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Manifesto for 21st Century Food and Farming

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Why Syzygy Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-02-11 03:50 PM
Original message
Manifesto for 21st Century Food and Farming
Edited on Fri Dec-02-11 04:48 PM by Why Syzygy
(if there is a better forum for this piece, let me know)

It occurs to me that farming and eating local, historically, could explain regional differences in food choices/methods.

This entry suggests we return to the sustainable, local agriculture.
Furthermore, it is a basic human right to allow personal use of land to produce human health and well being.


Manifesto for 21st Century Food and Farming
“Farming for the People with the People”

The global food economy, served and shaped via state and corporate control of the food chain, has resulted in unquantifiable levels of pollution, destruction and exploitation in every dimension of agriculture, from soil to seed, to plant, to animal and to man. In other words: our existence.

As we approach the second decade of the 21st century, it is becoming abundantly clear that an entirely new vision, understanding and implementation is required in order for agriculture to truly serve its original purpose of feeding humanity (all peoples) with good quality, affordable and mostly local foods in ways that do not harm the environment.

In order to make this wholesale shift it is necessary to entirely step aside from State and corporate control of the food chain. No compromise is possible here. Maintaining and re establishing the genuine independence of farmers throughout the world is a prerequisite for our survival as sentient, healthy human beings.

Non participation in the corporately controlled global market place must, in order to be effective, be accompanied by the widespread implementation of localised, quality food production and consumption practices. Practices that bring into close proximity the food grower and the food consumer; at the same time – by-passing entirely, the corporate multiple chains that profit by keeping them separate. This is the only way that genuine accessibility of optimum condition foods and medicinal plants can be ensured for billions of people throughout the World.


http://hartkeisonline.com/food-politics/manifesto-for-21st-century-food-and-farming/



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BanzaiBonnie Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-02-11 04:20 PM
Response to Original message
1. See what another farmer friend figured out he could support...
http://www.ideaforpresident.com/


Introduction: Help Wanted
Since it has become impossible for a poor person to run for the Presidency of the United States of America nowadays, and because I don’t foresee either party promoting a candidate who has the goods to help us adjust the present to insure a future, I have decided to run an Idea For President.

I will promote the candidacy of anyone from any party who endorses this Idea and pledges to make it a priority of his or her administration. My support for any candidate for any other office will also depend upon their endorsement of this Idea.

In these stormy times there are so many issues in the wind, so many small and large differences that divide us up into separate, competing groups, that We, the people, can never speak to power with one voice.

Instead of waiting for the parties or candidates to supply solutions, perhaps it is time for the people to generate a solution and then ask who will implement it.


People Finally United?

When the Earth becomes too poisoned to support human life, all of our other differences, big and small, will suddenly seem trivial.

If every day more citizens of the USA are unable to earn a dependable living, unable to feed their children a proper, nourishing diet and provide for their education, unable to afford healthcare and housing for their families, then We, The People, must unite to impose our solutions upon our “leaders”.
For if we do not unite to restore and detoxify this planet, we will certainly be united in our extinction.


Idea for President

This idea is intended to make our country stronger, our employment more certain, our people healthier, to reduce our need for healthcare, and to begin to return our environment to a state where it does not sicken us and can sustain all life forever.

We cannot change the needs of the environment to adapt to the needs of the economy. When our environmental safety is at odds with our economic safety, we must begin to transform our economic needs to adapt to the needs of the environment.
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Why Syzygy Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-02-11 04:50 PM
Response to Reply #1
3. I love it!
Let's go viral :)
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wtmusic Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-02-11 04:33 PM
Response to Original message
2. Well-intentioned but it would never, ever work.
Edited on Fri Dec-02-11 04:43 PM by wtmusic
Corporations have improved world agriculture output by 40% per unit area in the last one hundred years, and we'll need more.

Fritz Haber and the German corporation BASF, using Haber's process of nitrogen fixing, are directly responsible for feeding 1/3 of the world's population - and you have both to thank for about half of the protein in your body.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haber_process
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Why Syzygy Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-02-11 04:57 PM
Response to Reply #2
4. Idealism
Edited on Fri Dec-02-11 04:57 PM by Why Syzygy
I'm no longer an idealist. But I don't like to poo poo an idea until it has been tested.
I do not believe for a moment that Gaia/Earth starves her children. Corruption at the highest level of the Geo-politicians involved are guilty of that.

Reflect on the water system Libya HAD before the bombing. It harvested ice age water! And moved it to distant (still "local") locations.

No. I'm not going to believe this "would never, ever work". You're entitled to your opinion of course.
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