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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Off-Grid Home Stories Wanted

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Lynn Montgomery" <sunfarm@toast.net>
  • To: <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Off-Grid Home Stories Wanted
  • Date: Sun, 25 Jan 2009 12:11:03 -0700

I think we are all doing a tunnel vision thing here. We cannot deal with this issue on just a down on the farm economic standpoint, or "what's in it for me?' or all government is bad and we live in a vacuum. We cannot absolve ourselves of the problem that humanity, all of us together, is destroying the world just because we are low income. We all must make sacrifices, big ones, the biggest being our cherished political and social beliefs.
Paul and others are right. Subsidies are poison. A few decades ago, NM implemented subsidies on residential solar installations that made solar virtually free. All the charlatans immediately moved in and sold lots of solar heating panel systems, most of which went on Rio Rancho roofs. These utilized water. Helloooo!!!, it freezes all winter long in Rio Rancho. These systems have all been dismantled and have gone to the dump, except those homeowners who managed to sell them to unsuspecting people. The solar industry got a bad name which destroyed it and it is just starting to come out of it. The problem wasn't the subsidies, it was no oversight, standards, or control and it ended up being a free for all. Not only government, but citizens, must take on watchdog (with real teeth) roles to ensure against government intrusion and abuse, and industry showing bad behavior. I think we have learned our lessons and perhaps we can now do it better. As far as not taking any money from the government, well, most farmers in NM irrigate with surface water and most are members of an acequia association or conservancy district. (By the way, acequia associations are governments too, and I will argue they aren't evil.) Almost all of these must take government or private NGO loans or grants to keep up their systems as most members are low income and cannot afford these necessary improvements. Without them, our local small scale agriculture would go away.
Everytime you use grid electricity, you are burning coal or other fossil fuels that create CO2 and methane. Everytime you flick that switch, you are contributing to the complete destruction of all life. If we are to claim we have values and morals and are living good, sustainable lives, then we must do everything possible to not commit the real evil.
Lynn Montgomery
 
"Anyone who believes in infinite growth in a
finite world is either mad or an economist"
 
            -Kenneth Boulding-
 
              



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