Where is your money?

[coppertop]

I don't want to get into this debate, but I will caution that just because a company is large does not mean it pays lots of taxes. Many multinational companies have managed to get around taxes for years, hence the new measures with Income Trusts.

All I know for sure is that the beef business today is one heck of a gamble, and I take my hat off to anyone that has the ingenuity to utilize niche markets, and value add to their product at home.

[whiteface]

Grassfarmer, respectfully, I too appreciate your opinion, and yes, you already know that. You are producing a healthy and tasteful product and I applaud that. I was there once as well and had enormous pride in what I did and how many people I sincerely felt I was doing a whole wack of good for. I slept well at night. Liked who I saw when I looked in the mirror and still today have a ton of respect for the likes of what you're doing. I've lost a whole wack of loved ones and a couple are on their way out even now...
as I've said a million times, you can't buy back your health. And so often our health is the consequence of our quest for sucess.
However. To all you do-gooders of life and get paid diddly squat or less...
and as I say to my hard luck tenants as they're problems crawl across my desk, I'm sorry, but I won't keep you as a pet. I don't get to be anyones pet and neither do you get to be one of mine.
I have enough pets but thanks for your offer anyway. Your rent is due because my mortgages (yes, mortgages, PLURAL...oh I know, that'll be the end of any feeling sorry for me, well good on ya, never asked for anyones sympathy), gas, electricity, taxes, taxes and more taxes are due and the consequences for me not paying my bills are that YOU no longer have a place to live. Real simple. I don't need to go on and on. I know you all get the point and most of you have known me long enough to know my MO by now anyway without me passing it through another three stomachs.
As Scott Huber always says, and I love it, divert, divert, divert. Why can't you just answer the blinking question if you dare to come on here or is it that some just need to argue. Okay, so grassfarmer says it's none of my business and really, fair enough, it really ain't, but then why do we need to get into it about how I apparently am now a "packer lover" (that wasn't grassfarmer, I think Sandhusker would need to be credited with that). I think we all would like to be well off, sucessful, okay, at the very least, alive but seriously, once the wheels of sucess start to roll, now you've got employees to manage, wages to consider, families other than your own that you're responsible for, more overhead, more taxation issues and sure, if you get big enough, you bet, you get to deal with shareholders. Now I ask you, and REALLY think about this one while you have nothing better to do. Some of these companys, and pick any one you want. Wal-mart, Sears, Canadian Tire, Lakeside, Tim Hortans...
Seriously,
They answer to their customers. Period. The ones that got them where they are in the first place. Bar none and they do it well and please the majority of the people that they need to because believe me you will never please everyone and it's foolish to try. There is just way too many types and varieties within those types to please them all. So as a sucessful entreprenuer you please the widest margin of people and as many within that margin of customers as you can.
Won't take long for your company to no longer be yours anyway. Middle management, CEO's, payroll, human resourses, omigod, it spirals out of control and in the end to keep it together you'd damn well better make sure the shareholders are happy cause if they ain't...
JENGA!
And now you're looking for a place to live (as my analogy above stated what happens to my hapless tenants if their bills aren't paid and hence my bills aren't paid). At the end of the day, grassfarmer, Randy, myself and cowman, we're all less than a spit in the bucket and if there are more people that need a company to be sucessful than those that hurt from it, sorry, majority wins. Takes an awful lot to rally a revolution. My hat is off to you both.
And after all that, I am dumbstruck grassfarmer that out of my post, your comment would be how the packers pay more in cooling energy than heat energy and that Randy would comment about how ugly it got in the housing market in the 80's. This is what you choose to focus on? I mean, really, I appreciate your input but for crying in the beer can you say "missed the big picture?"
The nicest compliment I recieved in the last year (and I've got a whole lot of five star insults too if any of you may be interested in them!) was when I told a good friend that I was no longer a farmer but now manageing tenants and properties, he said, well you never really were a farmer, always a business minded person and have simply just switched from selling one commodity ( the cows ) to another (real estate) and you'll be as good at it because you understand how any good business works and thrives. Then he continued with the comment of how I now have people and property as my "herd" instead of actual cattle and really nothing has changed. And I do treat my tenants just as good and respectfully and fairly as I ever did an expensive show heifer without letting the entire operation collapse. What favor would I be doing to them if I allowed the Jenga tower to collapse. Like letting down your shareholders. Not very good leadership quality. I think Scott Huber refers to it as saving one from themselves. Occasionally I need saving as well which is why I always value everyones opinion. I like learning how people think and what's important to them and how well thier ideas are being implemented into their actions. If you got through all that, thank you for your time, if you choose to add to it, I appreciate that as well. Have a great night all!

[cowman]

Good luck on your fighting the good fight against the ABP/CCA. If you enjoy that sort of thing then have at her! I guess the fact is about 95% either don't care or have realized it is a waste of time? Sort of like electing a federal government?
Now I'm certainly not here to bash your efforts to make more money off your cattle by getting out and peddling them around to make more money! All the power to you.
I guess I'm one of those people who will "die a slow death" in the cattle business. I wonder how long that might take? Maybe in 2010 when calves are $1 and the truck has risen to $60K?
And here I am, buying more land and more heifers...I must be crazy! Oh well some people buy a cottage by the lake or a fancy motorhome...gotta have a hobby!