Obama's Czars

The question was raised why are Czars listed on my reasons Why I Can't Vote For Obama.  I don't believe in czars, the nickname given to these special aides President Obama chose to inform in things I don't believe in while running up our government cost.  It's quite that simple.

We haven't heard about them in mainstream media for quite awhile.  I wonder why that is?  Also I heard a good quote from Washington D.C. yesterday that Obama has chosen not to use his campaign donations for signs.  There aren't many!  I haven't seen any bumper stickers or signs either and I suppose people don't support him or or are afraid to say so around here if they are.  They sure will get an earful from my and many of my friends!  My farmer friends on AgTalk say the same thing, there are very few Obama signs or bumper stickers where they live.  There were tons of them in 2008 but none this year!

Instead, he has bombarded Ohio, the other swing states and the nation with these silly campaign ads.  They all can be easily disputed.  His new one about his plan for the next for years sounds pretty good at first glance until you dig into it.  It isn't possible I don't think it is really his agenda.  If you go to his website, there is John Lace, Dan Zinkand and 29 million other likes!  But the Google link only says 2 million.  What's up with that?

Let's focus on what kind of men they are.  Obama comes off as very bright, well spoken to the point I can't believe a word he says after watching his performance the last 4 years.  Romney though comes across as a very bright businessman with his life deeply rooted in family.  Here is what his neighbors had to say about him after he moved out of his house of ten years.

"To move, if we can afford the cost, most of us would hire movers with a team of workers. To save money, many of us are the do-it-our-selves types. Which did Mitt Romney do? Like many of us, on his own he rented a six-wheel truck and moved himself. He drove to the local Home Depot and purchased wood to build whatever he needed for the transport. Mitt moved his family's clothes, his family's photos, his family's mementos, his grandchildren's toys. With the help of a friend and family, they loaded the truck. Then, after answering all our questions, Mitt Romney said his goodbyes, climbed into the truck, and began the long drive to his new home by himself.


The Romney Park City home, which they designed and built, and its contents had much to say. Having raised a family of our own, we saw that the home was built with a focus on his family. No swimming pool, tennis court or movie theater. There are no maid, butler, or nanny quarters. Clearly Ann and Mitt raised their kids. No gold faucets, no fancy silverware. The kitchen was simple and typical of an average three-bedroom home, very much like those in which we were raised. We were struck by the discovery that most of the art, furniture, and all the curtains were made in America and many by local craftsmen. Most of the linens were of good quality but not what is found at very high end, exclusive stores. The master bedroom pillows had tags from the average American’s most popular discount store."

This sounds like everything else I have heard or read about him.  He seems to have my morals and values.  His success in business gives me hope he can do the same thing in the White House but we all must admit our problems may well be too big for any one man to solve.  At least I think he can cause positive and real change, not what we've seen the last 4 years.

Pick your own but please get informed and please vote if you are not confused or prejudiced.  Our soldiers protecting our tiny thread of peace and freedom we have left deserve our vote and our backing.

These czars the president picked do not serve our interests.  Now this guy in the picture, he could be my soil czar!

Ed

Why I Can't Vote For Obama

The election is only 30 days away.  Many of us cannot wait for it to be over.  Our phone rings all day long and much of it is robocalls and political calls.  I have had the best conversation about this important election this week with family, friends and neighbors.

One neighbor shocked me.  He said "Romney scares me."  My first thought is what the heck, Obama has scared me since he took down the Clinton Political Machine 5 years ago!  I mean really, Romney scares you?  You need to do a little more research!

I can't support the Democratic Party because of their moral beliefs.  I did at one time, when I thought abortion was really the woman's choice.  As I have grown older, I understand there is much more to it than that.  A woman can't get pregnant by herself, she has to have some help!  Where does man fit into all of this?

This man, me,  tries to accept his responsibility so I study the issues.  If I am truly a Christian or at the very least believe in a Higher Power, how could I possibly support Obama for President?  I can't.  If you can, can you please explain why?

There are tons of reasons why I cannot support President Obama

1.  Abortion
2.  Same Sex Marriage
3.  Redistribution of Wealth
4.  Bankrupt Green Energy Projects
5.  Unemployment
6.  No Federal Budget
7.  Czars
8,  Bowing Down to other countries and cultures
9. The Deficit
10. Arrogance

These are just a few of the ones that quickly came to me.  There are many other reasons.  The biggest one is "our country is going down the drain, and really fast!'  That is the title of an email going around about a lady on the public dole trying to buy a new Ford Focus.  That is just one small example.

I think my readers know where I stand and I probably didn't need to write this blog.  I do because the future  of  our country has been on everyones mind since the debates the other night.  The debate proved to me the failure of this president and sadly, the blood on his hands since the murder of our citizens at our Embassy.

Farmers have seen record grain prices under Obama but our costs are so high it all washes out.

I pray for a much more stable government and not the bleeding and hemorraging we've seen the past 4 years.

If you support Obama, why?

Ed

How Many Bushels Is This Going To Cost?

The carpenter and home decorator are upstairs planning out the remodeling of our 2 bathrooms with LuAnn.  All I see is dollars rolling out.  So I popped the question, how many bushels is this going to cost?  Without blinking an eye, Mrs. Tissot says 2 loads of beans!  Me?  I ask if that is $15 beans or $18 beans?

This home remodeling has gotten to a lofty price the past few years.  If you don't think we have inflation, go price some items.  I will have to say LuAnn can find the best deals on the better quality of about anything we buy.

First, we have to cut a wall out in the basement to get access under this old house to a sinking floor in the living room.  That has to come first.  We lifted one corner a few years ago and now the other corner on the same wall is low.  I don't know if we have some soft or rotten timbers or not, we will have to dig our way to it by hand.

It looks like the Amish on the roof fixed the leak.  It hasn't leaked since.  We are hopefully past the damage of the Jerecho winds or whatever they called them June 29.  I still have a sagging door on the old barn, though.  I hope Bill gets the new fuel injection line so we can get that tractor moving, it has been sitting there too long right behind the sagging door.

I just scouted my wheat to see if it will come up before the cold front sets in.  It doesn't look like it but it is coming, there are little sprouts 5 days later.  If wheat hits $25 like Mark Wright thinks, the money problem for the bathrooms will be solved!

Harvest has been going slow here, I don't see much done.  Everyone is waiting for drier conditions.  I hope they come soon because just about every field is ready to harvest.  People are really dragging their feet on this corn and bean crop and I can't figure why.  The corn is 20% or under and the beans are 15-16 so we are rolling.

I need to snap a picture of the garden and show it to you.  We have the best stand of cereals and radish I ever had in any spot, picture perfect like it is supposed to look like the first of October.

The moon is waning and has looked funky the last few nights but people are still pretty hyper like its a full moon.  I don't know what is up with that.

Everyone is in a rush to get their work done before the long weekend for some.  Most places don't honor Columbus Day but some do.  I had to run to FSA and the bank to sign papers before the long weekend.

What do you think of that 7.8% unemployment figure the government pulled out of their hat this morning?  Now they are stooping to any trick!

I don't believe it!

Ed

Where Do You Live And Why?

Mrs. B asked a good question in the Cafe.  She asked, where do you live and why?

At first I was surprised as I read each response that practically everyone who answered hadn't strayed far from home and many, if not most, took over the family operation!  I guess I shouldn't be surprised at this since most of us did have to move off the family farm if we were fortunate enough to be raised on one.

Very few of the country's people farm for a living.  We all know about the mass movement from the farm as other economies were created and jobs were more available there and better paying, too.  Most people do not live on a farm today.

It wasn't that long ago that 90% of the population grew food.  In my lifetime that has been reduced to one percent or less of the population who grows our food.  Some use 3%, most use 2% but the truth is only about 1% or less of our population farm or ranch for a living.  If you analyze just those people, you find only 10% of those produce over 90% of our food.

One farmer's work creates a lot of jobs.  Here, much of it is part time, like truckers who haul grain seasonally or drive fertilizer trucks seasonally but more and more are full time as farms get bigger.  Probably 6-8 or more jobs depend on one farmer's production.  Agriculture has a huge impact on my local, state and national economy.

So where do you live and why?  I only migrated 30 miles north of our home farm.  My first job is the key part in that when I started teaching Vocational Agriculture at Blanchester Local School District.  I live 8 miles east of that building 41 years later.

Someone in our geneology made a big move in the last 200 years.  Heinrich Winckel made that move from Europe to Harrisonburg, Virginia in the 1700's.  He migrated to Tennessee and his sons migrated to Highland County just south of here.  My part of the Winkle clan has been here ever since.  I am the sixth generation of Peter Winkle in southern Ohio.

I hope you find this discussion as interesting as I do.  I learned a lot about people whose posts I read, some of which I knew and most I didn't.

It is a good topic for my Internet community.

Looks like good weather today before the cold rushes in a snow hits up north!  One farmer had 2 inches of snow this morning in North Dakota so it isn't far off!  It was hot there just a few weeks ago!

Ed

The Seed Sower

Recently we heard once more the Parable of the Seed Sower, one of my favorites;  :

The Parable of the Sower. 1 On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea.   2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore. 3 And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4  And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up.  5 Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, 6 and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. 7 Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. 8 But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold. 9 Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

LuAnn and I talked about the meaning of this parable and our discussion led to producing fruit 30, 60 or a hundredfold.  Have we done this in our lives?  A week from today marks 13 years since our first "date."  Her oldest met my oldest child's best friend, they became married and now we share two grand daughters from that marriage.  Every child was affected in some way, and for hers it meant a big move to people a little different than whom they grew up with.  We call that "God's Plan."

God also had a plan for us farmers, teachers and scientists.  How are we doing compared to Biblical days?  We plant corn at 32,000 seeds per acre.  160 bushel corn at 80,000 kernals per bushel is 12.8 million kernals or 400 fold.  This year many did not receive that but you get the picture.

If we plant 160,000 soybean seeds and it produces 40 bushels, that's 2400 lbs per acre times 3000 or 7.2 million seeds or 45 fold.  When I planted 2 million wheat kernals per acre and it produces 70 bushels per acre, 12,000 seeds per pound would be 50.4 million or 25 fold.  No wonder Corn is King!  You get more folds!

Hybridization had a big part in that advantage to corn but fertilizer, pesticides, machinery and lots of other technology takes their claim and brings their cost to the table.  Except for corn, our modern day production is pretty similar to that in Jesus' parable 2000 years ago.  Whoever has ears, ought to hear this!

Even tough harvest is on everyone's mind, some of us are focused on sowing, too.  It's time to sow winter cereal grains in the U.S. and of course I recommend every farmer plant a field or patch of cover crops just to watch them grow and learn.  Many of my friends are in a race to plant every acre as soon as it is harvested.  Cover crops have that potential to bear that necessity.

I trust you and I will keep sowing good seeds no matter what we are doing as the weeds, rocks, heat and drought are ready to pluck every good seed we sow.

Ed

They Listened To Us!

In Overjoyed I told you how happy I was to get my editor back on Google Blogspot.  So many people complained I guess they thought they better do something about it.  Here is the message I got from Google this morning:

"Dear Webmaster Tools user,


We know that having a healthy and well-performing website is important to you. To keep you informed about your site's status Webmaster Tools will now automatically send you a notification email if there are critical or important issues that we detect with your site.

We'll only send you email for issues that we think have significant impact on your site's health or search performance which have clear actions that you can take to address. For example, we'll email you if we detect malware on your site or see a significant increase in errors while crawling your site.

For most sites these kinds of issues will occur rarely. If your site does happen to have an issue we cap the number of emails we send over a certain period of time to avoid flooding your inbox.

If you don't want to receive any email from Webmaster Tools you can change your email delivery preferences at https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/preferences.

We hope that you find this change a useful way to stay up-to-date on critical and important issues regarding your site's health.

If you'd like more information about Webmaster Tools and building Google-friendly websites please visit http://www.google.com/webmasters.

The Webmaster Tools Team"

This may not be interesting to you but this is for my devoted readers who have seen me go through H E double hockey sticks just trying to post a daily blog!  Is it worth it?  Yes, you make it worth it with your comments, emails and calls.  This is the some of the best "therapy" I have had since retiring from the classroom 10 short years ago.

A warning to all bloggers, keep ownership of your content, don't give it to someone like I did.  It was simple to use so I started using it and now we are almost 4 years into this blogging deal.  Time goes by quickly, set up it so you own it when you start.

Remember I told you how much higher food and fuel was in Canada versus the U.S.?  It's so bad that thieves are smuggling cheese across the border for pizzas!

Have a great day,

Ed Winkle

Starting Is The First Step

Plans are grand, but starting them is the first step.  That's the title of this months NoTill Farmer article about Terry Taylor of TNT Farms near Geff, Illinois.  We can talk about trying a new idea but starting to do it is the first step.  It has to be repeated many times before it becomes habit.  Cover croping is a hard habit to start because it requires more work and investment.  Is it worth it?

Terry has worked closely with Mike Plumer when he worked for the University of Illinois.  I met Mike years ago at the National NoTillage Conference and met Terry in January of this year.  Mike is also quoted in this months NoTill Farmer Magazine so you might want to get yourself a copy.

Mike has seen cover crops help control soybean diseases.  Research trials at 8 locations across Illinois has shown a favorable impact from seeding cover crops to control several problems in no-till soybeans.  Mike has worked with cover crops for 22 years.

Terry's article talks about many of the attributes he's found with annual ryegrass and many other cover crop species and mixes.  Most cover croppers haven't tried the all the mixes and experiments Terry and Mike has.

The piece with Mike's research focuses on the gases from rape seed killing soybean cyst nematodes or SCN, SDS or Sudden Death Syndrome and other soybean diseases.  "When rapeseed decomposes, it releases a toxic gas.  If that is trapped in the soil, it kills it fumigates the soil, if laying on top, it leaches into the soil."

Terry has had great success using Annual Ryegrass to penetrate his tough Illinoian Glacial Till so that crop roots can follow those root channels the next summer.  4 inch rye with 50 inch roots is the goal and very obtainable.  I don't know why it hasn't caught on here but cereal rye is in great demand and I have seen more the last few years than any other cover crop.

Radishes are the big hit though as thousands of acres were sown in 2011 when crops couldn't be planted on time and farmers took insurance payments instead.  Great increases in corn and soybean yields are being reported following those radish and other cover crops.

I need to do a story on that after harvest but tomorrow I want to talk about the Parable of the Seed Sower in Matthew.  LuAnn and I did that as part of our Bible study this morning and the numbers are amazing!

I think I have a picture of Terry's coring machine he used to show us the changes in his soils from years of cover crops.  One soil scientist looked at them and said something like, "Don't expect us to come and reclassify those soils just because you changed them with cover crops!"

Ed