14-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 11,1987 A Same Week This Week Season To Date Last Year 3,059,973 lbs. 9,275,153 lbs. 3,196,06411)8. 13,750,404 $12,266,794 $4,429,169 $122.56/cwt. $132.25/cwt. $138.58/cwt. Volume Price Ave. am HOMETOWN I ECONOMICS SI W»lt Btutelur A Savin Part Siriis Editor’s Note: We first heard this humorist give this speech at the ADA-DC Annual Meeting in Syracuse, N.Y. but Walt Bnescher of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee has spoken in Pennsylvania a good many times too. He always gives farm and agri-business groups the same message, a message that he calls “Hometown Economics,” but which can best be described with the words, “cut back or sell.” Since retirement from Allis- Chalmers, Bnescher has lived In the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee where he operates a sales promotion firm called Grass Roots Communications. For the last 10 years, he has filled speaking dates for Ford New Holland all over the United States. So, here’s Part 2 of 7 Parts. Last time we checked the farm price index from 1962 to 1972 to 1982. The first 10 years was pretty flat out. Then the farm price index took off like a dog cocking his leg at an electric fence. It topped out in 1960-81 and it’s been downhill ever since. If a farmer went to his banker in 1972 and borrowed all of the money he could for land and machinery, by 1976 he was a millionaire...on paper anyway. He could make more money going to bed at night than he could raising com. In flation made the farm worth more each morning. If this farmer’s younger brother tried exactly the same thing in 1976, about 1982 there was an auction at his farm. Both did exactly the same thing. Why did one get rich and the other go broke? Whose fault was it? We can’t hardly blame the farmers because both brothers did the same thing and came out with opposite results. We can’t hardly blame the banker or Farm Credit lender because in 1976 it just made good sense to say, “Money isn’t worth anything anymore...tie onto something solid like land.’’ I remember seeing land go to $3,300 per acre around Champaign, Illinois and I wondered when it was ever going to stop. It stopped in 1980 and we’ve been going down the economic ski slope ever since. The farmer bought $3,300 land, mortgaged it for $2,400 and now he can’t get $1,500 for it. Well then, if it wasn’t the farmer or banker, Maryland Tobacco Week Ending April 7 who is to blame? In my book, it’s the politicians who insist on buying votes with money they don’t have. Nixon, Ford and Carter printed worthless money to cover their deficits and when they mixed it with the good money, all of the money was worth less. Inflation! Inflation got to 21% prime rate. Remember? Then in 1960, Reagan took another tack. He borrowed the money to cover his deficits. Then we got deflation...we priced our selves out of the' market with our strong dollar. Even Uncle Sam is not immune to the rule that says that you can’t spend more than you earn for long before somebody has to pay the piper. The American farmer was among those who paid the piper these last six years. Why did the farm price index head down in 1981? First of all, we lost our exports. We had $22 billion farm exports in 1975, topped out in 1980-81 with $44.3 billion and now we’re about $l4 billion off the peak. Dream a little. Had the curve kept going up instead of down, that would be another $2B billion per year on the farm and that would make a whale of a difference on the main street of Lititz, Penn sylvania. What made exports go down? As I just said, the strong dollar was the biggest culprit. Our stuff is good but it isn’t that good that people overseas will pay an extra 35% to get it. Number 2, there was worldwide recession...that $35 oil isn’t 35 bucks anymore. Number 3, and this one is a big one, we’ve had four presidential embargoes in a row. Four presidents in a row have told the world that this is not a dependable place to buy f00d... “go somewhere else.” Nixon and Ford played the cheap food game when they came up with their embargos. Carter wanted to punish the Russians. He wouldn’t let our kids play with their kids in the Olympics and he refused to sell them our farm products. And he scared the living daylights out of the Russians, didn’t he? They jumped right out of Afghanistan. They opened their jails and churches. They rushed out of Eastern Europe. Oh yeah! The only punishment the Russians suffered was that they had to change suppliers. They now bought their food from South America instead of the USA. I don’t like the Reds anymore than you do, but I’d rather have them dependent on us for food than on Argentina, wouldn’t you? Jerry Ford’s soybean embargo was the (Turn to Page A 22) GRAIN, CATTLE AND HOG FUTURES MARKETS SOYBEAN MEAL FRI. MON. TUES. WED. THURS. MAY 145.00 145.30 146.60 146.90 148.30 144.90 145.10 146.70 146.90 148.00 APE JUL. 145.20 145.00 146.70 146.90 148.25 JUN ~ AUG. 145.00 145.10 147.30 147.10 149.00 JULY 46.42 46.87 47.52 47.75 48.82 SEPT. OCT. 145.60 145.10 147.60 147.60 149.75 146.50 146.20 148.60 148.90 150.90 OCT. 39.32 39.37 39.50 39.70 40.25 DEC. JAN 88 147.20 146.70 149.70 149.90 151.80 PEC ~ TRACTORS: MH 22 w/3 pt. and 2 row cultivator JDI4B Loader for a 2640 or 2840 Tractor JO 3020 Diesel, Power Shift. Wide Front JO 4430 Quad Range, Sound Guard IH #656 Diesel, Hydro, Sharp JD 420 w/Direction Reverse JO 2350 MF WD w/240 Self Leveling Loader, nice JD 3010 Diesel JD 3020 Gas, Side Console JD 2510 Gas JD2840 JD 2020 Gas Utility Hi-Lo JO 3020 Diesel, NF JD 2640 w/148 Loader TILLAGE: JD 1450 5x16 Plow JD F 845 Roll Over Plow (New) Brillion 9' Packer JD 14'TWA Plowing Disc Brillion 16* Packer w/Bridge Hitch JO BWFlB'Wing Fold, A 1 JD 2500 5-18" Auto Reset Plow JO 1450 5-18 "Plow, Sharp Brillion 18' Packer w/transport JD RM 4 Row Cultivator JD RM 6 Row Cultivator JD TWA 12' Plowing Disc, Sharp Glencoe 16’ Field Cultivator JDFI2S 4-16 "Plow JD F 125 3-16" Plow JD 1450 4-16" Semi-Mount Plow Brillion 14' Packer w/Transport Model TP JO 14’ Packer w/Transport JD 16' Wing Fold Field Cultivator White 12' Field Cultivator, A 1 PLANTERS A GRAIN DRILLS: JD 20x6 Model B Plain Grain with Grass O.D. IH #lOl5 Hole Drill, Sharp . JD 20x7 Model B Plain Drill, Double Disk NEW JOHN DEERE EQUIPMENT AT GENERIC PRICES JD #lOlOl2V4' Pull Type Field Cultivator JO #940 121/2' S-Tine Pull Type Field Cultivator GRAIN DRYERS: New Farm Fans ABB Auto-Batch Dryer MUST MOVE CALL FOR PRICE (Dealer Inquiries Welcome) Coming in... JO 1440 4 Row No-Till Planter, nice 12' BWF Oise Rock Flex 6S3A 6 Row Bean and Sunflower Head Nl 3211 Row Corn Picker JD 716 Forage Wagon JD BWF 18' Wing Fold Rock Flex Brillion 11' Packer Brillion 13' Packer w/Transport Brillion 16' Packer w/Transport Brillion 16' Packer w/Transport, small wheels Oliver 13' Field Cultivator, sharp JDl6' Fold Field Cultivator JD 2350 5-18" On-Land Plow, like new (Continued from Page A 3) EVERGREEN TRACTOR CO. INC. $1,650 $2,850 $7,900 $14,950 $2,450 $4,350 $5,850 $4,850 $11,500 $5,450 $6,450 $1,950 $2,850 ..$425 $2,450 $1,850 $3,450 $3,250 $1,950 $2,450 ..$975 $ll5O $3,450 $1,450 ..$950 ..$575 $1,400 $2,150 $1,650 $1,450 $1,450 $1,475 $1,850 $2,250 $1,875 sen Rd , Lebanon. PA . (717) 272-4641 or Toll Free 1-800-441-4450 30 Evergn CHICAGO HOGS FRI. MON. TUBS. WED. THURS. 49.45 49.82 50.65 51.07 52.55 48.20 48.47 49.30 49.77 50.95 43.35 43.72 44.40 44.67 45.77 UG. 39.35 39.47 39.65 39.72 40.20 WE ARE AN AUTHORIZED fefoOEßUß'sf GOBBLER'S SEED I CORN DEALER. PTJ-r " "■ SEE US FOR YOUR SPRING REQUIREMENTS COMBINES & PICKERS: JD 454,4 Row Bean and Sunflower Head ... $2,650 6620 Side Hill, turbo hydro, heater & air, monitor, spreader. 6600 hydro, rotary screen, diesel, heater & air, chopper, US feeder house, monitor, adjustable rear axle, bin extension. 6600 gear, rotary screen, diesel, monitor, heater & air. US feeder house, bin extension. Ml 324 2 Row Wide 12 Row 327 bed .... Ml 818 combine with 13' flex head. Sharp Ml 2 row narrow, pull type picker (1) #343 3 Row 30" if 244 Corn Head #244 Corn Head 13' Grain Table (2) #444 Corn Heads 15' Flex Head, Black Reel Ml 2 row narrow w/sheller, A 1 JD 444 Corn Head JD 343 Corn Harvester Adaptor MISCELLANEOUS; JD 201 Implement C.QsSr9’x32', New Style. $2,450 18.4x38 Direct Axle Dual Wheels 14.9x38 Direct Axle Dual Wheels 14.9x26 T rail duals NH 679 tandem hyd. endgate Best Land Rock Picker Owatonna stack wagon, model *540 JDIB 4x38 Direct Axle Duals JD 6000 Hi Cycle Self Propelled Sprayer JD 863 10' Front Dozer Blade (or 30 & 40 Series, articulate 4 wheel drive tractors Hudson 14' Tandem Axle Trailer HARVESTERS & FORAGE EQUIPMENT: NH Super 717 Harvester .. . Gehl *72 Flail Chopper . . NH P.U. Attachment . . JD 35 Harvester. 2 row narrow & pickup, sharp JD 15Chopper.. Gehl *72 Flail Chopper, sharp HAY MACHINES: Hesston Hydro-Swing Mower Conditioner. $2,750 NH 850 Round Baler $3,850 Hesston PT 10 Mower Conditioner SPECIAL NEW 16’ 3 BEATER ARTSWAY FORAGE WAGONS $3,450.00 each $3,950 $3,950 $3,950 $3,950 $3,850 $1,850 $3,450 $1,250 $2,650 $1,250 $2,450 $2,450 $575 $3,550 $450 $2,450 $950 REEN OR IC.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers