions and biases in the
mass media's coverage of re-
cent Chilean history. These dis-
tortions can only be fully ap-
preciated and corrected if we
are allowed to listen to those
directly involved.
-Maurcio A. Font
July 11

Contact your reps-
Seg. Phillip hart (Dem), Rm 253, Old Senate Bldg., Capitol
Ilill, Washington, D.C. 20515.
Sen. Robert Griffin (Rep), Rm 353, Old Senate Bldg., Capitol
lill, Washington, D.C. 20585.
Rep. Marvin Esch (Rep), Rm. 412, Cannon Bldg., Capitol
Iill, Washington, D.C. 20515.
Sen. Gilbert Bursley (Rep), Senate, State Capitol Bldg.,
Lansing, Mi. 48933.
Rep. Perry Bullard (Dem), House of Representatives, State
Capitol Bldg., Lansing, Mi. 48933.