Opinions

With the severe drought in southeast Kansas this year, there are certain forage diseases farmers and ranchers need to keep in mind that could be deadly to our cattle. Two such diseases are nitrate toxicity and prussic acid poisoning. Deadly levels of nitrates and prussic acid can accumulate in forages such as corn, sorghum, canola, cereal grains, sudangrass, sorghum- sudangrass crosses, and other related species. It is important for producers to understand the signs and symptoms of these two deathly diseases and what can be done to prevent them.

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With so many in the world becoming used to an “instant gratification” type of lifestyle, more people are quicker to form an opinion before gathering all the pieces to that particular puzzle. Often times, this causes more of a sticky situation than the puzzle caused to begin with. In recent weeks, I have found myself beyond frustrated as there are many that have chosen to be uninformed, but are the first to complain. The frustration builds when complaints continue to mount but no solution is offered. What is the goal? How will you get a different outcome if you’re not willing to work for it? There is even a quote defining insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.” It takes a village for any community to be successful and I truly believe that we have a great community who has many leaders who are willing to adapt to whatever is thrown their way. However, I believe that the negativity sometimes pushes them into a direction where they simply are defeated or exhausted and sometimes ready to throw in the towel. I myself have been there more this year than ever before. Knowing deep down that is not what I want has kept me pushing forward. In doing so, I’ve had to create boundaries. I’ve removed myself from various social media groups, turned off my notifications and am simply trying to separate work from family and my time. Negativity is everywhere. Instead of finding the positives in situations, we are often so focused on the negative that we lose sight of what really matters. We all want our community to be the best it can be. What part can you play in making sure that we go in a positive direction? Could you volunteer for an organization that is already low on numbers? Could you help your neighbor with a task on the weekend? Could you simply smile and say hello to the person walking past you on the street? Whatever it might be, I encourage all of our readers to find the positives in every situation and simply try to have more positive interactions with others.