I don't understand

[Jassy]

Safety doesn't seem to be in alot of motorists vocabulary..We have to trail 800 cow/calf pairs down Merrit Dam Road Hwy97 for about a mile to get to the river crossing. We ALWAYS have at least 15-20 riders, and several ATV's plus pickup and trailers, the mile is flat so we are easy to see from a distance, yet people in a hurry to get to the lake will try and drive through the herd! I literally had the pickup and trailer in the middle of the road behind the herd with flashers on and several people passed me and drove through the herd! Hubby was not happy and did stop one guy and made him wait. Crazy people!!! Another incident, several years ago, We lost 22 head of yearling calves also on that same road, yes they had gotten out, and yes it was dark, but the driver of the car was going at least 80 the cops figured when he hit them..Hubby said it was the most gruesome slaughter he had ever seen. So I can relate to all of the stories and the bottom line is..BE CAREFUL and CONSIDERATE..no matter who you are...

 

[Larrry]

The thing is the whole ag industry is a public perception battle. We must go above and beyond to extend our hand to the urban type public. Being right and ending up with someone dead or a negative public perception just won't suffice in todays world. It can't always be done but we must try.

 

[leanin' H]

The thing is the whole ag industry is a public perception battle. We must go above and beyond to extend our hand to the urban type public. Being right and ending up with someone dead or a negative public perception just won't suffice in todays world. It can't always be done but we must try.

I'll wager the vast majority of agriculture people do try our dangdest to extend our hand in every way possible. But when that hand gets slapped, smacked, mangled and sliced and diced it sucks! Common sense seems to be directly proportional to the distance away from rural settings. It seems to me that city folks lack common sense in most cases. And when we dumb ranchers try to teach or explain we are usually just blown off as relics from the past. I am all for trying but it takes two to row a canoe unless ya like circling the drain. :? Common sense would dictate slowing down when approaching any roadside commotion like a herd of cows. Add in flaggers and pilot cars and the excuse for hitting cows does not exist! :x Now the problem is entirely behind the wheel and not standing in the road. :? From folks complaining about cowshit on the highway to the smell from a feedlot to a tractor going slow or dust while plowing, we as producers can only do so much. Then the public has to decide how much they like to eat!

 

[Larrry]

Look at a lot of the legislation passed nowdays, seems they aren't to worried about eating. I know we shouldn't have to go above and beyond but we might have to. The city people are encroaching on us all the time and we are pretty helpless in their efforts to silence us. If we can do the little things, like I see tractors with equipment that could move over a little better and things along those lines. Yes we have tried our darndest but we can not stop trying to get along. Myself when I am doing something where public is involved I have to assume they are all idiots and prepare for any idiot stunt that can come up. Like I said in many cases I might be right but if I am in a wreck and it kills some of my cattle or a child in their car I still have to deal with the results. Maybe we shouldn't have to but we do.

 

[LazyWP]

The thing is the whole ag industry is a public perception battle. We must go above and beyond to extend our hand to the urban type public. Being right and ending up with someone dead or a negative public perception just won't suffice in todays world. It can't always be done but we must try.

I'll wager the vast majority of agriculture people do try our dangdest to extend our hand in every way possible. But when that hand gets slapped, smacked, mangled and sliced and diced it sucks! Common sense seems to be directly proportional to the distance away from rural settings. It seems to me that city folks lack common sense in most cases. And when we dumb ranchers try to teach or explain we are usually just blown off as relics from the past. I am all for trying but it takes two to row a canoe unless ya like circling the drain. :? Common sense would dictate slowing down when approaching any roadside commotion like a herd of cows. Add in flaggers and pilot cars and the excuse for hitting cows does not exist! :x Now the problem is entirely behind the wheel and not standing in the road. :? From folks complaining about cowshit on the highway to the smell from a feedlot to a tractor going slow or dust while plowing, we as producers can only do so much. Then the public has to decide how much they like to eat!

H, common sense would say to slow down and move over when approaching flashing lights, but now we have laws that tell us to. Common sense left the country, when people left the country.

 

[Larrry]

I don't disagree with the thing about people and common sense. I've seen many times when drivers acted stupid and got themselves in a jam.
We are in the position that we have to try and anticipate the others actions.