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market-farming - Re: Organic vs. ???

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Jeffery Blake" <echoecho AT bedford.heartland.net>
  • To: "Market Farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Organic vs. ???
  • Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2001 19:59:04 -0500


Been following the organic/gmo/percy schmeiser/socialist thing.

My thoughts: The greatest evil capitalism promotes is the disassociation of
costs and benefits. Economic efficiency is the sole driving force in a
capitalist system. We only pay lip service to capitalism. We are not true
capitalists at all. We have many checks on the market place. I believe we
do not have enough. Guess I'm a socialist too. To a true capitalist I
believe we are all socialists anyway--its all a matter of degree.

back to disassociation of costs and benefits. the ag market place in a
quest for efficiency externalizes costs. By seeking only economic
efficiency with no regard to long term sustainability the least cost
producer becomes the one most able to exploit inputs especially the
environment(but also air quality, produciton of green house gases,
exploitation of aniamls and of neighbors and fellow farmers) especially
water quality through soil and chemical pollution and air quality through
increased fossil fuel burning via both combustion engines and the production
of chemicals and fertilizers. This efficiency transfers the cost of
production from the producer to the consumer who pays the price of this
exploitation through government programs and social costs associated
pollution, declining rural areas, soil erosion, fish kills, etc.

BUT, I don't think organic is the answer either. I believe organic
production holds a valuable place in the market place. I don't think it can
feed the world. (I don't think America should feed the world by itself, but
I still don't think if we put all the worlds arable into produciton that
organics would do it.) I think we need to develop systems that internalize
costs and maintain some level of efficiency.

I think there is a place for some chemicals, some machinery, some plastic
etc, but these products need to cost farmers exactly what they cost
taxpayers. I believe this would be a truely more efficienct system.

I oppose GMO's cheifly because I believe allowing them into the market place
fostors more of "socialism" than opposing them does. We are quickly moving
towards a corporate socialism. GMO's are a major mechanisim of this power
grab by the corporation. No, not some conspiracy theory, merely a grab for
shareholder returns. I also believe there is a potential environmental train
wreck ahead with GMO's, but would personally be more receptive towards GMO's
if they were designed to create something truely good for the environment
rather than designed to increase the herbicide sales of monsanto.
Sorry just a lot of random thoughts.








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