Is Farming the New Black?

[gwynedd1]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

For this subject I can't comment on the larger picture of social design, as I don't have the facts to prove or disprove it. But on the surface I think a lot of the "back to the land" elites will be returning back to their brownstones after a few years of real work followed by crop failures. Living off the land is filled with romance until you try to do it for reals.

It has its place as a supplement assuming one does not care much for golf or TV. I eat a lot of wild food and sometimes its as easy as shaking a shrub for a bushel full of wild plums in 5 minutes. Other times its a lot more work like black walnuts. However its a lot like a hobby, but one of those hobbies that pays me in product. My troubles are far away sipping cherry, sparkling hard cider.

But as a profession? When people ask me about selling stuff I tell them they can't afford me. Its true really. You have never had it before, never will again ,and its delicious, but I doubt most people would pay me for the labor. And if I am not eating it it is about the money.

In France , Italy etc there is a lot of local food. But its more of a supplement and gardening for personal consumption. We could use more of that, not a handful of former Wall Street suits "farming".

[shiny!]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

It has its place as a supplement assuming one does not care much for golf or TV. I eat a lot of wild food and sometimes its as easy as shaking a shrub for a bushel full of wild plums in 5 minutes. Other times its a lot more work like black walnuts. However its a lot like a hobby, but one of those hobbies that pays me in product. My troubles are far away sipping cherry, sparkling hard cider.

But as a profession? When people ask me about selling stuff I tell them they can't afford me. Its true really. You have never had it before, never will again ,and its delicious, but I doubt most people would pay me for the labor. And if I am not eating it it is about the money.

In France , Italy etc there is a lot of local food. But its more of a supplement and gardening for personal consumption. We could use more of that, not a handful of former Wall Street suits "farming".

It sounds like you have a beautiful lifestyle. Congratulations!

During WWII the government encouraged everyone to grow Victory Gardens. Nowdays it's quite the opposite. Municipalities and HOAs usually forbid homeowners from having extensive, intensive gardens. All those large front yards going to waste. PCO might cause prices of fresh food to go up enough to make gardening and canning a necessity for many. I hope suburbanites will start challenging city codes and HOAs and start using their yards for Square Foot Gardening.

[DSpencer]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

It has its place as a supplement assuming one does not care much for golf or TV. I eat a lot of wild food and sometimes its as easy as shaking a shrub for a bushel full of wild plums in 5 minutes. Other times its a lot more work like black walnuts. However its a lot like a hobby, but one of those hobbies that pays me in product. My troubles are far away sipping cherry, sparkling hard cider.

But as a profession? When people ask me about selling stuff I tell them they can't afford me. Its true really. You have never had it before, never will again ,and its delicious, but I doubt most people would pay me for the labor. And if I am not eating it it is about the money.

In France , Italy etc there is a lot of local food. But its more of a supplement and gardening for personal consumption. We could use more of that, not a handful of former Wall Street suits "farming".

I supplement my food supply with a relatively large garden. Between hoses, seeds, manure compost and some other supplies, they are definitely the most expensive fruits and veggies that I eat. If you add in the theoretical opportunity cost of my labor it would be astronomically expensive.

My family also has a tradition of boiling our own maple syrup ever year. While it's fun to spend a few days tapping trees and boiling syrup over a big fire in the woods, if I wasn't doing it for myself, friends and family, it would take a lot of money to decide it was worthwhile in a commercial sense. Most people already buy the cheap corn syrup imitation rather than pay $8 for a small jug of the real deal.

There's definitely cheaper ways to do things and maybe that's what separates the "gardener" from the "farmer", but even organic food can be cheap compared to a small amateur operation.

[think365]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

I supplement my food supply with a relatively large garden. Between hoses, seeds, manure compost and some other supplies, they are definitely the most expensive fruits and veggies that I eat. If you add in the theoretical opportunity cost of my labor it would be astronomically expensive.

My family also has a tradition of boiling our own maple syrup ever year. While it's fun to spend a few days tapping trees and boiling syrup over a big fire in the woods, if I wasn't doing it for myself, friends and family, it would take a lot of money to decide it was worthwhile in a commercial sense. Most people already buy the cheap corn syrup imitation rather than pay $8 for a small jug of the real deal.

There's definitely cheaper ways to do things and maybe that's what separates the "gardener" from the "farmer", but even organic food can be cheap compared to a small amateur operation.

I 100% agree with this. It's a bit more expensive, but rewarding if you care about your health and the quality of the food you eat. We are able to eat 50-60% of our diet directly from our own garden 4-5 months out of the year by loading up on fresh fruits and vegetables. There is something very satisfying in just walking out into your own garden and deciding what you feel like eating that day, pick it fresh, and knowing where it came from.

I have also developed great respect for the many friends I have made at our local farmer's market out here in California. They really know their craft/science and are willing to share their knowledge to anyone who is interested. It's a genuinely friendly and grounded community.

Growing your own and/or connecting with local growers who see every week also avoids issues like this:

http://modernfarmer.com/2013/07/why-...aking-us-sick/

[don]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Gardening, a rewarding endeavor, is not farming. Many of the rather quaint farms in France are government subsidized.

[think365]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Gardening, a rewarding endeavor, is not farming. Many of the rather quaint farms in France are government subsidized.

Same problem with millions of acres of "ranch and/or farm" land here in the U.S. that the wealthy "donate" to "non-profit" entities (which they indirectly control) and suddenly all that land becomes exempt from property tax. The barrier to qualify for their non-profit exemptions is ridiculously low (grow a few carrots and milk a cow or two). It seem to work for the elite with millions of acres, but just try the same thing with your 1/2-acre back yard and see what happens.

[BadJuju]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

I would like to have my own garden, but I live next to a chemical plant, so that's a no go.

[don]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Same problem with millions of acres of "ranch and/or farm" land here in the U.S. that the wealthy "donate" to "non-profit" entities (which they indirectly control) and suddenly all that land becomes exempt from property tax. The barrier to qualify for their non-profit exemptions is ridiculously low (grow a few carrots and milk a cow or two). It seem to work for the elite with millions of acres, but just try the same thing with your 1/2-acre back yard and see what happens.

Wasn't it Joan Baez who was 'raising cattle' for tax avoidance.

[dcarrigg]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Great promotional piece for the global tribal societal framework that we are migrating toward. In this scenario, with no real governmental or organic instutional power, the elite can do what they want.

Hence, the article in the OP is part of a recruitment drive.

PS. I find nothing wrong with people migrating back to the "land". In fact, I've thought about doing the same myself, mostly so that I can better control my families food chain. But I thought I would just give my perspective on the goals and objectives of this article as they fit into larger soceital design.

I come at this from a slightly different angle. I see it as effect rather than cause. Some significant public policy certainly is aimed at destroying the middle class for the benefit of a few. The less secure the middle class is, the more people will search for alternatives. Unfortunately, the alternative is only moving into the bottom of a two-class society. So it's just a question of how. When the middle class is no longer an option, what happens? You have to do something. Go somewhere. The overall population migration trend is still rural -> city. But this is part of the same phenomenon as a "sharing economy" or an "asset lite lifestyle." It is marketing the inevitable relative poverty of the up-and-coming middle-class generation as something cool.

Besides, when there is zero chance of job security or retirement, what loyalty should be given? The idea of loyalty between employer and employee seems old hat these days. Even in the public sector. Revolving doors abound. Nobody wins but the Davos crowd. When they convince you that it's everybody for himself, and the strongest (richest) always wins, sometimes it seems rational to just walk out and leave the game. The only question left is whether the monopoly board will get knocked over in the process or not.

[reggie]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

I come at this from a slightly different angle. I see it as effect rather than cause. Some significant public policy certainly is aimed at destroying the middle class for the benefit of a few. The less secure the middle class is, the more people will search for alternatives. Unfortunately, the alternative is only moving into the bottom of a two-class society. So it's just a question of how. When the middle class is no longer an option, what happens? You have to do something. Go somewhere. The overall population migration trend is still rural -> city. But this is part of the same phenomenon as a "sharing economy" or an "asset lite lifestyle." It is marketing the inevitable relative poverty of the up-and-coming middle-class generation as something cool.

Besides, when there is zero chance of job security or retirement, what loyalty should be given? The idea of loyalty between employer and employee seems old hat these days. Even in the public sector. Revolving doors abound. Nobody wins but the Davos crowd. When they convince you that it's everybody for himself, and the strongest (richest) always wins, sometimes it seems rational to just walk out and leave the game. The only question left is whether the monopoly board will get knocked over in the process or not.

First, great post. I agree with you. Reasons for these moves are always multi-fold. So, I don't see our two posts as uncomplimentary.

Second, in a control-feedback network-based society, "cause" and "effect" are dialectically intertwined so closely that it becomes almost impossible to differentiate. Hence, it's all about keeping society on a given trajectory.

Third, yes, the propaganda machine is in the process of making all sorts of things cool again. We're going to have an extremely small technical elite that are extremely young and which manage all of the systems that operate the networked society. The vast majority will have to fend for themselves, so all sorts of tasks, professions and trades will be promoted. Additionally, all major institutions will be significantly downsized. Just look at the destabilization of primary education - we're even seeing a move to home schooling.

Moreover, not sure where you live, but in the cities I frequent bicycles are now everywhere, and they're seen as cool again. Sometimes I think the elites made a $1 bet that before the end of the 21st Century they could swap the primary transportation methods being used in the US & China, with China becoming using mostly cars and the USA using mostly bicycles.

Fourth, in the final analysis, humanity will have a much smaller footprint on the planet, will live closer to the earth, and will be subjected to the vastly superior designs of a global "superclass".

On Edit, just thought I would add the following image called the worldinyear3000 by Radoslav Zilinsky which first showed up in 2007. It depicts what we're talking about, and from a propaganda point of view is what I would call Precession of the Simulacra (http://continentcontinent.cc/index.p...rticle/view/91)

[think365]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Wasn't it Joan Baez who was 'raising cattle' for tax avoidance.

Not sure about Joan Baez, but Ted Turner & Jane Fonda have thousands of acres sheltered under the "Conservationist" tax exemption.

This topic was discussed awhile back in the iTulip free boards HERE

[dcarrigg]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

First, great post. I agree with you. Reasons for these moves are always multi-fold. So, I don't see our two posts as uncomplimentary.

Second, in a control-feedback network-based society, "cause" and "effect" are dialectically intertwined so closely that it becomes almost impossible to differentiate. Hence, it's all about keeping society on a given trajectory.

Third, yes, the propaganda machine is in the process of making all sorts of things cool again. We're going to have an extremely small technical elite that are extremely young and which manage all of the systems that operate the networked society. The vast majority will have to fend for themselves, so all sorts of tasks, professions and trades will be promoted. Additionally, all major institutions will be significantly downsized. Just look at the destabilization of primary education - we're even seeing a move to home schooling.

Moreover, not sure where you live, but in the cities I frequent bicycles are now everywhere, and they're seen as cool again. Sometimes I think the elites made a $1 bet that before the end of the 21st Century they could swap the primary transportation methods being used in the US & China, with China becoming using mostly cars and the USA using mostly bicycles.

Fourth, in the final analysis, humanity will have a much smaller footprint on the planet, will live closer to the earth, and will be subjected to the vastly superior designs of a global "superclass".

I think I need to pay more attention to complexity theory. Much of social interaction is non-linear. Effect loops back to cause. You have a point.

[reggie]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

I think I need to pay more attention to complexity theory. Much of social interaction is non-linear. Effect loops back to cause. You have a point.

Hegel's theory of Dialectics, or should I say Marx/Engels bastardization of Hegel, has been mechanized via a global computer network that works at light speed. Cause - Effect are virtually the same now, and we're, the public, are sitting in the middle of this hyper-loop.

I don't see how the public survives such a system unless we leave it in mass.

[think365]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

I would like to have my own garden, but I live next to a chemical plant, so that's a no go.

Look on the bright side. Your produce will probably glow in the dark! That will cut down on your electricity bill and there would be zero costs for pest control. And don't forget that all of your produce will be "naturally genetically modified" by nature itself (NGMO) at no additional cost.

[c1ue]

Re: Is Farming the New Black?

Moreover, not sure where you live, but in the cities I frequent bicycles are now everywhere, and they're seen as cool again.

That's because there's a big pile of venture capital money that's been deployed to rent out $100 bicycles for $8 a day.