Why I farm

Much of my life has been spent within the Judeo-Christian Military-Industrial mode of existence. I am not speaking as a mere consumer of products and advertisement or as one who adheres to that technotopian version of industrial superiority but as one who was it's missionary, evangelist, and apologist. The formative childhood years where spent in the shadow of the largest coal shipping facility on the east coast as well the largest Naval installation in the United States. Being raised in a conservative Christian home attending one of the most theologically conservative churches in the rural evangelical traditions the structure and order of the world fell into a strictly regimented orthodoxy. The mantras of this upbringing consisted of: “God and Country”, “Wealth is the sign of discipline and right relationship with God”, “the government is a God ordained authority which must be honored and respected”, “technological progress is synonymous with Americas greatness and blessing from God”, “nature is only a resource for humans as the crown of Gods creation”. These and other spoken and understood messages formed the rigid framework from which the entire world and all it's subtleties fell into an understandable form. Anything that contradicted these tenants was dismissed as evil and subversive...to be shunned and reviled. Pro-life rallies and Forth of July festivities, homosexual business boycotts and anti-evolutionist training sessions where the hallmarks of a childhood spent learning to propagate certain vital components of the dominant culture. Upon leaving home the only choices seen as viable where either Bible college or military enlistment. In a sense they were the same for service to the church or the flag where parallel paths further progressing the just and righteous causes of Christ and freedom. Feeling that I had been given a specific calling I joined the ranks of the Bible College students intent on making the non believing world followers of Christ, fulfilling the “Great Commission” hastening the eminent return of Christ thus ushering in the new heaven and new earth under the Utopian perfection of God's immediate presence. In the course of striving for the fulfillment of this vision that edifice and rigid cosmology began to dissolve leaving only questions and mysteries that formulated answers and faith were powerless to stop. Gradually I began to see the destruction of natural world, the fragility of the Christian narrative in historical and anthropological terms, the arrogance of American superiority, the danger in technological progress, and the nuances and difficulties in defining wealth and poverty (and the reasons for each) in terms of right action and right relationship with God. In short nearly the whole of my upbringing was examined and found to be patently false. Yet I walked away from that world with the knowledge that the people who trained me were not dense or evil but true believers utterly devoted to a certain view of history, religion, and it's ultimate fulfillment.

The industrial portion of my life has been a relatively recent education. Along with copious research I have worked in industrial agricultural in Arkansas, the oil fields in Texas and Louisiana, and in the fabrication and manufacturing of wood chippers in Oregon. All of which include the implementation of mammoth machinery, pervasive and toxic chemical use, and the commodification of the living and of the land for the sake of commercial enterprises and development for the sake of development. The most obvious detrimental effects of this type of land use is of course the effect on the land but less obvious and just as detrimental is the effect of industry on the person both individually and collectively. The machine determines the pace of life and like it's effect on the land strips and toxifies the flesh, the mind, our sense of being human, and being a fellow living being in community with other non human beings. And again what I am most impressed with is the utter devotion the individuals employed in these industries show in their work. And again they are not dense or evil people but a people devoted to a vision they have knowingly chosen or accepted as the defacto way to live.

What I have found to be generally true in those who profess to desire an alternative way of life is unchecked hedonism, an addiction to immediacy, activism through “green” consumption, an unwillingness to be uncomfortable and tired in their work, and most importantly an unwillingness to see that we occupy these ideas from a position of privilege and that such a precarious position allows for much thought, much talk, much comfort, and little work. These faults are general and are found in each individual to varying degrees at certain times.

Both the philosophy and theology of my upbringing coupled with practices of our western economy as well my experience with others who share these critiques has led me to attempt to find a different mode of existence and different set of principles to aspire too. Not exhaustive and without much explanation they are as follows:

• The Land is not a resource to be developed or used solely for human consumption but a network of living beings which thrive in balance with one another.
• Human action on the land should be guided by the above knowledge.
• Human beings are not exempt from natural law. Technological innovation will only temporally mitigate our indulgence and exacerbate the inevitable consequences.
• The needs of the machine and production are not paramount. To submit to or to allow others to oppress humans and non humans for the sake economic gain is to devalue all life and cheapen life to the point of making life unlivable.
• Happiness is found in a simple existence living softly and responsibly on the land.
• Technological efficiency is not to be valued over slow and mindful action.
• Those that seek a different form of existence must show just as much if not more devotion than those who currently propagate and progress the dominant culture.