The weather has been hot! hot! hot! Now, on Saturday, it has rained. The canola is finished flowering. The wheat and peas are getting killed. They are quickly coming to ripe and the high clearance sprayer guys are hurrying the process along with Round-up and Regulone. Ten days from now the combines will be running and another harvest season will be on us. When you read this column, August will be more than half done. Where did the month go?
I used to like harvest but, over the years, I did the harvest because that is how a farmer got paid. I grew to not appreciate harvest as it seemed to be nothing but a big rush. You always felt under the gun as weather can change, you can have rain delays, machinery break downs, everything that prevented you from getting the crop off in the best condition and grade. I was always glad when it was over. The only thing good about harvest was when it ended.
On the home front, Ty has finished rebuilding the auger we are going to put in the elevator. Rebuilding is not really what happened. The only thing left of the old auger is the top end, the bottom end and the flighting which was replaced in places, too. It was more like building new. He has got some paint from Keranda and the auger is now shiny black. No one will ever expect it started life as a Mayrath.
I have bought another welder and have wired in a plug at the elevator. Ty is going to build some walkways up beside the pelleter so we can get around. This welder is going to stay at the elevator as we seem to always be fixing something there. There will have to be provision made so this welder doesn’t blow away in the night like a lot of my scoop shovels, goose necks and pipe wrenches that have gone missing.
On the planning list for next week is mounting the deer killer bumper on the new truck “again” and get the almost new shiny black Mayrath mounted in the elevator to get grain from the elevator bin to the air seeder hopper that I have above the grinder and pellet machine. Things don’t always go according to plan, especially in plus 30-plus weather.
On the election trail, in the Battlefords Lloydminster riding, Conservative Minister of Agriculture, Gerry Ritz now has competition. To start with, there was no one running in opposition. Now there are two others.
Larry Ingram, long time Liberal supporter, has put his name forward to run as a Liberal candidate in the Oct. 19 election. He was unopposed. He is a farmer from Turtleford. Ray Fox was running for the Liberals in this election but because of some controversial posts on social media, he withdrew his name.
Sandra Arias won the nomination for the NDP. She was unopposed and won by acclamation. She is a former band councillor for Red Pheasant. She is currently the director for Sunchild Law Office in Battleford.
Nothing yet for any of the fringe parties like the Green Party.
On the federal scene, Stephen Harper and Kathleen Wynn, Ontario’s premier, are at odds over Wynn’s plan to increase the Canada Pension Plan and she plans to have the federal government pay for it. Harper says “no way," that is a $3 billion tax increase. There is no doubt the Canada Pension Plan is inadequate, but fixing it will cost money. The question is who will have to pay?
The Conservatives have some good things they are promising. They have child tax benefits and child tax credits. They are planning income splitting for parents. They have a plan for tax credits for home renos. They are also promising an apprentice program for youth.
Tom Mulcair the NDP leader is doing his thing, stating that if he became prime minister he would make minimum wage $15 all over Canada. The consequences of that job killer philosophy is happening in Calgary already. MacDonald’s has two restaurants now that there is no one in there. You go in, make your selection, put in your money in the machine and the food comes out of the machine. Where is the work ethics training for entry level workers? He is also supporting labelling of GMO products. That is fine, but who is paying for it? He still has not changed his stance that oil sands and pipelines should be stopped. Does this man not realize how many people are earning a living working in the oil patch? Does he not realize how much tax money comes to the government from the oil patch? Conservative ads say Trudeau is just not ready to be prime minister. I would say Mulcair isn’t ready either but I am afraid the people of Ontario may vote him in.
Justin Trudeau has some plans for supporting small business and families but he mostly is running on his personal charisma. He doesn’t seem to have any firm policies but I shake my head when I see both Harper and Mulcair attacking him. Is he a threat?
Things I would like to see discussed in this election are “What happened to farmer’s equity in the Wheat Board? How will a government make transporting our wheat, barley and canola more of a priority? Can some government not get just one pipeline even, to get this product out of here? Can I as a farmer get some protection from the international parasites that want total control of the weed sprays I can buy, the seed I must buy, the seed treatments, the works?"
Joke of the Week from Bev Stewart with some editing by Vic: Little Johnny was always in trouble. When he grew up he was still always in trouble. One night he went into a bar and the only other customers were three large ladies. After listening to them for a few minutes, Little Johnny says to them, “By your accent you must be from Scotland”. “We are from Wales,” they said. Says smart-aleck Johnny, “Oh yes, three large whales from Scotland.” It was three days before he woke up!
