Fischer Mourns the Loss of Technical Sergeant Joseph Lemm

Valentine, Neb. -- U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) released the following statement today regarding the death of Technical Sergeant Joseph Lemm, a Nebraska native who was killed in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan:

“Technical Sergeant Joseph Lemm served many years as a member of the New York Police Department and the Air National Guard. His death is a major loss for Nebraska and our nation. My deepest sympathies are with his family and friends during this difficult time. This tragic loss is a reminder of the grave dangers our service members face around the world, and we keep them in our prayers this holiday season.”

Working For You

U.S. Senator Deb Fischer

By U.S. Senator Deb Fischer

 

As 2015 comes to a close, I am pleased the Senate made important progress for Nebraskans this past year. I am also optimistic for what the future holds. In the first session of the 114th Congress, we ushered in a new majority that is more efficient, more productive, and more accountable to the American people.

Over the past year, the Senate has passed more than 100 bipartisan bills, and we have restored deliberation and debate to the legislative process. All senators, no matter their party, have had the opportunity to make their voices heard. It’s refreshing to focus on making real and substantive progress. 

Throughout the year, I have continued to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to advance the priorities of Nebraska families and our nation.

The first responsibility of a limited federal government is to provide for the common defense. This year, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). I am a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, which helped produced this bipartisan legislation that authorized the resources our military needs to carry out its missions. The dangers throughout our world evolved over the past year, and the NDAA targets areas that require additional support. It also makes cuts to outdated and inefficient programs.

Another core duty of the federal government is to build infrastructure. In December, for the first time in over a decade, Congress passed a long-term highway bill. The legislation was a major, bipartisan accomplishment. I was proud to work on developing a long-term bill since my first year in the U.S. Senate, and this bill is a major victory for Nebraska. Because of this legislation, our state will receive $1.5 billion over the next five years to update and maintain our roads, highways, bridges, and transit systems.

As we plan for the future, we must also prepare our children and grandchildren for success. Recently, Congress passed a major education reform bill. For years, requirements resulting from the No Child Left Behind law have caused over-testing and forced educators to “teach to the test” rather than provide students with the knowledge and tools they need. The education bill will largely scale back federal involvement in K-12 education. It will end waivers, stop the Common Core mandate, and eliminate the federal test-based accountability system. With these reasonable reforms, we are restoring local control to schools, parents, school boards, teachers, and communities so that they can determine the best policies for their students.

Also this year, I continued to champion policies at the federal level that will benefit our ag producers. For example, the highway bill reverses $3 billion in cuts to the crop insurance program that were initially included in the two-year budget agreement. Furthermore, I fought to prevent the administration from enacting regulations like the  “waters of the United States” rule and other harmful policies that will drive up the cost of electricity. I will continue to fight for all Nebraska families by opposing government overreach and burdensome federal regulations. 

It’s been a productive year, but our work has just begun. With your continued feedback, the Senate can provide Nebraskans with the accountability and results they deserve.

Finally, Bruce and I want to take a moment to wish you and your families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. 

Thank you for your interest and continued participation in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you in 2016.

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The Hope of Christmas in an Uncertain World

 

Amidst the festivities of the Christmas season, our hearts remain heavy for the innocent lives recently lost to terrorism in our country and abroad.
In his radio address to the nation on Christmas Eve 1983, President Ronald Reagan recounted the challenges of our country’s first Christmas, encouraging Americans to approach current global conflicts with the same faith and resolve. He also highlighted the sacrifices made by our soldiers to defend our freedoms, which our brave military men and women continue to make today.
As growing threats from terrorism and persecution plague our world, President Reagan’s words are a welcome reminder of the strength of Americans and the true hope of Christmas.
Merry Christmas, and I hope all Nebraskans enjoy a safe and happy holiday season.
President Ronald Reagan
Radio Address to the Nation
December 24, 1983
My fellow Americans:
Like so many of your homes, the White House is brimming with greens, colorful decorations, and a tree trimmed and ready for Christmas day. And when Nancy and I look out from our upstairs windows, we can see the National Christmas Tree standing in majestic beauty. Its lights fill the air with a spirit of love, hope, and joy from the heart of America.
...Christmas is also a time to remember the treasures of our own history. We remember one Christmas in particular, 1776, our first year as a nation. The Revolutionary War had been going badly. But George Washington’s faith, courage, and leadership would turn the tide of history our way. On Christmas night he led a band of ragged soldiers across the Delaware River through driving snow to a victory that saved the cause of independence. It’s said that their route of march was stained by bloody footprints, but their spirit never faltered and their will could not be crushed.
The image of George Washington kneeling in prayer in the snow is one of the most famous in American history. He personified a people who knew it was not enough to depend on their own courage and goodness; they must also seek help from God, their Father and Preserver.
In a few hours, families and friends across America will join together in caroling parties and Christmas Eve services. Together, we’ll renew that spirit of faith, peace, and giving which has always marked the character of our people. In our moments of quiet reflection I know we will remember our fellow citizens who may be lonely and in need tonight.
…Let us remember the families who maintain a watch for their missing in action. And, yes, let us remember all those who are persecuted inside the Soviet bloc – not because they commit a crime, but because they love God in their hearts and want the freedom to celebrate Hanukkah or worship the Christ Child.
And because faith for us is not an empty word, we invoke the power of prayer to spread the spirit of peace. We ask protection for our soldiers who are guarding peace tonight – from frigid outposts in Alaska and the Korean demilitarized zone to the shores of Lebanon.
…With patience and firmness we can help bring peace to that strife-torn region and make our own lives more secure. The Christmas spirit of peace, hope, and love is the spirit Americans carry with them all year round, everywhere we go. As long as we do, we need never be afraid, because trusting in God is the one sure answer to all the problems we face. Till next week, thanks for listening, God bless you, and Merry Christmas.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTH

Duane A. Lienemann
Nebraska Extension Educator

     As I write this, Christmas is just around the corner. It seems to be such a blur this time of year with all of the Christmas based parties, school programs, family gatherings, and Church activities to name just a few. It seems, as I get older, time flies by faster. Didn’t we just do Christmas?  I think most of us know why we celebrate Christmas, and I know I have talked about Santa and his reindeer in previous columns, but have you ever thought of some of the other Christmas traditions?
     There has always been in the past an unwritten law in this country of seemingly uniform celebration of the Christmas traditions of USA. This is responsible for the world wide acceptance of a universal Christmas image which they get from the various forms of media. I do believe that the world of “political correctness” has however intruded into our traditions. I will let each of you decide for yourself what means the most to you.  To me it will be Christmas!  The tree will be a “Christmas Tree” – not a “Holiday Tree”. I will most likely use the phrase “Merry Christmas” over “Happy Holidays”. I will also celebrate the birth of Jesus with traditions that I grew up with. It is after all something that we all look forward to. 
    One thing is certain, in today’s world of TV, internet, social media and global connections there are variations of traditions that are carried out all across the world and of course right here in the good old USA. I do know that the Christmas time celebrations are peculiar to each region and have different meanings.  You will also find that the variations of the Christmas traditions of the USA pretty much equals the number of active cultures that have settled in the land. We are, after all, the melting pot of the world and past cultures usually dictate present traditions. I would like to use today’s talk about some of those traditions that I am used to, and how they came to be. Let’s look beyond Christ’s birth and Santa Claus bringing presents and at some other traditions.  How about we start with the “Christmas Tree”? 
     I, like many Nebraskans, have a German background --and we all know about Tannenbaum, and in fact I am humming the song right now – and it won’t go away. History says the Christmas tree got its start in 16th-century Germany when fir trees were decorated, both indoors and out, with apples, roses, gilded candies, and colored paper. A fir tree hung with apples was used to symbolize the Paradise Tree in the Garden of Eden and was decorated during Advent season. It is held that Protestant reformer Martin Luther first adorned trees with light. While coming home one December evening, the beauty of the stars shining through the branches of a fir inspired him to recreate the effect by placing candles on the branches of a small fir tree inside his home. Evergreens seemed to be a theme in ancient traditions, let’s explore those traditions. 
     I have often heard that some Christmas traditions actually date back to ancient Druid rites. Well, this may be part of the reason that comes up. It seems that mistletoe was used by Druid priests 200 years before the birth of Christ in their winter celebrations. They revered the plant since it had no roots yet remained green during the cold months of winter. The ancient Celtics believed mistletoe to have magical healing powers and used it as an antidote for poison, infertility, and to ward of evil spirits. The plant was also seen as a symbol of peace, and it is said that among Romans, enemies who met under mistletoe would lay down their weapons and embrace. Scandinavians associated the plant with Frigga, their goddess of love, and it may be from this that we derive the custom of kissing under the mistletoe. Those who kissed under the mistletoe had the promise of happiness and good luck in the following year. Incidentally, my wife won’t let me hang up Mistletoe!
     That leads me to holly, ivy and greenery. I understand that this got its start, again in Northern Europe. Of course, Christmas occurred during the middle of winter, and to early Europeans ghosts and demons could be heard howling in the winter winds. Boughs of holly, believed to have magical powers, since they remained green through the harsh winter, were often placed over the doors of homes to drive evil away. Greenery was also brought indoors to freshen up the air and brighten the mood during the long, dreary winter. That is something that is still a benefit of that particular tradition.  Legend also has it that holly sprang from the footsteps of Christ as he walked the earth. The pointed leaves were said to represent the crown of thorns Christ wore while on the cross and the red berries symbolized the blood he shed. 
     We can’t forget about the stockings on the fireplace. According to legend, a kindly nobleman grew despondent over the death of his beloved wife and foolishly squandered his fortune. This left his three young daughters without dowries and thus facing a life of spinsterhood. The generous St. Nicholas, hearing of the girls' plight, set forth to help. Wishing to remain anonymous, he rode his white horse by the nobleman's house and threw three small pouches of gold coins down the chimney where they were fortuitously captured by the stockings the young women had hung by the fireplace to dry.
     Last but not least the candy cane. It was not long after Europeans began using Christmas trees that special decorations were used to adorn them. Legend has it in the 17th century, white sticks of candy were made in the shape of a shepherds' crook, or some say "J" for Jesus. The red-and-white stripes represented Christ's blood and purity. The three red stripes symbolized the Holy Trinity. The hardness of the candy represented the Church's foundation on solid rock and the peppermint flavor represented the use of hyssop, an herb referred to in the Old Testament. 
     There you have it! You will find me under the Mistletoe by the Christmas tree, over by the holly and ivy draped fireplace mantle, looking in my stocking for candy canes, waiting for Santa! Here’s wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

The preceding information comes from the research and personal observations of the writer which may or may not reflect the views of UNL or Nebraska Extension. For more further information on these or other topics contact D. A. Lienemann, Nebraska Extension Educator for Webster County in Red Cloud, (402) 746-3417 or email to: dlienemann2@unl.edu or go to the !website at: http://www.webster.unl.edu 

Protecting Our Local Communities

Sen. Deb Fischer

    In the wake of the financial crisis, the 111^th Congress created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which is charged with protecting consumers from financial sector abuse. The agency is also responsible for ensuring our financial institutions follow the laws of the land.

Four and a half years later, the CFPB exerts immense influence over all sectors of the economy. The agency’s budget has grown by 74 percent in the past two years, from $357 million in 2013 to $622 million in 2015. Over the years, the CFPB has become a bureaucracy that has too much power over the free market. As such, it requires robust oversight from Congress.

Originally, Congress established the CFPB to regulate the markets for consumer financial products and services, but they have since expanded their reach beyond that. It is now placing a considerable strain on our pocket books, and it is inhibiting economic growth.

In Nebraska, community banks are feeling the effects of the agency’s misguided rules. Under current law, the CFPB provides exemptions to certain lending restrictions for areas deemed rural. Through these exemptions, community banks are able to increase access to credit for rural areas and their dependent industries, such as agriculture. But first, a county must receive the rural designation. Due to flaws in the current CFPB review process, many rural areas are not being labeled correctly and, as a result, they are missing opportunities for economic growth.

For counties with densely-populated areas and rural reaches, the agency’s designation system is failing. Adams, Buffalo, and Hall counties have all been deemed “non-rural.” Take Hall County as an example. The fact that Grand Island has a population close to 50,000 shouldn’t prevent a producer from Doniphan from accessing the credit they need to grow their local economy.  

What’s more, once the CFPB makes a county-by-county designation, it is set in stone. There are no mechanisms in place to allow an area to appeal their designation. This means many rural communities are being left without a voice in the process.

In the U.S. Senate, one of my priorities is creating a regulatory environment to help our community businesses expand and thrive. That is why I cosponsored the Helping Expand Lending Practices (HELP) in Rural Communities Act. This legislation, which was signed into law as part of the highway bill on December 4, 2015, will allow counties that have been improperly designated as “non-rural” to provide more information and encourage the agency to reevaluate their status. It will also designate specific criteria for the agency to consider when making a county designation. This common-sense legislation would provide our local banks with some relief from onerous federal regulations and help build stronger Nebraska communities.

I believe this structural reform is an important step forward in reforming the CFPB processes. Our rural communities need the freedom and flexibility to prosper and grow. As your Senator, I will continue conducting aggressive oversight at the federal level to address government overreach and protect Nebraska families.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week

Webster County Early Market Beef Weigh-in December 13

     4-H and FFA members have undoubtedly already found or will be looking for calves for the early Webster County Market Beef Weigh-in which is just around the corner. The weigh-in is for potential Market Steers, Market Heifers and 2nd Year Bucket Calves. Webster County will have two official weigh-ins again this year. The early date is set for Sunday, December 13 at the Sale Barn in Blue Hill (Blue Hill Livestock), with the 20th as a bad weather day. The time frame is from 1:00-5:00 pm. If an exhibitor requires special consideration, please feel free to call the Webster County Extension office at 402-746-3417, or call Dewey Lienemann directly at 402-469-0357.
     The UNL Extension office will have the 4-H tags and EID tags at the weigh-in and will be put in on site. Please note that there are new rules for beef tags this year. Please refer to the Webster County 4-H Newsletter for that information which was sent out to all 4-H member families. It can also be found at www.webster.unl.edu . 
     All 4-H and FFA market animals that may be going to the Nebraska State Fair will have a unique Nebraska 840 EID tag put in at the weigh-in. Market beef that will only be shown at the Webster County fair will need a 4-H or FFA tag plus a Webster County EID tag.  Beef Ownership Affidavits will be available at the weigh-in site; however, exhibitors and parents are reminded that it hastens the process if the 4-H/FFA livestock ID/affidavit sheets are filled out, with all signatures, prior to/or at weigh-in. They will not be allowed to be taken home for signatures. 
     Affidavits may be downloaded from the Web at www.webster.unl.edu or exhibitors may pick one up from their 4-H leader or at the Nebraska Extension office, and have it ready to go for weigh-in. Exhibitors who plan to show at either the 2016 Nebraska State Fair, Ak-Sar-Ben or American Royal must also have a DNA sample taken and they must be sent in with the ID/affidavit sheet for each animal that may be going. 
     Further information on the new State 4-H and FFA Beef identification rules and an explanation of what size of calf is best for weighing in was in the December 2015 Webster County 4-H Newsletter which can be found at www.webster.unl.edu , but if any beef exhibitor would like guidance on how to pick out the right size of calf for fair, please contact the Webster County UNL Extension office for suggestions at 402-746-3417 or email dlienemann2@unl.edu. 
     The second and last official weigh-in is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, January 24 also at the Sale Barn in Blue Hill. More info on that date will be forthcoming. Be sure to watch for emails and/or articles in the local newspapers for further information or date changes.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTH

Duane A. Lienemann
Nebraska Extension Educator

 
     Most everyone knows that I love to stop in the morning to various coffee shops (watering holes) where I might find area farmers. It is good to find out what the current issues are with them as well as a good chance to put out flyers and information on my extension programs. But more importantly it gives me the chance to answer or take in questions that they have about what is going on in the agriculture world. I probably get more quality “office time” with producers long before I get to my actual office. It seems that the local co-op, convenient store/gas stations is a collective office for farmers, come rain or shine, or break from the rigors of the farm. It can be very educational to drop in on one of those sessions.
     The dialogue at any place where people gather is what makes rural Nebraska what it is. I find it interesting, entertaining, stimulating and many times very humorous, but most of all I get a glimpse into what their world is like. It is not a far cry from how I grew up being the son of a farmer from a very long line of farmers and stockmen so it is like second nature for me. You get to see the farmer/rancher in their working clothes, their moods, their highs and lows, good prices or bad, very tired or full of vim and vigor. You get to hear the rain report, the latest “farmer gossip” and perhaps the latest “bad joke” but you also get to see what can irritate a normally laid back farmer. Let’s center on that this week.
     We spent a couple of mornings lately talking about things that irritate farmers and something came up that I was a little surprised about, but it did bring back some memories. I will just simply say it in one word “salesmen”! I found it humorous to hear local farmers call them tractor and combine jumpers, truck sitters and time killers. They especially were irritated because the prime season it seems for salesmen to hit up the farmers comes at inopportune times like jumping in the tractor during planting time and especially at harvest time boarding the combine or even the truck waiting in line at the elevator. It was fun to hear some of the solutions to this pesky problem including ejection seats instead of buddy seats, grease on the steps, salesmen bumpers, one bucket seat in the grain truck, and even salesmen repellent button on the dash.
     This topic really registered with me because my dad (May he rest in peace!) was an easy target for all kinds of salesmen. I do remember wondering what was taking him so long to plant, harvest, or check the cows and sure as Church on Sunday he had been talking to a salesmen. It didn’t matter what they were peddling – feed, seed, mineral, lubricants, encyclopedias and particularly life insurance; Dad would always listen and sometimes would buy --- and especially it seemed from life insurance salesmen. I always wondered if because of the stress of farming, and raising 10 kids, he felt his life was going to be short and wanted to make sure that we would be able to eat, or maybe at least go to college and support ourselves. Unfortunately many of those “paid up” life insurance policies went defunct during the 80’s and all the time and money that was spent was for naught! Oh, I know my dad liked to talk and maybe found the salesmen as a diversion from his tasks.
     The difference from then to now is that our tractors and combines didn’t have cabs and air conditioning so the meeting was at the end of the turn row next to the road or under the shade of a stray tree. It is a different world today in many ways and how salesmen find farmers isn’t much different really from 50 years ago other than sales person will now climb aboard a combine or tractor and ride with the operator in order to sell chemicals, fertilizer, tractors etc. I know those salesmen think it shows ambition and professional conduct but I am here to tell you that it is a source of irritation to many farmers in today’s high impact world. They really don’t cherish giving up the jump seat or “buddy chair” or to hear all about the newest varieties, benefits of a certain feed or especially the new “moon dust” that will contribute to the bottom line of the operation. Quite frankly farmers are not flush right now with the dollars that were there a couple of years ago.
     Most of the farmers I know are pretty much laid back and polite, but if there is one thing sure to annoy most farmers, it’s the ‘hard-sell’ of a product that they ‘have to buy’ because of all the things they ‘should be’ doing differently or they may not be “sustainable”. People in town certainly know about door-to-door salesmen and usually the word gets around in a small town and the lights go out and nobody’s home. It is not quite as simple on the farm. It seems salesmen have figured out that there are times when they know they are going to have a captive audience with the farmer and they take advantage of that occasion. From the coffee shop discussion the preferred method is coming out to the field, climbing up on the combine or tractor, utilizing the jump seat and selling their wares on the go. You might read the following blog entry from an entirely different point of view. I found it rather amusing and interesting: www.uptownsheep.com/uptown-girl ---a-working-farm-wifes-blog/to-the-woman-riding-in-my-husbands-combine  I have to admit that I never thought about that!
     Oh, I know many salesmen in the realm of agribusiness and they for the most part are great people, and they - just like the farmer, are trying to make a living. Many of them had a couple of great years during that $8 corn and $17 beans era and making sales was relatively easy, especially just before the end of the year. Now all of a sudden the sales are a lot harder to come by; so in order to survive they are relegated to techniques like I described above. It may surprise you, because I think for instance that seed salesmen (man or woman) that actually comes out and spends 45 minutes in the combine checking yields, discussing how well the crop grew, etc. are doing more than their job requires. Their job is to get the farmers to buy the seed. They don't have to make trips out to check up on things after their job is done. Probably in reality the ones that do make special trips are the good ones, and I don’t fault them for trying to do their job. But I do understand the irritation!!

The preceding information comes from the research and personal observations of the writer which may or may not reflect the views of UNL or UNL Extension. For more further information on these or other topics contact D. A. Lienemann, UNL Extension Educator for Webster County in Red Cloud, (402) 746-3417 or email to: dlienemann2@unl.edu or go to the website at: http://www.webster.unl.edu/home 

This Year in the Regulation Rewind

Rep. Adrian Smith

The end of the year is a time of reflection and anticipation – evaluating what we have accomplished and which goals are still to be achieved. Though the fight against government overreach is ongoing, we have made significant progress this year in our efforts to stand against the Obama administration’s regulatory agenda and cut through red tape for Nebraskans.  

In 2014, I launched an initiative called Regulation Rewind to identify federal rules which hurt economic growth, limit opportunities for rural Americans, are inconsistent with the law, or are unfair. With your input, I have continued to take action against many onerous regulations this year and provided regular updates on my website at AdrianSmith.house.gov/RegulationRewind.
After hearing concerns from hundreds of Nebraskans regarding the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Waters of the U.S. rule, or WOTUS, I introduced a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act in July to block this harmful overreach. The companion resolution recently passed the Senate, and the next step is consideration in the House.
Over the summer, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a memo increasing regulatory costs on thousands of anhydrous ammonia retailers by forcing them to comply with the Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals (PSM) standard from which they were previously exempt. Anhydrous ammonia is the most common source of nitrogen for farmers, and a number of Nebraskans have contacted me about the threat this arbitrary rule change poses to their farms and businesses. In late October, I joined 38 colleagues in sending a letter to Labor Secretary Thomas Perez to ask the agency to rescind the memo and utilize a formal rulemaking process to allow those impacted by any potential changes to be heard.
To decrease regulatory barriers for American businesses in the global marketplace, today I voted in favor of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act. This legislation modernizes and streamlines our U.S. customs system to improve exporting. The bill also prohibits President Obama from using trade agreements to negotiate costly greenhouse gas emissions rules.
Burdensome regulations continue to impact rural Americans’ access to quality health care. Earlier this year, I reintroduced the Critical Access Hospital Relief Act to repeal the 96-hour precertification requirement. This arbitrary regulation requires physicians at small hospitals to certify Medicare and Medicaid patients will not stay more than 96 hours. I had the opportunity to invite Shannon Sorensen, CEO of Brown County Hospital in Ainsworth, to testify before the Ways and Means Committee in June about the difficulties rural hospitals face due to this rule.
In September, I joined my Ways and Means Committee colleagues in passing reconciliation legislation to repeal a series of significant Obamacare regulations, including the individual mandate and the employer mandate. Without these core provisions, the law would likely crumble under its own regulatory weight. An amended reconciliation bill passed the Senate at the beginning of this month, and the House is expected to vote on it by the end of the year.
Through Caseworker in Your Community events and mobile offices, my staff and I have been able to help hundreds of Nebraskans cut through federal red tape. We also hosted our annual Senior Services Fairs in Scottsbluff and Grand Island this fall to ensure seniors and their families have access to the best information available on Medicare and Social Security.
Looking toward 2016, I am optimistic about opportunities for more success in rolling back regulations and will continue working on behalf of Nebraskans to lift these burdens. Thank you for partnering with me in this important effort.

USDA Explains Why Food Safety Should Be at the Top of All of Our Holiday Lists

WASHINGTON, Dec, 9, 2015 – With Thanksgiving behind us, the holiday season is just gearing up. The next few weeks are full of good cheer and plenty of food. To help keep your holiday season healthy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing holiday inspired food safety recommendations for your Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Year’s Eve, Three Kings Day, or other festive gatherings. These tips come from years of experience working to make sure that the meat, poultry and egg products you eat are safe, wholesome and properly labeled.
To start, download the FoodKeeper application. This smartphone and tablet app created by FSIS will help you evaluate what items in your refrigerator and pantry are still good and what may be past its prime. As you are putting together dishes for meals at home or parties at work, it will help you make sure you are using fresh ingredients. The FoodKeeper offers storage advice on more than 400 different food and beverage items and can help you decide what you can keep and what you should throw out. It also offers handy guidance on leftovers, which you will probably have after the big meal. Download the FoodKeeper today on your Android or iOS device.
Steps to Follow When Cooking a Holiday Roast:

• Use separate cutting boards, plates and utensils for raw roasts and cooked roasts to avoid cross-contamination.
• Wash items such as cutting boards that have touched raw meat with warm water and soap, or place them in a dishwasher.
• To avoid overcooking beef, veal, pork and lamb roasts use a meat thermometer. These roasts should be removed from the oven when they reach an internal temperature of 145 °F and allowed to rest for three minutes before serving.
• Turkey, duck, and goose should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 °F as measured by a food thermometer. Temperatures should be taken in three areas of the bird: the thickest part of the breast, the innermost part of the wing, and the innermost part of the thigh.

Food Safety Tips for Holiday Party Buffets:

• Keep hot food hot and keep cold food cold by using chafing dishes or crock pots and ice trays. Hot items should remain above 140 ˚F and cold items should remain below 40 ˚F.
• Use several small plates when serving food.
• Discard perishable foods left out for 2 hours or more.
• Leftovers should be refrigerated or frozen immediately in shallow containers. Reheat leftovers to 165 °F.
• If you’re transporting pre-cooked food to a holiday get together, keep cold foods safe on the way there by placing items in a cooler with ice or gel packs to keep them at or below 40 ˚F. If you’re transporting hot foods, wrap dishes in insulated bags or towels and newspaper to keep their temperature above 140 ˚F.

Top Food Safety Holiday Gifts:

• Food Thermometer: a useful tool for even the most experienced cook as it is the only way to ensure that meat is fully cooked.
• Cutting Board: using separate cutting boards for raw meat and ready-to-eat food is a great way to prevent cross-contamination.
• Kitchen Towel: these towels should be washed frequently to avoid cross-contamination, so a home cook can never have enough kitchen towels.

Steps to follow mail delivered holiday food:

• Check with the mail delivery company to ensure they send perishable items, like meat and poultry, cold or frozen and pack it with a cold source.
• Foods should be packaged in a foam or heavy corrugated cardboard container.
• Delivery should occur as quickly as possible – ideally, overnight.
• Foods should arrive frozen or partially frozen with ice crystals still visible or at least refrigerator cold – below 40 °F as measured by a food thermometer.

Consumers with food safety questions can "Ask Karen," the FSIS virtual representative available 24 hours a day at AskKaren.gov or via smartphone at m.askkaren.gov. The toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) is available in English and Spanish and can be reached from l0 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday. Recorded food safety messages are available 24 hours a day. The online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can also be accessed 24 hours a day at: www.fsis.usda.gov/reportproblem.

Smith Collects More than 13,000 Holiday Cards for Troops

 

Nebraskans submitted more than 13,000 cards to Congressman Adrian Smith’s (R-NE) offices for the 2015 Red Cross Holiday Mail for Heroes program, which gives Americans the opportunity to send their gratitude and holiday greetings to service members, veterans, and their families around the world. Smith’s offices in Scottsbluff and Grand Island served as collection points for Third District residents to drop off cards.
As in years past, Terri Hongsermeier of Grand Island worked tirelessly throughout the year to collect thousands of cards and coordinate their delivery to Smith’s office. Kerri Wetovick and Wood River High School, the Bayard VFW Ladies Auxiliary, and Chadron First Baptist Church also each contributed hundreds of cards to this effort.
“Thank you to everyone in the Third District who joined in this project to show our military men and women how deeply grateful we are for their service,” said Congressman Smith. “We hope these thousands of cards will bring cheer to those who sacrifice holidays with their families to allow us to enjoy ours in freedom.”
Last year, Nebraskans submitted more than 12,000 cards to Smith’s offices.

A Highway Bill for Nebraska

U.S. Senator Deb Fischer

                    

Nebraskans are blessed with good and reliable roads, which serve as the lifeblood of our urban communities and rural reaches. 

Our state and local officials work hard to improve existing roads and plan for the future. But these projects are costly and don’t happen overnight. It takes an immense amount of planning and resources to execute major projects. Most of all, they require regulatory certainty and funding from the federal government to do so.

As Nebraskans, we value reliability and efficiency. However, states across our nation have struggled to plan for transportation projects because Washington had failed to provide much-needed regulatory certainty. Instead of prioritizing long-term solutions to address our nation’s transportation challenges, Congress passed 36 short-term extensions over the past decade. This prevented states and local communities from planning for new projects. But, I have positive news to share: At long last, Congress has put forth a solution to this problem. 

On December 3, 2015, Congress passed a five-year highway bill. This agreement is an extraordinary accomplishment, and it includes big wins for Nebraska. Over the next five years, it will provide Nebraska with 1.5 billion dollars to update and maintain our roads, highways, and bridges for years to come.

As chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, and an active member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I was deeply involved with this legislation since my first year in the U.S. Senate. I also served on the conference committee that was charged with resolving the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. It was a lengthy process, and it did not come easy. It took hard work and significant compromise with my colleagues across the aisle in both legislative chambers. Through it all, I fought for Nebraska. 

Because of this critical legislation, you will see transportation projects across the state up and running and at a faster pace. The influx of resources for Nebraska means existing roads can be made safer. Moreover, new projects are on the horizon to accommodate growing communities.

Through a new freight program established in the bill, critical transportation dollars will be funneled to rural Nebraska projects like the Heartland Expressway. Our urban areas will benefit too. In Lincoln and Omaha, buses and other transit facilities will receive more dollars for important updates.

The bill also helps our ag producers. It reverses $3 billion in cuts to the crop insurance program included in the two-year budget agreement in October. The bill also reduces the regulatory burdens on our producers by allowing them to transport up to 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel freely.

Furthermore, the highway bill helps our veterans. It includes a pilot program that will expand opportunities for young veterans with commercial driver’s licenses by allowing them to drive across state lines. Our veterans have developed important skills while serving our nation. This provision will help them find employment and use those skills once they return to civilian life. In 49 states, commercial drivers under the age of 21 can already drive vehicles within a state. With this common-sense program in the highway bill, appropriately licensed veterans will now be able to deliver goods from Omaha to Council Bluffs.

Working for Nebraska on this legislation has truly been one of the highlights of my time in the U.S. Senate. By strengthening our national transportation network, we can grow our economy and improve safety in our communities. So, as you hit the road this holiday season, rest assured that our roads, bridges, and highways will now be safer for years to come.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTH

Duane A. Lienemann
Nebraska Extension Educator

      I told some good friends that I was going to dedicate this week’s edition to persistent salesmen who do combine jumping to further their cause.  I invite you to let me know their thoughts on that. I will display those next week. I will instead touch on something that I have been studying for several weeks, so will utilize my efforts towards that end. 
     I received a lot of comments on the invitation of animal rights groups to USMARC a couple of weeks ago including the actions outside of the Center. I talked to one rancher in particular who witnessed a helicopter flying over his operation. He was just one of several who were disgusted by the actions of these groups endangering their animals and their livelihoods and particularly their input to our research center. There is a constant activism when it comes to these groups who want us to completely get away from raising, eating meat or even using animal byproducts. They are constantly looking for new ways to extend and expand their agendas including even going into our churches. Let’s look at this effort this week!
     Maybe you didn’t know that, and usually when I tell people what trends we’re seeing in animal rights activism, this one usually make their eyes widen. Did you know that animal rights activist groups have been working to develop relationships within faith-based communities for years? It’s true – both the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have “faith outreach” programs, and staff dedicated to this audience. While it may seem like an odd pairing, HSUS and PETA see faith-based communities as critical allies in their mission. It is not lost on them that if they can manipulate values and sense of morality to enlist religious leaders to oppose the use of animals by humans, it will make their cause look much more mainstream. Of course, they are beginning with very general statements that most people could support in a document called “Evangelical Statement on Responsible Animal Care.” 
     The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission helped author a new statement aimed at uniting evangelicals on what the Bible says about care for God’s living creatures. Of course these two groups were a major partner in bringing this forward. While denominations like the Episcopal Church, United Methodist Church, Baptist Church, United Church of Christ have adopted stances on animal welfare specific to them, there existed no single document focused on responsible animal care for the broad spectrum of Christian believers to affirm. The result of this effort was released this last month under the title “Evangelical Statement on Responsible Animal Care.” Of course all of us in agriculture prescribe to this very thing, but just think about the players behind this. I refer to the fox in the chicken house, but this time the fox is in the House of Faith.
     I have to hand it to them, they are smooth and they are smart. They will use anything they can to further their agenda. They are building on Pope Francis’ visit to America and his statement on caring for all of God’s creations, but now are pulling in the Protestant clergy - http://www.readthespirit.com/explore/hsus-publishes-every-living-thing-evangelicals-join-pope-francis-in-compassion-for-animals/ .  If you are interested in more on this or want to find the book, you can do so at the HSUS website: http://www.humanesociety.org/news/press_releases/2015/09/new-book-faith-animal-welfare.html.  
     Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, described the campaign as “This is an exciting and new high-water mark for us in the 10 years since we established a Faith Outreach Program based on the premise that religious values call for kind and merciful treatment of all creatures. The statement affirms that God created humans as distinct from and superior to animals, but when sin entered the world it corrupted relationships not only between humans but also between humankind and animals.”  I can tell you that this is part of the “incremental changes” approach to animal rights activism. This is just the proverbial foot in the door and they are being welcomed in with open arms.
      Now these animal rights advocates just scored a brand new ally in what may seem like an unlikely place. And no, I'm not talking about former Daily Show host Jon Stewart's announcement that his life's work will now focus on giving sanctuary to abused farm animals (however awesome that may be). I'm talking about North America’s leading Jewish sustainability organization, “Hazon.” Earlier this month, HSUS, announced that they would partner with Hazon, which takes its name from a Hebrew word meaning "vision", to launch a series of programs aimed at furthering farm animal welfare education and advocacy. So now they have enlisted about every major religion – I would assume Islam will be next.   
     The end game for these animal rights groups is for all of us to go Vegan. Activist groups realize that a simple “go vegan” message does not resonate with the average consumer. To achieve their goal, they instead “scale back” their demands – rather than pushing people to abandon eating meat altogether, animal rights activist groups portray themselves as focused on animal welfare and advocate for changes that they deem to be “more humane” in how meat and poultry are produced. Of course, their real intent is to make livestock production increasingly more difficult and expensive. These groups will continue to move the goal post of what they consider to be acceptable until animal agriculture is no longer sustainable.
      Seeing these organizations attempting and now succeeding to enlist faith-based organizations in their mission should be alarming to all of us involved in animal agriculture. I encourage you to remember your local churches and religious organizations when offering farm tours or connecting your community with information about animal agriculture. The more we can expose people to factual, positive information about our industry, the more we can inoculate consumers against the myths and misinformation routinely disseminated by animal activist organizations – even through our Churches!

The preceding information comes from the research and personal observations of the writer which may or may not reflect the views of UNL or UNL Extension. For more further information on these or other topics contact D. A. Lienemann, UNL Extension Educator for Webster County in Red Cloud, (402) 746-3417 or email to: dlienemann2@unl.edu or go to the website at: http://www.webster.unl.edu/home 

Protecting American energy against the President’s distorted priorities

Rep. Adrian Smith

While President Obama touted his cap-and-trade policies in Paris this week, the House was working to stop bureaucratic overreach by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Obama administration's costly regulatory agenda is a leading threat to our economy and domestic energy production, but the President continues to prioritize red tape and executive orders.
At the COP21 conference on Tuesday, President Obama stated about climate change, "In some ways, it's akin to the problem of terrorism and ISIL." Following the horrific terror attacks which took hundreds of lives in Paris, Beirut, Egypt, and Mali – and now an attack within our own borders by a California couple who pledged allegiance to the leader of ISIS – the President's statement is disturbing at best.
Rather than focusing on a plan to destroy ISIS, President Obama continues to make his regulatory agenda the top priority for his administration. In Congress, we remain committed to standing against his executive overreach.
This week, the House passed two joint resolutions under the Congressional Review Act disapproving of the President's harmful regulations on domestic power. These regulations go above and beyond existing efforts by the power industry, and in many cases set unrealistic goals. As we enter the winter months, the last thing Nebraskans need is more red tape driving up their energy bills. These resolutions of disapproval already passed the Senate and will now go to the President's desk.
To meet America's energy needs and protect our economy, we need an all-of-the-above energy policy. The House passed the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act on Thursday to boost domestic energy production. This legislation would reduce regulations currently blocking energy projects and innovation, strengthen the security of our electric grid, and cut down on government waste in existing programs.
Renewable fuels play an important role in diversifying our energy supply and giving consumers more choices, but the EPA continues to stand in the way of their development. On Monday, the EPA announced its final Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) rule, which falls billions of gallons short of the Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) set by law. Unfortunately, this rule is yet another example of the EPA disregarding Congress to accomplish its own agenda.
Record corn harvests have shown the supply exists, but the EPA undermines consumer choice at the fuel pump with its arbitrary regulations. Earlier this year, I introduced a bill to extend to E15 fuel the same waiver from EPA volatility standards already granted to E10, allowing it to be sold year-round.
I also continue to lead the charge in the House to stop the EPA's Waters of the U.S. rule, or WOTUS. This rule is one of the largest abuses of executive power in modern history, posing a significant threat to Nebraska's economy. While the Obama administration defiantly pushed forward with WOTUS, I began the process of blocking the rule by introducing a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act.
The companion resolution, introduced by Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, passed the Senate last month. I am hopeful the House will soon consider this legislation and send it to the President’s desk. We must use every available tool to prevent this devastating rule from ever being implemented.
While the Obama administration pushes for more red tape and bureaucratic control over our country's energy supply, I will continue standing against the President's distorted priorities and working on solutions to strengthen American energy.

December Birthdays

December-1-1984 Mandy Nelson
December-1-1950 Jerry McShane

December-1-1921 Mabel A. Schmidt
December-4 Ed Anderson
December-4-1962 Tammy Reiman
December-5 Diane Karr
December-7 Janie Hartman
December 7 Yvonne Krauau
December 9 Peyton Schmidt
December-10 Jerry Koepke,  Kaisha Jo Alber
December 10 Leslie Waechter Means
December 11 Ted Alber ,  Scott Kort
December-12 Ryan Atteberry ,
December-13-1969 Julie Buschow,  Kristi Alber
December 15 Meggie Coffey. Markie Coffey
 December 15 Sandi Schmidt
December-15-1977 Sarah Moorman
December 16 Kylee Schmidt
December 17 Terry Schunk
December 18 Jared Schmidt, Don Goodrich
December-18-1993 Taylor Lemke
December 19 Ramona Buschow
December-19-1961 Rita Petska
December-19-1991 Sidney Dawn Gannaway
December-20 Jane Rose
December-21-1930 Wendell H. Krueger
December-21-1960 Bradley N. Gilbert
December-22-1945 Ron Otdiek
December-22-1975 Brian Johnson
December-24-1979 Rebecca Johnson
December 27 Jill Kinley,  Mary VanBoening
December-27 Lori Berns
December-28 Jadaysa Fraiser
December 31 Donna Anderson, Jeff Rose, Vivian Kottwitz
December-31-1946 Jerry Frazier

Surrounded by Reasons to Be Grateful

Rep. Adrian Smith

 

The holiday season gives us an opportunity each year to dedicate quality time to our families and friends, reflecting on all we have for which to be grateful. It is understandably more difficult to engage in joyous celebration with the growing turmoil in our world. However, it is important for us to focus on and give thanks for all the goodness in our lives and communities.
In his address to the nation on Thanksgiving Day 1985, President Ronald Reagan observed, “We are grateful for our abundant harvests and the productivity of our industries; for the discoveries of our laboratories; for the researches of our scientists and scholars; for the achievements of our artists, musicians, writers, clergy, teachers, physicians, businessmen, engineers, public servants, farmers, mechanics, artisans, and workers of every sort whose honest toil of mind and body in a free land rewards them and their families and enriches our entire Nation.”
President Reagan’s words help us reflect on the countless blessings to be thankful for in the greatest country on Earth. The American dream still inspires people to achieve, create, and innovate in ways which benefit all of humanity. Our country continues to be one of the most generous in the world, giving and volunteering to serve those in need. Nebraska agriculture produces far more than we consume, providing us the opportunity to help feed the world.
Despite the challenges we face, we are surrounded by so many reasons to be grateful.
With recent attacks and heightened security worldwide, we owe our deep gratitude to the first responders who put their lives on the line to keep us safe. In the wake of tragedy, police in Paris and around Europe have spent countless hours capturing terrorists and preventing additional attacks. Throughout our country, we have seen increased patrols and more officers devoted to protecting our homeland. Amidst grave challenges, these heroes put others before themselves to ensure our security.
We also remember our military men and women around the world who are sacrificing holidays with their families to defend our country against those who wish to do us harm. The selfless commitment of our men and women in uniform has allowed Americans to live in freedom for nearly 240 years.
To show appreciation for our troops, I am again helping to collect cards for the American Red Cross Holiday Mail for Heroes program. Through this effort, we can send gratitude and holiday greetings from Nebraska to our service members, veterans, and their families around the world. This tradition is a wonderful opportunity for families, schools, and local communities to show their support for our troops and our veterans.
My district offices in Scottsbluff and Grand Island are serving as collection points for Nebraskans to drop off or mail cards through Friday, December 4, 2015. To ensure your cards reach their destination, please use generic salutations such as “Dear American Hero,” and do not include your personal contact information, inserts, glitter, or postage. For more information and guidelines, please visit www.AdrianSmith.house.gov/HolidayMailforHeroes.
I remain deeply grateful for the privilege of representing you in Congress. As we enjoy the holiday season, I hope you will join me in thanking the brave men and women who protect us each day as well as expressing gratitude for our many blessings as Nebraskans.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTH

Duane A. Lienemann
UNL Extension Educator

  
     Gosh, can it really be that time of year already? Thanksgiving is upon us and as I write this many turkeys have left the grocery store and is likely being prepared for the many feasts that will occur across this great Nation. I hear many people say “Happy Turkey Day” and I used to take a little offense to that, but if you think about it, that turkey is a big part of the celebration. In actuality this bird has long been the holiday's star! Let’s explore the world of the turkey this week.
     As Americans sit down to supper this Thanksgiving, the centerpiece of their celebratory dinners will, most likely, be a turkey. Why exactly the Turkey has been the star of “Turkey Day” since at least the mid-19th century is a matter of much debate, particularly given the consensus amongst historians that the Pilgrims and the Native Americans probably didn’t focus on the bird at the “First Thanksgiving” in October of 1621. They were just simply thankful. Thankful for surviving the conditions in the new land that they decided would be their new home – leaving everything else behind them, including families. They were thankful for the new friends they made and the help that was afforded to them by the Native American Indians - including the very first Ag Agent (whose name was Squanto) who helped secure crops and animals for harvest.
     If you think about it, beginning with the American pilgrims, Thanksgiving has always focused on celebrating the harvest and the abundance of food we are able to share with our friends and family. This year is no different. We can celebrate a great harvest and harvest weather this year, and what better way than with fellowship and food? Food in reality is a part of our lives every single day. We rely on it for nourishment. We look forward to it on holidays. And we share it with those we love most. It seems that it even becomes more important this time of year. The time of year that everyone loves.
     The history of the Thanksgiving turkey is a bit of a mystery. Nobody knows exactly how this particular bird earned a place of honor at the table each November, but historians have a few different theories. Thanks to letters and records kept by early American settlers, we know that when the colonists sat down to dine with the Wampanoag Indians, beef and fowl were on the menu. This historical meal would later become known as the first Thanksgiving. We do know that George Washington first advocated for Thanksgiving Day on Oct. 3, 1789 and that finally President Abraham Lincoln officially proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday in Nov. 1863. In 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt moved Thanksgiving Day forward one week, as it is presently celebrated. No matter what, thanksgiving is a National Holiday and for good reason.
     For a historic item of interest is that the Plymouth Plantation recounts the history of the First Thanksgiving, as Governor Bradford’s description of the Pilgrims’ first autumn in Plymouth makes it clear, “there was great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many, besides venison, etc.”  Historians also note a letter written by pilgrim Edward Winslow which mentions a turkey hunting trip before the meal. So from the very beginning the turkey was an important part of this truly American tradition and that great American bird that has become the centerpiece of this tradition – the turkey!
     Turkey? What an odd name for a big bird. I always wondered where that name came from. From what I can determine there are several theories about how turkeys got their name. One story claims the Christopher Columbus heard some birds say “tuka, tuka”, and his interpreter came up with the name tukki, which means “big bird” in Hebrew. Some other historians believe that Columbus thought that the land he discovered was connected to India, and believed the bird he discovered (the turkey) was a type of peacock. He therefore called it 'tuka,' which is 'peacock' in Tamil, an Indian language, even though the turkey is actually a type of pheasant. Which I guess I didn’t know. Another theory is based on the Native American name for turkey which is supposedly 'firkee’, which if true makes sense. Simple facts, however, sometimes produce the best answers—when a turkey is scared, it makes a "turk, turk, turk" noise. Now that makes sense to me. I have scared a lot of turkeys in my day and I can say that that would make a pretty good description of the sound – a “turk” ish sound.
     How about some quick Thanksgiving and turkey trivia? Did you know? The main drink of choice at the time of the first Thanksgiving was beer, as they felt the distilling would kill any bacteria as the water was not good. The first Thanksgiving lasted three days and involved 90 American Indians and 53 Pilgrims. As far back as 1000 A.D., Native American Indians raised turkeys for food. Aztec Indians in Mexico raised them as early as 200 B.C. Turkeys are the only breed of poultry native to the Western Hemisphere and that Benjamin Franklin proposed the turkey as the official United States' bird, Only tom (male) turkeys can gobble, hens (females) cluck or click. Turkeys have great hearing, but no external ears. They can also see in color, and have excellent visual acuity and a wide field of vision (about 270 degrees), which makes sneaking up on them difficult. However, turkeys have a poor sense of smell (what's cooking?), but an excellent sense of taste. Domesticated turkeys cannot fly. Wild turkeys, however, can fly for short distances at speeds up to 55 miles per hour. They can also reach speeds of 25 miles per hour on the ground. Turkeys can have heart attacks from being frightened. 
     The first Thanksgiving Day football game was played in 1934 between the Detroit Lions and the Chicago Bears. In 2014, 235 million turkeys were raised in America with 45 million turkeys cooked and eaten just during Thanksgiving. Americans will consume about 16 pounds every year in all holidays. Sleepy after the big meal? Turkey contains an amino acid called "Tryptophan" which sets off a chemical chain reaction that calms you down and makes you sleepy. I do wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your time with family and friends and count your blessings!! Be thankful!

The preceding information comes from the research and personal observations of the writer which may or may not reflect the views of UNL or UNL Extension. For more further information on these or other topics contact D. A. Lienemann, UNL Extension Educator for Webster County in Red Cloud, (402) 746-3417 or email to: dlienemann2@unl.edu or go to the website at: http://www.webster.unl.edu/home 

Blue Hill Resident Amanda Cox places in Bronco Forensics home tournament

 

 

 

(Hastings, Neb.) – Sophomore Kenzie Shofner from Maple Plain, Minnesota, took the top speaker award at the annual Broncolope competitive speaking tournament held November 14-15, 2015, in Hastings, Nebraska.

 

A member of the Hastings College Bronco Forensics team, she competed in Poetry, Persuasion, Prose and Duo. Her strong performances, combined with those of her teammates, helped the Broncos place third on the tournament’s second day.

 

The full weekend results follow.

 

Saturday, November 14:

 

Cami Sharratt, a freshman from Savage, Minnesota: 1^st place in Prose

 

Carly Spotts-Falzone, a freshman from Wayzata, Minnesota: 3^rd place in Informative

 

Andrew Boge, a sophomore from Johnston, Iowa: 4^th place in Communication Analysis, 3^rd place in Prose

 

Austin Heinlein, a freshman from Hutchinson, Kansas: 3^rd place in Dramatic Interpretation

 

 

Sunday, November 15:

 

Shofner: 6^th place in Poetry, 2^nd place in Persuasion, 1^st place in Prose, 2^nd place in Duo with Caleb Merritt, a sophomore from Brookings, South Dakota

 

Eunice Adounkpe, a senior from Omaha, Nebraska: 3^rd place in Poetry, 3^rd place in Dramatic Interpretation, 6^th place in Prose

 

Dianna Rulon, a freshman from Arcadia, Indiana: 6^th place in Communication Analysis

 

Kathryn Edwards, a junior from Louisville, Nebraska: 5^th place in After Dinner Speaking, 4^th place in Extemporaneous Speaking, 5^th place in Impromptu Speaking

 

Amanda Cox, a junior from Blue Hill, Nebraska: 6^th place in Oral Interpretation

 

Caleb Merritt, a sophomore from Brookings, South Dakota: 2^nd place in Duo Interpretation with Shofner

 

Spotts-Falzone: 3^rd place in Prose

 

Heinlein: 5^th place in Dramatic Interpretation

 

Founded in 1882, Hastings College is a private, four-year institution located in Hastings, Nebraska, that focuses on academic and extracurricular achievement. With 64 majors and 15 pre-professional programs, Hastings College has been named among “Great Schools, Great Prices” by U.S. News & World Report, a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review and a "Best Bang for the Buck" school by Washington Monthly

Fischer’s Office Teams-Up with American Red Cross for 2015 Holiday Mail for Heroes Campaign

 

 U.S. Senator Deb Fischer’s office is teaming up with the American Red Cross to help Nebraskans send holiday wishes and appreciation to members of the military, their families, and our veterans. This is the third year Senator Fischer’s office has coordinated the Holiday Mail for Heroes campaign with the Red Cross. Senator Fischer released the following statement encouraging Nebraskans to participate:

“The Holiday Mail for Heroes program is a simple way for Nebraskans to share their holiday cheer, along with their gratitude, to the men and women of our military. I hope the people of Nebraska will join me in sending greetings to the dedicated members of our armed services around the world, their families, and our veterans.”

The Holiday Mail for Heroes program collects cards and messages to send to our military men and women serving both abroad and in our local communities. Nebraskans who wish to participate can make or purchase a card to sign, and mail them to Senator Fischer’s Omaha office. In order to guarantee delivery, cards must be received by December 6, 2015.  They can be dropped off at, or mailed to, the following address:

Office of Senator Deb Fischer

11819 Miracle Hills Drive

Suite 205

Omaha, NE 68145

In addition to your homemade cards, Senator Fischer and the Red Cross have created a card specifically for Nebraskans that can be printed and signed at home. You can download cards through Senator Fischer’s website by clicking here. 

To ensure holiday cards can be quickly screened and mailed, the Red Cross asks participants to follow the guidelines listed below:

• Ensure that all cards are signed.

• Use generic salutations, such as “Dear Service Member.” Cards addressed to specific individuals cannot be delivered through this program.

• Only cards are being accepted. Do not send or include letters.

• Do not include email or home addresses on the cards. The program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.

• Do not include inserts of any kind, including photos. These items will be removed during the reviewing process.

• Please refrain from choosing cards with glitter or using loose glitter, which can aggravate the health issues of ill and injured warriors.

• If you are mailing a large quantity of cards, please bundle them and place the cards in large mailing envelopes or flat rate postal shipping boxes. Each card does not need its own envelope. All envelopes will be removed from all cards before distribution.

For more information, please visit the American Red Cross website by clicking here.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTH

Duane A. Lienemann
Unl Extension Educator

                          
     It seems that as you get older your body ends up paying for the abuse you punish it with over the years. I am writing this column the night before I go in for some surgery on my shoulder, rotator cuff and bicep tendon. I am not complaining, as I was warned years ago that if I kept doing things like I was still 25 years old that it would come back to haunt me - and it has. I am not asking for sympathy, and I doubt I would get too much anyway. This will however make it a little more difficult to do the things I normally do, including time in the office, out in the fields and all the other sundry things that I am used to doing, including writing.  I will see how it goes and how this old body reacts to the work being done on it, but I felt I should let individuals know should they be looking for me over the next several days to a couple of weeks. Now that this is off my chest let us look at some things that caught my eye this week. Are you ready for some incredible stuff?
     Slaughter Trucks?  I have to add this to the “You have got to be kidding me file!” The attack against animal agriculture just keeps on coming. Now growing up on a farm and even hitching a ride with a trucker or two with our cattle or hogs to the sale barn or even to Omaha Stock Yards, I never thought of the straight truck or a semi-tractor with a pot as anything more than a truck. But “slaughter truck”? It’s a new term to me, and I would bet a new term and for that matter an insult to farmers, ranchers, feeders or anybody with a CDL that makes their living transporting livestock. 
     But more than 9,500 misguided and misinformed souls have signed a petition at Change.org asking Walmart CEO C. Douglas McMillon to “stop selling toy slaughter trucks in Walmart stores.” The petition states, “Normalizing the enslavement and murder of animals to kids is not OK.” They don’t even try to point out that livestock trucks are used for many purposes on the farm, not just to take animals to slaughter. These trailers are used as a transport! It doesn't mean that they are going to the slaughter house. Most are just moving their livestock from one location to another. Perhaps from farm to farm or maybe they've been sold to another rancher, or they are being moved to another pasture or home.  
     Those “slaughter trucks” are what most of us would call toy livestock transport trucks, mini versions of the ones that roll down the highways of America. Walmart is selling an “ERTL Big Farm 1:32 Peterbilt Model 579 semi with livestock trailer” for $34.99. But somebody using the online name “Vegan Oso” started the petition and claims that “normalizing the enslavement and murder of animals to kids is not OK.” This is taking the Vegan movement one giant leap further than what I can stomach. It is one thing to call attention to your thoughts on animal agriculture, but in this way? I draw the line! I am amazed and dismayed at all the different ways that people can shoot at livestock production and the producers of our food!
     If you have a strong stomach read what they say to justify this petition: “No matter how "humanely" animals are raised for food, inevitably the pigs, cows, horses and other animals doomed for factory slaughter are crowded onto slaughter trucks; there is no shelter against the weather, no food or water and no place for the animals to defecate or urinate except on each other and under their own feet. Someday, look inside a slaughter truck; there you will see the eyes of an animal treated worse than anyone can imagine. They foam at the mouth, their eyes are crusted with infections, their faces silently scream from abject fright and abuse. At truck stops, they watch humans passing them by; hoping someone will save them before their last day on earth in a slaughter line. This is not what a child's toy should represent.”  All I can say is “What?
     If it wasn’t so incredibly stupid, it is almost entertaining to read some of the comments that have been posted. You will be shaking your head and wondering what is coming of this world. I will guarantee that I will be responding to this petition and I would suggest that if you want to offer your opinion, you can visit the petition site (www.change.org/p/c-douglas-mcmillon-walmart-please-stop-selling-toy-slaughter-trucks ) and leave a comment, or you can visit Walmart’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/walmart/  ) and tell Mr. McMillon to keep selling the toys and for him to tell this idiot - Vegan Oso - that calling livestock transports “slaughter trucks” is an insult to the responsible, professional farmers, ranchers, and truck drivers who work hard to help put food on America’s tables and do so in an humane and caring way. If you agree with this wingnut, I hope you get more informed and don’t do the knee jerk reaction to misinformation and become one of those people who unwittingly further the cause of a group committed to their own particular agenda regardless of who they hurt!
     PETA Wants to Rename Turkey, Texas: Let’s just add one more to the file. You read the headline correctly.  Of all the asinine, publicity-seeking ideas from one of my “favorite” groups - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) this one was about as appealing as a barefoot walk through a chicken coop. It ranks right up there with their last endeavor to have fish renamed as “Kitties of the Seas”.  The folks at PETA have asked the folks in Turkey, Texas, to change the town’s name to – get this – “Tofurkey” for one day. That day being on Thanksgiving. PETA sent a letter to the Turkey Mayor (no pun intended) on Monday, offering to provide a vegan feast for the whole town. Tofurky is described as "a savory, flavorful, 'meaty' vegan entree with wild-rice and bread-crumb stuffing that is 100 percent cruelty-free." The meal would come with "mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes (made with vegan margarine), and vegan apple pie topped with vanilla dairy-free ice cream." It is not surprising to me that the 410 townsfolk basically responded “Tophoey!” The old adage of you don’t mess with Texas. I am glad that they stood their ground and proved to these PETA nut jobs that you also don’t mess with Turkey either!

The preceding information comes from the research and personal observations of the writer which may or may not reflect the views of UNL or UNL Extension. For more further information on these or other topics contact D. A. Lienemann, UNL Extension Educator for Webster County in Red Cloud, (402) 746-3417 or email to: dlienemann2@unl.edu or go to the website at: http://www.webster.unl.edu/home 

To Protect Americans, Stop Underestimating ISIS

Rep. Adrian Smith

A series of terrorist attacks by ISIS militants have taken hundreds of innocent lives in the past few weeks alone. The Nov. 13 attack in Paris, which killed at least 129 people, came one day after more than 40 people were murdered in a double suicide bombing in Beirut. On Oct. 31, a bomb on a Russian jet killed all 224 people on board. As I prepare to send this, a hotel in Mali is under siege by gunmen, though the terrorist group responsible has not yet been confirmed.

My prayers and deepest condolences continue to be with the grieving families of the victims in each of these attacks. The callous taking of innocent lives by terrorists is a heartbreaking reality our world must face head-on. Not only has ISIS attacked one of our closest allies in its horrifying assault on Paris, but these terrorists now threaten to attack the United States.
The federal government has no greater responsibility than keeping Americans safe. However, President Obama and his administration continue to underestimate ISIS and downplay the threat posed by this brutal terrorist group, even as their attacks increase and become more sophisticated.
On the morning of Nov. 13, mere hours before the Paris attack, ABC’s Good Morning America aired an interview with President Obama in which he said about ISIS: “I don’t think they’re gaining strength” and “we have contained them.” Even after the attack, the President referred to the atrocities as a “setback.”
In reality, it was an act of war by radical Islamic terrorists.
The attacks in France, Egypt, and Lebanon have brought renewed focus to the reach of ISIS beyond their original areas in Syria and Iraq. As the New York Times reported this week, “ISIS is likely responsible for nearly 1,000 civilian deaths outside Iraq and Syria” this year.  The article also noted, “The Islamic State has declared official provinces – or wilayat – in areas of Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen that had networks loyal to ISIS, many of which have adopted the organization’s signature brutality.”
Clearly, ISIS is not contained or losing strength. One of the most visible outcomes of the Obama administration’s failing strategy against ISIS is the massive refugee crisis.
At least one Paris attacker used a fake passport to enter Europe in a wave of refugees. While we are called to demonstrate empathy to those fleeing war, we must ensure refugees are thoroughly vetted to prevent Americans’ compassion from being exploited by those who would do us harm.
I support a freeze on President Obama’s refugee resettlement plan until we have a better understanding of the individuals seeking refuge and the means to comprehensively screen them. Congressional approval should also be required before any refugee resettlement efforts resume.
To address these concerns, this week the House passed H.R. 4038, the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act, of which I am a cosponsor. The bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Director of the FBI, and the Director of National Intelligence to unanimously certify to Congress any proposed Syrian or Iraqi refugee does not represent a security threat before admission to the United States can be granted.
With growing dangers to our country due to violent extremism, the federal government must first and foremost ensure the safety of American citizens. President Obama must also make our national security his top priority and present a comprehensive plan to destroy ISIS. Together with our allies, we can triumph over terror.