Now that I have your attention, this is SERIOUS POST about a SERIOUS ISSUE that everyone who gardens in Michigan, or even everyone who is a property owner in Michigan, SHOULD BE CONCERNED AND UPSET ABOUT! This might sound like a hoax, but it is not.

Several state Senators have introduced a package of legislation, Senate Bills 211-217, into the Michigan State Senate to make it a 5 YEAR FELONY with a $250,000 FINE AND POSSIBLE FURTHER LARGE FINES to "POSSESS," which basically means have grow upon your property -- any one of 14 fairly common aquatic or semi-aquatic plants which these Senators have deemed to be dangerous weeds, as well as a number of fish, animal, and insect species. Among the plants are some commonly and legally sold aquatics used by many water gardeners -- Yellow flag iris (Iris pseudoacorus) Yellow Floating Hearts (Nymphoides), Parrots Feather (Myriophyllum), Salvinia, Japanese Bamboo (Fallopia japonica) -- as well as some widely distributed weed species, including Purple Loosestrife and Eurasian Watermilfoil. Also, to "possess" emerald ash borers, or, in other words, have an infested tree in your yard, could also be considered a felony under this law.

Also, this law, if passed and enacted, would create an appointed Council with NO DIRECT ACCOUNTABILITY to voters which would have the power to BAN and MAKE A FELONY the possession -- i.e. ownership, cultivation, or just having grow wild upon your land -- any plant or animal species it sees fit at any time, with NO RECOURSE OR RIGHT OF APPEAL OF THIS DECISION BY THE CITIZENS OF MICHIGAN.

THIS LAW IF ENACTED COULD POTENTIALLY OPEN UP GARDENERS, LAND OWNERS, GARDEN CENTERS AND NURSERIES TO CRIMINAL PROSECUTIONS, MASSIVE FINES, AND FORFEITURE OF PROPERTY. AS A LAND OWNER OR GARDENER, UNDER THESE LAWS IF PASSED, YOU COULD BE HELD CRIMINALLY LIABLE FOR SOMETHING WHICH GROWS ALL BY ITSELF ON YOUR PROPERTY OR IN YOUR LAKE, POND, OR STREAM AS LONG AS YOU KNOW or SHOULD HAVE OR COULD HAVE KNOWN IT COULD HAVE BEEN GROWING THERE. For example, if you live along a lake or river, and you have purple loosestrife on your property and you know the name of the plant and how to identifty it, YOU WOULD BE IN VIOLATION OF THESE LAWS AND COULD GO TO PRISON FOR UP TO 5 YEARS, BE FINED $250,000, AND BE FORCED TO PAY "BIO-REMEDIATION" COSTS WHICH ARE OPEN-ENDED. AND, UNDER THESE LAWS, YOU WOULD ESSENTIALLY BE FORCED TO PROVE YOUR INNOCENCE, DUE TO THE WAY THE LAW IS WRITTEN, RATHER THAN A PROSECUTOR PROVING YOU GUILTY.

IF YOU FIND THIS DISTURBING AND UPSETTING, SO DO I -- THAT'S WHY I'VE POSTED THIS MESSAGE HERE. THESE BILLS HAVE GOTTEN VIRTUALLY NO PRESS ATTENTION TO DATE, YET THEY REPRESENT A MAJOR THREAT TO OUR COLLECTIVE ABILITY TO GROW THE PLANTS WE WISH IN OUR GARDENS, AS WELL AS TO A MAJOR THREAT TO ALL OF OUR PROPERTY RIGHTS. IT MAY ONLY BE 14 PLANTS TODAY, BUT THESE LAWS COULD OPEN A PANDORA'S BOX OF NEVER-ENDING CRIMINALIZATION OF PLANT SPECIES -- ALMOST ANY NON-NATIVE PLANT OR ANIMAL SPECIES COULD BE BANNED AND CRIMINALIZED UNDER THIS PROPOSED LAW.

I honestly NEVER thought, never would have dreamed in a million years, that someone thinks my or your gardening activities are so dangerous that you or I would deserve to go to prison, just because we might have some yellow flag iris and some parrots feather in our backyard goldfish ponds. People who garden, first and foremost I've observed, are the upstanding, do the right thing, pay their taxes kind of citizens the politicians always claim to be fighting for. Then, something like this happens. I suppose they mean well, but the effect of these bills, if passed, would be chilling. Can any of us honestly say we want to live in a society where we could be thrown in prison because of some weed that happens to grow in our yard? IF YOU READ THIS AND ARE AS UPSET ABOUT THIS AS I AM, CHECK THESE BILLS OUT FOR YOURSELF. Go to the MICHIGAN SENATE WEBSITE, www. SENATE.MI.GOV, and enter 211-217 into the BILL NUMBER search form to read these bills for yourself. And, TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS ISSUE -- WRITE TO YOUR MICHIGAN STATE SENATORS, STATE REPRESENTATIVES, AND GOVERNOR JENNIFER GRANHOLM AND LET THEM KNOW THAT YOU FIND IT DISTURBING AND OUTRAGEOUS THAT OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS WOULD EVEN THINK THAT POSSESSION OF THESE COMMON GARDEN PLANTS OR WEEDS SHOULD BE A FELONY-LEVEL OFFENSE. WHAT ARE THESE PEOPLE THINKING -- WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH REAL CRIMINALS TO DEAL WITH -- ENOUGH DRUG DEALERS AND INTERNET PREDATORS AND ARMED ROBBERS? DO WE NEED TO THROW PEOPLE IN JAIL BECAUSE OF YELLOW IRIS AND PURPLE LOOSESTRIFE AND EMERALD ASH BORERS.

I've already written my state rep and state senator and the Governor! IT'S YOUR TURN, MICHIGAN GARDENERS! STOP THESE OUTRAGEOUS BILLS BEFORE THEY BECOME NIGHTMARE LAWS WHICH CRUSH OUR CIVIL LIBERTIES! I would really, really like to hear and input or responses to this post, and I will follow up if possible.