Educating Shirley

[cowman]

Well apparently Shirley McClellan can't figure out whos getting screwed when it comes to selling beef, although from her general tone she suspects it might be the cow/calf guy doing the screwing!
However she is going to get her staff right on it. She said she needs to know who is making what?
Shirley, where have you been? What have you been doing these last 10 months? You have how many staff? What have they been doing?
I find it appalling that our Ag minister wouldn't even have a grasp on where the money has been going? I mean she has been sending off the checks to the feedlots and packers for quite awhile and she doesn't even have a clue who's making money!
She was on the Rutherford show yesterday doing her little spiel. The most amazing thing was the half wits who phoned in! I can't believe some people are so dumb! One guy actually thought the only thing marketable on a cow was the steaks and the rest of the animal went in the garbage can! He thought only 10% of the bodyweight had any value!
Another "bright light" thought it was outrageous that the farmers only got $200 for a fat steer while paying $2200 at the store! The ignorance out there was amazing and has led me to conclude that the CCA/ABP is right after all...we can definitely BS our way out of this deal!

[ValueChainFX]

cowman I think when you look at our lady "waiting" she has staff that could use some education! Really when you think about it there are some pretty smart people are looking for a position here! Some people defend the government as doing a good job???? I would suggest that association, government and funding groups all should be in review at the moment! My thoughts are that the salvation is going to come from the producer, and those that feel the groups supporting the industry are going to help will have a long wait!

Don't get me wrong, I think there are some good people in these groups, but as i've heard before! The best way to go down is to have good people do nothing! For those of us pumping the pump we just have to stay the course, line up the ducks and prime the pump!

[Horse]

Last week in the local paper the meat manager for the co-op said the price he pays for a side is $1.99 / lb at the time rail price was 1.24 so alowing for 2 or 3 % shrink for cooling that leaves close to 74 cents markup on a 1300 steer at 58% yield = 740 lb times 74 cents = 547$ net to packer now where do I send the bill to Shirley to have figured out who is making the cash. On top of all that they still have the hide and pharmicutials and other saleable parts.
As for those a--H---- that ph on the rutherford show I had to go outside to get away from it but when you figure that mis mcleland or any conservitave that is on his show have it all rehersed or he leads them through it it is just sickening I wish some one would tell people the difference between a cow and a fat slaughter animal.

[johnboy555]

good post horse if your right about the dollar 99 per pound rail........then the packer is a pecker.......................guess who own lakeside and cargill and pretty soon neilson bros.

[johnboy555]

AMERICANS......owners

[johnboy555]

Guess who's cattle got killed first after may 20..................guess who's cattle went to the US in boxed beef form first............guess who got most of the 600 million this summer..............................You guessed it CAPTURED SUPPLY...............WHO has CAPTURED supply................you GUESSED it.....................PACKERS.............who are the packers...........AMERICANS

[cowman]

I will definitely agree Dave Rutherford alomost seems to be on the Tory payroll at times! Dave has done enough shows on BSE that he should understand the situation and I'm sure he could have given some of those callers a very good education!
Shirley has to be just playing a game here? Surely she isn't that dumb? And if she is then we really are in some serious trouble!
I sometimes wonder whose side Alberta politicians are on? Ralph keeps coming up with these boneheaded comments that make us all look like idiots! Surely the man has more brains than that?
I wonder if Ralph will be appointed to the board at Cargill or IBP when he decides to retire?

[Horse]

Johnboy I sure have to agree with you on the captured supply . I dont know if there is any legislation against that here or not but they have in the U S but I understand that there is also wiggle room around it. If there was nt the large feeders that have to have a contract to get large bank loans to freeze out the small to medium feeder I think the cattle would still get fed and the risk would be spred around and more of us would be competing with each other instead of competing with multi national companys and the banks. We can be froze out so easy it just makes no sence to try unless there is meaningful legislation to protect small companys from predatory pricing from the large companys. If it wasnt for contracting do you think Cor Van Ray or Pascal or other feeders could feed that many cattle, and what difference would it make if there was say 30 of 50 feeders feeding those cattle.

[ivbinconned]

I said it before in these threads...a pick pocket tries to make you look the other way.
If the packers were owned by some big Canadian corporation do you think we would be any better off??
Do you think they would share the wealth? Did the feedlots bring in corn and drive down the value of my barley a couple of years ago?
Taking care of ones own interests is the way it is. But blaming the Americans is a cop out.
OUR Liberal government low dollar policy in place for the past 25 years is why the Americans invest here and the free trade aggreement protects their investments.
OUR liberal government low dollar policy in place for the past 25 years is why Canadians sold out their industry here.
Did Canada not shut out Japan???
Lets put the blame where the blame is due....Ottawa!

[ALICIA]

Ottawa and the about 80% of Canadians
The U.S. asked the question Who's side are the Canadian People on.
Freedom or Terrorisum
The goverment and most of Canada choose terrorisom. So the U. S. has know choose but to do a slow take over in order to insure freedom, and safty for the american people. The food supply is the first to go, Just as the Native American, history just may repeat it self.

[boone]

ivbinconned; You might want to check the cdn dollars value against our low productivity per person in Canada. As for placing blame, I would blame ourselves if we cannot find a way to move some of the value from under 30 month animals to older culled stock, be it a tied tariff or whatever. Your country is loosing three times by this action of slaughtering your replacements. #1 is the poor value you are receiving today. #2 The value of calves you will not have from 17% of the slaughtered animals (heifers estimated).#3 As taxpayers you alone will supply the topping up of each and every farmers income and or lost expenditure in the economy. Birthing these old cows 1 or 2 more times will mask it but it is as gone as the unborn children from war. So with respect to the real cost of multinational pillaging, let us add up the total costs to Canada and Alberta.

[cowman]

I have to agree with ivebinconned that practically all the blame goes back to our totally incompetent leaders. Quite frankly they gave away the store? We either have the dumbest leaders in the developed world or the biggest crooks?
You raise an excellent point, boone, when you say that we are going to lose production due to heifer slaughter. How many people sold their heifers and kept the old cows? Maybe a good one year stratedgy but not sustainable in the long run? When cows are worth a nickel this fall and heifer calves are worth 80 cents which one will you sell?

[cowman]

Alicia: How did we choose terrorism? Don't we have soldiers dying in Aghganistan?
When America chooses to break international law and invade a sovereign country with no provocation, isn't it our duty to not participate?
America has mostly brought this problem on itself by exploiting the people of the world to satisfy their own greed. Why do you think they are almost universally hated? Look how they treat their friends and neighbors, let alone other countries. America is not a shining example of a decent and fair country?

[raymondb]

Cowman--How can we expect our federal politicians to help us when all their energy is focused on :
1- A 2 billion dollar gun registery. It takes alot of energy and thought to keep fooling the Canadian people.

2. The Jane Stewert Billion dollar boondoggle

3. Chretian golf course

4. Hundreds of millions of dollars going to Quebec Companies

5. Don Cherry
6. Conan
7. Bush and the Americans
Etc Etc.
There just can not be time to look at the real problems in this country with all the above happening

[raymondb]

Cowman--How can we expect our federal politicians to help us when all their energy is focused on :
1- A 2 billion dollar gun registery. It takes alot of energy and thought to keep fooling the Canadian people.

2. The Jane Stewert Billion dollar boondoggle

3. Chretian golf course

4. Hundreds of millions of dollars going to Quebec Companies

5. Don Cherry
6. Conan
7. Bush and the Americans
Etc Etc.
There just can not be time to look at the real problems in this country with all the above happening