Ethanol Fuel and the Corn Industry

Productivity with little or no damage to our environment, this has been our goal as a nation for many years and some think that scientists may have found the big break through. The new hype about ethanol gas and how it will benefit the issue of global warming has got everyone excited and ready to listen. However not all the issues have been closely broken down. Yes the new gas will reduce the nations reliability on foreign oil resources, and may also help the issue of global warming, but do we really have all the necessary resources to accomplish this. Joe Duggan, writer for the local Journal Star, and several other scientists argue that we do not. The majority of the corn that will be used in the production of this new ethanol will be grown in states like Nebraska and Iowa as well as other agriculturally based states. Therefore the consumption of water for those states will be greatly increased and in all reality, according to Duggan, we don’t have those resources to spare. The state of Nebraska is hard pressed when it comes to the issue of water to begin with but if we have to produce enough corn to help fuel the engines of America on top of feed the hungry mouths that reside in it, we will not only be at a shortage of water but we will begin to use up that limited resource all together. Now this may still be the way to go if we can find a way to use some of the earth’s non-potable water for this use or if we can outweigh the negatives with the positives, but the topic definitely needs to be looked into much more before we as a nation decide to put this huge responsibility on the shoulders of our agricultural economy. After all need to be sure that we are capable of this with the resources that we have before we plunge head first into a dead end. On the other hand if we decide that we do have the resources and we are able to cut our reliance on foreign oil while protecting the environment, then why not make the switch and better both our lives and the lives of future generations to come.

Opening Weekend

It only comes around once a year but when it does all the small towns and country lodges are packed to capacity and the pickups can be found scattered along the country roads. Opening weekend of whitetail season is like no other weekend of the year. The air is crisp and cold and the darkness of the night still spreads across the country. As pickups are fired up and hot coffee served at the diner we load up the gear and head to the fields. Arriving long before daylight we quietly finish our coffee and slip quietly into the woods for the first morning’s hunt. Quietly we climb up into our stands and wait for the sun to peak the horizon. When the sun finally comes up and light begins to spread across the forest floor a tingling of excitement shoots through my body and my breath can be seen as it hits the icy cold air. Just the feeling of sitting out in the woods on these crisp mornings is irreplaceable and hearing the sweet sounds of nature makes me forget about the craziness of everyday life. The wind might blow and the snow may fall but nothing can keep a deer hunter out of the stand on that opening morning, it is simply in our blood.
The experience of being deep in the backwoods is reward enough for me and any other hunter but if the chance at a big buck presents itself during the hunt just puts the icing on the cake. All year long we wait for the week when we can go out, forget about our busy everyday lives, and enjoy some quality time making memories with those closest to us. Hunting is a tradition that has come through many generations and will continue to bring people together for many years to come. My fondest memories of growing up were spent in the fields with my dad learning about the sport and making memories that will last a lifetime. Hopefully one day I will get the chance to pass on the love I have for the outdoors to my kids and they will do the same with theirs.