Stats Can bugging anyone?

[charliep]

Will leave whether you cooperate alone. Will note that this information is generated from a lot of other sources and is normally not available to the public. I did this in a previous life. If you take this strategy, my advice is to make sure you don't talk to the grain industry, chemical companies or anyone else.

There are flaws in the current system but the information is survey based and readily available to everyone. It provides a base for a point in time with everyone who uses it understanding that this changes.

In a previous (grain company), buyers would be on my case for crop updates about every two days. These customers demanded top quality information and the business went as much to the company that could supply it as low price (everyone had to be competitive). People like me in an old life found ways of supplying it. None of this information is likely provided farmers (even the CWB likely provides more information to customers than they do farmers).

Off topic. Quality market information is a market need (highlighted every CWB press release). The question is where the market gets this information from.

[Lifer]

What offends me is the expectation that I will give information for free. I'm sick of it.

To often in our industry others are paid first. Offer me $$$ for my time and information and I may share. Don't and you can buzz off.

[silverback]

How many thousand farmers are there in this country? Can they not find someone other than me to help them?

Why are they treating us like our information is the only one they need?

If I don't answer their calls, why do they need to phone back 2 hours later? Then 2 hours after that? The other night they called at 10:04 pm. This is going on 3 weeks now. Do they think it is funny to bug us into insanity just to get some stupid numbers?

They must really love their job or else they are on commission when a survey is completed?

[silverback]

I forgot, they have called twice so far today. No message, just hang ups.

If I'm not mistaken, it is saturday of a long weekend for most people right?

That is what makes me wonder if they are getting paid somehow for squeezing the numbers from us.

[sumdumguy]

Parsley, whether or not this country is being "run" not governed by corruption, it is very sad that the minority can dictate policy that continues to destroy the farmers in the West. When I was young my mentors predicted that there will be a revolution before we have freedom. By the way, many farmers hauled wheat and barley across the border as seed for many years in the 60's and early 70's. It was legal.

As I was raised a farmer and can't help but live and breath farming, I witnessed the destruction,moral degredation and even imprisonment of progressive farmers, with total disbelief. I fully expected that our forefathers would be proven wrong nad change would be forced. I would tell them,"times have changed and constitutional individual rights would force the enforcers to see that they are wrong. Courts would surely intervene for us- but No. " How can this atrocity be ongoing in 2007? One "human" denying "us" the right to be treated the same as farmers in Ontario, Quebec, most of B.C. and The Maritimes- knowing full well what it is doing to farmers? At Portage on Aug 1, 2007, I looked at the disappointed faces of honest, hard-working farmers and asked myself, "What can I do to help?" I can cancel my permit book, grow non-board grains, I can refuse to deliver even 1 bushel to the board,I can support free market groups and political parties that agree with farmers, write letters to my M.P. and I can tell everyone I know, that farmers need a chance at freedom. They voted and even the CWB knows this is true.

Until then, there are areas ( that even the judges can't touch) available to the minister. He can ven the playing field and allow Western Farmers the same no-cost buy-back that other farmers enjoy. The implementation of new regulations will diminish the effect of the court ruling until we can appeal. Until we hear more news, Good Luck with harvest everyone and Take Care!

[carebear300]

Just a little insight that I picked up,don't know if the source was reliable or not. I was told that you ever really took the time and answered the survey honestly to the best of your ability without fudging the figures, you would be on their list forever. You know what that makes sense, because for the first twenty years I was farming i patiently did all their surveys and have had a heck of a time getting them off my case now.

[Yusishen]

Stats can I will answer (though not necessarily with the most accurate info) but it's the other guys that annoy me. There's nothing in law that says you have to talk to private survey companies so we don't. Mostly I just let it ring (wonders of call display) and they never leave a message (Stats can usually does and then you can call back when it's convenient to you).

Even with Stats Can, I try to only answer during the day (weekdays only). If I see their name on call display in the evening or the weekend, I'll let it go to the machine. Do they call other businesses at their home number at 10 pm? Not likely, so if they want info on my business, they can call during business hours.

I had Stats Can calling on a smoking survey once on a Sunday afternoon and they couldn't figure out why I wouldn't do the survey then (my mistake in answering the call in the first place). They kept saying it's mandatory to answer and I kept saying "not on Sunday, call me back during the week". Apparently for some surveys, the group doing them only works evenings and weekends. IIRC, they sent me the survey in the mail eventually and I did complete it.

[Yusishen]

Stats can I will answer (though not necessarily with the most accurate info) but it's the other guys that annoy me. There's nothing in law that says you have to talk to private survey companies so we don't. Mostly I just let it ring (wonders of call display) and they never leave a message (Stats can usually does and then you can call back when it's convenient to you).

Even with Stats Can, I try to only answer during the day (weekdays only). If I see their name on call display in the evening or the weekend, I'll let it go to the machine. Do they call other businesses at their home number at 10 pm? Not likely, so if they want info on my business, they can call during business hours.

I had Stats Can calling on a smoking survey once on a Sunday afternoon and they couldn't figure out why I wouldn't do the survey then (my mistake in answering the call in the first place). They kept saying it's mandatory to answer and I kept saying "not on Sunday, call me back during the week". Apparently for some surveys, the group doing them only works evenings and weekends. IIRC, they sent me the survey in the mail eventually and I did complete it.

[parsley]

All the Minister of the Canadian Wheat Baord has to do is to instruct the CWB to issue export licenses to Prairie applicants.

If the CWB does not comply, they are disobeying a ministerial order and are subject to dismissal. Wouldn't be a bad thing to clear out a few out of the Licensing Department if they can't take an order from thsir boss.

AND the bureaucrats in Ottawa who did not pursue this avenue, and recommennd it to the Minister, should be dismissed, as well. They are not worth their weight in salt.We can have export licenses overnight.

Parsley

[sumdumguy]

Do you think that the minister has the will or the people to oversee the permit process and make sure that the permits are issued quickly with a minimum amount of bureaucratic red tape and requiring the least amount of information? I can see a resistent bureaucracy trying to undermine the process.