Farming Not Fighting

Afghans want to be farmers, not fighters, says U.S.
Wed, Feb 3 2010
By Sue Pleming

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Afghans would rather be farmers than fighters, the U.S. agriculture secretary said on Wednesday, highlighting a U.S. focus on farming jobs to lure people from the battlefield and curtail the opium trade.

Separate from the Afghan-led re-integration plan announced by President Hamid Karzai at a conference in London last week, Washington sees its agriculture program as a way of impeding the Taliban, said the U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke.

"This is going to really hurt the Taliban, no question about it," said Holbrooke. "Unlike, say, re-integration, which they can attack, it's harder to attack this one because the country is an agricultural country."

U.S. agriculture chief Tom Vilsack visited Afghanistan last month, meeting farmers and looking at ways of reviving a sector that is the main income source for eight in 10 Afghans.

"From my discussions with regular Afghans, they would much rather be farmers than fighters," said Vilsack. "This is an economic issue." Read More

Agriculture is the foundation upon which every society has ever been built. Without a strong agricultural base, failure will soon follow. It is THE industry that provides the essentials for life. Our military leaders recognize this more than most which is why they have worked hard to teach more about agriculture in that country. And, with so many of our soldiers coming from rural America, they are uniquely qualified to help with this process. Agriculture and the military are the two things our country can’t live without.

Cattle Blood To Save Soldiers Lives

Cattle blood used in treatment experiments
By Jeff Martin - (Sioux Falls, S.D.) Argus Leader via Gannett News Service
Posted : Sunday Jan 31, 2010 14:14:52 EST

A South Dakota bio-tech firm is using blood byproducts from cattle to develop new ways of treating injured soldiers on the battlefield.

The technology could also save lives after natural disasters such as the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, company executives say.

"It could help a lot of people in mass casualty situations where blood loss and wounds that need to get healed are a problem," says Steve Tye, vice president of operations for IKOR Inc. "This is a drug that can be stored for years so it can be delivered on the first flights out there."

IKOR aims to use hemoglobin from cattle as its raw material to develop blood replacement products for injured soldiers, Tye says. The goal is to heal their wounds more quickly and effectively, partly because the products can help deliver oxygen to the wound. Read More

I always enjoy sharing stories such as these that show just how much animal agriculture continues to improve the human condition. The edible product we get is just part of benefit we receive. Pharmaceuticals derived from livestock play a very important role in improving human health. Especially when it comes to providing our soldiers with the very best medical care, we need to utilize resources such as this. I would much rather see cattle being used to feed and heal people than seeing those same people die. Unfortunately, the life of an animal is more important to some than the life of an American soldier. ~Troy