Farm bill is first step in long process
If the writing of federal legislation is, as often described, a kabuki dance, then the farm bill passed by House Ag Committee July 19 is only the first, essential step of a complex drama that has two more months of rewrites before its scheduled Oct.
Dairy farmers take co-op to task
After years of private gripes and government investigations, 17 Southeast dairy farmers filed two federal class-action civil lawsuits in Tennessee July 5 charging the nation's milk giants with "conspiracy
An eating trip through New Mexico
When the lovely Catherine and I slipped out of steamy Illinois for a driving trip to New Mexico June 30, the last item I tossed into her car was a rain parka.
Everyone’s a critic, but be original
Just after I completed the previous reader-mail column in late December, a Christmas card, carrying a festive stamp, arrived.
Pork producers respond to column
If you were to interview yourself, then write a story based on the interview, it's a safe bet the story might be more self-serving than, say, what your neighbor or mother-in-law might write about you.
Technology wave started years ago
About the time I broke the cotton shackles of my mother's apron strings for the glorious freedom of my father's farm fields, a technology wave hit the southern Illinois farm of my youth.
EPA wants its millions returned
The Office of Inspector General at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recommended EPA seek to recover nearly $25.
Farm Credit System wants favors
Some things are more reliable than even death and taxes. Take the Farm Credit System for example. Since it's farm bill-writing time again, the giant, government-sanctioned, cooperative ag lender is again asking Congress for favors to boost itself in the farm lending marketplace.
Hope you’re hungry for a harvest
On the southern Illinois farm of my youth, the beginning of summer marked the kick-off of a season of great food.
Sir Isaac Newton meets Congress
Newton's Third Law of Motion, "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction," has direct application to the physics of farm bills.
