Grant County Herald
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Grant County Herald
Web site last updated:
May 8, 2008
Petroleum, not corn, is the chief cause of food inflation
Just 18 months ago the price paid to farmers for corn in Bureau County, Ill. was only $1.88 per bushel (56 pounds of food for $1.88!). At that time it cost me well over $3.00 to raise corn. Today the price paid for corn in the county is $5.42 per bushel, but because of higher energy related costs such as fuel, fertilizer, chemicals, seed and equipment it costs me close to $4.00 per bushel to raise it. It is true we corn farmers are finally making a profit, but more importantly the amount of corn sweetener in a soft drink has gone from ½ ¢ to just over 1¢. The corn used to make a pound of tortillas has gone from 4¢ to a dime. As you can see, corn farmers are receiving a very small portion of the increase in the price of groceries.
There are many reasons that food prices are rising according to a recent Texas A&M report titled The Effects of Ethanol on Texas Food and Fuel Prices, as well as several other analysis by other land grant universities across the nation, including:
* Extremely high oil prices.
* Speculative trading in the commodities futures markets driven by the financial meltdown in other financial markets such as mortgage lending.
* Fewer corn acres expected to be planted in 2008 due to much higher production costs for corn when compared to other crops.
* Changing dietary choices in the developing world where countries like China and India are consuming more animal protein (it takes 8 to 10 pounds of corn to make one pound of meat).
* A very weak U.S dollar.
* Worldwide climate-related crop disasters, including an eight-year drought in Australia.
* Much higher exports of grain, meat and processed foods.
* The shortest global stocks of wheat in over six decades.
* Failed U.S. farm policy which eliminated grain reserves in the 1996 farm bill.
* And many other factors well beyond the control of this or any other corn farmer, including corporate GREED.
There is both a federal tax incentive for and a federal mandate to use ethanol. The federal government gives the oil companies (not farmers) 51¢ per gallon to use the ethanol in gasoline. Current analysis suggests ethanol has reduced the price of gasoline by as much as 50¢ per gallon. The ethanol mandate, which requires us to use a certain quantity of ethanol per year, is not a factor in driving ethanol production since production has been well above the mandate since its enactment by President Bush in August 2005. And a recent analysis by Iowa State University reports that if the mandate was eliminated, the price of corn would only go down 26¢.
Just as ethanol production is one of many factors, but certainly not the only factor, in higher food prices, ethanol is a partial, but not the total, answer to U.S. energy independence and a cleaner environment. I am often amused by critics that claim that if we cannot replace all of our fuel needs with just ethanol, then we should not even try. As a corn farmer, I’ll be the first to tell you that corn-based ethanol is not the best answer, but it is the best answer we have right now. Ethanol and biodiesel made from other crops, landfill wastes and forest products will be a better answer in the future. Of course we will never make enough ethanol from corn to replace all of the nation’s fuel needs. But if we had only one ethanol plant in 1,000 of our farming based counties producing 60 million gallons per year each (considered a small plant by the federal government), we would have 60 billion gallons of alternative fuel – still not enough to alleviate the need to import oil into the U.S., but enough to eliminate the need to import oil from the Middle East.
You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone
For 29 years the Grant County Prairie Wind Players community theatre has entertained thousands with big musicals at Roosevelt Hall in Barrett. The future of such entertainment, however, is in jeopardy. Not for lack of an audience. The upcoming summer musical The Adventures of Tow Sawyer is sure to be a crowd pleaser .... if the director can get a cast that is.
Plenty of kids and women showed up at auditions a couple of weeks ago, so many, in fact, there was competition for parts. Only a few men, however, showed up.
The script calls for at least seven adult males for character and chorus parts. There are currently two men in the play ... I am one of them and I haven’t acted since 1984. If men aren’t found and found soon, the play is in danger of being unable to be produced.
This would be a real tragedy. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer features the classic story by Mark Twain with all the colorful characters: Tom, Huck, Betsy, Aunt Polly, Indian Joe and their friends and neighbors, plus fun, toe-tapping songs that will have audiences smiling all the way home.
I remember when dozens of adult men, as well as high school juniors and seniors, were in PWP musicals, belting out “Tradition” in Fiddler on the Roof or ‘Luck be a Lady” in Guys and Dolls. I always envied the fun these guys were having. In the last dozen or so years, however, it has been harder and harder to get the men. Yes, the rehearsals take time, and yes, it can be nerve-wracking to perform in front of an audience. But I will tell you this; performing with others in a big musical is incredibly rewarding and an experience you will never forget and always have fond memories of.
And how many times in your life do you get to do something like that?
Now I’m not saying there won’t be hard work involved, and, especially towards the end, some late nights and frustrations. But hard work that leads to success is especially satisfying.
What I’m trying to say is — men, including high school upperclassmen, give this a try, I guarantee you will not regret it. If you were in a musical years ago, or if you have always wanted to try out but never quite got around to it ... here is your chance. Vocal director Linda Toso is having rehearsal for the big chorus songs Saturday, May 10, from 4:00 p.m. until about 5:30. This rehearsal will be at Roosevelt Hall in Barrett. It you simply show up you can join in the fun and be in the show, no reading of lines, no pressure, no auditions necessary.
If you are interested but cannot make this rehearsal, call Linda at 218-685-4876.
The directors will do everything they can to accommodate busy work schedules and other commitments, but you will find rehearsals take less time than you may think, and it will be time well spent.
And believe me, you will have a blast!
Even if you have never been in a play before, even if you are unsure of your singing ability, the directors of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer will welcome you.
You know, we talk a lot about providing wholesome activities for our young people and express a desire for good clean entertainment. Well, here is a chance to provide both. There are quite a number of young people already cast in this show and it would be a real shame to disappoint them.
We also talk a lot about wanting talented young people to be in Grant County. Well the director and assistant are UMM college students with enthusiasm to spare. You will be energized and feel younger after every rehearsal.
There is an old saying, “You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone.” I hope, oh how I hope, that does not prove to be the case here.
Why?
To the Editor,
There is something that is both puzzling and irksome to me and many others in the county I would think.
We hear on the newscasts that Grant County has the highest unemployment of any surrounding counties —9 percent or something I believe it was. They need to hire another person in the Auditor’s Office. People apply for the job but even though they have gone to school and got a degree in accounting, they are not interviewed for the job. It is given to someone who lives in Alexandria and is still going to school to get her degree.
Then they need someone to fill out the Recorders’ Office unfinished term. Once again, someone from Alexandria is selected by a three to two vote. There were people from Grant County that applied for this job also.
So here we have two people from outside our county who are hired for county jobs and neither one pays taxes in Grant County.
In my book, this stinks to high heaven! It would be nice to know the reasoning of the commissioners who voted against the ones from our county. I can’t believe that the people in Douglas County are so much smarter than those who live in Grant County.
To the two commissioners who did vote for someone from Grant County — keep up the good work!
Disappointed in Commissioners choice
To the Editor,
I am very disappointed with the Commissioners’ choice for the County Recorder’s position. That is not to say that their choice is not qualified. However, Diann Giese has been working at that very office for a considerable amount of time. She also is from Grant County so our dollars are spent here.
Has past history swayed some of the commissioner’s vote? It would be unfortunate to think that played a role in the voting.
Commend those who voted for Giese
To the Editor,
I would like to commend the Grant County Commissioners that voted to appoint Diann Giese our new Grant County Recorder. I have dealt with Diann personally in the recorder’s office on several occasions and found her efficient, knowledgeable and very helpful. As a Grant County resident she would have been a great fit for the job.Under the circumstances, Mr. Jennes Swenson should not have been allowed to vote.
