Lindsay's Lessons

If you missed the Ohio State game this evening in which the Buckeyes topped UNC Asheville in the first round of the NIT tournament, you missed something very big. I'm not referring to the game so much as I am to one player in particular - Kenny George. Standing 7'7" and tipping the scales at 365 lbs. let's just this young man gets noticed!

Watching George play I became absolutely intrigued by him. I started wondering aloud things like, "How does he travel? Where does he sit in class? And, how does he get comfortable on his furniture at home?" After coming home and doing some research, I realize that he doesn't get much privacy or much comfort due to his size.

Try to imagine being so tall that you are unable to fly because you can't fit into the airplane seats, so you have to drive no matter what the distance. But wait, you can't drive because you can't fit behind the wheel, so family or friends have to give you a ride whenever you want to go somewhere. However, wherever you go, people stop you to ask questions, get autographs or simply stare at you because of your size. And you can't just walk away, because in order to do so, you have to put on a size 28 shoe. That's right - it's the largest shoe Nike has ever made - even larger than Shaq's little size 22. And, it's the only shoes you will wear because Nike is the only company willing to specially design a shoe in that size.

After a tough weekend, you head to class on Monday morning where you take a seat on the floor and try to get as comfortable as possible while everyone else sits in desks around you. Of course, the desks are way to small for you to even consider. And after a tough day in class, if you decide to come home and crash, you must lay down diagonally on your bed because otherwise you won't fit.

Yes - that's just a glimpse into the life of Kenny George, who is literally a giant among men. George has a condition called gigantism in which a tumor on the pituitary gland causes an oversecretion of growth hormone. Deceased pro wrestler Andre the Giant is one of the more memorable and well-known cases of gigantism.

You've got to see this guy in action; watch this video and you might start to grasp what I'm talking about!

Get this - an advocacy group determined to rid schools of teachers who don't perform, but are protected under unions, is offering a reward to bad teachers who are willing to put away their flash cards for good.

The Center for Union Facts is launching a campaign that argues that teachers unions block education reform such as teacher merit pay and impose rules that make it virtually impossible to fire bad teachers.

The nonprofit group is spending $1 million on ads and a billboard in New York's Times Square focuses on getting rid of so-called "bad apples." It's also launching a Web site with data it says it collected from public-records requests documenting what it considers extreme lengths that unions go to protect bad teachers.

Perhaps most intriguing is that they are inviting nominations for a contest to determine the nation's worst unionized teachers. The "winners" will be offered $10,000 each if they permanently resign or retire from any career in education -- if they sign a release agreeing to have their name and the reasons for their selection published by the group.

Needless to say, union leaders are a little miffed. And while the group is targeting various school districts across the country, here in the Buckeye State both the Columbus Education Association and Cleveland Teachers Union are under fire.

This morning the Pork Act Delegate Body convened their first session. Candidates selected to the Pork Board Nominating Committee were Wayne Peugh of Illinois, past president of the NPPC and Bill Kessler of Missouri. A panel was convened to discuss an economic outlook of the industry. Serving on the panel were Dr. Steve Meyer of Paragon Economics, Joy Johnson VP of Demand Enhancement and Dr. Paul Sundberg, VP of Science and Technology.

Todd Stickley of Ohio presented the new Code of Ethics for Pork Producers to the group and discussed why such a set of guidelines was necessary. He cited examples of projects conducted in Ohio as successful examples of campaigns positively impacting consumers with regard to their perceptions about pork, and cited those examples as reason to take the next step in adopting the Code of Ethics.

Ohio delegate Tony Bornhorst brought forth a resolution that would expedite the process of having delegates and alternates certified by USDA by mandating that both delegates and their alternates be approved simultaneously, rather than waiting until an alternate is called into service to alert USDA of the change and ask them for approval. Ohio lost one delegate this year because the alternate was not approved by USDA in time for the convention due to the transition in the office of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. In total, nine alternate delegates did not receive approval in time to participate in this year's voting.

This afternoon the NPPC convened their annual meeting where they heard from Chris Padilla, Undersecretary for International Trade from the US Department of Commerce followed by Larry Pope, President and CEO of Smithfield Foods who discussed issues facing the US Pork Industry.

The annual Pork PAC auction will be held later this evening.

Pork Industry Forum kicked off in St. Louis yesterday with delegates representing states from across the country in attendance to make key decisions and formulate strategies that will guide the National Pork Producers Council and National Pork Board in the coming year.

During the past year, a committee was appointed to draft a statement of ethical principles for U.S. pork producers. The preamble to the draft reads:

U.S. pork producers recognize our obligation to build and maintain the trust of customers and the public in our products and our practices. To promote confidence in what we do and how we do it, we affirm the following ethical principles..."

The code then goes on to state (in abbreviated terms) that pork producers affirm their obligation to produce safe food, protect and promote animal well-being, safeguard natural resources in all of our practices, ensure our practices protect public health, provide a work environment that is safe and consistent with our ethical standards and contribute to a better quality of life in our communities.

If this code of ethics is approved, the committee sees it as being a new foundation for pork producers and the industry as a whole. As it stands now, when there is an isolated case of someone ignoring these ethical principles it puts the entire industry in a bad light and producers are left in a tough spot as to how to react to the situation. Due to the increasing pressure from animal rights wacktivists that I often refer to, if a producer tries to defend the industry saying the violation is an exception, not the rule, these wacktivists attack saying that the producers are looking the other way and ignoring the problem. If instead, they choose to acknowledge the problem, they are attacked for that and further accused of covering up those problems in the industry.

Thus, the question arises, what will this code of ethics accomplish in the light of such radical pressure from such an irrational audience? The hope is that in the future, if someone is to engage in production practices that violate this written code, it gives producers and industry leaders the opportunity to say, "Here is a written statement of what we believe in and the responsibilities we accept with regard to safe and ethical production practices. These are the guidelines that I and my fellow producers adhere to, and this particular incident involved someone who was operating outside of those standards in a way that we do not support."

So, will that be enough? I am doubtful that it will solve the problem, but I think it does have merit and it's a step in the right direction. Livestock producers as a whole are now faced with enough pressure from outside sources that they no longer have the choice to sit back and deflect criticism as it comes. Instead, they must be proactive and always be working ahead of the next situation.

I'll keep you posted as this draft code of ethics is presented once again later in the conference for further comments, amendments and voting.

While attending Commodity Classic I ran into my friend and fellow farm broadcaster, Evan Slack, owner of the Evan Slack Network - a network covering nine states in the west and parts of Canada. I first met Evan a couple of years ago and we bonded over his friendship with Ed Johnson, the founder of our ABN network. Just like EJ, Evan is a legend in the field.

His signature tagline of "On the Air and In the Air" is quite-fitting as Evan is a pilot, which has allowed him to successfully cover a multi-state area as he often takes to the air to attend regional and national farm events.

It doesn't take long to realize that Evan is a savvy guy in many ways. I can always count on a few things when I run into Evan. First, a kiss on the cheek. Second, a question about how my Mac computer is working and what programs I'm using. And finally, a look at some new toy or gadget perfect for a broadcaster.

You might not expect the guy who began his radio career in 1952 to be the one giving you pointers on technology, but Evan isn't your ordinary broadcast pioneer. He recognized early on that if he wanted to keep pace in an ever-changing world, it was going to take more than his airplane. He was one of the early adopters of Mac computers and made a conscious decision to keep ahead of the technology curve. As a result, a visit with Evan usually includes an update on new software products for Macs, a copy of the latest edition of MacWorld (to keep and read) and a sneak peak at his latest digital recorder.

This pioneer has a standing weekly appointment at his local Mac store where he visits the genius bar and asks them each week to teach him something new. And, I'm fairly convinced, that if Mac isn't paying him commission, they probably should be because if you're not currently using a Mac, you will be by the time Evan gets done with you.

A visit to Evan's website and you'll notice that he's delivering audio reports via the web, blogging and podcasting. And, he's always looking for the next greatest thing.

So why did I share all of this with you? No, it's not just because I think Evan is a pretty neat guy. It's because I think all of us who have tendency to drag our heels when it comes to technology probably ought to pay attention. Instead of saying, "I'll learn it when I have to," why not say, "I ought to learn how to do that." Then, of course, there are those of us who are scared because we don't want to ask a stupid question or we suffer from the fear of learning something that we don't understand.

However, when you get down to it, the only thing that's constant is change. So, maybe we should all be a little more like Evan and embrace those changes. And the next time you're at a national farm show and see a guy in a cowboy hat with white hair peaking out underneath, a copy of MacWorld tucked under his arm and a microphone in hand, be sure to tell Evan that I said hello.