Wood County Family Threatened for Opposing Proposed Factory Farm

"Your Hous [sic] Is Next," reads a threat left near the home and
on the land of a family protesting the proposed massive Wysocki
CAFO in central Wisconsin. It take a certain pathology of CAFO
owners to deliberately poison neighbors, and another pathology to
leave this type of sick threat. The note was left after the sign of a
cow (below) had the cow's head removed. Photo: Nancy Koch

Updated - What is happening in isolated central Wisconsin is political terrorism.

"Terrorism includes the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives” (28 C.F.R. Section 0.85).

"We are troubled," said Nancy Koch to me, citing a threat left on a note at their Saratoga home in Wood County last week reading: "Your hous [sic] is next."

In a phone conversation, I advised the Koch family [no relation] to hang up the phone, get in touch with a sympathetic attorney in Wisconsin Rapids and call the FBI immediately.

Koch responded that she has been in touch with the Wood County Sheriff's Department which sent over a deputy.

The threat is associated with the Koch family's objection to the siting of the proposed Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) that would confine over 5,000 cows and produce an estimated 50 million tons of liquid cow manure annually, using 37 high capacity water well pumps in a geological region where the acquirer basin is already strained by the most high capacity wells in Wisconsin.

The Wood County Sheriff's Department confirmed this morning they are in receipt of several reports of recent thefts and vandalism associated with crimes against the widespread political opposition to the proposed Wysocki CAFO.

Anti-CAFO sign 'decapitated' left near threatening note
with nail holes and appears to have been blown
by the wind to a tree in a nearby stand of
pine trees common to the area on the Koch's.
The pink cow is some three-by-six feet in size.

The Kochs have what has become a popular anti-CAFO symbol, a large pink cow sign reading "Stop Factory Farming" and "No High Cap Wells" located on their land. (at right)

The anti-CAFO sign "decapitated" is feet away from the threatening note with nail holes and appears to have been blown by the wind to a tree in a nearby stand of pine trees common to the area on the Koch's.

The Koch family is part of a large citizens' group in central Wisconsin opposing the proposed Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) that would confine over 5,000 cows and produce an estimated 50 Million tons of liquid cow manure annually.

The massive site would destroy 8,000 acres of what is currently managed forest land.

"We are tired of these threats. We have been very polite in our Pink Cow/CAFO opposition fight and have made ourselves visible, why aren’t you?," reads an email sent by Koch to Mal Contends in the hope the perpetrators will read it. "Evidently cowardly acts are your style!, We have a hard time believing anyone could be against pink cows so drastically to stoop to such a pathetic level of cowardice."

The threat follows the theft of several other signs made by children in Wood County by other families similarly opposed to the dangerous CAFO operation. Nancy Koch said her family has had vandalism to her home since she publicly opposed the CAFO three years ago.

The following notes were sent to a reporter with the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune (Gannett Co.) by Wisconsin Rapids resident, Rhonda Carrell:

This sign was stolen last week as pro-CAFO forces are
now escalating to open intimation and theft to stop opposition.

Hi Deb,

The clean water cow depicting “water” was stolen from Ten Mile Ave. and Hwy. 13 at approx. midnight Sunday or early Monday morning (Nancy Koch knows the landowner, it’s her neighbor). The beheaded cow on Ten Mile Ave. at Richard and Nancy Koch’s home at around the same time. Evergreen and Hwy 13 on xxxxx’s property another was taken but that was not the kids artwork. [Three] were taken from Virginia Olson and Darren Kester’s property on Hwy. 13 near Larry Avenue. At approx. 1:30 am Mrs. Olson’s son was outside his brother’s home and a tall pick-up truck with lights on the cab above the windshield was parked in the neighbor Kolo’s driveway and went speeding off. One was also taken from Ironside’s property on Hwy. 13 near Blue Ridge. He was unaware of the thefts until morning. The cow stolen on Hwy. 73 west of highway 13 and was also a children’s project.

Pic’s of kids working on the cows will come one at a time from my cell phone. I cannot find a more efficient way to send. There will be more addresses to report as we start checking other locations, I’m sure.

Thanks,

Rhonda Carrell

Several signs were stolen last week as pro-CAFO forces are
now escalating to open intimation and theft to stop opposition.

Hwy. 73 west of highway 13 and was also a children’s project.
---
Hi Deb,

Just an update on stolen/vandalized artwork. A note was found in the ditch near Richard and Nancy Koch’s home that had apparently been attached to their beheaded pink cow, telling them, “YOUR HOUS IS NEXT”. They have had cow thefts before and had anchored her well, along with drywall screws and nails coming out of her. The note had been attached to her and blew into the ditch. They have been threatened before by a man in a big, loud white truck telling them he was going to burn them out of their house.

Rhonda Carrell