Received this from a French Bull Dog List friend: > From Rags to Riches >Johnnie was raised the son of sharecroppers. As a young boy he picked cotton >in the fields of Northern Arkansas. In 1939, at the age of twelve, Johnnie >dropped out of school and began work at his uncle's sawmill. Odd jobs kept >Johnnie a step ahead of the bread lines and in 1952 he settled down with the >love of his life...a relationship that has spanned nearly half a century, and >is still going strong today. > >Johnnie was a dreamer and his wife Johnelle stood beside him through all the >ups and downs. In 1969 Johnnie made an investment that forever changed the >course of his life. Johnnie's name can be seen on every highway and byway in >America, stenciled on the sides of those bright yellow tractor/trailers--J.B. >Hunt. > >Today, J.B. Hunt Trucking is a multi billion dollar company. Although >Johnnie officially retired in 1995, his life has really just begun. Now he >can relax, enjoy his family and friends, and do the things he's always wanted >to do. > >One of J.B.'s first dream-come-true adventures involved Harley Davidson >Motorcycles. He's a regular at the Sturgis Rally in South Dakota and he now >owns five of his own Harleys. But retirement doesn't come easy for J.B. He >dabbles in a little bit of everything. Hunt enjoys cattle farming on his >four farms located in Arkansas and Missouri and has ventured into the bottled >water market after purchasing land in Missouri. Perhaps one of Hunt's >newest, and biggest adventures was the purchase of a large amount of land in >McDonald County Missouri. On December 20, 2000 Hunt formed the business of ><A >HREF="http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/corps/incorp/search-incorp.php3?recno=1892 >11">J.B. Hunt Big Horn Lodge</A>. Hunt will allow individuals and companies >to stay >at the lodge while hunting for big game which he has confined to the 4000 >acre ranch. > >So now that Hunt has seen 74 years, gone from rags to riches, pulled himself >up by his bootstraps, become a multi-millionaire, has his wife of nearly >fifty years by his side, has Harleys parked in his garage and antelope >trapped in Missouri, what could this man possibly have left to accomplish in >life? > >Well, how about the formation of <A >HREF="http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/corps/incorp/search-incorp.php3?recno=1879 >26">H & H Kennels</A>? Kennels you say? Well that >doesn't shock us, does it? Lots of wealthy people begin buying their way >into the show ring when there's nothing left to do in life. So what type of >dog is J.B.'s breed of choice? (a) The fearless Jack Russell Terrier? (b) >The faithful Collie? (c) The powerful Mastiff? (d) The protective Great >Pyrenees? How about (e)---All of the Above! > >H & H Kennels? We know what one of the H's stand for, but how about the >other? Prepare yourself...the other H stands for none other than Andrew >Hunte of <A >HREF="http://www.truckersnews.com/magazine/99issues/dec/features/feature3.htm"; > > >The Hunte Corporation</A>/Honey Dew/Love My Puppy/Sundowner. Hunte has >already completed the buy out of <A HREF="http://www.dobotri.com/";>DoBoTri</A> > and <A HREF="http://168.166.2.55/bluebook/chap6/305.htm";>Best Friends</A> >(The former owner >of Best Friends, Rocky McMahan, sits on the Missouri Governor's Advisory >Council on Agriculture). Andrew Hunte leases dogs to one of Missouri's >largest breeding kennels. The Hunte Corporation (which is located in >McDonald County...where J.B. Hunt's new Lodge is located) reported in 1999 >that they ship 900 puppies a week out of Missouri. On just one inspection by >USDA in August of 2000, Hunte had 700 puppies at his McDonald County >facility. > >For years the puppy mill industry has screamed about how the animal rights >activist are trying to put them out of business. At the hearing for Missouri >Senate Bill 511, a representative for the Hunte Corporation testified in >opposition of the bill. The bill proposes to remove the $500 cap off of the >kennel licensing fees. The average commercial kennel would pay less than >$60 more a year in fees. However, with the removal of the cap, the Hunte >Corporation (based on last year's figures...before the merger with J.B. Hunt) >would pay in excess of $50,000 a year in licensing fees. Also testifying in >opposition to the bill was Rocky McMahan of Best Friends. > >At the Senate hearing in Missouri, the commercial kennels showed up by the >dozens. They testified that the fee increases would put them out of >business. The way I see it, if this bill fails, the industry itself will >put them out of business. > >What will the future hold for dogs in our country? How will the breeders >(both hobby/show and commercial) compete with a billion dollar company that >makes the wholesale breeding and brokering of puppies their business? How >long until we see H & H Pet Shops open up in every mall in the nation? >Who will be their dog registry of choice? AKC, UKC, ACA, APR? Why of course >not...won't HHKCW (H & H Kennel Club of the World) will be a household name? > > >Brace yourself people. Hang on to your hats and make sure ToTo is securely >in the basket. When Kansas tightened down on commercial breeding in their >state, the breeding industry spread like wildfire into Missouri. Now that >Missouri is trying to toughen their laws, the industry could move to Arkansas >(where H & H Kennels incorporated). Arkansas has no state laws that govern >the production of dogs. Even if they introduce legislation next year, it >could be years before it is implemented...and that's if it can even get >passed in that state. > >So...what do you think the chances of an anti-puppy mill bill has of passing >in Arkansas? Consider the fact that Hunt and Wal-Mart (both Arkansas based >companies) entered into a 100 MILLION DOLLAR contract in April 2000. JB Hunt >agreed to dedicate 360 trucks and driver to manage shipping to 31 of >Wal-Mart's distribution centers. In 1969, Red Hudson (Hudson Foods) gave >J.B. Hunt his start by helping him obtain 5 trucks that were used to haul >chicken parts from Arkansas to Ralston/Purina in St. Louis. Farm Bureau was >the major opponent to the recent bill in Arkansas that would have made >torturing a domestic animal a felony. Farm Bureau contended that the bill >could send some poor farmer to prison for putting horse shoes on his horse. > >As they saying goes, "You can't fight City Hall", but in the case of the >Hunte/Hunt merger, I believe we won't even have the chance to get into the >ring with them...let alone fight them! J.B. Hunt may be America's classic >story of 'rags to riches' but I'll certainly choose my rags over his riches >any day! There are many things that I can't afford to buy, but the things I >value most in life aren't for sale at any price. > > >Marie A Fiore >Brookhaven KC >LI, NY >AKC Delegate
*********************************************************************** Karen. B. Bernstein [EMAIL PROTECTED] Natural Holistic Pet Care Taras Cavaliers 751 N.E. 168 Street North Miami Beach, FL 33162 305-652-5372 (Voice) 305-653-7244 (Fax) www.naturalholistic.com www.tarascavaliers.com "The person who says it cannot be done, should not interrupt the person doing it". ************************************************************************ ========================================================= "Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 2002 by its original author.
