ObamaCare, Monuments & The Science of The Cow

Just livin’

The science of the Cow

The case of the methane producers

By Stephen L. Wilmeth

            My wife’s attitude regarding government intrusion into our lives has hit a wall. Her reaction was stepwise, but the end result was dramatic.

The date of May 21, 2014 will stand in infamy. It was the date this president signed his unilateral order declaring a big portion of our ranch as national monument. Notwithstanding the eight year long battle of citizenry objections to the action, the environmental throng which controls the current agenda prevailed. As a result, watershed event number one was in the books.

The next step of demolition came in the form of a letter. It was notice of our insurance termination. Already, our rates for a very conservative $5,000 deductible medical policy had increased 29% for the year. With the notice of termination based on Affordable Care Act guidelines, we scrambled to secure a replacement. Those replacement policies ran from 248% to 295% of monthly premium payments based on January 1, 2014. Watershed event number two was in the books.

The final straw was the removal of Fox News from Dish TV Network last Saturday night. We awoke to discover our preferred source of news to the world was gone. Certainly we know of the “negotiations” that are ongoing, but we also know the fundamental political differences of the networks and Fox News.

It was all too much.

 “First, they put our entire investment life in jeopardy, then they take away our insurance, and now they maneuver to take Fox,” my own sweet wife said. “I feel like I live in a communist country!”

Alas … too many of us are feeling the same vibes.

The beat continues

Be aware that the joint agency health mob, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC), will present to the nation its updated dietary recommendations. Word is they are going to recommend cutting red meat from the American diet. This bit of agenda driven coition is not coming just from the environmental police, but the federal agency with the organic mandate to maintain the vitality of agriculture, the USDA. The fact that HHS is the accessory culprit is no surprise, but USDA is now well on it way to being classified as rogue.

Think of the implications.

When the official announcement is made, some bureaucrat will be standing at the dais recommending that an entire segment of his agency’s mission framework be eliminated. He will necessarily reference the “science” that leads to such a perverse decision, and, no doubt, he will offer a demeanor of actual belief.

What hypocrisy!

Can we only imagine the confusion our Founders would exhibit if they not only learned of the presence of the USDA, but its advocacy for the elimination of red meat consumption from the American diet, and, hence, production?

The problem is we know the recommendations are not based on nutritional science. No longer can the agenda be hidden in any terms or flowered expressions. The agenda is couched around marching orders relating to the general mission of advancing the war on animal agriculture and its trumped up impact on the environment.

It’s hogwash, and we are the victims of a Roundhouse express that knows no bounds.

Cow, the venerable provider to Society

Reformed addicts, regardless of abused substance, are tedious.

There is an article floating around Ag news this week about the benefits of beef to the planet. It is written by a former industry adversary who put her money where her mouth is and invested in the business. The tables are suddenly and miraculously turned. My respected rancher friend, Tom Mobley, will chastise me for not heralding the disclosure of the good news, but my question will remain.

“Why must we rely on a former operative against our customs and culture to applaud what should be a foundational standard?”

In respect to Mr. Mobley, I’ll be cordial and not only endorse the work of the author of note, but elevate her observations. Her new found loyalties are not only correct her foray into the business has opened her eyes to actual facts. Cattle are miraculous providers of gifts of vital nutrition and they have endured under immense societal and environmental pressures. Their versatile role in the conversion of raw organic material into life giving protein has sustained this world without fanfare or applause. They are amazing animals.

They are also the center of the war on animal agriculture.

They are accused of gassing us with methane and fouling the planet. The problem I have with that whole corrupted view is that I live with them. Every time I am with them in numbers I am reminded of their sensory impact on me. I love the smell of cattle against a backdrop of arid high desert grasslands. I see the results of their presence on the benefits to the ground, the turf, and invasive brush. I have followed them around unbelievably rough hillsides and marvel at their ability to create nearly invisible trails and traverse rough country with ease. I have watched too many times a cow pick up her calf out of a mob of bawling calves and lead that calf away to resume the cycle that not only perpetuates her existence but mine and others who enjoy the measure of her gifts.

I am unabashedly biased, and it comes not from an agenda, but the singular blessing of witnessing the resiliency of the cow up close and personal.

The impact

The mapping of greenhouse gas production assigned to cattle equates to 2% of the nation’s emissions. The major concern and the talking point is methane, the explosive metabolite of cellulose digestion. It’ll burn, but it will burn whether it is bovine sourced or a human creation. It’ll explode, too. It will explode in concentration whether it is bovine sourced, or … a human creation.

The nation’s beef herd is made up of something over 30,000,000 individual cows. That is about 8,000,000 or so individuals fewer than the current crop of professed American vegetarians who generate a greater footprint of methane expulsion than do their meat eating counterparts. Now, the science of quantifying their human environmental footprint relating to the corruption of the environment is not currently in vogue or subject to grant study funding, but it is time to start understanding its impact.

Why?

Strides are being made to address the methane production in cattle. It is being done with the application of genetic tendencies and breeding programs, the formulation of feed additives, and good pasture management at the source of production.

There is no countering human mechanism toward mitigation of gassing the environment nor is there the implication of actually using the gas producers to trump their own flatulence. In studies referenced by the Union of Concerned Scientists, it appears the entire component of bovine greenhouse gas creation can be sequestered back into grasslands. The kicker is cattle are the modern grazing herd component that are necessary to create beneficial disturbances, prevent encroachment of invasive woody shrubs, and elevate the functioning of grassland ecology.

The human component must continue to rely on the production of grains and vegetables which, in itself, is the very mechanism that releases carbon and strips the earth of protective grassland shields. They are actually aiding and abetting the expansion of greenhouse gasses.

Their water use should also be scrutinized.

Admittedly, beef production consumes about 440 gallons of water per pound of meat. That compares to the human methane generators of applying something over 455 gallons of water for their pound of rice. Fruits and vegetables are even bigger consumers when equated to an annual use basis.

In short, cattle stand as a net positive producer of nutrition, goods, and service expansion to humanity while humans constitute a net user of resources. As the science progresses, it is becoming increasingly clear the greater footprint of environmental corruption is emanating from the loudest mouthpieces that are systematically destroying our customs and culture, and, yes, our freedom.

To the beginning

Indeed, we live in a changing society.

Fox News was still absent from our TV and our insurance source for 2015 remains in limbo. What was consistent, though, was our cowherd was in the Coldiron Pasture converting cellulose into protein and life giving nutrition. Those respected animals are scheduled to rotate from that pasture on January 1 to leave a turf concentration that is intended to expand the density of native arid land grass species.

I’ll ask the Vegans among you this question. What did you do with the last grass clippings your gardeners took from your lawn? Did you eat them or did you deposit them in the trash can for burial in the local landfill?

My livestock converted ours, and … a bit of methane was likely generated.

Stephen L. Wilmeth is a rancher from southern New Mexico. “Given the choice I’ll wade through a sloppy livestock trailer any day as opposed to walking into a public restroom.”