MAHA Pt. 5: Revaluation
We ask you one simple question: Where is the Value of the Cow?
Where is the value of the cow? Texas Slim asks this often, and while answers may vary, one rings truer than the rest: In the USDA’s Insurance Policy. This isn’t protection; it’s a distortion—an artificial construct that strips value from the hands of ranchers, consumers, and communities. To reclaim what’s been lost, we must rediscover where real value lies and how far we’ve strayed from it.
Jason, Ajalah, and the Silver Dollar
Jason Wrich in Colorado and Ajalah Efem in the South Bronx represent two sides of the same struggle. Jason’s daily toil on Wrich Ranches connects him to the land, a legacy of self-reliance. Ajalah’s battle with type 2 diabetes reflects the consequences of a broken food system that’s failed urban communities for generations. Both reveal a truth we can’t ignore:
Value isn’t abstract—it’s in the soil we steward, the food we eat, and the health we reclaim.
This truth is embodied in the metaphor of the silver dollar, a concept RS June captured in The Value of Truth in the Land of the Free. As Texas Slim stood in Washington, D.C., the silver dollar in his hand wasn’t just currency; it was a symbol of lost integrity:
“The silver dollar represented everything America had lost: truth in our currency, honesty in our food, and trust in the systems that shape our lives.”
When Slim held that dollar in the shadow of Capitol Hill, it was a challenge to the system that replaced tangible value with hollow promises. Just as our money has strayed from silver and gold to paper and digital numbers, our food has drifted from local, nutrient-dense beef to processed, industrial substitutes.
Harvest of Deception: Policies that Distort Value
Texas Slim’s Harvest of Deception lays bare how USDA policies reinforce this distortion. Insurance programs designed to protect agriculture instead create cycles of dependency and undermine sustainable practices:
“The USDA’s insurance programs are designed to insulate industrial agriculture from its own fragility. Instead of supporting resilient, local food systems, these policies force ranchers into cycles of subsidy and dependency, stripping value from sustainable practices.”
Centralized meat processing regulations have further consolidated power, driving local butchers out of business:
“Our processing infrastructure was systematically gutted by centralized interests. The USDA’s rigid regulations left small-town America devoid of its local butchers, driving consolidation into the hands of a few multinational giants.”
Nina Teicholz and the Nutrition Coalition: Value Lost in Guidelines
Nina Teicholz’s work with the Nutrition Coalition confirms this systemic failure in public health. The USDA’s dietary guidelines—shaped by conflicts of interest—have prioritized profit over health for decades:
“95% of the expert committee members for the current USDA dietary guidelines had ties to food or pharmaceutical industries. These conflicts of interest undermine the integrity of the guidelines, prioritizing profit over health.”
Despite $2 million allocated by Congress for reform, the USDA has failed to implement key recommendations from the National Academies:
“The USDA was mandated to redesign its process for developing dietary guidelines, but as of today, those improvements ‘had largely not yet been achieved.’”
This failure reflects a broader pattern of centralization, where value is siphoned away from health and community and funneled into corporate systems.
Breeauna Sagdal: Policy Principles for a Decentralized Future
Breeauna Sagdal’s America the Titanic was a prescient warning about these distortions. Alongside Andrea Shaffer and Lisa Logan, Breeauna outlined how centralized power locks everyday Americans out of decisions that impact their land, health, and food sovereignty. The recent revelations from Project Veritas confirmed this warning, exposing the frantic rush within the EPA to secure ideological policies before power shifts.
The Beef Initiative and the I Am Texas Slim Foundation, guided by Breeauna’s policy leadership, respond with four core demands to overcome these challenges and bolster the success of folks like Jason, Ajalah, and Nina:
Revoke Executive Orders Undermining Local Sovereignty: End federal overreach like E.O. 14008, which prioritizes centralized control over local decision-making.
Defund Nonprofits Acting as Political Buffers: Stop taxpayer dollars from funneling into nonprofits that embed federal policies, eroding local governance.
Protect Private Land Rights and Decentralize Authority: Empower communities to steward their land, free from federal programs that seize property under the guise of resilience.
End Federal Surveillance and Data Collection: Halt invasive monitoring through food assistance programs, which disproportionately harm rural and underserved communities.
Gold Bars to Silver Dollars: The Titanic Moment
The Beef News article, “America the Titanic: A Chilling Warning Realized in the EPA’s Gold Bar Moment,” warns of the consequences of this centralization. Billions of taxpayer dollars are funneled into nonprofits as ideological “insurance policies,” eroding local sovereignty and leaving ordinary Americans locked out of decisions about land and health:
“The EPA’s spending spree prioritizes policies aligned with global agendas over the needs of rural communities and food producers. Ranchers and farmers—the lifeblood of America’s food supply—are being pushed further from the decision-making table.”
We’re on a sinking ship, with gold bars being thrown overboard to preserve failing policies. But as RS June reminds us, the silver dollar still holds its weight—a reminder of real value we can touch, measure, and trust.
Reclaiming Value: A Path Forward
The value of the cow isn’t in an insurance policy or a USDA guideline. It’s in the handshake between rancher and consumer, the integrity of nutrient-dense food, and the health of our communities. The Beef Initiative’s challenge is clear:
“If we want to restore integrity to our food, we must start by restoring integrity to our currency. Only then can we dismantle the commodification that has left America’s countryside littered with Dollar Stores and barren fields.”
Value must return to the land, the people, and the relationships that sustain us.
Shake Your Rancher’s Hand
We’ve been sold a lie about where value comes from. Now, it’s up to us to rediscover it—one handshake, one meal, one choice at a time. Visit BeefMaps.com and go Rancher-Direct.
Crowdhealth is our Partner:
CrowdHealth, a revolutionary consumer-centric, parallel system of individuals crowd-funding healthcare expenses without insurance, aligns perfectly with our mission of supporting local, sustainable ranching practices. By choosing CrowdHealth, you’re not just opting for a smarter way to handle medical expenses; you’re joining a movement that values community, health, and sustainability.
CrowdHealth recently launched the Carnivore Crowd, for metabolically healthy meat eaters exclusively funding each other’s healthy lifestyles. Joining the Carnivore Crowd goes beyond healthcare, as the Carnivore Crowd is dedicated to supporting initiatives that bring high-quality, sustainably sourced beef to your table and help promote the well-being of our dedicated ranchers. Discover how CrowdHealth & the Carnivore Crowd can make a difference in your health and in the future of our family farms.