Hello, I have been working a job in town and probably will have to for the next ten years or more. One thing I hate is sitting at the lunch room with about 200 different city people with no ag background. I hate when they talk about farmers "getting new pickups with their gov't checks" or anything about gov't subs. I am young and only into cattle, no grain farming but I, as a rancher am classified as a "farmer that receives government money" to these ignorant city folk. I, myself, haven't received and money from the gov't but I want to sound intelligent and a have a great comeback to these ignorant people and support my fellow ag communitity. I know if it wasn't for farmers and ranchers these people wouldn't be eating their roast beef sandwiches.
gov't $
- Thread starter nd
- Start date
Help Support Ranchers.net:
Kato
Well-known member
Tell them:
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Ask them if they consider it their right to have a vacation every year and a new car every couple of years, and send their kids to college. They will tell you that they work for it, so they have earned it.
Then tell them that these things only happen because they aren't spending half their income on food, like people in other parts of the world. Their standard of living is based on a society that runs on cheap food.
Food so cheap that the people who produce it must live below the poverty level just so that they can have a lifestyle that allows them the freedom to have good things in life free from the worry of going to bed hungry.
So if the government chips in to keep the food supply secure and available, it's an investment in their futures and security. They have no right to complain, especially when they are going home from work to a supper table full of food and a roof over their heads.
This business about complaining when a farmer gets a new truck really ticks me off.
I've heard it a million times. Why shouldn't we get a new truck once in a while. For pete's sake, our trucks are what we use to earn our livings. No one ever complains when the guy in town gets an RV or a fishing boat do they? Or when they jump on a plane for Jamaica in January? No. That's different. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Ask them if they consider it their right to have a vacation every year and a new car every couple of years, and send their kids to college. They will tell you that they work for it, so they have earned it.
Then tell them that these things only happen because they aren't spending half their income on food, like people in other parts of the world. Their standard of living is based on a society that runs on cheap food.
Food so cheap that the people who produce it must live below the poverty level just so that they can have a lifestyle that allows them the freedom to have good things in life free from the worry of going to bed hungry.
So if the government chips in to keep the food supply secure and available, it's an investment in their futures and security. They have no right to complain, especially when they are going home from work to a supper table full of food and a roof over their heads.
This business about complaining when a farmer gets a new truck really ticks me off.
I've heard it a million times. Why shouldn't we get a new truck once in a while. For pete's sake, our trucks are what we use to earn our livings. No one ever complains when the guy in town gets an RV or a fishing boat do they? Or when they jump on a plane for Jamaica in January? No. That's different. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:burnt
Well-known member
Show them this.
Coming Clean
Recently, the Toronto Star carried an excellent column entitled "Agriculture's new 'golden age'" (David Olive, Mar.2/08). From this farmer's perspective, it was perceptively accurate, describing the state of grain farming with a friendly tone seldom seen in the urban media. Olive perfectly captured the effect of the rising markets for many grain farmers in his closing paragraph with the story of a Kansas corn farmer who "celebrated his good fortune by splurging on his first new washing machine in 30 years". One has to wonder how many farmers felt a jolt in their breast after reading that.
It seems strange, humiliating, to have some of our humble gratifications displayed for public viewing. Some say confession is good for the soul. But in this case, though, it may be the viewer who should feel the need for absolution. Of course, some farmers were in a position to prosper throughout that timeframe. But for others, what their wives and children endured or did without. . . . maybe next year, my dear . . . .
In my 35 years in farming, I have often shuddered at the portrayal of farm economics in the mainstream media. It does not take that long to tire of being stereotyped into the image of a hat-in-hand "po'-boy". The reality is that since the last major market upturn of the '70's, agricultural commodity values have been in stagnation, indeed, outright counter-cyclical recession in terms of real dollars. Thirty years of producing the food we need, often at prices below cost of production. We were told to get bigger, get more efficient.
One effect of undervalued commodities was the development of an immense marketplace with an increasingly voracious appetite for this cheap, dependable supply of raw products. So cheap, in fact, that we turned it into fuel for our SUV's so we could run to Starbuck's for a coffee and "if you think of it, pick up a box of cornflakes while you're out for a drive anyway".
Agriculture began to resemble a dog with no defense against fleas – eventually the fleas multiplied until the host could not produce enough blood for the parasites to suck. Something had to die in order for something else to survive. Have we reached that point on a worldwide scale? Have we blindly forged a supply/demand imbalance so great that the tipping point has been exceeded? To say "stay tuned" would be redundant – we are not observers, we are all involved. The richest flea will live.
A story of my own – in the late eighties, while living on a shoestring budget, my wife and I were reluctant to host visitors who were coming for several days. One indicator of our financial desperation was a common item that we could not afford. For guests to see it in its tattered state was a greater indignity than anyone should have to bear. The operating loan was maxed out.
Somehow, we managed to scrape together the seven or eight dollars it took to buy a new bath mat to cover the rusty floor of our bathtub. At the time, it felt like a luxury and we valued it as highly as the new shower and bathtub we recently installed.
Coming Clean
Recently, the Toronto Star carried an excellent column entitled "Agriculture's new 'golden age'" (David Olive, Mar.2/08). From this farmer's perspective, it was perceptively accurate, describing the state of grain farming with a friendly tone seldom seen in the urban media. Olive perfectly captured the effect of the rising markets for many grain farmers in his closing paragraph with the story of a Kansas corn farmer who "celebrated his good fortune by splurging on his first new washing machine in 30 years". One has to wonder how many farmers felt a jolt in their breast after reading that.
It seems strange, humiliating, to have some of our humble gratifications displayed for public viewing. Some say confession is good for the soul. But in this case, though, it may be the viewer who should feel the need for absolution. Of course, some farmers were in a position to prosper throughout that timeframe. But for others, what their wives and children endured or did without. . . . maybe next year, my dear . . . .
In my 35 years in farming, I have often shuddered at the portrayal of farm economics in the mainstream media. It does not take that long to tire of being stereotyped into the image of a hat-in-hand "po'-boy". The reality is that since the last major market upturn of the '70's, agricultural commodity values have been in stagnation, indeed, outright counter-cyclical recession in terms of real dollars. Thirty years of producing the food we need, often at prices below cost of production. We were told to get bigger, get more efficient.
One effect of undervalued commodities was the development of an immense marketplace with an increasingly voracious appetite for this cheap, dependable supply of raw products. So cheap, in fact, that we turned it into fuel for our SUV's so we could run to Starbuck's for a coffee and "if you think of it, pick up a box of cornflakes while you're out for a drive anyway".
Agriculture began to resemble a dog with no defense against fleas – eventually the fleas multiplied until the host could not produce enough blood for the parasites to suck. Something had to die in order for something else to survive. Have we reached that point on a worldwide scale? Have we blindly forged a supply/demand imbalance so great that the tipping point has been exceeded? To say "stay tuned" would be redundant – we are not observers, we are all involved. The richest flea will live.
A story of my own – in the late eighties, while living on a shoestring budget, my wife and I were reluctant to host visitors who were coming for several days. One indicator of our financial desperation was a common item that we could not afford. For guests to see it in its tattered state was a greater indignity than anyone should have to bear. The operating loan was maxed out.
Somehow, we managed to scrape together the seven or eight dollars it took to buy a new bath mat to cover the rusty floor of our bathtub. At the time, it felt like a luxury and we valued it as highly as the new shower and bathtub we recently installed.
passin thru
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2005
- Messages
- 2,603
- Reaction score
- 0
A doctor will invest probably less than 200,000 dollars for their occupation and no one thinks twice about them driving a nice vehicle. A farmer rancher can have 1, 2, 3, 4, or more million invested but let him drive a pickup that is less than five years old and be ready for the crying.
Let's suppose a farmer, rancher plugs along making a living suffering through some droughts..............then comes along a really good year. He can not put that money back for the next drought.........he uses most of the extra money he got to pay his income taxes. So he is back to square one just hoping for another good year.
Many a farmer has had water rights for years.........but along comes a drought and guess who has to cut back their water usage. Not the guys in the city that now use twice as much water as they did just a few years ago due to population increase and to water their parks and golf courses. I have seen it happen.
Why is it the city dweller sometimes will complain about making ethanol or exporting wheat. No some expect the farmer to raise it and sell it for a loss so they can have their cheap food. Do you see the farmer and rancher wanting the city dweller to cut his wages below a livable wage so that he can buy a new windmill, plow, or feed truck. No you do not see the rancher wanting the city dweller to live in poverty just so he can live better. Be careful what you ask for........we could have companies like Exxon, Mobil Citgo or others producing our food...........now that is a scary thought.
How many city dwellers have had their lively hood used as a world bargaining chip..........not many.
How many farmers and ranchers show up in an emergency and help the city dwellers in a time of need. Just ask the people of Greensburg KS who were the biggest contributor to cleaning up their town.....no charge.
Ask the ranchers of Pinon Canyon how many of their city counterparts are being asked to give up a multigenerational ranch at the drop of a hat.
How many city dwellers are directly or indirectly profiting from the sale of farm and ranch equipment.
I could go on, but won't.
So is the rural dweller only supposed to live in a shack and use and outdoor toilet in order to gain their place in life These rural people do not begrudge anyone their prosperity in life. They have chosen their life and though it is not with a new Mercedes in the garage it is what they have chosen.....no complaints. They just ask that they be allowed the opportunity for a couple nice things in life without being looked down upon. This country produces enough food that no person has to go to bed hungry.........not like many other countries. Just what is a stable supply of food worth?
Let's suppose a farmer, rancher plugs along making a living suffering through some droughts..............then comes along a really good year. He can not put that money back for the next drought.........he uses most of the extra money he got to pay his income taxes. So he is back to square one just hoping for another good year.
Many a farmer has had water rights for years.........but along comes a drought and guess who has to cut back their water usage. Not the guys in the city that now use twice as much water as they did just a few years ago due to population increase and to water their parks and golf courses. I have seen it happen.
Why is it the city dweller sometimes will complain about making ethanol or exporting wheat. No some expect the farmer to raise it and sell it for a loss so they can have their cheap food. Do you see the farmer and rancher wanting the city dweller to cut his wages below a livable wage so that he can buy a new windmill, plow, or feed truck. No you do not see the rancher wanting the city dweller to live in poverty just so he can live better. Be careful what you ask for........we could have companies like Exxon, Mobil Citgo or others producing our food...........now that is a scary thought.
How many city dwellers have had their lively hood used as a world bargaining chip..........not many.
How many farmers and ranchers show up in an emergency and help the city dwellers in a time of need. Just ask the people of Greensburg KS who were the biggest contributor to cleaning up their town.....no charge.
Ask the ranchers of Pinon Canyon how many of their city counterparts are being asked to give up a multigenerational ranch at the drop of a hat.
How many city dwellers are directly or indirectly profiting from the sale of farm and ranch equipment.
I could go on, but won't.
So is the rural dweller only supposed to live in a shack and use and outdoor toilet in order to gain their place in life These rural people do not begrudge anyone their prosperity in life. They have chosen their life and though it is not with a new Mercedes in the garage it is what they have chosen.....no complaints. They just ask that they be allowed the opportunity for a couple nice things in life without being looked down upon. This country produces enough food that no person has to go to bed hungry.........not like many other countries. Just what is a stable supply of food worth?
Steve
Well-known member
I finally bought my first new truck at the age 43....
Before that I felt fortunate to have any vehicle that was less then five years old.. the Jeep I drive daily has 194,000 miles on it..
Hopefully by the time I reach 86 I'll be able to replace this one...
Before that I felt fortunate to have any vehicle that was less then five years old.. the Jeep I drive daily has 194,000 miles on it..
Hopefully by the time I reach 86 I'll be able to replace this one...
Kato
Well-known member
We bought a new truck a month before the border closed. :shock: Still payin'!! :roll: :roll:
This makes three trucks in 34 years. First one was a brand new Chev 1/2 ton, 1972 model. Drove it until we finally traded what was left of it for a load of gravel. Second was a brand new 1986 Chev. Still got it. Number three is the big boy 3/4 ton to tow the cattle trailer with. We expect to drive this one until retirement. Every truck seemed way too expensive when we bought it, but by the time we're done with it, it doesn't owe us a cent.
So if you come across us in the right year of a twelve year cycle, we're driving a new fancy truck too. 8)
This makes three trucks in 34 years. First one was a brand new Chev 1/2 ton, 1972 model. Drove it until we finally traded what was left of it for a load of gravel. Second was a brand new 1986 Chev. Still got it.
Number three is the big boy 3/4 ton to tow the cattle trailer with. We expect to drive this one until retirement. Every truck seemed way too expensive when we bought it, but by the time we're done with it, it doesn't owe us a cent.So if you come across us in the right year of a twelve year cycle, we're driving a new fancy truck too.
8)We bought a brand new 87 Suburban in 1988. It was a left over and cost 31K. We are still driving it as our main vehicle and will never be able to afford another new one at the price of 60K. Calf prices back then were about 500 a calf.... pretty much the same or slightly more than what they are worth now.
Northern Rancher
Well-known member
Kato I bought my first new truck about two weeks before the border closed-we both have an impeccable sense of timing.
Kato
Well-known member
In a way I'm glad we did it, even though the loan is killing us. :shock: :shock:
If we'd waited until it was closed, we probably wouldn't have a good truck right now, because we would have had to buy just another beater. We rely pretty heavily on our truck to move cattle, and the old red truck wouldn't have lasted much longer on the stock trailer.
If we'd waited until it was closed, we probably wouldn't have a good truck right now, because we would have had to buy just another beater. We rely pretty heavily on our truck to move cattle, and the old red truck wouldn't have lasted much longer on the stock trailer.