The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Greetings to everyone in western Illinois. Plantin' is comin' along quite well around these parts. A few folks who has seed in the ground nigh over four weeks now are considerin' replantin' those fields.
If'n the seed is in good Muscatine-silt soil it seems to be doin' alright. If'n it is in stickier soil like sable or a timber soil the stands seem to be irregular.
Federal crop insurance and the seed companies share the cost of seed for replantin'. The farmer stands the cost of fuel and labor. Yield loss or gain belongs to the farmer and if'n he happens to be a "cash renter" he has that motivation to better his chances for a good yield. Large cash rent tends toward stronger motivation to do his best.
Some beans have been planted already but not many. The wise farmer hopes for his neighbor to have a good lush field of beans earlier than his own to attract the Japanese beatles and leave his own fields alone.
As an additional warnin', be careful whilst workin' the spring work that is a little behind schedule. One unfortunate feller I know of was up high on his 24 row planter tendin' to some adjustments. In his hurry early in the mornin' just after daybreak he slipped and fell six or eight feet.
He landed on the planter tongue flat on his back and bonked his head with a terrible soundin' thud. That was it for him for the rest of the mornin. To the house he went and then to the hospital.
The doctor found no internal damage and wisely predicted you're gonna be mighty sore come the afternoon. More sore than he was right at that time.
The young farmers cure was to get a bottle of ibuprofren and climb right back on the tractor as soon as he could get back to the field that day. After all, the sun was shinin' and there was plenty of field work yet to be done.
Good thing he was workin' for himself for OSHA would have had his bosses hide if'n he had been working for someone else. Farmers are a tough strong willed stubborn bunch when it comes to gett'n their work done. I'm a hope'n this one made the right decision.
The tax code was recently explained to me in an enterst'n way, I'll share it with you and see what you thinks.
Suppose that every day, ten men go out together for lunch and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If'n they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing
The fifth would pay $1
The sixth would pay $3
The seventh would pay $7
The eighth would pay $12
The ninth would pay $18
the tenth man (the richest) would pay $59
So that's what they decided to do. The ten men ate together everyday and seemed qutie happy with the arrangement, until one day, the restaraunt owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good customers," he said "I'm going to reduce the cost of your meals by $20". The meals for the ten now costs just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would continue to eat for free, but what about the other six men - the paying customers?
How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?" They soon realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everybod's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to eat his meal.
The restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount and he proceded to work out the amounts each should pay! And so:
The fifth man, lik the first four now paid nothing (100% savings)
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings)
The seventh now apaid $5 instead of $7 (28% savings)
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings)
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings)
The tenth now paid $49 insted of $59 (16% savings)
Each of the six was better off than before and the first four continued to eat lunch for free, but once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
"I only got a dollar out of the $20, declared the sixth man." He pointed to the tenth man, "but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right", exclained the first man, "I only saved a dollar, also. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I".
"That true!!", shouted the seventh man, "why should he get $10 back when I only got two? The wealthy get all the breaks!:. "Wait a minute, yelled the first four men in unison, we didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!" The nine men surrounded the tenth man and beat him up.
The next day the tenth man didn't show up for the meal, so the nine sat down and ate without him, but when it came time to pay the bill, they discoverd something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, it was explained to me for the benefit of liberal boys and girls, journalists, and college professors, is how our tax system works.
The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction.
Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore to pay the tab.
Congratulations to the high school graduates and best of luck if you are going to further your education or enter the job market or a career in the military service.
And remember, if'n you're successful, and eventually become wealthy, you better realize the importance of being involved in the legislative process, especially as it pertains to progressive tax laws.
If'n you don't, those folk with less energy and ability just might choose to beat you up for your success and your hard work.
Keep on Smilen'
Catch Ya Later,
Barnyard Bruke