Entropyblues Promoted to Head of Ministry

Greetings Loyal Subjects. By your voice, Entropyblues has hereby been elected Head of Ministry and shall take command of this esteemed post immediately. I will be in contact with Entropyblues shortly to provide my guidance on matters of great importance.

I would also like to recognize Citizen Kane for the valiant effort of participation. Unfortunately this election was open only to those who previously enrolled in the Ministry. But fear not! If you should desire to continue participation in the great works of the Ministry, contact Entropyblues directly to determine if open positions are available.

NORTON I

Voting Day

Members of the Ministry of Public Assessment! Today I call upon you vote for your leader. Vote by attaching a non anonymous comment to this topic that identifies your choice. You may not vote for yourself. Additionally, remember that only current members of this Ministry can vote.

The alphabet will decide ties by first name.

Voting closes today at 5:00 PM San Francisco time.

NORTON I

Introducing the Candidacy for Head of Ministry of Public Assessment

My Subjects! It is now time to exercise your duty and vote for your Head of Ministry for Public Assessment. Only those who have petitioned for membership in the Ministry of Public Assessment are eligible to vote.

On Monday, a new topic will be posted to collect votes. Each member may vote once by placing a non-anonymous reply to Monday's entry. Votes will be tallied and verified by the Ministry of Information at 5:00 pm San Francisco time on election day.

Selecting a candidate is an important task that requires much thought. I provide here, for the benefit of my public, the rice farming reports provided to me from each member. Use their work as an example of what to expect in the future. You should select the single person that will represent you best. The Head of Ministry will have several tasks. I will work directly with the Head of Ministry to coordinate future assessments of the public. All members will report to the Head of Ministry.

Congratulations to all who have joined thus far. After elections, additional membership will be at the discretion of the Head of Ministry.

NORTON I


Layloken

I found the number of active rice farms in the United States to be 8,046. I found this number by consulting numerous data sources such as the US census of agriculture.

Entropyblues

The Best Answers come from the US Agricultural census.
From the census of 1987, they're were 12,013 active rice farms In 1992, that number had shrunk to 11,212 In 1997 it was down to: 9,627 and in 2002 it was: 8,046 By this pattern of decline, one can estimate that by the time of the census of 2007, there will be approximatley 6,500 rice farms; as smaller farms merge into larger ones. At this present time, I would estimate that thier are 6,800 Rice Farms.

Raysa

Just over 9,000 farms produce rice in the United States. Those farms are concentrated in six states: Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas. U.S. rice production accounts for just over 1% of the world's total, but this country is the second leading rice exporter with 18% of the world market.

Rogi Ocnorb

Following is the best estimate of the number of active rice farms in the US.

The most recent census information tells us that the number of active farms in 2002 was 8,046 per the USDA

We know from further research that the while the annual acres planted remains a pretty constant 3.3 million acres(The exception being a slight decline, this year due to Hurricane damage in the gulf coast region).
The number of farms, has been on the decrease to the tune of 300 farms per year, while the size of the farms has been on the increase, indicating that, for the most part, smaller operations/family farms have been selling out to larger growers/cooperatives.
There is evidence that many smaller farms couldn't rebuild after the hurricane damage. Using purely historical projection of the declining number of farms and adjusting for this and the Federal incentives for farmers (Meaning that there will never be a point in the future where there will be a single farm, if the trend continues, the number of current, active farms is 6,782.

The fall plantings for 2006 haven't occurred as of yet, so using the figure of 2.84 million acres planted, so far, this year and dividing by the larger-adjusted farm size factor of 405 acres, the number of active farms for 2006 is 7,012

Using buth extrapolative processes, the mean value arrived at for the number of active rice farms in the US is 6,897.

Kirin

Up-to-date information on the number of rice farms in the United States has proved surprisingly difficult to come by. A publication from the US Department of Agriculture lists the exact number of rice farms operating in the US in 1997 as 9,291. A more recent publication has charts from which one can extrapolate an approximate number of 7000 rice farms. (The publication in question, Characteristics and Production Costs of US Rice Farms, is from 2004, but it appears that its data dates to 2000.)

A US Representative from Texas, Ted Poe, has a page on his web site which states the number of farms in 2002 as "about 8000". He does not cite his sources.

I apologize for not having a more exact or current number, but this is the best I could find on short notice.

On the Assessment of Public Opinion and Facts

Loyal Subjects! By my royal decree, I hereby announce the establishment of the Ministry of Public Assessment. As Emperor, I do not have time to assemble all important statistics for These United States. Therefore, I call upon you, citizens, to step forward and do your duty. Membership in this Ministry requires that you provide me with data and a description of your data gathering methods. From there, I will decide if you are suitable for this important position. For those members accepted by Friday, September 29 at 5:00 PM San Francisco time, you will be eligible to vote for your Head of Ministry. I will announce the members here as they are accepted at the end of each day. Elections will be held on Monday, October 2nd. I encourage members to organize and hold debates to establish who shall lead this Ministry.

Please provide an accurate estimate of the number of active rice farms in these United States. Additionally, describe the methods you employed in this estimation. Submit your report to nortonthefirst@yahoo.com

I would like to also remind you that the Political Action Committee is still awaiting its first member.

NORTON I

Accepting Applications for Political Action Committee

Loyal Subjects! It is time to act. Your past assistance has greatly encouraged me to continue my sole mission. However, no great leader can act alone. I hereby decree the formation of a Political Action Committee. Only those that pass a rigorous testing process will be accepted.

Many politicians speak with double meanings. I require those that can grasp the underlying meaning of statements. To ensure this, all applicants must solve the following problems. The answers form a Yahoo email address. Contact this address for the next step in the process.

1. Name the 1886 full rigged ship at Hyde St. Pier. 9 letters.
2. Name pagoda bank on Washington. 6 letters.
3. Name the company that made Norman's Ice Cream sign. 7 letters.
4. How many frogs are at the Mermaid Fountain? 2 digits.

1_2_3_4@yahoo.com

Additionally, I would like to thank Mr. F and Entropyblues of the newly formed Ministry of Head Dressings and Apparel. Thank you for identifying the hat. It was, with out a doubt, this hat:

NORTON I

Open Letter to Pope Benedict XVI

His Holyness, Pope Benedict XVI,

We both find ourselves burdened with great responsibility and I felt compelled to lend advice to you in your time of trouble. I hope my thoughts will be of some use to you. What kind of leader condemns the actions of others when that leader represents the same actions? If nothing else, my years of experience have instructed me to be watchful of what I say, and to always consider history before speaking. You, with all due respect, have placed yourself in a very awkward position in recent days. Unfortunately one cannot take back words once they have been said. However you can attempt to repair the damage done. This must be done with action, not backpedaling words. You must offer up a compromise. I propose that you call a religious summit for the leaders of the World's religions to discuss the current situation. To assist you in this, I offer San Francisco as the host city. San Francisco is home to many people with an incredibly diverse set of beliefs. Yet we live together in peace. I hope that by inviting your religious peers to our Fine City, the will experience what is possible when people work together.

I await your reply.

NORTON I


My loyal subjects, thank you for your concern. Many of you sent emails asking about my health and well being. Let me inform you all that I am fine and well. While I was away, I decided that I must track down the name of the type of brown hat my persuer wore. I belive, with absolute certainty, that the style of hat will lead me closer to the truth. Please provide me with photos of hats and their names. Place links to them in the comments of this post so I may locate them for future review. I will examine them in detail so I may pinpoint the style that I saw.

I Am Not Safe

My subjects, I am not safe. After hiding for a day I found this public computer to review your progress. Luckly for me Lazarus and Bummer are doing well, thank you kindly for asking. They console me greatly in this time of stife. Who is this council? Why must the persicute me so? I have done nothing to them. Nothing! I only stand for what is best in our Grand Nation. I am fearful for my life. I cannot stay here. I must go. Hide. Swim under Angel Island and see God. That is what I will do. They will never find me there. Never! Subjects, do not lose the courage to speak out and to do what is required of you. I must now leave your for a short while until it is again safe the evil is again tracking me i do not know what to do perhaps they do not know where i am yet or perhaps the clouds are coming in too quickly i cannot believe this is happening if only bummer and lazarus had the ability to keep a watchful eye while i survey my people if only the COUNCIL would leave me be i do not want to leave you kind citizens but i have no choice again i will return if i am not injured our found in the meantime only you can protect me now do what you can and repel the evil that has fallen upon us all while iamg oneensureyo ukeep upthego odw o r k an dcont inue tospr ea dmy mes sage shu tupicantheart hewin dowm ovingun dermyf eetandn owiti sdarkand iamgo ne no rtoni

A Gift

Citizens! It is with great regret that I must tell you that I cannot attend today's protest. Yesterday as I walked the streets of our Fine City, I confirmed what I have recently suspected. I am being watched. For several days I have had the feeling of extra eyes upon me. Last night, I clearly saw a man with a brown hat follow me for several blocks. I quickly ducked down Moss Street and then looped back on Cleveland and lost him. I feel it is not safe at the moment to show my face in the daytime.

But do not despair! As promised, I have left for you, my loyal subjects, tokens of my affection. They have been placed to elude my tracker, but you must hurry and get there before he finds them.

Three locations contain gifts for you. All are adhered to the inside top of SF Weekly newspaper stands. Each location contains several packages. Take only one and leave the rest for others. They are located at:

1. 5th and Jessie by the hotel.

2. Golden Gate between Hyde and Leavenworth in front of the YMCA.

3. McAllister and Van Ness next to the blue awning.


My sincerest apologies that I cannot attend today's meeting. Represent us well. When it is safe again, I shall show my face.

Norton I