It started in the Tarheel State Where Mega Farms tested the environment's fate They saturated the coastal plain Hog lagoons burst after relentless rain 25 million gallons of effluent flowed Across the fields and across the roads Until it reached its final destination The New River with 25 miles of desecration Unleashing a danger never before seen A flesh eating dinoflagellate prowling the streams Millions of fish washing up on the shores People coming down with lesions and sores With vertical integration, market access denied Family Farms disappearing like a blink of the eye Property devalued, tax bases eroding Controversy on heavy metal nutrient loading Pivot irrigation utilized because of its ease Spewing urine and feces for miles on the breeze "Its the smell of money!" the politicians said The smell so many citizens had come to dread But soon the political climate changed And "Big Pork" moved on to the Midwestern plains Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, and more Threatening the aquifers of centuries before Water tables dropping, wells going dry Phosphorus and nitrogen levels too high And here they are now - its their "formal debut" So go back home and take "mega" with you, too! The Land of Lincoln is drawing the line Protecting our resources from this onslaught of swine "FARMS NOT FACTORIES" is our now famous quote And always remember "PIGS DON'T VOTE!" Copyright © 1997 Karen L. Hudson Families Against Rural Messes P.O. Box 615, Elmwood, IL 61529 309-742-8895, Fax: 309-742-8055 http://www.farmweb.org