—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 23, 1973
10
Freeze Two
The following comments were taken from
the PennAg newsletter ‘The Millwheel”,
which analyzes the recent Price Freeze as
it applies to agriculturalists.
Details of the recent Freeze Order on
Prices are now becoming known and it is
clear at least to us that there will have
to be changes. Our analysis of the Order is
based on the original and we emphasize
that there could be changes.
By Executive Order 11723, the President
of the United States froze prices beginning
at 9 00 P.M. e.s.t. June 13, 1973 for 60
days Simultaneously the Cost of Living
Council issued Part 140 - Freeze
Regulations which gave substance to the
Order.
In general, all prices are frozen at the
maximum to that price at or above which
10 percent of the commodities involved
were transacted with a class of purchaser
between June 1 and June 8, 1973 (the
freeze base period). A transaction is
deemed to have occurred at the time of
delivery Commodities exempt entirely are
live cattle, hogs, sheep, poultry, raw milk,
hay, (whether bulk, pelleted, cubed or
baled), wheat, feed grains, soybeans, rice,
garden plants, etc. So long as these
commodities are not processed they may
be re-sold ad infinitum. However, when
they are “processed” such as canned,
frozen, slaughtered, milled or changed in
their physical form, they become con
trolled. Packing is not a processing activity.
Another group of raw agricultural
commodities are also exempt, but only on
the first sale by the grower or producer.
These are usually of a type which are
ultimately consumed in their original form,
such as shell eggs (frozen, dried or liquid
eggs are not exempt), mushrooms, fruits,
vegetables and cut flowers.
Thus, both feed and flour, being
processed commodities are covered
commodities All businesses must prepare
a list of freeze prices and make the list
available for public inspection at each
Message Needs Action
President Nixon’s energy message was a
milestone in the epic struggle to preserve
our energy-based civilization. Many of his
proposals have been urged upon the
country by foremost authorities in all
branches of the energy industry. The
President's principal energy adviser, Mr.
George Shultz, has commented, “From the
standpoint of the consumer, if all of these
proposals are adopted, he and she will
have more energy at lower prices than they
would if the proposals were not adopted.
The interests of the consumer are very well
served by these proposals although we all
face up to the fact that energy costs are
going to rise.”
Among other steps, the President
recommended total deregulation of prices
on new sources of natural gas. He also
urged steps to triple the amount of off
shore oil drilling by 1979. He asked for
measures to encourage development of
new oil and gas fields and called for sim
plified licensing techniques in nuclear
Medieval By Comparison
East Germany is said to have the highest
living standard of the Communist world.
However, a traveling editor for U.S. News &
World Report has described just what this
really means He says, ‘‘Of six million
homes in East Germany, only 2.5 million
have private toilets, fewer than 600,000
have central heating ” About 40 percent of
East German homes have no private baths,
and a million have no running water The
traveling editor discovered, “New con
struction is largely central-city
showmanship New housing is a rarity
There is no evidence anyone has used a
- Phase 3.5
place of business. Note that posting of the
list is not required. In addition, the
calculations and supporting data upon
which these prices are determined must be
maintained, but only shown to an IRS agent
if audited.
Under penalties, it is significant to note
that it is not only illegal to sell at prices
above the frozen level, but also to buy in
excess of that price. Practices such as
inducements, commissions, kickbacks,
retroactive increases, transportation
arrangements, premiums, discounts, tie-in
agreements, trade understandings,
falsification of records, substitution of
inferior commodities or failure to provide
the same service and equipment
previously sold are violations. Willful
violations are subject to $5,000 criminal
and $2,500 civil penalties per violation. In
addition, injunctive powers are avilable to
secure compliance.
To find the freeze price for a commodity
not traded in the freeze base period,
sellers must go back retroactively week by
week until a week is found where the
commodity was traded. A whole section of
the regulation deals with new commodities.
Our reading of this indicates that it must,
in fact, be a new commodity, not a sub
stitute to avoid an unsatisfactory price
level. If a new commodity is justified, the
retail price may.be established based upon
the application of the customary initial
percentage markup received during the
freeze base period for comparable
products to allowable unit costs of the new
commodity.
The regulation indicates that requests
for exceptions will be handled by District
IRS offices, but that they will be hard to
obtain. It was determined by telephone
that the address to contact is Economic
Stabilization Program Exception Branch,
P.O. Box 12896, Philadelphia, Penn. 19108
(Phone 215-597-9950). A form, S-16,
should be requested to file for an ex
ception.
power plant sitings and a reduction in
excessive regulatory and administrative
impediments which have delayed or
prevented construction of energy
producing facilities. He further urged
application of the country’s vast scientific
and technological capabilities-both public
and pnvate-“so we can utilize our current
energy resources more wisely and develop
new sources and new forms of energy.”
In considering the President’s message,
it is well to recognize that no government
and no official can suddenly wave a magic
wand and produce an energy miracle. The
momentum of resource development in the
energy field has been slowed by a
proliferation of adverse ideas and attitudes
on the part of tax collectors, regulators and
the public generally toward such basic
enterprises as the oil and gas industries. If
the President’s words presage a more
moderate and realistic approach to energy
requirements, there is little question but
that the lost momentum can be regained.
paintbrush in 25 years."
These findings will come as a shock to
Americans, who live in a land where even a
vacation trailer without a perfume-scented
chemical toilet is considered medieval. The
disparity between the so-called American
way of life and the way of life in most other
countries, whether our detractors like it or
not, is testimonial to the success of the
great experiment in free enterprise and
representative government launched by
our founding fathers less than two cen
turies ago
I NOW IS
| THE TIME ...
$ S
Max Smith
County Agr. Agent &
Telephone 394-6851 S
To Shear Pine Trees
This part of the state is not
noted for the production of pine
trees but we do have a number
growing for ornamental purposes
and some growers for Christmas
trees. The month of June is
regarded as the best time to trim
and shape any of the pine tree
varieties; it is usually done about
the time of the ending of the new
growth period. The other
evergreens such as spruce or fir
should not be trimmed until after
September 1 and finished by next
March. The shearing of pine trees
thickens the branches and makes
them more desirable on the
landscape; also, in some cases
they need to be trimmed in order
to maintain a smaller size. Sharp
nippers or hedge shears may be
used to get the desired shape and
size.
To Operate Combines Slowly
The winter barley crop is
starting to change color and soon
the crop will be ready to harvest ;
the winter wheat crop will be
ready in another month. Both
grain and straw prices are high
this year making it worthwhile to
attempt to get every pound of the
barley stalk. The operation of the
combine has a lot to do with the
amount of grain that gets into the
bin, in too many cases the
machine is operated too fast or
operated when the grain is too
tough. With the weather con
ditions so far this spring it may
be difficult to get good grain
MADE
FOR MAN
Lesson for June 24,1973
Background Scrl.tur. Exodus 20 1-11;
Mark 2-23-21; Luke 14:16-23, 141-
6, Hebrews 10*25.
Devetienel Reading: Psalms 122
There are two very extreme
ways in which people often re
spond to the Fourth Command
ment: “Remember the sabbath
day, to keep it holy.”
On one hand there are those
who are very legalistic in their
approach. On the
other, there are
those who simply
ignore it altogeth
er.
When Jesus pur
sued his ministry,
he encountered
mostly those who
were overly legal-
Rev. Althousc istic in their re
sponse to this
commandment. The scribes and
Pharisees were very strict in
their prohibition against work of
any kind on the sabbath For ex
ample, it was forbidden to look
in a mirror on the sabbath, for
one might be tempted to pluck
out a hair and this would be
“reaping,” and thus laboring on
the sabbath. It was also forbidden
on the sabbath to bathe, because
the steam from the hot water
might cleanse the floor, and this
would be regarded as forbidden
work
On keeping it holy
To us, these interpretations
may seem quite ridiculous, but to
the Pharisees, they were of the
utmost importance We can see,
combining weather. High speeds
usually throws too many of the
barley or wheat kernels out with
the straw; this is evidenced in
previous years by the amount of
volunteer growth following
combining. The crop is valuable,
please take time to harvest it
properly.
To Be Careful With
Spray Materials
The careful handling of spray
materials has been suggested for
many years but is still very
important. At this time we are
aware of gardeners and farmers
that applied the wrong pesticide
to their plants and crops; this
was done because of storing
similar-appearing containers
side by side and because the
materials was not stored in it’s
original container. We emphasize
again the need of keeping
materials stored with good
identification; keep them in the
original container if possible.
Also, it is strongly advised to
store weed killers (herbicides) in
a separate room or building that
any of the other spray materials.
It is easy to get the wrong con
tainer when in a hurry or when an
employee is doing the spray
work. Be extra careful when
using potent chemicals and check
the material, the amount, and the
timing.
then, how Jesus came into con
flict with this legalism. Frequent
ly Jesus performed works of heal
ing on the sabbath. This, the
Pharisees regarded as contrary
to the prohibition of all labor. In
addition, they had seen his dis
ciples walking through grain
fields on the sabbath and pluck
ing some of the ears of grain.
This, the Pharisees interpreted
as “reaping,” and a violation of
the sabbath laws.
How could Jesus justify this
apparently flagrant violation of
the commandment 9 The key, he
points out, is not in determining
what is work and what is not, but
in discovering the purpose for
which the sabbath was intended.
“I ask you,’’ said Jesus, “is it law
ful on the sabbath to do good or
to do harm, to save life or to des
troy it ? ” Jesus took them beyond
the letter of the law to the pur
pose of the law and it wai here
that they found the answer.
Behind the letter of the law
On another occasion, Jesus put
it even more simply: “The sab
bath was made for man, not man
for the sabbath.” The way the
scribes and Pharisees acted, the
sabbath was meant as something
which men should serve obedi
ently. Yet, says Jesus, the pur
pose of the sabbath was to help
man, to enrich him, to bring him
that much-needed “change-of
pace.”
The whole reason, then, that
men are to keep the sabbath
“holy” is for their own good,
their own enrichment. The obser
vance of the sabbath, then, is not
some whimsical demand which
God lays upon us, but another
evidence of his concern for our
welfare
If this is so, then, it is not
enough for us to avoid being le
galistic about the Fourth Com
mandment, for neither can we
afford going to the other extreme
of ignoring th ; s commandment
which was made for man and his
own good.
tßased on outlines copyrighted by the
Division of Christian Education, National
Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA
Released by Community Press Service )