Farmers are like any other group of people. There are some amazing people that farm, some horrible people that farm, and everything in between. It's not fair to paint any group of people with a broad brush.... Except for Hawk fans.
Why are Farmers never happy?
- Thread starter ClonesTwenty1
- Start date
So farmers are like CF members; ******** and whining about everything?
Unless you've ever farmed for a living or grown up in a family that farming was their main source of income then you probably ought to be careful posting threads like this. If farming were so easy and lucrative then a lot more people would be going into it as a career instead of ******** about how their work wants them to start coming back into the office again.
It's a tough occupation and weather, inflated costs of operating inputs, market prices for the crops and animals you sell, and sometimes just plain bad luck are a lot of variables that can make the difference between a good year and bad one. Those of us with desk jobs usually have a good idea what we are going to bring home for income going into a year, farmers don't have that luxury as just putting a crop in the ground doesn't guarantee a good income if the perfect storm of costs, weather, and market prices cuts into their profit margins. If you raise livestock and you have a dead calf that animal basically lost you money for the year. Lots of things to consider that if it was your time and money invested how frustrating it can be that some things not in your control can hit your pocketbook unexpectedly.
It's a tough occupation and weather, inflated costs of operating inputs, market prices for the crops and animals you sell, and sometimes just plain bad luck are a lot of variables that can make the difference between a good year and bad one. Those of us with desk jobs usually have a good idea what we are going to bring home for income going into a year, farmers don't have that luxury as just putting a crop in the ground doesn't guarantee a good income if the perfect storm of costs, weather, and market prices cuts into their profit margins. If you raise livestock and you have a dead calf that animal basically lost you money for the year. Lots of things to consider that if it was your time and money invested how frustrating it can be that some things not in your control can hit your pocketbook unexpectedly.
It's an interesting dynamic.
People judge farmers for subsidies (even though farmers only receive them when prices are below set levels of support) yet complain if the price of food increases. People criticize farmers for raising livestock in confinements, yet they themselves are packed together in confined housing developments / apartments. People place the blame on farmers for water quality issues, yet nutrients flow into our water systems from cities, industry, etc.
Farmers are always striving for perfection. For that to happen (which it never will) farmers invest life savings each year in the hope that the weather will provide the opportunity. So, when a wind storm hits like last night and levels corn fields in northern Iowa, or if a area misses a key rain in late July, it is understandable that farmers are and can be critical. Not of others...but of the circumstances out of their control.
Now...ClonesTwenty, what is your occupation?
People judge farmers for subsidies (even though farmers only receive them when prices are below set levels of support) yet complain if the price of food increases. People criticize farmers for raising livestock in confinements, yet they themselves are packed together in confined housing developments / apartments. People place the blame on farmers for water quality issues, yet nutrients flow into our water systems from cities, industry, etc.
Farmers are always striving for perfection. For that to happen (which it never will) farmers invest life savings each year in the hope that the weather will provide the opportunity. So, when a wind storm hits like last night and levels corn fields in northern Iowa, or if a area misses a key rain in late July, it is understandable that farmers are and can be critical. Not of others...but of the circumstances out of their control.
Now...ClonesTwenty, what is your occupation?
There is a lot truth to be told about farmers and their subsidies, especially considering most aren't open to adding buffers to their land to lower the pollutants and even help with soil erosion. The real monsters of the Ag industry are the seed producers who hold a captive market. Same could be said of the giant mill farms turning out 20,000-40,000 head and dumping hog **** into the rivers.
Not all farmers are bad but the industry is sloppy at the margins and looking to get worse considering the Supreme Court is currently taking a knife to the EPA. Iowa has the worst water in the country. Right now Des Moines is drilling for fresh water because the rivers are so polluted it cost too much to clean it so they're adding the fresh water to help dilute the surface water.
Things need to change but they won't any time soon, I think even many farmers would agree with that.
Des Moines faces extreme measures to find clean water
For years, Des Moines Water Works has tried to force or cajole farmers upstream to reduce the runoff of fertilizer that leaves the rivers with sky-high nitrate levels but lawsuits and legislative lobbying have failed.apnews.com
There's a lot wrong with this take. But thank you for your participation.
Great Grandpa puts a lot into his Faith.
Another CF thread hating on farmers and subsidies. I always get a kick out of all the morons on this site ******** from their subdivision about things they have only heard the media talk about.
I mean the same thing can be said the other way around.
The things I hear rural folks talk about in reference to cities is a lot of interesting takes.
How very Farm Bureau of you.
