Just a Dumb Old Farmer
It is a strong policy of mine to not make any of these stories political. I have my own political views as well as you and this is not the place to convince anyone why my ideas are so much better! Besides, I don’t have enough friends that I can afford to lose any! But I feel the need to respond to some statements made by one of the candidates running for President.
In a speech back in 2016, this candidate said that it’s not hard to be a farmer. He said, “You dig a hole, you put a seed in, you put dirt on top, add water, up comes the corn.” He also stated that it doesn’t take much gray matter to be a farmer.
Where do I start with this? The American Farmer has always needed extended knowledge in many different areas. They need to know climatology, hydrology, electronics, GPS technology, just to name a few. So I would like to ask this candidate a few questions. How do you know when you can plant and harvest your crop? Can you name the first thing to check when you lose hydraulic pressure? How do you diagnose an engine controller failure? Can you program the Auto-Steer on a tractor? You mean to tell me someone with so much more intelligence can’t answer these simple questions? I know this sounds a little harsh, but these are some of the hardest working people I know, and also the most compassionate. I have witnessed countless times they have all pitched in to help their neighbors plant or harvest their crops when they were struggling.
While these comments bother me, they are not the part of this topic that frustrates me the most. I would like to know where the media outrage is on this. There have been countless times when someone has said something derogatory about a group of people that has caused the media to immediately demand the person apologize. And then so many hosts and people on the daily and nightly talk shows would tell all of us how out of touch with the American people this person is. I am not saying any group that has been marginalized doesn’t deserve the media response they have received. I would just like an explanation as to why this group of hard working men and women don’t deserve the same respect. I think it would be interesting to know what would happen if someone said, “It doesn’t take much gray matter to be an actor, singer, talk show host, etc.”
I personally want to thank this hard working group of people for providing food for the majority of the world and also setting an excellent example of selflessness and compassion. Paul Harvey described them best in his speech “So God Made a Farmer.” I encourage anyone who hasn’t heard this to check it out on YouTube.
I feel so much better now that I’ve gotten that off my chest. Thank you for letting me vent and for reading.
Next week: The Party at the Apple
P.S. One last question. Who supplies the ingredients for your gourmet meals? Let me know if you need a hint.