Interesting read 2

[sw363535]

BA,   I am really enjoying your thread(what would you change) and the way it encourages us to keep focus.  The last three years have been "heady" times if you were raising a crop.

I been spending some evening time reading the wsjournal interactive piece on the Legacy of WW 1.  Listing 100 different subjects that changed or were highly effected by that conflict and time.

There are so many that affect Ag and international business as we know it.  And how it propelled the US into a more prominent position on the world stage.  Check it out if you can on wsj.com -- good inter active format.  

It is just a good world history, business, political and geographical presentation geared toward explaining how each thing affects today.

Deals a lot with the eastern european region and effects on areas in conflict today.

A lot with trends, from clothing to finance,  Religion to the trials of new forms of government.

anyway There is a lot of "perspective" there.

[BA Deere]

Hey SW, here`s a link to your WSJ article.       http://online.wsj.com/ww1/  

I`m always interested in the rhythm of history, my Grandfather was in WWI, it as all the wars have taken chunks out of my family.

What I find intriguing is how the 30`s great depression affected most people that were alive through their entire lives, even if they were children.  I`ve heard the stories of kids at that time, "corn was 2¢ and hogs were 5¢ and the only money that the family had was the few coins in Pa`s coin purse, yet he could buy some Bull Durham chewing tobbaco.  but we never missed a meal and there was never a shortage of love".  People probably still tell those stories in nursing homes yet today. 

The "farm crisis" of the 80`s did not affect people for long, like the great depression did.  It went from about 1983-1988.  And in `89, `90 the end was called to the farm crisis and it ended and everybody build a new house, bought a new 1990 pickup...and lived happily ever after.   Those that lived through it werent` soured a bit from borrowing money, even if 20% interest took them to the brink of disaster a few short years previous.  People seemed to have evolved to be more resilient, in putting past unpleasantness out of their mind.

However, those in business are really going to have to put their thinking caps on.  A guy that has a custom hay cutting business, charging $15/a for a few acres here and there, run over a rotary hoe with his FWA tractor (the owner warned him about it)  ruined 4 tires...So, what are we looking at...$5,000, $6,000 for new tires?  The owner warned him so he has to "eat it", at $15/acre he will have cut hay the rest of his life to start breaking even. 

[sw363535]

I have a family of friends who have a JD dealership.

We were talking a few days ago about the time since 2008.  He made the remark, "I think this time period is the highest and fastest inflation period in agriculture we have ever had." 

A lot of this area was homesteaded by folks fleeing the causes of ww1,  my wife's father served in it. (She was a very late child in his life.)

The issues in the presentation were what brought farmers to our area.

I think the 1920's are very interesting.  

Most of those folks got off the train with very little and built a dougout on the open prairie.  Within 15-20 years a high % had added another piece of land, built a small house, bought a small truck, and a tractor. Towns, stores, banks, and roads by 1929.  And 60%++were wise enough and conservative enough to endure the depression and stay.  Amazing times.  

I was taken by the explosion of new governments following centuries of monarchy rule.  Lots of background on the recent issues like Bosnia, Iraq and Viet Nam.  Issues we live with stemming from decisions made back then.  Woodrow Wilson could have saved us a lot of lives if he had agreed to meet with the young Ho Chi Minh looking for support for independence in his country.  He came to us for support first and we blew him off.  I hadn't read that before.

I like the short segment form on individual topics.  

[Kay/NC]

A few years ago, my reading took a path through a number of books about the early 1900s. I recall one about a great white shark that terrorized the Eastern Seaboard for a good, long while. Cannot remember that title. Another was " Isaac's Storm", about the great Galveston hurricane, which is still the deadliest American storm.

The overall theme was that science had all the answers, and it was just a matter of time until we knew/ could control everything in our experience of this world. I remember thinking at the time how much our understanding of things has grown, but how much our species still had left to master.

Most present conflicts have very deep roots. Grudges seldom just dissolve without bad consequences. Goodwill is a rare commodity.

[Kay/NC]

That is why we have told our kids to forget custom baling.  It only takes one tree stump to ruin a cutter....

[sw363535]

custom baling and RISK.  Great example ----------- RISK is a 4 letter word that is probably the most important in managing a farm business.  Some farms handle it very well and others do not.

The ability to asses risk is still the most improtant talent to a farmer. --IMO

That does not mean AVOID risk.  No if you farm you have risk.  But we have to assess it and manage it.

Let me give you another meaningful example ---- just for ecin and you sprayer operators out there.

New technology circle track guidance.  Cost something per sprayer, per tractor etc.    so you don't have to cross those sprinkler tracks or you can plant on the circle and keep the combine off those wheel tracks.

Does it add risk to the job or take risk away by stopping the jolting bounce crossing a hole in a sprinkler wheel track.  I have always seen that it increases risk in a sprayer operator perspective, although my back feels better using it.  I still use it judiciously,  I have always known that the sprinkler is a risky object to work around, although fun to try and spray the top of those tower tires.

I still contend when you buy circle track capability you increase risk because every approach to every turn is now a 90 degree approach into the sprinkler and in a year when thousands of turns are made a glitch is possible.

I will give you a visual, but I am still having trouble looking at it.  There is no way effeciency, time savings, chemical savings or any other savings tied to the use of circle track will ever pay for that one time.  It was a bad purchase not because it was too expensive, but because the risk assessment should have said it is too risky. ---- Things happen

 

[sw363535]

Perspective and wisdom.  

If the savings or justification for cost has to be figured over thousands of acres,  it might be a clue you are trying too hard to get what you want, not what makes sense for your company and employees.

[ECIN]

Holly COW sw !  Now thats a screw up - Not that I havent had a few along the way   

But I have to ask - when what ever happened - happened ,  did it happen so fast the app driver could not shut it down before it hit ?  Just wondering

Also - I have not seen the pictures yet - But one of my Hagie wrinchs told be about a guy in the buckeye running on auto steer and fell a sleep in a long field - he woke up when it went into the DEEP open ditch - took off the booms and broke off both front legs - with tires .

What we have to watch is the cross country power towers = 345 K to 750 K and the guide wires -

BTW NICE looking sprayer - 4830 ?

[ECIN]

Kay :   I recall one about a great white shark that terrorized the Eastern Seaboard for a good, long while. Cannot remember that title.

Sounds like Jaws - lol

[sw363535]

Ecin, Middle of the day--- working on the last few passes on inside towers.  running slower(12-15mph) because of the small circle.  Had a 200 ft end row to turn in had just stopped to start the sprinkler moving a few passes before and it was running.

Said hydrostat lever was pulled back as he approached the turn and the sprayer did not respond, "just kept going" ------ Driver report.

He must have froze up because he went into it straight, so no boom damage, over the radiator and tires...... Truss rod hit windshield and started folding sprinkler up around him.  Took out the windshield and hood---(if the cab door post is bent will be more damage)  We lifted the sprinkler up and drove sprayer out.

Pretty proud of that old sprinkler --- truss rods held...... pipe stayed together protecting him from that 440 power cable.

What ifs get serious on this one.

We tested the sprayer and could not make it duplicate the report.  Unnerving.... Can't count the number of times I have turned in front of and worked around those critters in the night ------- and usually disoriented at the time. ( Wide open country in the dark with distant houselights, it doesn't take many quick turns to loose it and you don't care till the tank is empty or the field is done and you would rather not go to Texas in a Sprayer).  Every once in a while somebody rides one through a couple of road ditches.  We are lucky not to have many real bumps bigger than an REA pole, and that just gets the boom end usually.

But we do have these funny looking watering things.