Jon Angell

It is commonly known that when the notorious American bank robber of the 1950s was asked “Why do you rob banks?” Willie Sutton answered famously, “Because that’s where the money is.” This quote sums up what is known in law enforcement as “Sutton’s Law” meaning to go where the most likely reward or solution lies.

I would like to point out that the biggest fraudsters and robbers have adapted to modern times. Government and government programs is where the money is. In the news with the Elan’s DOGE Team, Medicare frauds, Somali government funded day care, all seem to attract undesirable characters because of what Willie Sutton made obvious to us; “That’s where the money is.”

For our feature this month we are running a story about a fraudster that tied to government links to pull things off. It is a rather interesting read for nothing else than the scale and brazen nature of the con.

As a conservative, I advocate for smaller government. On page 16, Sam Graves shares a similar position. I’d go on to say if you are going to have government involvement to decentralize it. On page 20 is a story about the USDA reorganizing and pushing more out of Washington, DC. I wouldn’t stop at the USDA, but would include nearly all branches and divisions. The Interior Department should be mostly in the interior and so forth. This is better for a lot of reasons.

You will always have some level of fraud, abuse, and thievery. Huge instances of fraud and abuse are everywhere in the news. I think we all know that the problems being revealed in Minnesota are not an isolated problem. It is rampant. California often brags that if it were its own country it would have something like the fifth largest world economy. Remember the Sutton rule? Wait until the waste fraud and abuse investigations reach California.

As far as local interest and government involvement in our lives, there is a concern by some of our readership about large data centers and their potential effects in Montgomery County. The timing is a little tough compared to our print schedule. We will be watching the story as it unfolds and may have some clearer details for our March issue.

Turning to the production side of things, on page 16 is a story that promotes the value of having our breeding bulls examined and confirmed fit for service. I found the data shared here was useful for context. Then, shortly this time of year several bull sales will be in the offering. To prepare we have a story on page 8 that goes through some benchmarks to valuing a good bull to a commercial operation. So what do you spend on purchasing a herd sire? I found the article from OSU Extension useful.

Then on the maternal side of things, a reader forwarded news of triplets on page 12! Triplets in cows is very rare, but to have all three survive is rarer yet. If this was a more common occurrence, we could tackle our small cattle inventory a good bit faster and more efficiently!

Elsewhere among these pages, we have several other opportunities for good reading. As always, Carolyn’s barn story is of historical interest. Bill Bullard’s column talks about the division of where the value of beef is distributed. Lee Pitts tells a story on our late friend Baxter Black that shouldn’t be missed.

I found the watermelon story on page 14 enlightening. I am drawn to reading about all kinds of specialty crops, and I have often commented to my neighbors how I wish they would figure out something besides corn and soybeans because of the monotony of it!

As we are finishing up this issue, the weather man is predicting a strong winter storm. Storm prep is a high priority. If it comes like I think it will, keep us in mind for reader submissions next month. We enjoy sharing ranchy photos from triplets to cattle in snowstorms, drop us a letter or email us with a few of the details! Of course, this suggestion of reader input is not just for storm season, but good all year ‘round.

Be careful out there, and as always thank you for reading and your continued support.

Send questions, story ideas, criticism, encouragement to:
Jon Angell
Publisher CA
PO Box C
Centralia MO 65240