Advisory Briefs π οΈThe purpose of homes should be to house people. The purpose of healthcare should be healing. The purpose of farming should be feeding. Under capitalism, the purpose of all is profit.
πππππ@advisorybriefs If not for profit, what is the incentive for a farmer to produce more than is needed to feed ones family?
LonesomeDove@smokku @advisorybriefs they were lead to believe that growing more at lower value (for export) would offset the risk.
Now those bankrupt farmers work FOR BigAg, who bought up their properties, cents on the dollar.
Same now going on in the livestock sector.
@usanchor Disagree.
They were bankrupt by unfair competition from BigAg, backed by regulations created by government. (lobbied by BigAg, exactly for the purpose of destroying and buying small for the cheaps)
Anyway, this is orthogonal to my question.
@smokku who pressed those govt regs etc? BigAg.. along with John Deere etc .. who wanted to βeasily sellβ $$$$$$ equipment to these farmers.
Add to that crop insurance / risk- all to export soy to Asia ..
I believe we are saying similar points btw.
@usanchor We kind of do. π
β
Rising the bar by government regulations makes the production profitable only for big farmers. Thus they want to go big, over-expand and go bust.
Again - this is in a "for profit" model.
My original question is, whether there is some other model, that would incentivize people to grow more than they need (and feed others).
@smokku not a simple question for certain. I remember corn harvest going all night- big $$$ machines with GPS & a driver, perhaps awake or not, in the cab. Is that really βlivingβ or even βfarmingβ?
Wyoming farmers cannot grow sufficient hay for cattle (crossover internal feed or sale) to make it viable. Tulare Lake has come back to life btw.
How to reset? CA Central Valley may be a void - unpredictable rain, bad & good.
@smokku The same incentive that runs Mastodon, for the good of the collective.
Also, markets have existed before capitalism, and will likely exist after capitalism. Capitalism β markets.
Here's a good primer from Richard Wolff, economist from Harvard, Yale, and Standford: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swpR41pRdMA
Ask Prof Wolff: Can Market Socialism and Marxism Coexist?
@advisorybriefs I am running a Mastodon server. I've also been working my arse off on the farm.
Believe me, it is not comparable effort.
I will not work on the farm anymore even for good money and WAY NOT for free to feed someone else.