Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

rollingstone.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

51–60 of 75 posts

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#51

Post by nasredin »

wallawe wrote: post #31
lsaferite wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll not argue the point you are making as I don't disagree. I would just like to say I find it highly annoying when people denigrate people from the south by using 'words' like 'gubment' and 'granpappy' as some sort of assumed indicator of intelligence level of the subject being discussed. You being from NC and using this same backhanded insult troubles me even more TBH. Do people from the south use those words, or…

100% agree. It's become so commonplace to stereotype southerners in a particular way in the media and by Hollywood. I live in NYC now and have to deal with constant judgement whenever I mention I'm from Alabama. The most ironic thing is that it's typically from the "tolerant" left.

The NYC people that judge you are obviously not "tolerant".

Also most stereotypes have some truth to them, otherwise they wouldn't be stereotypes.

E.g. IIRC Southern states come last in education ranking.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#52

Post by jernfrost »

Oh man, the irony of America turning into the dumping ground of the world. As other countries get richer they seem to start caring more about the environment, poor people, national health etc.

The US in contrast seem to regress. It seems to be heading back to the dirty old days of the industrial revolution with high income inequality, poor enironment protection, an unhealthy underclass.

It is bizzare watching a country deliberately turning itself into the 3rd world.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#53

Post by 089723645897236 »

The current method of hog farming is basically the worst possible version of traditional farming evolved through technology. Quonset huts, gestation cages, and fecal lagoons. Instead we could have mob grazing free range pig farming integrated with agroforestry, leading to animal waste going directly where it is the most useful i.e. as manure. Even the existing system could be set up to use natural swamp permaculture techniques to filter the waste or even capture in a biogas plant. Instead of lagoons of pig shit we could have useful forest products and methane fuel. Monoculture hog farming is showing it's limits environmentally and agronomically.

The barriers right now are the incumbent methods of farming subsidized by BigGov on behalf of BigAg and BigChem, and the lack of suitable off the shelf technology to make any of these ideas feasible for the average hog farmer. Until then they are going to keep putting up quonset huts and digging shit lagoons.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#54

Post by mclightning »

eddieplan9 wrote: post #45

> This is due to less-expensive pig-feed prices and larger farms, but it's also because of loose business and environmental regulations, especially in red states, which have made the U.S. an increasingly attractive place for foreign companies to offshore costly and harmful business practices. Come on. Chinese government does not give a shit about "offshore costly and harmful business practices". The price of pork in…

+1. eddie knows what's up!

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#55

Post by s73v3r_ »

brockers wrote: post #18

Laugh all you want, but I just got done talking to one of these NC pig farmers yesterday and he is in the process of converting the sewage into methane gas for electrical production. Local, community electricity, with a lower CO2 footprint than Methane!!?!

But it sounds like most are not doing that, and are content with allowing that pig shit to run into the water supply.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#56

Post by praha14 »

nasredin wrote: post #51
wallawe wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% agree. It's become so commonplace to stereotype southerners in a particular way in the media and by Hollywood. I live in NYC now and have to deal with constant judgement whenever I mention I'm from Alabama. The most ironic thing is that it's typically from the "tolerant" left.

The NYC people that judge you are obviously not "tolerant". Also most stereotypes have some truth to them, otherwise they wouldn't be stereotypes. E.g. IIRC Southern states come last in education ranking.

Southern states are the most predominately black states in the country. Are you sure you want to bring this up?

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#57

Post by sebastianavina »

eddieplan9 wrote: post #45

> This is due to less-expensive pig-feed prices and larger farms, but it's also because of loose business and environmental regulations, especially in red states, which have made the U.S. an increasingly attractive place for foreign companies to offshore costly and harmful business practices. Come on. Chinese government does not give a shit about "offshore costly and harmful business practices". The price of pork in…

us control on corn, means feeding stock is cheaper in the us too, somebody may think its stupid to subsidize corn, but the truth be told is that the us control the world not because the army or the us dollar, its because the food.

Mexico saw that while negotiating the nafta, most of our corn and beans come from the us, we are handcuffed on the table, because in the case of a trade war, the us can impose taxes on most of our products, but the main product we import is food from the us, and we cant tax those higher, because our people need it.

so while the us taxes washing machines from mexico, mexico cant tax the corn.

the same is happening with the trade war trump is driving between the us and china, china cant retalliate taxing pork or corn, because thats what people eats...

kyssinger said it better: "Control oil and you control nations; control food and you control the people."

so thats the reason the us subsidize farming

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#58

Post by padseeker »

This reminds me a bit about a story retold from the book Stangers in their Own Land, a former oil worker who ratted out the oil industry dumping poison in the water supply. And the coal industry in WV. There are people who will put up with cancer causing chemicals for jobs, but dammnit any government control is beyond the pale.

I don't know how you reason with these people. It's not limited to the southern region of the US - it happens when people in PA and Upstate NY fight over permissions for fracking on private land. However it does seem like wherever there are knowledge economy opportunities people will prioritze health and welfare, while in areas that are not as advanced will fight tooth and nail to let these companies do what they want, even if it means it will kill them. I can only shake my head.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#59

Post by padseeker »

eddieplan9 wrote: post #45

> This is due to less-expensive pig-feed prices and larger farms, but it's also because of loose business and environmental regulations, especially in red states, which have made the U.S. an increasingly attractive place for foreign companies to offshore costly and harmful business practices. Come on. Chinese government does not give a shit about "offshore costly and harmful business practices". The price of pork in…

Isn't it surreal that the people who yell and scream about the government regulation and interference are the same ones with their hands out looking for government money to subsidize the animal feed they use? Is it cognitive dissonance? Or are they that delusional they cannot see the connection? These people will occasionally feign righteousness over government regulation and spending unless its spending in their district for their stuff.

Re: Lax regulation made it cheaper for China to outsource pork production to the US

#60

Post by sangnoir »

padseeker wrote: post #59
eddieplan9 wrote: post #45

> This is due to less-expensive pig-feed prices and larger farms, but it's also because of loose business and environmental regulations, especially in red states, which have made the U.S. an increasingly attractive place for foreign companies to offshore costly and harmful business practices. Come on. Chinese government does not give a shit about "offshore costly and harmful business practices". The price of pork in…

Isn't it surreal that the people who yell and scream about the government regulation and interference are the same ones with their hands out looking for government money to subsidize the animal feed they use? Is it cognitive dissonance? Or are they that delusional they cannot see the connection? These people will occasionally feign righteousness over government regulation and spending unless its spending in their dis…

> Isn't it surreal that the people who yell and scream about the government regulation and interference are the same ones with their hands out looking for government money to subsidize the animal feed they use?

It probably is a facet of, or closely related to the Fundamental Attribution Error: If I'm benefitting, it's because I deserve it to balance-out unfairness out there, when some other moocher out there gets a hand, it is a waste of money and a symptom of the bureaucratic nanny-state.

Exhibit 1: "I've been on food stamps and welfare. Anybody help me out? No."[1]

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTwpBLzxe4U

Post reply on HN