Update: official blog definition, Organic: got squishy bits; Inorganic: no squishy bits. Carbon, schmarbon.
...Woke up to a panel discussion about regular ordinary farming vs. organic; on one side, some woman from Consumer Reports, an organo-activist and the food critic from Vogue. On the other, a large-scale farmer, a British agronomist and another scientific type.
Food critic makes hand-waving claims that organic farming is "much more productive" than normal farming. citing "told by some farmer." Actual farmer on panel tries to respond with facts and figures, gets talked over. Agronomist responds, pointing out in detail how the claim is bunk and is treated dismissively. It kept on and on like that, with the crowd applauding the organo-morons and ignoring the folks who actually grow food.
At the start of the show, about 40% of the audience thought the various health and productivity claims for "organic" food (there's inorganic food? Other than Tums?) were genuine. At the end, 69% were on board with the notion. (A consistent 21% knew it was mostly hype).
The more I see, the more I'm convinced our civilization deserves to starve. We're breeding for gullibility. It's painful to watch. Modern farming methods feed the world; we'd've met up with Malthus, black-robed and wielding a global sickle, were it not for the very tools, chemicals and methods the "organic" crowds decry. --I guess as long as the elites get their free-range carrots, who cares about the price of bread and rice? "Let 'em eat cake." Oy.
Spot on!
ReplyDeleteTums, IIRC are predominantly Calcium Carbonate, which is a by-product of the quarrying of marble. So, technically, not "organic" as in "Produced by an organism" but certainly a product of Mother Earth. Plain, fine ground marble dust is by itself an effective antacid.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, what Lorimor said. Eric Hoffer's book "The True Believer" describes this phenomena to a tee, and it is the predominant reason I strive to entertain knowledge and eschew belief.
This is what happens when we tamper with natural selection.
ReplyDeleteJim
Organic farming is fine for the small scale, such as a garden in your back yard, but it really can't compete with commercial farming. Organic farming doesn't give as high a yield, and is more labor intensive.
ReplyDeleteWWII's victory gardens proved that a family of four can live on what they can grow on a acre. It's intensive agriculture, and there's not even a hair of slack but you CAN live on 10,000 square feet of dirt.
ReplyDeleteWhile you are looking around the used book emporiums check out the gardening section for a really old V-garden book. I suspect you are going to need it.
Stranger
When you are part of the Leftist elite, you are always confident that you know more about everything than anyone else, even when you know nothing at all about the subject. It is just their nature. This is why they are so sure they should RULE the rest of us (none of this freedom stuff for ordinary folks).
ReplyDeleteHydrocarbons and alcohols contain carbon atoms. They are by definition, organic. Therefore, the big oil companies should start advertising that they sell organic fuels.
ReplyDeleteStranger: Like this?
ReplyDeleteYou can always tell an "organic" field of whatever. It's the one so full of weeds you can't tell what they're trying to raise.
ReplyDeleteOrganic works in certain situations quite well, but in terms of the overall picture, it can't meet the need.
Plus, you have the 'fraud' and 'compliance' issue I keep harping about, but no one wants to address that from any angle. It might burst too many balloons...
All The Best,
Frank W. James
@Stranger,
ReplyDelete"...intensive agriculture..."
Yeah, as in "everyone in the family spends most of the day* cultivating, weeding, picking off pests, etc. (Plus staying up nights running off the deer and raccoons.) Then at the end of season everyone spends a month harvesting, drying, pickling, canning, and preserving. (Not to mention slaughtering, hanging, dressing, and smoking.)
It's hand- and stoop-labor-intensive, the kind of work "Americans don't want to do," nor should they need to (unless that's what they want). My mother grew up doing it, and it's no fun.
Although, come to think of it, it might be worthwhile for our useless chatterers to spend a season doing just that, to experience how much work it is.
Ship all the "intellectuals" off to the farms: Maybe Mao was right! ;-P
TW: "angers"
You bet this stupidity angers me.
(* or at least "every other day")
Tums is, as previously stated, calcium carbonate. The "carbon" in carbonate makes it "organic".
ReplyDeleteOrganic means that it contains carbon. Which means all fossil fuels are "organic" fuels.
The Left is just full of people who believe in vitalism and primitivism against all evidence to the contrary.
Helmet and seat belt laws have allowed the stupid and weak to live to breeding age thus producing a better class of idiot.
ReplyDeleteIf I am not mistaken, "organic" as used in chemistry refers to hydrocarbons, not just any carbon compound. There is not much that is though of as organic about a diamond.
ReplyDelete