Editorial / Opinions

With the HSUS ballot initiative in Missouri, it's important to tell the story of "What the Hidden Camera Missed"

Myron Hartzell, NRCS Grassland Specialist encourages farmers to ask "Where Do I Want To Be In ……?"

I think you, the livestock producers of southwest Missouri, know that we here at Ozarks Farm & Neighbor stand with the farmer when it comes to politics and policies that threaten our shared way of life. As many of you know, there have been rumblings of ballot initiatives in the state of Missouri, and this seems to be the year such an event will be taking place. We want to keep you informed and attuned to these important happenings, because they will affect our way of life. We can’t bury our head in the sand. We’re going to have to fight back.

After he had assembled his empire of land and cattle, he could have afforded any kind of home he wanted. But he was satisfied with this three-room replica of the cabin on his original homestead. Now, his big hat shoved to the back of his head, sweat beading on his face and darkening the armpits of his shirt, he swore at me.

When I first started writing this column some 15 years ago, one of the media that picked it up was a large, metropolitan newspaper that wanted to keep a “connection” with the farm audience. My column would be the only written article, surrounded by a full page of ads sold to various agricultural businesses (they also wanted to keep the revenue generated by these firms). Since none of the staff had any background or training in agriculture, I would get quite a kick out of reading the classified ads in the farm section that were evidently taken over the phone and written down just as the farmer had spoken them. I even wrote a column during that time pointing out such disastrous ads, such as “Sharolay bull for sale. A 1 breeding for several generations. Was shown at hauled her as a caff.” The same ad in the local farm publication, written and edited by someone familiar with agriculture, stated, “Charolais bull for sale. AI breeding for several generations. Was shown at halter as a calf.” Shortly after my column pointed out the ignorance (and I didn’t intend that in a mean way) of non-farmers trying to communicate with real farmers – they quit running my column! 

I’ve been so happy to be out and about meeting new people and talking with new friends about their impact on agriculture.

A little more on skunks. Back in late February, I drove to a writers' meeting in Branson. Pat and I counted skunks freshly ran over. We counted over 20 and decided that was one per every five miles. Now, I made no effort to see if they were male or female. But that was the season for them being on the highway, mating time in the world of skunks – males are like tom cats, they’ll mate with as many females as they can find.

I ran into an old cowboy friend of mine at the local livestock auction barn last week. I could hardly recognize him with his arm in a sling, two swollen and black eyes, and a hitch in his get-along that was noticeably worse than his normal gait.

How fortunate we’ve been to see the weather change from winter to spring so nicely. What a beautiful April it’s been! The grass is green, and I’ve been so happy to be out and about meeting new people and talking with new friends about their impact on agriculture. April definitely has been in like a lamb, so I guess that means we have a doozy to look forward to on the back side of this month, but on a day like today with green grass and blue skies, it seems worth it.

Last issue I told you about a prairie chicken, ol’ Lonesome, I’d gotten to know one April morning long, long ago. I was out hunting on Taberville Prairie with my good friend Don Wooldridge.