Sortin Pen 6-22-17

Quote of the Week: Hello, Oregon! This week’s quote comes from Curtis Martin of the Juniper Mountain Ranch at North Powder, Oregon, who says this was his mother’s motto and lifelong belief: “Sweet, clear air from east to west, with room to go and come; I loved my fellow man the best, when he was scattered some.” And thanks, Curtis, […]

Into the Depths

Last weekend, the trophy wife and I completed back-to-back marathons. The first was 26.2 miles along Lake Superior, with the second skirting the shoreline of Lake Michigan. Because I am incredibly compromising, I added one extra day to our trip for the actual tourist stuff the trophy wife insists we do. Doing nothing on purpose, with no objective, for an […]

And the winning auctioneer was…

Brian Curless of Pittsfield, Illinois, proved his world-class talent as a livestock auctioneer at the 54th annual World Livestock Auctioneer Championship, which took place at the Public Auction Yards, Billings, MT, on June 17. Curless was raised in the livestock marketing industry, but did not originally have any interest in becoming an auctioneer. During his mid-20s, Curless recognized the need […]

What you need to know (and maybe didn’t) about beef exports to China

By Leesa Zalesky Editor’s Tongue-In-Cheek Comment: Do you suppose Canada and Mexico will bring a trade case against the U.S. for trying to comply with these Chinese export requirements? LG On June 12, the USDA, the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) issued a joint press release announcing the posting of requirements […]

Importing M-branded cattle…

By Leesa Zalesky Just prior to this week’s deadline, an anonymous source called to report that several hundred head of Mexican cattle had been imported into Montana recently and had been quarantined because of a bovine tuberculosis (TB) threat. A call to Dr. Eric Liska — Montana Department of Livestock (DOL), Brucellosis Program Veterinarian — helped get to the bottom […]

Obituary – Benny Leroy “Ben” Kern

Benny Leroy “Ben” Kern September 9, 1926 – June 12, 2017 Ben Kern, 90, died June 12, 2017, in Evansville, Wyoming. Benny Leroy Kern was born September 9, 1926, in Bridgeport, Nebraska, to Lloyd and Ila Case Kern. He served in the U.S. Navy on the USS Ormsby and the USS Jason from 1944 to 1947, earning many meritorious medals. […]

Obituary – Sara Jayne Poppe

Sara Jayne Poppe 1975 to 2017 On June 8, 2017, Sara Jayne Poppe of Gunnison, Colorado, was called to eternal rest. Sara, the eldest of Vince and Lori Poppe’s two children, was born in Oregon City, Oregon, in 1975. The Poppe family moved to Colorado’s Gunnison Valley in 1977, where they lived and ranched first in Ohio City and later […]

Front Page Photo 6-22-17

Agri-Kid 6-22-17

More of Rascal’s nefarious ideas…

“That ol’ masked bandit sure was proud of himself the other day,” said Tuff as he rubbed his eyes instinctively. “My eyes burned for two days.” “Yeah, what was even more accurate was Mrs. McBauwck’s little tizzy,” said Banjo. “All his leftover-leftovers and sauce everywhere did bring in another varmint.” Tuff looked at Banjo. “I didn’t know that,” said Tuff. […]