Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Trevor Michael Carver, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 261, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Trevor has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Trevor has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Trevor Michael Carver for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Jonathan Adam Davis, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 261, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Jonathan has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Jonathan has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Jonathan Adam Davis for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Quentin Templeton of Kearney, Missouri, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 397, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. A recognition ceremony will be held in honor of Quentin on October 9th at Community Coventry Church in Kearney.

Quentin has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Quentin has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Quentin Templeton for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Tarik Yameen, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 376, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Tarik has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the course of the years Tarik has been involved with Scouting, he has earned 33 merit badges and has held numerous leadership positions, serving as Patrol Leader, Den Chief, Quartermaster, Senior Patrol Leader, Troop Guide, and OA Troop Representative. He has earned the 12 Month Camper Award, 100 Nights Camper Award, BSA 50 miler, the Interpreter Strip, and is BSA Lifeguard certified. Tarik is a Warrior in the Tribe of Mic-O-Say and is an Ordeal Member of The Order of the Arrow.

Tarik's Eagle Scout project consisted of designing and leading a group of Boy Scouts to build shelving for hand bell boxes, a shelf/ moveable cart for the hand bell table with accessories, and also a cart for the sound equipment and miscellaneous items for church services. This was done for his church, Liberty Christian Church.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Tarik Yameen for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Joseph E. Blanch, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 418, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Joseph has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the course of the years that Joseph has been involved with Scouting, he has earned numerous merit badges and served in a wide range of important positions.

For his Eagle Scout project, Joseph organized the production and installation of a much need kiosk information both Hodge Park's Living History Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. This was no small task, as the total hours involved in this project totaled in excess of 260.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Joseph E. Blanch for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Brian Land of Kansas City, Missouri, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Brian has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Brian has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Brian Land for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, while we ultimately are debating two different gun control bans in the District of Columbia, I am going to confine my comments to the District's ban on the acquisition or possession of a handgun. The evidence is clear that this handgun ban has not reduced crime.

Since the ban, the city's violent crime rates, particularly its murder rates, have increased. When the ban went into effect, the city's murder rate was twice the national rate. Today it is more than seven times the national rate.

Chicago is the other major American city that has a handgun ban, and it has been on the books almost as long as the District's. The Chicago ban went into effect in 1982, and within a decade murders with handguns doubled.

California banned so-called ``assault weapons'' in 1989. For the next 5 years, California's murder rate increased every year, 26 percent overall.

Of course, I am sure we are all familiar with the study that was conducted of the Federal assault weapons law, under Congress's mandate. That study found no hard evidence that the ban had any effect on crime. Among the reasons for this, the guns that were banned were rarely used in crime before the ban.

Many of our colleagues may also remember that several years ago we passed legislation prohibiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from using Federal funds to pay for so-called studies designed from the outset to reach conclusions that political activists could use to promote gun control for policy purposes.

It was clear that there was a significant bias at the CDC in favor of gun control. And that bias remains. But even the CDC, in a study conducted last year, found no evidence that gun bans reduce crime. For that matter, the study found no evidence that any form of gun control reduces crime.

Around the same time, the Library of Congress studied the relationship of gun control to crime in 27 foreign countries, and it concluded there was no relationship between gun restrictions and crime.

Even though Americans buy about 5 million new guns a year, the Nation's violent crime rate has dropped every year since 1991 and it is now at a 27-year low; that is, if you base the counts on crimes reported to the police and the FBI. If you base the counts on the National Crime Victimization surveys, however, the Nation's violent crime is at a 30-year low.

Based upon crimes reported to the police and FBI, the Nation's murder rates the last few years have been lower than any time since the mid- 1960s.

So, the gun control supporters' motto, ``More guns means more crime,'' is demonstrably false.

These statistics from around the country and around the world cannot be expected to alter the thinking of people who are ideologically opposed to private ownership of guns. However, ideology has been proven false by hard facts and should not dictate the policies under which the rest of us should live.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Ron McNeall. On October 1, Ron is retiring from the Board of Directors of the Missouri Corn Growers Association and Missouri Corn Merchandising Council after 11 years of service.

Ron McNeall was born in Boonville, Cooper County, Missouri on November 30, 1948. He has been married to his wife Carolyn for 33 years, and they have three wonderful children in Travis, Kelly, and Ashley.

In addition to his 11 years of service as a Director on the MCGA/MCMC Board, Ron is also a past MCMC Chairman and MCGA President. At the national level, he has served as a delegate to the National Corn Growers Association and he has served as a National Corn Growers Association Production and Stewardship Action Team Member. He has also been an active member of the United States Grains Council. Ron was a seed salesman for Pioneer Seed for at least 18 years, and served on Pioneer Seed's Advisory Council from 1991-1993.

As a dedicated advocate for agriculture, Ron has been the recipient of numerous awards. In 2000 he received an Honorary State FFA Degree, and in 2003 he was named the Outstanding MCGA Member. While many of us associate Ron's service with the agricultural sector, his dedication extends far beyond it, as he served with distinction on the Keytesville School Board for 12 years.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Ron McNeall, a remarkable citizen who exemplifies the qualities of dedication and service.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize the Premium Standard Farms Milan Processing Facility. On September 19, 2004 Premium Standard Farms celebrated 10 years since the Milan plant first began operations. When the plant began its operations in 1994, there were only 200 employees. Today, the Milan facility employs more than 900 people and produces more than one million pounds of fresh pork per day.

The Premium Standard Farms Milan Processing Facility has received numerous awards since 1994. Just last year, the plant was named 2003 Food Plant of the Year by Refrigerated and Frozen Foods magazine. This prestigious award recognizes the company's exceptional record for not only food safety, but worker safety as well. Premium Standard Farms sets high standards to provide an all around safe product. During 3 of the last 4 years, employees at the facility have worked over one million combined hours without a lost-time accident of any kind, a feat that many plants have not achieved even once. This spring, the Milan Processing Facility received the American Meat Institute's highest safety award: the Award of Honor. The Award of Honor is presented to those facilities that

demonstrate continuous improvement in safety, based on criteria administered by the National Safety Council. Only 1 percent of U.S. slaughter plants receive this honor.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in congratulating Premium Standard Farms on 10 years of safe and productive operations at the Milan Processing Facility.

Mr. Speaker, on Thursday, September 23, 2004 I was unavoidably detained and thus missed rollcall vote Nos. 466, 467, 468 469, 470, 471 and 472. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on 466, an amendment by Mr. Watt; ``yea'' on 467, passage of the Pledge Protection Act; ``yea'' on 468, the Adoption Tax Relief Guarantee Act; ``yea'' on 469; ``yea'' on 470; ``yea'' on 471; and ``yea'' on 4721, passage of the conference report to H.R. 1308, which I previously supported.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Colonel Robert N. Agee, Vice Commander for 139th Airlift Wing at Rosecrans Air National Guard Base in St. Joseph, Missouri. Colonel Agee is retiring on October 1, 2004 after 32 years of service to the Missouri Air National Guard. Colonel Agee currently resides in St. Joseph with his wife Sheila, and together they have two daughters, Rachael and Jennifer, and a son R.J.

Colonel Agee was born on December 25, 1949 in St. Joseph. He joined the Missouri Air National Guard in 1970, and graduated from the first Air National Guard Officer Preparatory Academy in May of 1971. Following his graduation, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. Colonel Agee attended pilot training at Williams AFB in Arizona, and earned his pilot wings on September 9, 1972. In 1976, Colonel Agee graduated from Missouri Western with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration Management. Additionally, he has completed Squadron Officer School, Air Command and Staff College, and the Air War College.

Colonel Agee has performed duties in training, safety, tactics, standardization/evaluation and was the director of operations for the flying squadron prior to his current assignment. He was activated in December 1990 for Operation Desert Shield/Storm and served as the director of operations for the 180th Airlift Squadron in theater until their release from active duty in June 1991. In addition to training aircraft, he has flown the C-97G, KC-97L, C-130A, and the C-130H.

Among his military decorations are the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Air Force Outstanding United Award with the three oak leaf clusters and ``V'' device, Air Force Expeditionary Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal, and Kuwait Liberation Medals from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

As the former Operations Group Commander he had responsibility for our units, the 180th Airlift Squadron, the 139th Operations Support Flight, the 139th Aerial Port Flight, and the 241st Air Traffic Control Squadron in addition to the Standardization/Evaluation section. These squadrons are the support and execution component of the C-130 airlift mission. The unit continuously supports real-world airlift commitments in the United States and overseas in addition to local air training.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending the career of Colonel Robert N. Agree, who has exemplified the qualities of dedication and service throughout his tenure with the Missouri Air National Guard.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Frank and Rossie Buchtel of Princeton, MO. It's been 40 years since the

Buchtels retired from teaching, and they're still going strong. Frank turned 100 on July 2, and he and Rossie celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary on August 26. In light of these important milestones, the Rotary Club in Princeton is renaming its scholarship in honor of Frank. Additionally, Mercer County, MO, has designated September 28, 2004, as a day to honor both Frank and Rossie Buchtel.

Rossie's family had long been established in the area when Frank accepted a teaching and coaching position in Princeton in 1927. Rossie's parents were long-time Princeton residents, and her grandparents were pioneer citizens of Mercer County. Frank had an immediate impact on Princeton though, as he coached the Princeton football Tigers to an undefeated season in 1928. After that unbelievable season, Frank probably thought that life couldn't get much better, but he soon fell in love with Rossie; they were married in 1929. Shortly after their wedding, the Buchtels set out for Scottsbluff, NE, where Frank had accepted a coaching job at the junior college. Every summer, the Buchtels would venture to Evanston, IL, where Frank earned his master's degree at Northwestern University. In 1930, their daughter Barbara was born.

In 1936 Frank was appointed athletic director at Aurora College in Illinois. During the 5 years that Frank served as athletic director, Rossie completed her AB degree. Rossie's passion for library science, which she developed in Aurora, later led her to a graduate degree in the field at the University of Chicago.

In the fall of 1941, Frank, Rossie, and Barbara moved to Chicago Heights, IL. Frank served as coach and athletic director Bloom Township High School for the next 27 years, while Rossie was a librarian at a nearby school. Barbara graduated from Bloom and then DePauw University during these years. Barbara later married Elmer Duerst, and Frank and Rossie became proud grandparents of Dan and Debra, Barbara and Elmer's two children. In 1964, Frank and Rossie retired from their respective careers to settle in Princeton.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Frank and Rossie Buchtel, two remarkable citizens of Northwest Missouri who so exemplify the qualities of dedication and service. I am honored to call Frank and Rossie Buchtel constituents of Missouri's Sixth District.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Jacob Staves, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 376, and by earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Jake currently attends Liberty High School and Chandler Baptist Church, and will receive his Eagle Scout Award on September 12, 2004.

Jake has been very active with his troop by participating in many Scout activities, earning numerous merit badges, and serving in a variety of leadership positions. He has held such positions as Assistant Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, Senior Patrol Leader, as well as Troop Guide. He has earned the World Conservation Award and is BSA Lifeguard Certified. In addition to these accomplishments, Jake is a member of both honor camping programs, Order of the Arrow and the Tribe of Mic-O-Say. For his Eagle Scout project, Jake once again displayed his dedication to service by leading a group of Boy Scouts to build and install a sign for Chandler Cemetery.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Jacob Staves for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Leonardo Agricola Biscari of Independence, MO, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 865, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Leonardo will receive the Eagle Scout Award at an Eagle Scout Court of Honor on September 12, 2004, at St. Mark's Catholic Church in Independence, MO.

Leonardo has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Leonardo has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Leonardo Agricola Biscari for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Jeremiah Coomes of Smithville, MO, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 447, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Jeremiah will receive the Eagle Scout Award at an Eagle Scout Court of Honor on September 19, 2004 at River of Life Church in Kansas City, MO.

Jeremiah has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Jeremiah has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but the respect of his family, peers, and community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Jeremiah Coomes for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.