Yeah, but how much of what happened with Benlate was cover-up and how much was reasonable measures taken to defend against spurious and overzealous claims. I'm sure (and have seen proof that) there was some of both, but have no real handle on the relative amount of each. If the cover-up effort was as massive and malicious as some suggest, those guys are real bad dudes.

I might be able to add some perspective here, having run the AHS National Convention plant auctions back in the early auction days, 1984-1992. We raised +$20K at some of those auctions with a lot of effort on everyone's part - with bids often north of $1,000 for the latest and greatest introductions from the early hybridizing efforts. Many people sat in those auctions and just gasped when the bidding went over $100, but others with experience in auctions, the quality of the material offered and the spirit of supporting the AHS would bid within their budget. Was it beyond my budget? Most of the time. Was I serious about generating as much funds for the AHS as possible? You betcha, and we have the AHS still today because of that reason! Membership fees wouldn't cover the Journal and other AHS needs. 1987 Wilmington Delaware AHS National Convention auction story: as AHS auction director back then, supervising the auctioneers and clerks, cash/check flow and plant delivery, if I wanted to bid on a plant, I would properly announce that I was stepping out of my role and would bid from the floor as everyone else, just so they knew. I bid for a gorgeous very large deep blue seiboldiana seedling, can't even remember the name now, but the plant was 3 ft tall, leaves about 2 feet across each and a very thick single division. When the bid crossed $50, I took a deep breath and entered the fray. Recall my mother Pauline Banyai was in charge of the auction clerking: boy, did she throw me a dirty look. My dear wife Lois sitting next to Mom as the record keeper of the auction had gone white with fright at what I was doing! Three small boys to feed at home and this meathead husband is bidding $50 for a blue seiboldiana seedling - he has 100's just like it at home, and his mother even more! What was he thinking....... The bids proceeded by $5 to $75, then some bidders dropped out with just me and one other man (who I didn't know - if I had known him I would have probably deferred to him out of respect!). I finally won the bid at $100 and he was clearly frustrated at not getting it! My mom and wife could barely sit through the AHS Convention Awards dinner and speaker(which directly followed the auctin), they were so mad at me. After that final Convention night dinner and cleanup, I was packing all the AHS Cut Leaf show bottles (we supplied them ourselves back then, and I had to provide 400+ Perrier type bottles!)in my pickup truck, along with that auction plant. As I put the plant in the back of the pickup truck, who should come up but the man who had lost the final bid! He introduced himself, said he would really like to have that plant and would pay me any price to have it! I said he could have it for the same $100: he promptly paid me and was all smiles, as were my mom and dear wife Lois when they finally had a chance to chew me out and hear the rest of the story. I became close friends with that gentleman, who will remain unnamed! He continued for a few years to be a very large AHS auction contributor - that's how we came up with the Big Bucks award to honor both the plant material contributor and the persons buying the most! Bruce

I didn't know about a St. Patrick's Day planting schedule for other plants, but both my grandfather and my father always planted potatoes as close to St. Patrick's Day as possible. Of course you must take into account the weather and soil conditions. I watch the 10 day weather forecast closely, and plant accordingly. For instance, seeing that we have several above average temperatures ahead during the next ten days, AND the forecast for rain today, I spent a lot of time in the garden preparing beds for seeding, then planted my first batch of onions and potatoes yesterday (March 13). I also planted a new Red Blaze Climbing Rose. It seems that if the soil becomes saturated and cold weather returns, you can often miss out on optimal planting dates. Right now, my peonies are sprouting up to about 6 inches and my lilacs are full of unopened buds. Another thing I watch for is the leafing of Oak trees- I feel more comfortable in planting warmer weather crops when the Oaks tell me that warm weather has arrived. Ron Z

No, there is no way to avoid the bad news & everyone should be realistic about the fact that there are real problems with the economy. I've just noticed that the media is so dramatic about reporting bad news. That is any bad news, not just about the economy. They seem to be much more matter-of-fact about good news. There is no doubt that the economy nationwide is in bad shape. Here, I've noticed some differences. Homes are still selling & builders are still building, but not at nearly as fast a pace as 1-2 years ago. My company has laid off quite a few people over the past year, although we were somewhat overstaffed to begin with. There haven't been any massive layoffs here, but there have been small cuts by some companies. There is a definite difference in job postings. I'm looking for another job because I know my company is in bad shape (not just because of the current economy). There aren't nearly as many jobs posted as there were even a couple of months ago. I've been networking a lot & several of my contacts have told me that companies want & need to hire but there are hiring freezes on at many places. Our local unemployment rate, which was 3.8% a year ago, has gone up to 6.7%. The parking lots at restaurants remain fairly full. The mall was pretty crowed on Black Friday & many people were buying. Some stores have closed, but others have mostly taken their place. Also some stores are expanding into larger spaces. DH & my retirement accounts have taken a scary hit, though. The employment picture really scares me. I don't know how much longer my company will be in business & I'd like to find something before I'm forced into looking. I had my 3rd interview yesterday for a job I really want, so I'm hoping that will come through. I know at least one place that would like to hire me but they don't want to add anyone to their payroll right now.