I am getting tired of talking about our own government's oppresshre, ruthless assault on tobacco. You may say -- "Who cares? I don't smoke." 'Well, neither do I!! But the assault on tobacco has serious implications. What about personal property rights? '''hen your friends come over to your house, don't you think that you should be the one to decide if they can smoke or not. What's the difference, if you own a bar, a pool hall, a restaurant. Your customers come in and you say, "you are welcome…

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I think it was all we could hope for! Last week the Clinton Administration committed itself to phasing out M+BE, a gasoline additive that although cleaning the air, has contaminated ground water and wells. Carol Browner, administrator EPA, said the government decision should encourage the use of ethanol and other safe bio-fuels in gasoline.

Admittedly the EPA announcement does not immediately get rid of M+BE. The announcement hands off to Congress the responsibility to write legislation to…

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Where does your money go? At USDA I believe that a lot of money is spent for a lot of good reasons. Farm support payments to help struggling farmers through tough times. Export funds to move our products into the international market place. Funding to care for our forests . Even food stamps to help needy families.

But I read an article last week that was shocking. According to the Inspector General, more than 20 million dollars of money at USDA that was designated to Natural Resources was…

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We're already getting excited about the spring planting season on our farm. There's nothing like a few 70 degree days to get you in the mood. [I love global warming!] Field conditions are dry enough to knife in anhydrous ammonia. The planter is in the shop and repairs almost completed. Pits under the hog barns are being sucked out and taken to the fields. [That will save a big fertilizer expense.]

There are many things we can do to help insure a profitable year. And yet there are so many…

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What's hot and what's not? That's a good questions. Look at the stock market as a barometer of the nation's economic health and you would have to conclude that we have a mixed bag. Although mostly on the positive side of the ledger. The old line blue chip stand-by stocks are the ones struggling.

Almost all of the food companies -- so basic to our lives -- are languishing at the bottom of the barrel. Take a look. There is IBP, ADM, Kellogg, Philip Morris, John Deere, Ag Co. Up and down the…

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I found myself next to Tom Ewing, Congressman on the House Ag Committee from Illinois, at a lunch last week. Congressman Ewing gave us his thoughts on the hot issues of the day and where we may be headed. Since he has announced his retirement plans for next fall, this makes it even easier for him to be very direct and candid. His view: After so much criticism of the Freedom to Farm bill, the Clinton administration presented their Supplemental Income Assurance Program. What a disappointment!…

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I never thought of Frito com chips as Frankenstein food. Is Frito-Lay, the maker of the top 10 U.S. snacks telling me that there is something wrong with my Doritos? Surely if I wash them down with a little tequila it will be alright!

Why would Frito-Lay jump on the Greenpeace bandwagon? I guess I understood when Heinz and Gerber said they wouldn't use genetically modified products in their baby food.

This action by Frito-Lay is a giant over reaction. The public is not concerned by…

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The farm economy appears to be turning around ever so slightly. Farm land values have held up very nicely in the face of low farm prices keeping the U.S. farm balance sheet reasonably sound. The Asian economies are gaining strength which should help boost prices of certain select commodities. Can we put on a happy face? We want to.

Yet I just finished reading the speech that Keith Collins, USDA's Chief Economist, gave to the American farm Bureau Convention. He calls them the way he sees…

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The uncertainty swirling around biotechnology and genetically engineered products just seems to get more intense. It's hard for me to understand. For decades through plant breeding, we have been able to mix and match different characteristics from different plants. Now by using biotechnology we can do it faster. It's less expensive. What's the big deal? We've already eaten our own weight in genetically engineered foods. We didn't even notice. They've been on the market since 1994. Com,…

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I'm glad to be back from Cuba, and I hope it's not too late for my year 2000 predictions. First, I need to score my predictions made last year. I think I was too optimistic. In the face of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, I thought the President would be desperate to do some big things to help improve his legacy. I was just dreaming. I expected meaningful tax relief, a fix for Social Security and Medicare. It could have been the "deal of the decade." But there was no deal. I was right wen I said…

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