Dont Like It Change It & Native American Settlement

Don't Like It – Change It & Native American Settlement plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. The US Department of Agriculture and the Department of Justice announced a settlement agreement with the plaintiffs in the Keepseagle class action lawsuit. This suit was originally filed in 1999 by Native American farmers alleging discrimination in access to and participation in USDA's farm loan programs. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack explains. VILSACK: This settlement ends litigation concerning discrimination that goes back as far as the early 1980's, complaints that were filed by Native Americans doing business with USDA or prevented from doing business with USDA. There's an old saying something about everybody complaining about things but no one does anything about it...well don't include Idaho Governor Butch Otter in that group. This summer, a federal court ruling put wolves back on the endangered species list, forcing the Department of Interior to suspend sport hunting of the animal. That frustrated Otter, who said if wolves remain unchecked, they'll continue to kill animals like deer, moose and elk. Even though Idaho is fighting to get its wolf hunt back, Otter says people can still kill wolves if their livestock, personal property or they themselves are threatened. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Lacy Gray. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack has most certainly been in the national spotlight in 2010. From challenges over national food safety to the highly embarrassing premature ejection of Shirley Sherrod from her USDA job, Secretary Vilsack has been a very busy man indeed. And it doesn't appear to be slowing down any time soon. Most recent is the USDA's decision to give two million to food behavior scientists in hopes they'll discover ways to use psychology in getting school children to eat healthy when it comes to the federal school lunch program. Divide and disguise seems to be the psychological route of choice so far, a course that any parent could have given them the heads up on if asked. Moving desserts to out of sight cases, putting fresh fruits and veggies in attractive containers, and providing make your own wraps and salad stations are tactics being implemented in what is quickly becoming known as "smart lunchrooms". While sly and smart these lunchrooms may be, the simple and now rather expensive fact remains, you can lead a child to the veggies but you can't make her eat them. Thanks Lacy. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.