Many of us grew up with machines that bring back (fond or maybe not so fond) memories. I grew up on a farm in western Nebraska where we had both farm and construction equipment. We needed the construction equipment to transform one of our farms to accommodate another innovation in 1981 – center pivot irrigation. In the early 1990s, caterpillar introduced their first autonomous trucks to be used in certain mining operations. Today, they boast millions of miles driven and billions of tons of material transported. While much has changed in the last two decades, adoption of the innovation incorporating… Read More »
As we turn the page from one season (football, harvest, road construction) to another (basketball/wrestling, tax, winter), the conversations at the coffee shop and around the break room table will change as well. A few things are always topics though like the weather. But I think what all of us want to know is, “Are the clouds on the horizon storm clouds and if so, what can we expect?” Similar to conversations about the weather many of us have been discussing what is influencing economic trends. Many dealers have weathered all kinds of storms, including economic ones, and you… Read More »
[Author: Mark Othmer, 05.2020 | Keywords: Nebraska Field Notes] This has been a very unusual time. Coronavirus has dictated nearly every action/inaction upon us today. While we all continue to do our best to support social distancing, we’ve had to utilize different methods to collect information than we have in the past. I used to feel that seeing a dealer or team member face-to-face across the desk was the “normal” way to collect information. Now it seems that Zoom meetings across cyberspace via the computer screen are the new norm. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to accept this… Read More »
[Author: Mark Othmer, 07.17 | Keywords: Nebraska Field Notes] The Beginning The 2017 session of the Nebraska Unicameral began on January 4, 2017 with 17 newly elected senators. With the addition of these freshman senators, there were now 34 sitting senators with two years or less lawmaking experience. By one month into the session, Senator Kintner resigned under great pressure from his colleagues and was replaced by a Governor Ricketts’ appointed Senator, making it 35 senators with two years or less experience. The freshman senators wasted no time exercising their influence on the Unicameral, linking up with several sitting senators… Read More »
[Author: Mark Othmer, 05.17 | Keywords: Nebraska Field Notes, Nebraska Legislative] Recently, several dealers from Nebraska and Iowa traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the annual legislative Fly-In. In my opinion, this is one of the best experiences for dealers INEDA helps arrange. We make arrangements for Nebraska dealers to visit the offices of each of their congressional delegation, often getting direct access and time with their respective Senator or Congressman. Dealers have the opportunity to express their opinions to their congressional delegation on current issues affecting the agricultural economy and equipment business, both good and bad. While we… Read More »
