Web of life unravelling, wildlife biologist says

[Iterate]

30. Farmers haven't farmed for decades.

Between speculation-fueled land price increases and large debt piled up in the 1980's, most farms I know of became "managed" by university educated farm managers (from Monsanto U.) that are required by the banks which are needed to finance the next crop and keep the places afloat while the land debt is paid off, which it never is. That means the farmers are effectively hired hands with little control and all of the burden.

That arrangement is even more obvious in the case of chicken ranchers, who essentially become share-croppers under strict rules detailed in the sales contracts they need to make with the buyers. That system was pioneered by Tyson in Arkansas.

All of that resulted in the end of the family farm in the 1980's. It killed small towns and drove people from the Midwest into suburbs or larger towns where they learned to commute. It also helped spread the teabaggery in the plains states, as people do tend to get conservative, religious, and generally angry when that type of thing happens and they have no adequate narrative to deal with it. It's also one of the reasons I go off on the issue of debt-driven growth from time-to-time.

Before our fellow North Americans get overly outraged at the "banksters", I should point out that the reason Tyson or Cargill have such sway in the market is because of the concentration in the retail market, from McDonald's to the mega-supermarket, which in turn was driven by suburbanization and the auto. Smaller scale stores which may buy from a variety of producers don't stand a chance when people are driving five miles for a quart of milk, which they shouldn't be drinking anyway.

So there ya' have it. You can see from the narrative of my understanding why the most direct solution out of my freshly rested head is for everyone to burn their cars, fire trucks and ambulances excepted.

Did I miss anything in E/E the last month+? Seems relatively quiet.