>> I loved hearing about the fair in Scotland. I think they should highlight other shows in the magazine that maybe everyone doesn't have a chance to get to. << That was a neat article, wasn't it? I doubt that this year's will be as well attended. I was just thinking, as I glanced at the Business Section of the LA Times, about how FMD in the UK and other areas, is affecting more than just the farmers there. I'm thinking that I'm really glad that we didn't put off our trip to England for 'one more year', and went last year. Now is not a good time to be in the UK, especially for someone who would want to indulge her passion for fiber and cart home a suitcase full of wool (which I did). The last time we, the US, had FMD, was in 1924. Our papers treated the story as if it only affected CA, but the entire nation was affected by it. Over one hundred thousand cattle, goats, sheep, and pigs were slaughtered in CA alone, to contain the disease. Five years later, the Great Depression struck. I can't help but wonder what effect FMD had on the economic health of a nation that didn't have the 'benefits' of instant messaging, CNN, etc. Was the depression's arrival slowed down by the slow communication methods of the time? The number of cattle being killed in Europe is going to affect the leather market. Shoes, jackets, coats, cowboy wear, saddles, harnesses; hooves for gelatin, glue. Other items: pickled pig's feet; Black Angus beef; wool for everything from suits to blankets. Denmark has a multi-million dollar business with the US, in providing Danish hams to this country. Wool prices may go sky high after this. A boon to those shepherds in the UK who managed to stave off FMD. A crisis to those whose flocks had to be destroyed, and whose income has been drastically reduced. Airlines are reporting that travel is down. Who wants to travel, when you have to worry about bringing back a disastrous livestock disease? The exchange rate draws UK tourists to the US, in hordes. Droves, even. If the UK economy is depressed, those tourists will not come here to spend their money. Affecting all sorts of businesses, from hotels and restaurants, to museums. No. This has absolutely no fiber content. Apologies. wrnk d2 California [EMAIL PROTECTED] To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
