AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 13, 2002 OPINION Knowing Freedom Commentary From A Speech Prepared For Attendees To The 2002 National Holstein Convention Joe Valen, Chair National Holstein Convention Committee Because of its geographic location and its abundant natural re sources, New Jersey has often been on the frontline of significant events in our nation’s history. The role that this state has played in the development of the Holstein breed, as well as the other breeds in our industry, has been summarized in the souvenir book. Many of you have visited some of our historic sites, or know from your history books, that much of the Revolutionary War was fought here. The Continental Army was without a victory, and a mere six days away from disbanding, when the Battle of Trenton was fought and won. It was our first military victory in our quest for liberty. Our national symbol of liberty stands on New Jersey soil, guarding New York harbor and proclaiming to the world that ours is a nation of people yearning to breathe free and resolved to endure any hard ship and make any sacrifice to prevent that freedom. The tragic events of last fall challenged that resolve, and again New Jersey was at the frontline. Of the 2,400 people who perished at the World Trade Center, 700 nearly one-third were New Jersey resi dents. Thirteen hundred children lost at least one parent. Fifty-three mothers-to-be were widowed that day. Every community in central New Jersey either lost a loved one or suffered the emotional trauma that anthrax-contaminated mail brought in the aftermath. Mail arrived in irradiated plastic bags mail which crumbled in your hands when you opened it. Some mail arrived three months late. Some never arrived at all. But every piece of mail that was opened, and every newspaper that was read, was a constant reminder of that challenge to our resolve and our commit ment to sustain it. As Americans, we responded as a family unit. We may quarrel among ourselves, but let no outsider come between us. Before noon, scant hours after the attacks upon the World Trade Center, flags were flying on lawns and from buildings around town. Phone lines were buzzing around the country with family and friends seeking reassur ance, or offering it to each other. Church services were held, neighbors gathered in backyards, lines formed at blood banks, and a nationwide spirit o' unity, not before seen in my adult lifetime, was formed and con tin l 's strong today. This wnquet we celebrate, and the events of the past week, are, and have he- a celebration and a reaffirmation of much of what we hold so dear: i re right to practice our profession, to move freely about our country, > tssemble and speak freely without fear of retribution, and to observe r children learning and growing and enjoying each oth er’s company in the broader sense of “our” family. These are freedoms which we have known and cherished and prac ticed. Freedoms that no one dare challenge our resolve to protect. On behalf of all of us who have been your hosts for the National Holstein Convention, I thank you for sharing this time with us here in New Jersey. We have been at the frontline of our American history. Saturday. July 13 Soil and Water Conservation So ciety Annual Conference, Western Hotel, Indianapolis, thru July 17, (515) 289-2331. American Veterinary Medical Assoc, annual convention, Nashville, Tenn., thru July 17. Farm City Day, Tioga and Brad ford counties, Elwyn and Charlene Fitch Farm, Roaring Branch. Clarion County Farm Forum Town and Country Day, Grie bel’s Dairy Farm, noon-11 p.m., (814) 782-033. SW Pa. Woodland Owners Sum mer Tour, Pike’s Run Water shed, (724) 852-2663. Maryland Brown Swiss/Ayrshire Field Days, (724) 852-2663. Lumber From Your Woodlot, Piketon, Ohio, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., (614) 688-3421. Getting Started in Farming Con ference at Lunge’s Groveside Resort, Rt. 23, Acra, N.Y., 8 a.m.-4 p.m., (518) 622-9820. Sunday, July 14 Conservation Leadership School, ages ' 5-18, Stone Valley Rec ❖ Farm Calendar ❖ reation Area, (814) 865-8301. American Forage and Grassland Council annual conference and trade show, Best Western Thunderbird Hotel and Con- vention Center in Blooming ton, Minn., thru July 17. DHIA Summer Picnic, Teel’s Farm, 12:30 p.m. Allegany County Md. Agricul tures Expo, thru July 21, (301) 777-5253. Monday, July 15 Fore FFA East Golf Tournament, Fox Chase Golf Course, (814) 865-2134. Maryland Eastern Shore Cham pionship Holstein Show, Queen Anne’s County 4-H Park, Centreville. Lebanon County Production Auction Twilight Meeting, 6 p.m.-8 p.m., (717) 270-4391. Tuesday. July 16 Jacktown Fair, thru July 20. Adams County 4-H, FFA Junior Livestock Show and Sale, Smith Mountain Fairgrounds, show 8 a.m., sale 6:30 p.m., Rt. (Turn to Page A 22) Our recent spell of hot, dry weath er has been ideal for the development of damaging spider mite populations on vine crops. Dr. Tim Elkner, Lancaster County Horticulture Agent recommends if you haven’t scouted your fields re cently that you do so soon. Start scouting at the crown leaves (oldest leaves) on the vines this is usually where the mites will show up first. Recommendations from the Uni versity of Delaware suggest a treat ment is needed if you find that 20-30 percent of the plants examined are infested with 1-2 mites per leaf. Ma terials to use include Agri-Mek, Kel thane, Danitol and Capture. As long as the weather remains warm and dry continue to scout your fields for mite outbreaks. Spot treatment of infested areas can control the mite population as long as you regularly scout and catch these infestations before they reach damaging levels and/or spread too far in the field. And Purple Raspberries Raspberries are a biennial crop, the canes that produced fruit this year grew last year and have com j. Pascal expressed the polarizing tension inside all human beings: “What mystery, then, is man! What a novelty, what a monster; what a chaos, what a subject of contradic tion; what a prodigy! A judge of all things, stupid work of the earth; de pository of truth, cloaca (sewer) of uncertainty and error; glory and re fuse of the universe!” Some see only the glory, while oth ers only the refuse. But the Bible sees both in all of us. Psalm 8 begins and ends with a cry of praise: “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth!” He admits that it is beyond the power of human beings to ade quately frame praises appropriate to the fact. Scholars are divided on the exact meaning of his next utterance: “ ‘Thou whose glory above the heav ens is chanted by the mouth of babes To Scout Vine Crops For Spider Mites To Prune And Top Your Black WHO’S IN CHARGE HERE? Background Scripture: Psalms 8:100. Devotional Reading: Psalms 100. Lancaster Farming An Award-Winning Farm Newspaper • Keystone Awards 1993,1995 • PennAg Industries 1992 • PACD Media Award 1996 • Berks Ag-Busmess Council 2000 • Recognized for photo excellence throughout the years by the Northeast Farm Communicators pleted their productive life when the harvest is finished. Spent fruiting canes will die and are a source of dis ease that can spread to the new growth. Therefore the fruiting canes should be removed when the harvest is complete. This year’s new growth should be topped at 36-48 inches at a time when one needs to snap off 3-4 inch es to achieve this height. Topping later than this can result in a greater incidence of cane blight, since the wound that results from removing larger-diameter wood takes longer to heal. Topping encourages lateral fruiting branches to develop and in creases cane strength. To Evaluate Your Long Term Competitive Position In Dairy Farming Pennsylvania’s dairy industry is at a crossroads. According to Bill Heald, professor of dairy science at Penn State, the state’s farmers must increase average production per cow and boost average herd size to keep national market share The state ranks fourth in domestic milk production behind California, Wisconsin and New York, ahead of Minnesota and Idaho. Judging by 50-year trends that have seen states such as California and Idaho make sharp relative gains in production, it seems clear that Pennsylvania dairy producers must get bigger and better to compete and avoid constant ero sion of farm income. “ Unless Pennsylvania changes the fundamental structure of its dairy businesses, the national trend to wards higher production in larger herds will diminish the state’s dairy importance,” warns Heald. “Pennsylvania needs all of its dairy herds to increase production to grow its national market share. If not, Pennsylvania risks losing its dairy infrastructure suppliers and processors.” Over the last 50 years, U.S. milk production has increased by nearly 51 billion pounds national ly that equates to 62,000 more cows each year. Production promises to expand in the future to meet the nation’s growing demand. “The question is,” says Heald, “will Pennsylvania share in this op portunity to grow, or will it stay neu tral or lose more market share, as has been the case for the Midwestern and Eastern dairy states?” The top five dairy states produced just 37 percent of the nation’s milk in 1951. Today, six states California, and infants...” (8:2). Some believe he is saying that even little children can join in singing the praise the Cre ator. Others maintain that it means that even the finest hymns we com pose are no closer to that reality than the babbling of babes and infants. As in Psalm 104, it is the contem plation of the world that opens the door to this ecstatic utterance: “When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast established; what is man that thou art mindful of him... ?” (8:3,4). Confronted with the magnificence of God’s creation, human beings ap pear terribly insignificant. In per spective, Alton MacEachem says that human beings are “but a speck of cosmic dust,” albeit a “thinking speck made in the image of his Cre ator!” A Thinking Speck As insignificant as this “thinking speck” of dust may seem, human be ings do occupy a place of prominence in the creation. Indeed, “thou hast made him little less than God ...” (8:5). Scholars do not agree on how to interpret “little less than God.” The KJV renders this as “a little lower than the angels.” Today’s Eng lish Version says, “You made him in ferior only to yourself,” and Moffatt makes this “as little less than di vine.” This matters because some people jump to the conclusion that human beings are almost on the same level as God. But the difference between divinity and humanity is qualitative, not just quantitative. Human beings do not become divine by being a bit more righteous. It is true that, as the Psalmist says, man is created to have “dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet...” (8:6) Wisconsin, New York, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and Idaho produce nearly 60 percent of the nation’s milk. However, changes in top dairy states have occurred. “Idaho was a nontraditional dairy state just 10 years ago, and now it ranks sixth na tionally,” says Heald. “California went from fourth nationally to num ber one (producing more milk than Pennsylvania, New York and Minne sota combined). The other top dairy states have fal tered. Minnesota peaked in percent age of national milk produced in the ’6os, New York in the ’7os, Wiscon sin in the ’Bos, and Pennsylvania more recently. “Many of the top 20 dairy states are losing their dairy industry while the national need for milk continues to grow,” adds Heald. “The industry is consolidating into fewer dairy states and fewer dairy herds. Penn sylvania heeds to keep up with these trends.” Milk production per cow has been a strong indicator of whether a state will grow or fade on the national scene. States in the top six that fell below the national average for milk production per cow also lost in per centage of national market share of milk in about the same decade. By contrast, states that were above the national average per cow grew dra matically, including nontraditional dairy states. Change in average herd size also can indicate where a dairy state is heading. Nearly 60 percent of the na tion’s milk is produced in herds larger than 200 cows. Nationally, herds of all sizes have declined in the last decade except those 200 or more. However, there are successful and profitable herds with fewer than 200 cows, points out Heald. “Anyone working with the Pennsylvania dairy industry knows of highly profitable herds in each size classification. However, large, high-producing herds do enjoy favored business sta tus and are becoming the norm. “To stay competitive, owners of herds with less than 200 cows need to develop strong business strategies that help them to compete success fully. Quote Of The Week: “Let your heart feel for the afflictions and distresses of everyone, and let your hand give in proportion to your purse. ” George Washington So, once again we have this ten sion between the puniness of man and God’s commission to have do minion over all other living things. This lifts human beings considerably higher than some of the modem con cepts Freud’s bundle of sexual drives, Marx’s economic tool, Dar win’s random product of evolution, and Skinner’s conditioned reflex. Being charged with dominion and serving as God’s deputy are no small things. A Sacred Trust At the same time, however, this “dominion” is always given in the context of God’s sovereignty. As Jesus indicates, human beings are commissioned to be stewards, those who tend all living things and the earth for God. Our power over na ture is given us as a sacred trust and, instead of gloating over the power, we need to focus on the responsibil ity. For we have so often and contin uously failed to wield them for God. Despite all our endowments, we have failed to use them with the in telligence God gives us. As J.R.P. Sclater has observed, “Man has do minion over the bomb, and is not fit to have dominion over bows and ar rows.” We have often used our pow ers especially today to abuse th( creation with pollution, depletion, and extermination. We have con quered nature, but failed to overcome ourselves. Who’s in charge here? God is. “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth!” 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 2002 by Lancaster Farming
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers