Can we talk?

We had a nice article in the paper the other day about our ranch and our Family Fun Night on August 16 th. We had decided with rising fuel prices and declining trail riding to allow families to come out and enjoy a night out for only $25. That would include pony rides in the arena, fishing, hiking, bonfire and hay ride. We thought it would be something nice for the community and increase awareness of our facility and services that we offer.

The problem arose when the reporter took a picture. As soon as I saw it I knew that we would get calls about our skinny horse. Not skinny, just healthy. Probably 75% of all pleasure horses in my opinion are probably overweight. Well the article came out on Saturday and no calls over the weekend, but first thing Monday morning here comes animal control. Now they have been out to our place before. They have gotten many complaints about us such as; we leave our horses out in the rain, snow, wind etc., we make our horses eat off the ground, our horses are laying down and must be dead, they look sad, hungry, depressed, they are rolling in the dirt, I could go on and on. Every time AC comes out everything is fine. My problem with all of this is that all of the questions, comments etc, I would be glad to answer if the person would call me directly. Why do we feel as a society now that we can not communicate directly. Anytime we have a problem we have to call the police, fire department, county govt etc. What happened to our ability to talk and work things out as a society amongst our selves. When did we change to a society that feels we have to get the govt involved in everything we do. Then what happens, we complain about how much we pay in taxes and how big govt is and how the govt sticks their noses in everything we do.

When we first started out with NVR we didn't know that you can't raise horses in Hendricks County unless you are raising them for food (that's another story), address those questions and comments to the head of Planning for Hendricks County. Anyway, one day we received a letter from the county saying we were in violation of HC zoning. We needed to change our zoning to Ag Business, ( ended up costing about 30k and a few years off my life, but again that's a story for another day). So I go and start trying to gather information about why we have to change our zoning and so forth. I ask the planning dept for a copy of the letter and they give it to me with a picture of me waving to someone from our driveway.

So it all comes back to me, one Sunday morning I am at the barn early and see someone taking pictures, I go down and wave to them and he takes a picture and then jumps in their car and speeds off. Well ends up it was one of my neighbors, whose son in law is a longtime friend of mine. It would have been real easy for him to come up introduce himself, ask what I was doing, if we was familiar with the zoning point out what I needed to do etc. Does he do any of that, no he writes a letter to zoning, saying a horse trader has moved in to town and then points out how I am in violation of zoning. What a jerk. I hope he reads this too so he knows how I feel. Am I still friends with his kids and their spouses, yes, no animosity towards them but him not so much.

We have become a society afraid to hurt any ones feelings, afraid of confrontation, everyone is worried about how someone else is going to "feel" about what we are saying. That is what we are supposed to do as a society, talk, communicate, look out for each other. Not get govt involved every time the wind blows.

I am a Libertarian ( a political philosophy that stresses personal liberty. Libertarians believe that individuals should have complete freedom of action, provided their actions do not infringe on the freedom of others. Libertarianism's distrust of government is rooted in 19 th-century anarchism. Typical libertarians oppose not only the income tax and other government impositions but also programs seen by many as beneficial, such as social security and the postal service. In the U.S. their views often crosscut traditional party boundaries (e.g., libertarians oppose gun control, as do most Republicans, but support the legalization of prohibited drugs, as do some liberal Democrats). Among the thinkers embraced by libertarians are Henry David Thoreau and Ayn Rand ) If what I am doing has no effect on your personal freedoms than keep the govt the hell out of my business. You have a problem with the way I am keeping my animals then come and talk to me about it personally. (I could go on about anonymous phone calls as well)

If you do not feel strongly enough about your opinion to do that than you should my your own business. Don't hide behind the curtain of govt and expect me to have any respect for you, your opinion or your beliefs. You want lower taxes, less govt? Than stop using it to voice your comments, opinions and beliefs. Get up and do it yourself.