Lets wake up and smell the roses.

[Shortgrass]

Our industry has always faced challenges, but it seems to me that we currently face an onslaught of proposed regulations that will make our lives more difficult. In the state of Colorado, we are in serious jeopardy of losing many of our ag tax exemptions on one bill and another gives guides the right to float and portage their clients across private property. That is today. On the national scene, if we don't watch it, we will be faced with a situation that no one but a vet can administer antibiotics, if we even are allowed to use them. That is tomorrow. I know that most of us would really prefer to stay home and ranch, while the "big shots" run Washington or the State capitol, but we'd best get our head out of the sand. Just because we have little interest in politics doesn't change the fact that politics has a great interest in micro managing their food and the invironment, which is the us ranchers. I know you don't have time to spend at the legislative sessions, but please support your state and national associations that are. If you would like know more about the Colorado or National association, pm me.

 

[nortexsook]

It is an uphill battle. The numbers are just terrifically in the urban voter's favor. They can pretty much write the rules how they like. Good luck to us all.

 

[Shortgrass]

It is an uphill battle the numbers are just terrifically in the urban voter's favor. They can pretty much write the rules how they like. Good luck to us all.

Sure its uphill, but most of the urban population are ignorant of the truth; we need to see that accurate info is supplied to them. Proactive rather than reactive. The harder we work, the luckier we'll be.

 

[mrj]

You are so right, Shortgrass!

Getting active in our ag organizations and firmly telling the facts of ag business to our elected officials at all levels is the least we can/must do.

Gently informing consumers of the truth about agriculture is more important than ever. Some organizations are offering assistance in the best ways to do that. Check out www.beefusa or www.cbb.org for some of the help they offer.

Maybe even more important is NOT to denigrate parts of ag you are not familiar with, or that you do not like by telling consumers your gripes against them. Case in point: those who attempt to build up their sales of "organic", "grassfed", or whatever buzz words you choose, as being safer than conventionally produced beef. Brag all you choose about how you raise it and how good it tastes, but do not make false claims about those of us who raise our cattle with science based, time validated animal husbandry practices as somehow being "unsafe"!

mrj

 

[leanin' H]

The face of agriculture needs well spoken, humble poeple who represent the values and ethics that our grandparents stood for. Sometimes the folks who are drawn to the positions can be a little to power hungry or too removed from the struggles of ranching to be effective. Ag needs honest, kind, nieghborly people with personaility and charisma leading the charge. Non-ag people, including the vast majority of the folks who buy our product in the store, need to see the human side of our vocation. They need to see familys and tradition along side food security and technology. They need to see the challenges we face and the challenges they will face without home grown food. I used to not give a red cent about legistaltion or the folks passing it, until i wised up to see how bad they are running things. They want wilderness, wolves, wild horses, bovine emissions, global warming, higher taxes and a plethora of other intrusive and assisnine issues jammed down our throats. Without each of us standing up to speak what is really true, we continue to lose customers and market share. Without the courage to fight back, we will get swept aside like school prayer. Without taking the time to get involved we risk losing our lifestyle and our ranches. Shortgrass is right! Now we each need to decide what we plan to do about it! Every little bit counts! Doing nothing fixes nothing!

 

[Anonymous]

This probably should be on Bull Sessions- because of the controvery--

But- from my view is that we shouldn't be jumping into this- and using cattlemens checkoff money- to protect the big corporate and multinationals method of confinement raising chickens and hogs- where feeding antibiotics/drugs is the name of the game to keep them alive and/or allow the gain to make the bottom line....Or the dairy folks- where stuffing cattle full of drugs to burn them out in 3-4-5 years of milking is the norm.....

This is one battle in the war- we shouldn't be picking up... The backing of non therapeutic feeding of antibiotics/drugs is a battle that can't be won- especially with more countries of the world and medical people coming out against it-- and just weakens our chances of keeping therapeutic usuage when it is actually needed...

The poultry and hog industry (almost entirely owned by the big corporates- Tyson, Pilgrims Pride, JBS, etal- which now own a growing share of the beef feeding industry anymore ) and the Big Pharmaceuticals love nothing better than dragging the rancher into the picture and portraying their confinement feeding as being an old cowboy, rancher approved/ride the range type of activity-- when it is about as far from that as possible...

To me- the saddest part of this whole controversy is that NCBA has used their control of the cattle producers checkoff money to promote these big corporate interests which they are in the pockets of- and not use it to promote BEEF- "All Natural" (hormone and antibiotic free beef) and especially USA BEEF- as the US cattlemen, when polled by the USDA, asked them too....

 

[nortexsook]

Wow, OT, write this down: I am in almost complete agreement with you. Good thinking. There is hope for you, yet.

 

[Shortgrass]

This probably should be on Bull Sessions- because of the controvery--

But- from my view is that we shouldn't be jumping into this- and using cattlemens checkoff money- to protect the big corporate and multinationals method of confinement raising chickens and hogs- where feeding antibiotics/drugs is the name of the game to keep them alive and/or allow the gain to make the bottom line....Or the dairy folks- where stuffing cattle full of drugs to burn them out in 3-4-5 years of milking is the norm.....

This is one battle in the war- we shouldn't be picking up... The backing of non therapeutic feeding of antibiotics/drugs is a battle that can't be won- especially with more countries of the world and medical people coming out against it-- and just weakens our chances of keeping therapeutic usuage when it is actually needed...

The poultry and hog industry (almost entirely owned by the big corporates- Tyson, Pilgrims Pride, JBS, etal- which now own a growing share of the beef feeding industry anymore ) and the Big Pharmaceuticals love nothing better than dragging the rancher into the picture and portraying their confinement feeding as being an old cowboy, rancher approved/ride the range type of activity-- when it is about as far from that as possible...

To me- the saddest part of this whole controversy is that NCBA has used their control of the cattle producers checkoff money to promote these big corporate interests which they are in the pockets of- and not use it to promote BEEF- "All Natural" (hormone and antibiotic free beef) and especially USA BEEF- as the US cattlemen, when polled by the USDA, asked them too....

I guess I wasn't talking check off dollars or corporate farms. What we face is sales tax on calves or feed, taxing our lands on development value instead of production capabilities, enforcing a "NO Trespassing" sign or giving a sick calf a shot of LA. Lots of bad things are happening while we argue over R CALF or NCBA. That does belong with the Bull Session. Lets wake up and smell the roses. We are our own worst enemy.

 

[ChrisB]

It's hard to blame the urbanites for eating up every word they get in the media blasting agriculture, when even people involved in agriculture believe the same biased information as long as it is targeting other segments of the industry.