AIQ-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 10,2001
OPINION
The First Environmentalists
Sometimes the general media considers farmers less than proactive.
Food producers have been falsely criticized for so-called “hiding
heads in the sand,” letting someone else confront the pressures put
upon them by environmental groups, letting someone else distribute
the message of the goodness of their products.
But criticize no more!
The Lebanon County Farm Bureau’s “Thank A Farmer” Cam
paign seems like a great idea, one that was a long time coming.
The campaign, which is described on our front page story this
week, will reach radio listeners in the southeast and south central
parts of the state.
We at Lancaster Farming especially enjoy the statement made in
one commercial: “Farmers have been called the ‘first environmental
ists.’ THEY ARE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT ENVIRON
MENTAL ISSUES IT IS HOW THEY MAKE THEIR LIV
ING” (emphasis ours).
Maybe other farming counties can take the first “proactive” steps
to bring this message to the public before other groups present their
own. Because that “other message” may not be as truthful or wel
come.
We welcome your ideas on this.
Home
flinburg High School.
Northeast Forest Landowners
Conference, Luzerne County
Community College Confer
ence Center, Nanticoke.
Garden Wise, York Suburban
High School, York, 8 a.m.-
3:30 p.m.
Ohio Berry Growers’ School,
Piketon Research and Exten
sion Center, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Elk Auction, Majestic World
Farms Auction, Blue Knob,
phone (814) 643-2298.
Livestock Awards Night, Dau
phin County Agriculture and
Natural Resources Center, 7
p.m.
Grafting Wildlife Trees Work
shop, Girard, and March 24,
Findlay, N.Y., 1 p.m.-3:30
Dairy FeedmgEmployeemun
ing For Managers, Lebanon
County extension office, also
March 19 and 26.
Poultry Management and
Health Seminar, Kreider’s
Restaurant, Manheim, noon.
Computer Workshops, Hun
tingdon County extension
office, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., thru
March 13.
Livestock Environmental Assur
ance Program Training Ses
sion, Ross County Service
Center, Chillicothe, 9 a.m.-
noon, and compost training, 1
p.m.-3 p.m.
Fruit School in Adams County,
Muk^T^™^l^ihey
iilker raining, »iers
Brothers, Manheim.
Solanco Young Farmers Meet
ing, Alternative Livestock En
terprises, Solanco High
School, 7 p.m.
Clinton County Dairy Day and
DHIA awards, Restless Oaks,
10:30 a.m.-l p.m.
Pork Quality Assurance Certifi
cation, Lebanon County ex
tension office, 1 p.m.
Fumigation Update, Neshaminy
Manor Center.
Dairy Farm Employee Short
Course, Agricultural Techni-
cal Institute, Wooster, thru
March 15.
Christmas Tree Growers’ Meet-
ing, Arena Restaurant, Bed-
ford, 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m.
Soil Fertility Workshop, Penn
State, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Tractor Safety Course, Deer
field Ag and Turf, Watson
town, 6 p.m.-8 p.m., continues
Tuesday evenings until April
24.
Clarion Crops Day, Limestone
Fire Hall, noon-3 p.m.
North Central Vegetable Pro
ducers Conference, Potter
County extension office,
Coudersport, 10 a.m.-3:30
p.m.
Midwest Poultry
Convention, Touchstone
Energy Place at River Centre,
St. Paul, Minn., thru March
15.
Dairy Feeding Systems Manage
ment, Lebanon County exten
sion office, also March 21.
Conducted at Meadow Wood
Farm, March 28.
Somerset County Annual Meet
ing, Berlin Community Build
ing, Berlin, 7 p.m.
Manure Management Work
shop, Penn State, 9 a.m.-4
p.m.
Central Susquehanna Valley
Turf and Ornamental Meet
ing, Rooke Auditorium,
Bucknell University, Lewis
burg, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
Berks County Conservation Dis
trict meeting on Nutrient
Management Act, Berks Ag
Center, 9:30 a.m.-noon.
North Central Agricultural Fi
nancial Records Ratio and
Benchmarks, Jefferson
County extension office, 7
p.m.-9 p.m.
Mt. View Inn, Greensburg, 9
(Turn to Page A3B)
To Respond To
Deer Hunt Proposal
The Pennsylvania Game Com
mission seeks public comment on
proposed changes to the state’s
deer hunting regulations.
“The goal of the proposed
changes is to decrease the doe
populations while increasing the
percentage of mature bucks,”
said Gary San Julian, professor
of wildlife resources. The com
mission will finalize their
changes at their April 8 meeting.
The deer population is as high
as it ever has been, San Julian
explained. “Each year 40,000
carcasses are picked up off the
highways and probably that
many more are hit and die in the
woods and fields.” Deer-vehicle
collisions cost lives and do tens of
millions of dollars in damage.
Deer are also responsible for
about $75 million in damage to
grain crops annually, according
to San Julian. In addition, deer
reduce the forests’ ability to re
generate by eating young trees.
The proposed changes include:
• Starting the antlerless rifle
season on the Saturday after
CUT TO THE
HEART!
Background Scripture:
Acts 2.
Devotional Reading:
John 3:5-8.
About 30 years ago, Marcus
Bach, who wrote more than a
dozen books on spirituality, told
me of an incident that occurred
one day when he was serving as
guest speaker in a standard
brand-denomination church.
For his text he had selected
Acts 1:8, “You shall receive
power, after that the Holy Ghost
is come upon you” (KJV). He
began to talk about his own spir
itual breakthrough and experi
ence of the Holy Spirit. “It
startled the three hundred sedate
church members out of their
Sunday morning complacency,”
he said, “and they looked up at
me with astonished, unbelieving
eyes.”
After the service, the pastor of
the church took him aside for
what became a shouting match.
The pastor accused him of of
fending the sensibilities and in
telligence of his congregation and
Bach replied, “That’s the trouble
with the church. Nobody wants
to offend anybody. You preach
what people want to hear. You
never convict anybody of sin.
You never challenge yourpeople
with their need for Christ.”
Eventually, they agreed to dis
agree and the pastor ended with,
“Come on, let’s go and eat.” (See
Thanksgiving followed by a two
week concurrent season for ant
lered and antlerless deer, starting
on Monday.
• Changing the “private
lands” tag so the hunters can
apply for a second antlerless deer
permit if available in a specific
county.
• Opening the muzzleloader
“antlerless-only” season earlier
(Oct. 18-20) and allowing hunt
ers, disabled hunters, and active
duty military personnel to use
any sporting rifle to take does if
they have the proper permits.
Overall, the changes will in
crease the doe season by 11 days.
“We kill more than 80 percent of
all the bucks in the population
each hunting season,” San Julian
explained.
“The commission wants to see
if starting the doe season on Sat
urday will make the bucks more
wary and not as easy a target. It
is hoped that hunters who just
want to put venison in the
freezer will take advantage of the
first day of doe season.”
To comment on the deer hunt
ing proposals, send written com
ments to the Pennsylvania Game
Commission, ATTN: Deer Sea
son Comments, Bureau of In
formation and Education,
Harrisburg PA 17110-9797.
To Evaluate The
Dairy Fairness BID
A pending dairy bill would
provide a safety net for dairy
farm families when market
prices are low, according to a
study by two dairy economists
from Penn State’s College of Ag
ricultural Sciences. The study
also concludes that the bill pro
vides greater support to small
and medium-sized dairy farms.
Kenneth Bailey, associate pro
fessor of diary marketing and
policy, and James Dunn, profes
sor of agricultural economics,
present these conclusions in
Analysis of the Na
tional Dairy Farmers Fairness
Act of 2001” published last week.
This legislation was proposed
by Senators Rick Santomm of
Marcus Bach, “The Inner Ecsta
sy,” World Publishing Co., 1969).
In one of my confirmation
classes, a young man asked me
why Pentecost happened “then”
and not “now.” I’m not sure
what I answered him, but I have
come to realize that the Church
can still experience Pentecost, al
though not necessarily in the
same way that the early disciples
experienced it, nor even as some
pentecostal churches experience
it today. (I am not saying theirs
is not a valid experience, only
that the experience does not have
to be the same for all Christians.)
Conviction Of Sin
I believe one reason that Pen
tecost is not experienced by
many Christians is that, as my
friend Marcus put it, we “never
convict anybody of sin.” Sin is
not mentioned today. (I might
mention your sins, but not
mine!).
In the weekly “religion” sec
tion of the Dallas Morning News
recently was an article by a pas
tor who was writing about the
apparent “fall from grace” of a
certain public figure. I agree with
all that she said, except that she
used the word “indiscretion” for
what the man had done. His act,
I believe, was not that of commit
ting an “indiscretion,” but a
“sin.” He is no less forgivable for
sinning than he would be for
being indiscreet, but let’s call it
by the right name.
We weaken our sense of re
sponsibility when we avoid the
word. A mend once told me that
she didn’t like the Christian pre
occupation with “sin.”
“We make mistakes,” she told
me. “Our problem is usually not
evil, but ignorance, and I don’t
feel nearly so damned when I
know that I have been ignorant
instead of sinful.” But that is the
problem: the initial need is not to
feel unthreatened by what we
have done or been, but to experi
ence the pain of knowing that we
have failed our Lord.
Pennsylvania and Herb Kohl of
Wisconsin to create a sliding
scale of financial assistance for
small and medium sized dairy
operations.
According to Bailey, the bill
has two unique features. The size
of the supplemental payment is
tied to general market conditions
and the bulk of the payments are
targeted to small and medium
sized dairy operations. This is
beneficial to states such as Penn
sylvania, which have many small
family farms.
The general payment rate of
50 cents per hundred pounds
(CWT) is made when the annual
average Class 111 price of milk is
below $10.50 per hundredweight.
The Class 111 price of milk aver
aged about $9.74 per hundred
weight in 2000. An additional
payment of 30 cents per hun
dredweight would be made
under those conditions if the pro
ducer did not expand production
from the previous year. For a
farm with 75 cows shipping 1.26
million pounds of milk annually,
they would receive $6,290 if they
expanded and $10,065 if they did
not.
The study shows the bill would
provide lower levels of price pro
tection when the markets are
stronger. For example, if the
Class 111 price rises to between
$12.01 and $12.50 per hundred
weight, the general payment rate
would be 18 cents per hundred
weight and the additional pay
ment rate for not expanding is 14
cents per hundredweight. Under
this scenario the example farm
with 75 cows would receive
$2,265 if they expanded and
$4,026 if they aid not.
The complete study is avail
able on the World Wide Web at
http://www.aers.psu.edu/
dairyoutlook/.
Quote of the Week:
“It gives me a deep, com
forting sense that things seen
are temporal and things unseen
are eternal. ”
Helen Keller
(Helen was blind, deaf, and mute
as a result of a childhood illness.)
Then You
Shall Receive
In Acts 2, we are told, “Now
when they heard this they were
cut to the heart, and said to Peter
and the rest of the apostles,
“Brethren, what shall we do?’
And Peter said to them, “Repent,
and be baptized every one of you
in the name of Jesus Christ for
the forgiveness of your sins; and
you shall receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit”’ (2:37,38).
If the Gospel of Jesus Christ
does not “cut to the heart” of you
from time to time, you are not
listening to the message! As the
Psalmist puts it: “If thou, O
Lord, shouldst mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?”
(Ps. 130:2).
The answer is easy: none of us!
We all need to be “cut to the
heart”, not so that we can wallow
in our sin, but that we can be
freed of it, for the Psalmist as
sures us, “But there is forgiv
eness with thee...”
As Peter told the throng at
Pentecost, first seek the forgiv
eness of your sins and then “you
shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit.” Those who had been “cut
to the heart” “received his word
and were baptized...”
The writer of Acts does not tell
us how these new disciples expe
rienced the power of the Holy
Spirit, except that “they devoted
themselves to the apostles’ teach
ing and fellowship, to the break
ing of bread and the prayers”
(2:42).
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
—by—
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Stemman Enterprise
William J. Burgess General Manager
Andy Andrews, Editor
Copyright 2001 by Lancaster Farming