Heh.

Carol Skelton should do her homework and not refer to special interest groups such as right wing bloggers.

A feather in Kate's cap but revealing as how out of touch our politicians really are!

Then, maybe you should review the definition of "special interest group". Unlike the highly paid bureaucrats of the CWB, or political extensions of the NDP (National Farmer's Union), this blog does not have a "special interest" beyond the author belonging to a family with members still farming in Saskatchewan.

Considering there is more professional expertise contained in the comments here (from both sides of the debate) than in any mainstream media source I've found, I'd be interested in who you do consider to be a reliable expert on the topic?

Jack Layton? Dion? Ralphie Goodale?

Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan *
David Brown, Vice President

I sure hope that's not the same David Brown...

I know this is off topic but Angry has done some background on the Anti Bob Rae's wife Jewish thing and it frankly turns my stomach,
I pity this Liberal candidate who comes knocking on my door

I know this is off topic but Angry has done some background on the Anti Bob Rae's wife Jewish thing and it frankly turns my stomach,
I pity the Liberal candidate who comes knocking on my door!

Sorry for the Typo on my first post

"I sure hope that's not the same David Brown..."

Doesn't matter. I have yet to come upon a farm group that matches the general opinions of me or my neighbours. Almost noone in my area belongs to any of them.

WOW the liberanos on CPAC right now sure are squirming about this CWB stuff. Its time to take the scum down another peg, lift the lid off of the CWB and see how much the criminals are hiding in there.

Also watching CPAC.
Interesting to note that facts and data come from Conservative speakers, while irrational hypebole comes from the rest

Now there whining about the porkbarrel being taken away. WAHHHHHHHHH

No matter who you vote for:

CPAC today should be renamed after the comic strip: People unsure of the concept.

I am not proud of Parliament today. If I hear any more whining about jobs in Winnipeg and Churchill I am gonna puke.

Its about the farm! Why can't anyone get that!!

Congrats, Kate -- but I still think Lorne Calvert's clear demonstration that he didn't have any idea of what SDA is was more amusing. ;)

Kate's sda makes CBC, CTV, G&M, Star, ect look amature by comparison.

I have been a news hound all my life, The National, Mansbridge, Country Calendar, Karen Webb, Jim Reigh, Craig Oliver, Don Newman, Jim Travers, CTV Newsnet, Passionate eye, Ideas, Nature of Things, Frances Russel, ect. When it comes to the news, AS PRESENTED, NO SPIN, NO BIAS , .. NONE and NOBODY even comes close to Kate and smalldeadanimals.com

I have read many, many blogs in the past, even the major media, and the bias is so obvious it is a joke. Example; Kyoto is a Hoax, pure and simple but the MSM keeps promoting it. How sick is that ??

I did not know Larry Webber from a perverbial hole in the Farmers field, but after frank discussion on sda(impossible through the Media) I bet that we agree on MORE than we differ on.

The MSM will ALWAYS slant MOST stories as a tradgedy that needs govmit to save the day. Yep, swoop in and reward failure, .. whether it is food production, crime, weather, law and order or whatever.

The Media is an ass, always was. Ever since the Printing Press was invented in 1440. We all knew it but couldn't express it. But no more, not in the Internet age.

Maybe we should institute a Canadian Media Board, which controls how all reporting is marketed in Canada. No reporter is permitted to directly sell his or her work product directly to a publisher on penalty of jail - it must all be pooled. Then the proceeds are divided up. And averaged out.

Whadya say there media guys? Sound like the kind of system you are yearning for?

What I don't understand is, as a Rancher here in Alberta(we used to raise grain but that didn't pay) Where was my ballot? I still have shares in Agricore. I guess they only sent ballots out to pro CWB producers. No wonder they're vote came out the way it did.

AMEN Shaken ! How many of them would tolerate these restrictions,and for how long? I can hear the howling already.BTW,is there anyone more annoying than Wayne Easter? Well,maybe,but I certainly find him the most grating to listen to.

I'm renaming the Liberals the Tribberals. They treat us like Harry Mudd

"as a Rancher here in Alberta(we used to raise grain"

Ballots went to persons who have sold grain on a permit book recently. Or should we vote on snow removal and allow anyone with a truck capable of hauling vote on whether union wages are correct?

"I'd be interested in who you do consider to be a reliable expert on the topic?"

Bugs Bunny has a handle on carrots.

I hate rabbits.

I saw some of the CPAC debate and was amazed that Winnipeg Liberal Anita Neville stated that 5 Cargill employees could do the work of 460 CWB employees and she is all for having farmers continue to pay for the 460, cause it's good for Winnipeg.

As we said when Chrétien put Ralph Goodale in charge of the Wheat Board. "At least it isn't Wayne Easter."

shaken, they are controlled. It is called (AP) Associated Press, .. same for (CP)

Google Associated Press green helmut.

(AP) is a very, very powerful org, reporters would not even think of stepping out of bounds.

"farmers continue to pay for the 460"

That's interesting. Its about the same ratio in the Parliamentary Press Gallery. Kate does the work of 360 members of the PPG.

I think she's entitled to some type of government assistance.

From QP,just now:
Dion:I look forward to debating this PM,on the environment
PMSH:I look forward to a debate with this leader,as Lib.member from Etobicoke stated,the Libs failed on the environment,and the leader of this party(Libs)knows the environment,like Galliano knows accountability!
ZING!Gotta love PMSH.

I caught a bit of the debate, and the favourite moment of it by far was when Myron Thompson gets up and says, "I think the lack of choice for farmers is a charter issue."

BOOM

I've been waiting for Reg Puff Daddy Alcock to enlighten us with some of his pearls of wisdom on the Wheat Board.

Reg? Reg? Reg?

The CWB 'special interest' groups can put any spin they want on the director election numbers they want, but there are still 4 out of ten farmers who want the CWB to take a hike. Actually the CWB has generated so much animosity and hatred against us farmers (a small, noisy group of radicals they called us) who at one time would have settled for a dual market, that I now want the CWB to be gonzo totally, zippo, tout fini.
And when the CWB sales books are finally opened, it will be.

''this blog does not have a "special interest" beyond the author belonging to a family with members still farming in Saskatchewan''

If farmers don't constitute a special interest, I don't know who does.

Maryjane this blog covers many topics, including the political, and comments are open to one and all. To suggest that it's "special interest" is nonsense. Perhaps you should drop around more often.

"special interest groups such as right wing bloggers."
david brown

A loose translation: "politicians should only listen to liberals who think like I do." Seriously, who else but a so-called special interest group has an informed opinion on a topic like this?
Ignorance may be bliss, but it is also brown.

MaryJane
Farmers ARE the interest not the special interest

This blog is the pulse of Canada! Congrats from the states!

LOL!!! Is anyone else watching CTV Newsnet, and Dan Matheson making an ass out of himself with his pronunciation of "Pinochet"? It's almost like a bad rerun of WKRP and Les Nessman saying "Chy-Chy Rodreegweez."

"This blog is the pulse of Canada!"

Pulse crops are legumes belonging to the same plant family as alfalfa and sweet clover. They have the capacity to capture atmospheric nitrogen and transform it into useable plant nitrogen in the form of amino acids and proteins. This process is called “nitrogen fixation.”

If only framers would stop referring to themselves as such and start calling themselves what they really are...agri-business entrepenuers.

The CWB would cease to exist. Only victims need protection and assistance.

The wheat board issue isn't on the radar in the Maritimes. We guess bottom trawling isn't an issue out there either. So much for a national press. We need to get together on this stuff. Blogs do that.

'As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.'"

Maybe next time Matheson and the rest of MSM "will be a little more up to par"

Les

Attaboy, Kate! (You are now an honorary GUY.
Because you got *****.....uh......GONADS!) Your cheque is still in the mail. Haw! (I hesitate to call it a 'christmas gift'- I don't believe in the Tooth Fairy or the Easter Bunny, either. But still..........
You have provided a FORUM- where information gets shared outside of the regular channels, (where even the trolls get to show where they are really coming from....and all of us, all of us faithfull ....uh.....!?!......are in your debt!)
Remember that FARMER from the Praries, who flogged his farm and moved to Vancouver. A newspaper geek asked him: "How do you like the mountains?"
He replied: "They are nice, but they sure hide the view!" Haw!

On a quasi-serious note, what does it say about the state of our Media? In this thread we use WKRP in Cincinnati in context, the previous thread used two Monty Python sketches (Holy Grail & Parrot) in a general context for Castro.

Both these comedies were parodies of all things related to established norms.

I guess that answers my own question, our MSM has become it's own parody.

To quote from yet another pop culture moment " Only in Canada EH?, Pity"

Great articles on this issue and certainly got attention. Congratulations, Kate and all those contributers who helped to get the facts out!

Damn you online pranksters!

There has been some intimation that the CWB doesn't want accountability act openness to apply to them. The question has been "asked what are they hiding". Has anyone paid any attention to this story?

http://tinyurl.com/vcela

a quote from the above mentioned article:

"From 1999-2003, AWB[Australian Wheat Board] executives allegedly authorized $222 million in bogus transport fees to a Jordanian trucking company, Alia Transport, that was partly owned by Saddam's government. Payments to Saddam were illegal under U.N. sanctions.

AWB allegedly inflated the cost of wheat it was charging to the oil-for-food program by as much as $50 per ton to cover the bogus transport fees, which the Iraqi Grain Board demanded as a condition of lucrative grain contracts."...
"In New York, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said files from the larger inquiry into oil-for-food "continue to be accessible and available to all judicial authorities investigating these allegations."

Has anybody looked to see if the CWB was in any way involved with the oil for food scandal?

The only thing that most of the commenters dont understand is this;when we sell wheat and barley to the CWB ,we get a portion of what they sell it for.After about a year they pay any remaining to us on the sale but we cant find out what they sell it for.To put it in ordinary terms if you worked for a company and they didnt tell you how much that you would be paid but they would pay you a portion of your wage,then,if they made money selling their product,you would be paid more but only when you got your final cheque would you know how much and you couldnt find out how much they made on the product.

Like any other company spike?

When you sell your peas to cargill do they tell you how much they make on it? Do they for that matter detail every sale and price for their investors??

Barcs

Farmers aren't forced to sell to Cargill, so cargill would have to offer market value and make the deal upfront for how much they would pay for the product.

like normal, proper, business negotiations.

just a question do you know anything about the wheat board Barcs? I suggest you do some reading
you'll see its totally different business arrangement than anything YOU have ever encountered UNLESS YOU are a Prairie Farmer.

dubyadubya:

The Wheat board may not be an issue in the Maritimes but you'd never guess the way Wayne Easter yells his guts out on the issue.
It looks like ramping up for votes in the East where it counts for Liberals and to hell with the West where it doesn't.

Old Wayner and Ralphy should head for the Funny Farm and get the hell out of the wheat fields.

I just wish one of you farmers would take this up as a human rights abuse/ charter challenge. This is an abuse of your human rights when a quebec or ontario farmer doesn't have to sell to the wheat board but prarie farmers do. That is a far bigger abuse than some queer being hurt by sleeping through and missing his pride parade.

Yuppers Jared. From Southwest corner of this land called Saskatchewan.

Farming 800 acres in the context of a 7000 acre (family) ag business venture (farm). Oh yeah and finishing off a degree in Agriculture. Not to mention building business plans for my farm and my buddies transition from the dairy (supply management) system he recently left.

Don't get me wrong. I understand that the CWB is not the be all and end all. I am not stupid enough to believe the lefties who tell me I make bundles of money from it. But then again I am also not stupid enough to believe the righties who would have me believe that the CWB is the cause of all my problems and that I will make bundles more money if I would just end the monopoly (oh and by the way the CWB will adjust and be even better for me than it is now in a dual market 'that will never exist').

I assure you I deal more with and even with my meager knowledge I understand more about the organization than most of the 'ideological experts' around here.

Further I understand and appreciate (from the $300,000 of specialty crops I sell every year just how much work marketing can be. The other 1/2 of my production goes through non board feed markets, CWB pool accounts and various CWB marketing options.

I am, though my research in school and on the farm, convinced that the monies earned from my board grains would not change much under a free market system (nor would the average bulk of farms). What would change is the amount of work I would need to put into the marketing. Work that now goes into off farm jobs, on-farm improvements and hobbies.

bartinsky - Charter of rights? does it guarantee free market?? (watch out health care.. and all of government for that matter)

Barcs:

Your responses to this post and other posts about the CWB have been respectful,topical and well reasoned. I totally dissagree with them but you are obviously a reasonable person. How then, can you demand that I sell MY crop to anyone but whom I choose. You have no right to do this. Neither does any marketing group. Even you state that you don't think the pricing would change much in a free market. You speak of ideologies clouding the view of CWB opponents. I suggest that it is you that is blinded by ideology. I live in a free country.(I hope) I demand the freedom to freely market my product.

"How then, can you demand that I sell MY crop to anyone but whom I choose."

That is among the (few) present arguments here that hold water. And one I happen to agree with.

However I also sometimes am forced to conclude that collectiveness is sometimes important to the benefit the group. (Vulcan Philosophy - the needs of the many and all that). In this group I grudgingly place things like welfare, Healthcare, Education, foreign and domestic aid, etc.

I am still on the fence as to whether the CWB (benefits) fit into such a category or not.

**-- Placing anything in such a group obviously has its drawbacks. One of which is your argument for property rights. (Which are not enshrined in the constitution. Isn't such a change in the CPC platform)

So failing a decision on the morality of whether the CWB should be in that group or not I am left to argue my position only from whether or not I can see benefits in either situation.

In this country there are many marketing boards.If a farmer wants to market his produce,they have to buy quota as these boards get more than world price for products.In Ontario it ranges between$30 and $40,ooo per cow.The quotas that prairie farmers have to abide by are worth zip,nada,nil or any other word that represents nothing.In fact these same quotas have forced thousands of farmers off the land because of no cash flow.The CWB prohibits the growing of high yielding wheat because of no reason other than that they do.MR.RITTER;TEAR DOWN THAT WALL !

Market Place Discipline, Marketing Power, Fee Schedule, Industry Association, .. whatever you want to call it.

How sucessful with haggling are we with;
Dentists
Chemical Companies
Lawyers
Fert cos
Pharmacies
Rail cos
Surgeons
Milk
Turkeys (human kind also)
Fuel

Do I agree with "putting-on-the-squeeze" ?? not really. But if one wants to make $$$, best to be in the low # of sellers group.

Is it possible for thousands and thousands of G & O seed Farmers to exhibit market discipline ?? Never. Is your product the most esential item to Mankind ?? Absolutely. Nothing trumps it, not even health care.

That is why govmits of the world will never leave food production entirely to the market place. Even the USofA has the USDA, the biggest Bear in the market.

The CWB "could" have discipline, "if" it wanted to, and "if" the politicians ok-ed it, and "if" the citizens wanted higher food prices.

Otherwise, build lotsa bins and don't disclose your inventory #s.

And here I thought collectivism died with Stalin.

"I just wish one of you farmers would take this up as a human rights abuse/ charter challenge. This is an abuse of your human rights when a quebec or ontario farmer doesn't have to sell to the wheat board but prarie farmers do."

This is the mute point; whose wheat/barley is it anyway?
1. If Farmers want to market under a marketing agency that speaks for all there is nothing stopping them; but it should be a voluntary membership in an agency accountable to said members.
2. The continuation of the CWB as it stands is really a threat to all Canadians. This is a basic Property Rights violation and sets a precidence. I believe the Supreme Court can rule in favor of the Government on similar matters of property rights because there was no objection in this case. This goes back to an Ontario case if Impared Driving and a wrongful search (road block). The Justices ruled the Rights violation OK due to lack of previous objections. The people had given permission in absentia.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Article 17.

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.

(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

I believe Canada is a signor of this declaration?

I did not see much of the debate about the motion the bouncing bunny easter put forward Tue. because I had to work but I did see Mr. David Anderson, MP for your riding Barc, the Beautiful Cypress Hills; give one of the best speeches I have ever heard on the topic. In his speech Mr. Anderson ripped the hysterical, high pitched, PEI guy and his Liberano$/Dipper defenders of the CWB to the quick. He had the bunny carrying on like the battery charged Everready bunny that keeps on going and going and going....it was really funny to see the spud bunny sputtering and spinning in place.

If any farmers here ever doubted that the Liberano$/Dippers had respect or concern for their interests they certainly got their answer today. The Dipper/Liberano$ voted with the separatista outfit (Bloc) to keep you as 'state slaves'.
I commend Mrs. Skelton for reading your Blog Kate and I commend you for it's (sda)excellence. "The pulse of Canada" - well said and factual. Thank-you once again Kate for all you do for all the rest of us.

I heard, today, that we have a new parliamentary poet; to keep up with the times, may I suggest, Mrs Skelton, that you pass a motion to sponsor a parliamentary blogger and that you nominate Kate at sda for that position? Kate should also get a citizen of the decade award for saving the sanity of hundreds of Canadians. Once the WB books are cracked and they are forced to pay back what they forced farmers to buy into and buy back out of, the government can give Kate funds to keep up her good work of keeping Canadians informed of the real news of the day.

If as some of you say, this cwb is such a great thing for farmers (western farmers) then open the books and lets have a look.

Someone mentioned how the austrailian wb has been implicated in the oil for food scandle and that the farmers in the awb were overcharged to the tune of millions. By what i read the ausie wb is on the way out...no wonder!
Knowing france was tight with saddam, and how cretch was related to desmarias and how desmarias was one of the largest share holders in a french oil company, and as scared as the old guard (liebrals) are to open the books i would say i smell a rat, a big fat liebral mafia rat! They sure enough proved to us they know how to stick their fingers in the till to the tune of billions!

AS for buyers, Where do u suppose the farmers delivered their grain before the cwb came alone? Yes, to the grain company's. Do you think they are going to stop buying your grain after the wb moves over to give you choice? Do you think the cwb was finding louis dryfus the sales for the wheat they were buying and selling before they had handling facilitys here? They will still be here after, but u will also be able to go looking on your own if you want to.

Some of u are mentioning the forward priceing options the wb gives us as a form of free market. Well if farmer (a) does this and the cwb looses money, who do you think is going to pick up that loss? Let me tell you, it will be the boys in the (cwb pool account b)! and that is already happening.

For my money, i think i'm better off to take a one shot price, like i do for my canola, flax, feed wheat or whatever i'm selling, then if someone down the chain wants to cause a hickup my money is off the table and someone else can pick up the bill. At least i would like the choice!

Thanks as well Kate.

http://www 2.parl.gc .ca/HousePublications/Publication .aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=39&Ses=1&DocId=2598624

The above is the link to the debate yesterday.

Note: To keep from being trapped in the filter, 3 spaces were created within the address.

Committee minutes can take longer to be posted in Hansard, but will watch for them to be completed ahead, too.

As I understand it Bygeorge. (Larry can please correct me if I am wrong)

The CWB in its pricing options acts much the way any other grain company does to protect themselves from market fluctuations. When you buy a forward contract they offset their position on one of the grain exchanges.

In so doing they reduce risk by guarenteeing both the price they buy and sell at.

Such would also protect sales money in the pool accounts from any market speculation.

Barcs, if farmer(a)forward prices for lets say 4 dollars a bushel. Hauls said grain to the elevator and their is a strike that causes demurage charges to be leveled at said grain.....who is going to pick up that cost? I say, the boys in pool account b. I would much prefer to take a one shot deal and get my money off the table.

Thanks buffalo bean. I will miss the hyper drama (the battery bunny) but it will be great to read the whole thing. I will be looking for your comitee postings. Thank-you again. BTW will you post the addresses here at sda?

That is correct.

Try to be consistent in your argument please. Forward contracting has nothing to do with demurrage.

Barc:

The CWB in its pricing options acts much the way any other grain company does to protect themselves from market fluctuations. When you buy a forward contract they offset their position on one of the grain exchanges.

An offset is completing on one of three exchanges - you are correct on the PURCHASE but not the sale. The CWB could sit on the wheat for 9 months before selling it. The do not hedge sales until sales are made or it would be speculating. They do not hedge FOREX until sales are made or it is speculating. (sore point for me)

In so doing they reduce risk by guarenteeing both the price they buy and sell at.

Sell....see above. They are still at FOREX and futures risk until the grain is sold.

Such would also protect sales money in the pool accounts from any market speculation.

Pricing options:

Contentious issue with those who use them and the basis levels. The CWB is accused of building the contingency fund on the backs of farmers who use the pricing tools. I can argue both sides of this one.

Best,
LW

Conspiracy theory from a farmer( or two )I know...

Cargil controls Potash
Cargil controls Transport
Cargil controls buying
Cargil controls market

Western Canadian farmers who have been attacking CWB have made deals with Cargil!

Is Cargil behind the Anti- CWB hysteria??

CBC 'At Issue' media panel tonight was shown a photo of a lady known to us.

None of them, Chantal Hebert, Rob Russo, Andrew Coyne, Rex Murphy, knew who she was.

Peter M. admitted he had to look again at his notes, to provide her name....Hon. Carol Skelton, Saskatchewan MP, Minister of National Revenue and the Minister of Western Economic Diversification.

The theme of the short jab was that since she was so unknown, not much could be happening in regard to Western Diversification. Or that she was of some less consequence perhaps.

Interesting, in that farmers out West have had some ideas of their own about what they could do if they could market their own product....diversify, in other words.

Or, perhaps, the CBC caught Skelton's mention of alternate opinions coming from other sources than MSM;)

Hopefully, Western Diversification, as a function of the various governments working together with vigor, will show its best side after the break...

But, for not knowing who she was, they might feel some measure of embarrassment, for isn't that their job to know?

How much time do they really spend watching debates, other than Question Period?