Thoughts from the Middle of Nowhere

The cows wandering up to the feed truck looking for hay on a very beautiful day. Taken 1/23/2008.

I hate it when a bunch of assholes give the whole beef industry a bad name. Not only am I talking about the assholes at the slaughter plant, but also the owners that sent such animals to slaughter in the first place. If they are that bad of shape that the critters can't stand consistently, DON'T SEND THE DAMN THING TO SLAUGHTER AND HURT THE WHOLE INDUSTRY!!!

I do like the back handed slam at The Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS).

U.S. Ag Secretary Ed Schafer said yesterday afternoon that USDA had placed a hold on Westland Meat products pending an investigation of the plant where the video was taken. And he pointed out the HSUS had apparently had the images it released Wednesday since before winter. Schafer said the failure to turn over those images earlier had needlessly delayed the USDA inquiry.

"It is unfortunate that the Humane Society of the United States did not present this information to us when these alleged violations occurred in the fall of 2007," Schafer said in a statement. "Had we known at the time the alleged violations occurred, we would have initiated our investigation sooner, and taken appropriate actions at that time."

It is a good question though, why did they sit on this video for so long?

Harsh counsels have no effect; they are like hammers, which are always repulsed by the anvil. Claude Adrien Helvetius

Back room conversation at Earthjustice:

We can't have the state's controlling the wildlife in their borders now can we? No, the Constitution and us would never allow such a thing. The tenth Amendment to the Constitution you say? Who cares, we've ignored it before. Let's sue to prevent prevent states from having any control over wolves. It will be fun.

I sometimes wonder what these people think, if they think at all.

So when you are listening to somebody, completely, attentively, then you are listening not only to the words, but also to the feeling of what is being conveyed, to the whole of it, not part of it. Jiddu Krishnamurti

Two of the barn cats, Socks and Sambo, sunning themselves on a hay bale during the cold weather. they don't look to bad for 14 year old cats but the cold weather has been tough on them. Taken 1/26/2008.

I've been hearing about an economic stimulus package, what a name for a plan to give our money back to us, for a little while now. Now we are seeing an actual plan from bothe the House and Senate.

I'm a little confused by this "economic stimulus plan" and how it is going to help the US. Maybe somebody could help me. Let's say that the average person gets this handout from the government of around $500-$600 dollars. How is he going to spend it? Let's assume he is in debt to his eyeballs like the average American and uses the money to pay down his debt. How does that help our economy? It's not new spending so it doesn't help at all.

Now I know, it's a little far fetched to assume that the average American would use a government handout to pay down his bills. That's not the American mindset. So let's assume this average person that gets the handout runs out to his nearest Wally World and spends his money on shit he doesn't need, but wants to keep up with his neighbors. Now we all know that Wally World gets like 90% of it's stuff from overseas, that is their business model.

So, if this money is used to buy some TV, computer, microwave oven, clothes or anything else that today is manufactured overseas, which is most stuff consumers buy, HOW IN THE BILLY HELL IS THIS SUPPOSED TO HELP AMERICANS AND THE AMERICAN ECONOMY. IF THIS GOVERNMENT HANDOUT IS BUYING STUFF THAT IS MANUFACTURED IN CHINA AND ELSEWHERE, AREN'T WE HELPING THE CHINESE MORE THAN AMERICANS WITH THIS PLAN?

It sure seems to me like this stimulus plan government handout that is planned will not do much to help the American Economy. It sounds more like a feel good measure so that the local politician can get behind it and say he is helping Americans while getting himself re-elected. I could be wrong on this but I really doubt it. The only pockets this plan is going to help is the politicians themselves.

Increased government spending can provide a temporary stimulus to demand and output but in the longer run higher levels of government spending crowd out private investment or require higher taxes that weaken growth by reducing incentives to save, invest, innovate, and work. Martin Feldstein

The moon setting in an early morning Montana sky. I sure wish I would have had My Darling Wife's good camera for this. It was really beautiful. Taken 1/24/2008.

The frost on a fence rail before our latest batch of snow. The background would be all white now. Taken 1/14/2008.

Two year old heifers enjoying their hay on a wintry day. Taken 1/20/2008.

Cows waiting for some feed during our recent snow. I won't go so far as too say they are tired of winter yet, they love feed being delivered to them, but I think they could do without the wind and cold. Taken 1/20/2008.

FDA allows cloned beef, but many not so sure

Cloned beef, in the eyes of the Food and Drug Administration, tastes the same as that coming from cows made the old-fashioned way, but Billings butcher Gary Pollock still isn't swayed.

He thinks the FDA's recent decision allowing cloned meat and dairy products in the marketplace smells funny. There won't be any cloned meat on the chopping blocks of the Meat and Poultry Palace in Billings anytime soon because Pollock said he's seen the FDA jump the gun before.

I'm sorry, I don't see any problem with cloned animals. I've studied how it is done and there is not a problem that I see. It might be a little more complicated than some other reproductive techniques used in the purebred industry, but not that much different than some of the in vitro stuff they do today. It's to expensive to use on animals in the food chain, right now it would be used for genetically valuable seedstock. Then that progeny would be used for breeding in a herd like mine.

Sorry, if you expect me to yell and scream about it, I won't. There are more important things to worry about than this shit.

In a time of tight budgets, difficult choices have to be made. We must make sure our very limited resources are spent on priorities. Bob Riley

If it isn't one thing, it's another. There was so much wind and snow last evening that our road to the highway blew in. Four this morning I fired up the tractor so I could plow to the highway to get my daughter to school. I didn't get my coffee or anything this morning. What a day. I got the road to the highway, 10 miles one way, plowed out in time for my daughter to leave then I had to plow out and feed cows.

Everything is done finally though. The weather is supposed to be better for a while now. I can use it. I'm done playing winter now. I want spring to come.

There are things i could talk about today, but the one thing catching my attention is the cold here. It was 15 below yesterday morning and got to a high of 0 and it is 25 below this morning and supposed to get to 25 above today. I somehow really doubt it is going to get to 25 above. Hell, that is a 50 degree temperature rise today. That's pretty significant.

Oh uh, water problems, gotta go.


UPDATE: Tuesday afternoon. Well, the water problem wasn't that big of deal. The little pipe to the pressure switch froze up. Thawed it out and all was good to go.

Amazing, it did warm up to 21 degrees today. Could be considered down right nice if the wind wasn't blowing 20 mph and the snow coming down like mad.

I'm tired of playing winter, isn't it spring yet?

If you have read here long you know that while I am not fond of the beef checkoff, I don't mind it either. Advertising never hurts, unless you advertise like this. Actually I know it's not an advertisement, but it might be mistaken as one. Continue reading "Advertising" »

The snow and the wind make interesting patterns with the snow. We have been getting slight snow showers and way to much wind for the past few days making life tough. It supposed to keep it up and get really cold for the next few days. Loads of fun. Taken 1/17/2008.

A New, Global Oil Quandary: Costly Fuel Means Costly Calories

Rising prices for cooking oil are forcing residents of Asia’s largest slum, in Mumbai, India, to ration every drop. Bakeries in the United States are fretting over higher shortening costs. And here in Malaysia, brand-new factories built to convert vegetable oil into diesel sit idle, their owners unable to afford the raw material.

This is the other oil shock. From India to Indiana, shortages and soaring prices for palm oil, soybean oil and many other types of vegetable oils are the latest, most striking example of a developing global problem: costly food.

The food price index of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, based on export prices for 60 internationally traded foodstuffs, climbed 37 percent last year. That was on top of a 14 percent increase in 2006, and the trend has accelerated this winter.

More information on the food versus fuel front. Which is more important to grow, food to feed people or food to feed your SUV? This article more focuses on palm oil but the palm oil shortage comes back to the ethanol boom in the US. Such global ramifications.

To become a thoroughly good man is the best prescription for keeping a sound mind and a sound body. Francis Bowen