Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas • Hacker News Board

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#11

Post by jrockway » Mon, May 26, 2008, 5:38 PM UTC

whatwoulddadsay wrote: post #8

According to Craig, he has advertised with the local workforce centers who attend nearly all the job fairs in cities within driving distance. Not to mention the online job boards, farming magazines, etc. I just thought we all might be interested in a middle America, ie farming dilemma right now, in light of all the woe is me talk on the media. The one person is right...there are jobs,maybe not where you want or need…

He did mention 20 hour workdays, though. I personally struggle with 8 hours :)

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#12

Post by zach » Mon, May 26, 2008, 5:55 PM UTC

lvecsey wrote: post #5

Maybe pay someone to hand out cards to homeless people on the streets of big cities. A google-like bus shuttle to get people to/from every month or two, since you will likely cycle through people rather than retain them for a year.

Let me be gentle about this. I think Craig is primarily looking for someone with the skills to practice dedicated work. Homelessness develops one's skills in different areas. I don't think working long hours in ag country would be a good match for big-city homeless folks.

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#13

Post by breck » Mon, May 26, 2008, 5:56 PM UTC

jrockway wrote: post #11

whatwoulddadsay wrote: post #8

According to Craig, he has advertised with the local workforce centers who attend nearly all the job fairs in cities within driving distance. Not to mention the online job boards, farming magazines, etc. I just thought we all might be interested in a middle America, ie farming dilemma right now, in light of all the woe is me talk on the media. The one person is right...there are jobs,maybe not where you want or need…

He did mention 20 hour workdays, though. I personally struggle with 8 hours :)

:).

8 hours is a lot for me too. However, right now I'm sitting on an unsteady (swiveling chair), struggling to hammer another key under intense pain (carpal-tunnel syndrome), in a frigid (air-conditioned) apartment. I think if it wasn't for this harsh working environment I could work longer hours. Maybe I'll give that farm guy a call.

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#14

Post by menloparkbum » Mon, May 26, 2008, 6:05 PM UTC

I spent 18 years in a rural farming community and this seems phony. Any farmer who is that dialed in and successful has already been doing what all the other farmers in america do: use seasonal & migrant labor. The "free beef" part really pushed it past the point of believability. It reads like the author is practicing his writing skills to land a gig writing polemics for the National Review.

Assuming it is legitimate, this job sucks because whomever accepts it is becoming an indentured servant for a land-owning farmer.The skills the person learns are not transferable to any other occupation, and no other farmers are hiring this sort of person. If something goes sour in the relationship, the worker doesn't just lose a job, he loses a house and is stuck in rural Kansas.

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#15

Post by whatwoulddadsay » Mon, May 26, 2008, 6:13 PM UTC

menloparkbum wrote: post #14

I spent 18 years in a rural farming community and this seems phony. Any farmer who is that dialed in and successful has already been doing what all the other farmers in america do: use seasonal & migrant labor. The "free beef" part really pushed it past the point of believability. It reads like the author is practicing his writing skills to land a gig writing polemics for the National Review. Assuming it is legitimat…

This was at a family reunion, maybe he was kidding about the free beef, but it sure didn't seem that way at the time. He is working himself to the bone. And, I am not trying to land any gig. GLH

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#16

Post by whatwoulddadsay » Mon, May 26, 2008, 6:18 PM UTC

whatwoulddadsay wrote: post #15

menloparkbum wrote: post #14

I spent 18 years in a rural farming community and this seems phony. Any farmer who is that dialed in and successful has already been doing what all the other farmers in america do: use seasonal & migrant labor. The "free beef" part really pushed it past the point of believability. It reads like the author is practicing his writing skills to land a gig writing polemics for the National Review. Assuming it is legitimat…

This was at a family reunion, maybe he was kidding about the free beef, but it sure didn't seem that way at the time. He is working himself to the bone. And, I am not trying to land any gig. GLH

Just read this over again, and want to make sure you realize it is not a free home to KEEP, just one to live in while you are working there. It was not my intention to get into any debates, but I found it interesting because my day job has to do with the employment industry and I was feeling frustrated with how hard it is for people to find great jobs. This just hit me at the right time, and I thought you would like to read about it, is all.

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#17

Post by mattmaroon » Mon, May 26, 2008, 6:29 PM UTC

I think if I were a lot of people, yes. This is a more appealing option to me than getting paid $9 an hour to be a door greeter at Wal-Mart. With free housing and food and $80k a year salary, it wouldn't take long to become independently financially stable.

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#18

Post by albertcardona » Mon, May 26, 2008, 7:30 PM UTC

ojbyrne wrote: post #6

yankees1 wrote: post #4

This highlights the fact that there are quality, good paying jobs in the US. A good portion of the unemployed are unemployed because they overvalue their skills or aren't willing to make changes necessary to become employed.

I find this article to be interesting in light of your comment. It's about 20-somethings scrimping, working crappy jobs, lots of sacrifices, just so they can live in NYC: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/nyregion/25scrimp.html I'm sure that it's a quality job, but most people are more interested in a quality career, and they generally perceive that not too many quality careers happen in rural Kansas. Not that aren't…

I am under the impression that people around me have taken a "Start Trek" life for granted:

* Food magically appears in stores

* Water magically flows from taps

* Trash magically disappears

That could explain why reality-checking jobs like farmer are off the radar. Why, aren't there robots or something doing such things?

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#19

Post by Tichy » Mon, May 26, 2008, 8:16 PM UTC

whatwoulddadsay wrote: post #15

menloparkbum wrote: post #14

I spent 18 years in a rural farming community and this seems phony. Any farmer who is that dialed in and successful has already been doing what all the other farmers in america do: use seasonal & migrant labor. The "free beef" part really pushed it past the point of believability. It reads like the author is practicing his writing skills to land a gig writing polemics for the National Review. Assuming it is legitimat…

This was at a family reunion, maybe he was kidding about the free beef, but it sure didn't seem that way at the time. He is working himself to the bone. And, I am not trying to land any gig. GLH

"He is working himself to the bone."

Why is he doing that?

Re: Would You Want This Job? Hard work, middle of Kansas

#20

Post by mdakin » Mon, May 26, 2008, 8:32 PM UTC

If he really is advertising well, interviewing people and not getting results the offer is simply too low. There must be some factor that we can't see from this blog post that is visible to the people he's interviewed that makes this job NOT worth the money he's offering.