I recently received my WWII magazine in the mail. I enjoy reading the articles and skimming through the pages. This month there was an article about Thanksgiving during WWII. It spoke of the rationing and the supplies that were unavailable for purchase to make the perfect Thanksgiving dinner. Some folks had chicken instead of turkey and recipes had to be set aside with the restrictions on meat, butter, and sugar. Betty Crocker said, “At the end of the day, let us be sure we can say I worked for freedom today. I served at least one food from each of the basic seven food groups. I prepared the food I served with care. I wasted no food this day.” These people strived to serve well balanced, nutritious meals with the burdens that were placed on them by war.

Today in America, we are blessed to have full shelves in the grocery store; we can go in and buy just about anything our heart desires. As a cattle rancher, that makes me very happy. I wake up each morning excited to produce beef for our great nation. I am very proud of my family’s 93 year operation and the great heritage that has been passed through the generations. Just as my great grandfather did, we continue to care for the land and the livestock. The daily feeding, caring, and checking of the cattle comes first in all the management decisions we make here on the ranch. As a fourth generation rancher, I am very concerned about the misinformation that is being spread by radical, agenda driven organizations.

With the daily articles, news segments, and attacks from opinion movies, I am saddened that our industry is constantly under attack. It's unimaginable to think that there is an agenda that truly wants to take my product and all meat products off the shelves. These activists are not just twisting the truth; they are targeting the meat industry with outright malicious and blatant lies in their effort to ultimately make this a meat free society.

Everywhere we turn, we see yet another attack against meat. A recent Larry King show questioned the safety of beef and attempted to scare consumers with guests that advocated a vegan diet. Then, Tony Gonzalez of the Atlanta Falcons, has been promoting his new book, “The All Pro Diet”, where he eats a diet low in animal proteins and high in plant foods. And recently PETA had a Halloween ploy, portraying Ronald McDonald as the evil animal abuser in an attempt to scare children away from eating meat. What is happening to the well balanced diet?

As we start to plan our Thanksgiving meal this year, let's remember those WWII families that didn't have all the food choices available to them. Let's be sure that our menus contain items from all the food groups and be thankful for our freedom to choose. We must have the freedom to serve well balanced meals to our families.