Cattle grazing in the Alps

[manfredvijars]

... but Neil's a "lumberjack" ... I heard him sing the "Lumberjack" song once in Tamworth.
Besides we need more Aldi stores to compete with the Coles-Woollies mob.

[Kym]

Poor Stephen. He asked for thoughts and copped a team wholloping. I'm sorry if we were too harsh on you Stephen, and I'm sure none of us meant anything towards you personally, but you opened the can of worms ...

I guess I bit back so quickly because primary producers are constantly being told they can't do this, or they should do that, or they have to change such-n-such by people who wouldn't know a cow from a sheep, yet still think they have the right to dictate what should or shouldn't happen. We are under fire for erosion, salt levels, low water tables, chemical usage, holes in the ozone, etc, etc, etc ... We have to adhere to strict rules about OHS, bunting around diesel tanks, runoff water catchment - all of this costs money and we are regulated and inspected by people from the city who can't tell diesel from petrol. It is scary and sickening how quickly we are losing control over our own industry. Farmers don't tell cinemas what movies to show, or tell doctors how to run their practices.

Why are people so down on the grass-roots level of industry? Because the public feels a need to protect the environment, which is good, but why do they all point the finger at farmers and graziers? Do city people not produce rubbish that has to be disposed of somewhere? As long as the dump is out of town, out of sight, it doesn't affect or bother them, does it? They want beef on their McDonalds, but they oppose farming practices. They use precious water filling their jacuzis and having long hot showers, yet complain about farmers irrigating crops. And like Bill says, women like shiny rings on their fingers, yet protest about mining practices, without realising they themselves are contributing to the world's demise. It's easy to blame other people, just because they aren't the one holding the shovel, or watering the crop, or tipping the rubbish in a pit. It's easy to sit in glass buildings and hand out judgements though ...

... and there was another point I was going to make, but I've forgotten now ... I'll get back when I think of it ...

Just remember Stephen, I never meant anything directly towards you, I'm just firing back at those people who are willing to shoot the farmers.

Kym.

[Stephen Whiteside]

All good, Kym.

We visited Cradle Mountain a few years ago. There were signs all over the place saying what we could and couldn't do. Then we stepped outside the park to have lunch at a cafe - maybe a hundred yards from the park boundary. I asked where their recycling bin was to throw our empty drink cans in, and they told me they didn't have one! I worked in Aboriginal health for many years. One (of many!) things that got up their nose about white society is the way we have one rule for national parks and another, very different, rule for everything else!

[Stephen Whiteside]

Earlier this morning I spent about an hour on a post, but I must have submitted it at the same time as somebody else, because I lost the lot! This technology is frustrating sometimes!

[Maureen K Clifford]

I doubt Stephen took any of this personally Kym he merely asked the question - never shoot the messenger.

Amazing though isn't it the response...if common sense were to prevail and the emotion was taken out of the equation most people would surely realize that farmers are not out to destroy the land - quite the contrary the land provides their living and as such they tend to value it more and nurture it by using good farming practices and this despite the curved balls that nature keeps throwing at them. The fact that they get up and fight on indicates or should that they love the land. Lesser people would walk away.

As Kym says the restraints put on them by outside bodies beggars belief. Our shearing shed was over 100 years old. No way would it pass workplace health and safety standards. It was used 3 times a year, was sound, and dry, had its limitations but the shearers were fine with it. We had made modifications like fans and a nice little outside area for smoko. Had WH & S got to it and there were rumours that they were starting to do just that - they would have closed it. Ours was no worse than anybody elses.

We had 4000 acres with bad erosion on lots of areas due to overstocking in the past and now drought. One of the quickest and easiest and cheapest ways to stop that was to dump old tyres, fill them with earth and allow and soil and sheep poop to build up around them and vegetation to eventually grow over it. They were never going to wash away into any streams or cause any problems. We were using a resource that is hard and costly to dispose of in commercial rubbish tips. Tyres can also be put to good use as yard fencing, another recycling project. Our local tyre shop used to drop off truck loads of old tyres to us all of which were made very good use off. The local greenies got wind of it - this is polluting the earth and must stop - so if you dump then in the rubbish tip it isn't? Go figure.

The thing is without the farmers where would the rest of the world be? It is their crops, meat, milk, eggs, cotton and wool etc etc that sustains us. We whinge if prices go up, we whinge if food is imported, we whinge if food is in short supply, we whinge if quality varies and god forbid I have even heard people whinge because apples grown as nature intended are occasionally bird pecked - imagine the whinge if there was nothing. One of the reasons your fruit and vegies from the big stores are so expensive is because they buy only fruit and veges that conform to a specified size (makes it easier to pack in their displays) God forbid if your zucchinis grow a bit bigger overnight (and they do) or if your snow peas are a bit longer, or your apples marked in any way - even by leaf shadow, They won't take them, and it is the farmer who then bears the brunt of having to find another purchaser for his crop.

So support your local farmer. Buy your fruit and vegies from roadside stalls and farmers markets, buy your meat from your little individual butcher or better yet if able buy direct from the farmer or your small country abattoir - buy in bulk and share with the neighbours. Everyone will benefit - your food will be fresher - no more apples from cold storage but apples picked from the tree just a couple of days ago. Way to go

Cheers

Maureen

[Leonie]

Not getting into this one at all, a definite fence sitter me. I can see good solid arguments for both sides, but the discussion did make me think about a signature someone has on another forum I frequent and I think I might steal it and make it my New Year's Resolution. Is it too late to have a NYR in February? It's Chinese New Year on Feb 3rd, so maybe not. Year of the rabbit?... feral animal? ... oh dear.

Sorry for the interruption ... carry on.

[manfredvijars]

Marty, we all know that the mining companies weren't to blame for the floods in Qld ...
IT WAS THEM BLOODY SUICIDE PLUMBERS!!!! ...

[william williams]

Leonie thank you. The chinese new year you say is the Rabbit but it should be the year of the Pollies well their rabbits aren't they

[Maureen K Clifford]

Oh not - not rabbits . erosion causing, hole digging, grass and crop eating noxious pests introduced by English gentlemen I believe so that they could have their sport like they did in the Old Dart. Much loved by Akubra, generally not much loved by farmers, though many years ago they bought in a good cash crop with rabbbit skins. The old Rabbit Factory still stands at Texas next to the also defunct railway line.

The Bilbies disliked them. They would like to ban all Easter Bunnies in favour of Easter Bilbies.

Rabbits!!! Rabbits!!! - where is the Myxo and calicivirus - oh that's right they are becoming immune to that - it's back to ripping out warrens and bait layering...and rabbit proof fences don't work either.

Having said that they are cute little critters - and it is not their fault that they have become unloved and unwanted.

[william williams]

Oh not - not rabbits . Maureen they are erosion causing, hole digging, grass and crop eating noxious pests introduced by English gentlemen

now think about it woman that discribes a politition to a tee does it not mind you. As you say further on they are warm soft cuddle creatures only problem is what would their wives say

Bill the battler