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

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61–70 of 75 posts

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

#61

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…

Hog and wild boar grazing destroys ecosystems because they eat roots and even tear up the roots of plants and trees they don't eat. Hawaii's forests are being killed by boar (http://hawaiianforest.com/wp/species/).

The vision of Hog Cowboys is nice, but how do you ensure the grazing is light and the hogs stay controlled? If they get loose feral boar is a completely different beast than feral cow.

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

#62

> 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…

People want government to do its job properly and to not overreach that. It's no more surreal than people here wanting net neutrality enforced through government regulation while blacking out their sites to protest SOPA.

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

#63

> 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…

I don't know, but I have noticed that among the Republican types I have in my circle of friends, a surprisingly large number of them work for a government either directly or indirectly. Same thoughts about cognitive dissonance.

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

#64
post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When I lived in Vicksburg Mississippi, I got a lot of flack for my weird yankee (actually neutral midwestern) accent as well as typical northern stereotypes (and I’m a westerner, not even a real yankee). I guess you could say that should be expected from the less tolerant right, but it definitely goes both ways.

I went to school at All-Saints there in Vicksburg, small world! Yes, there is definitely a stereotype in the south towards yankees (which is pretty much anyone not from the south as you alluded). I just expected more from highly educated folks with a wider world view in NYC.

I had friends that went there, but I was in public school (WCHS).

I think you’ll find people are insular everywhere. The only thing that might be different in NYC is that more people didn’t grow up there and are transplants.

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

#65

> 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…

>so thats the reason the us subsidize farming

It may be true that subsidizing corn has the controlling effect you talk about. But I assure you, there is no higher level thinking going on here. The US subsidizes corn for one reason alone. And that is the powerful corn lobby that uses the old idea of a small town farmer to rally voters and strike fear in the heart of any politician who dares oppose corn/farm subsidies.

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

#66

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…

I'm from NC too. I didn't really interpret those words in that context as implying low intelligence. Some people in NC do really talk that way. The stereotype that people who talk like that aren't educated or intelligent is a big problem, but I didn't interpret OPs comment as reinforcing that problem. It was a pretty accurate description of something people in NC hear often from a certain type of southerner. I interp…

I took it as mocking. And I'd wager a hefty sum that I am right.

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

#67
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.

Actually, poor areas all over the US come up last in education rankings. Your poorest areas in Los Angeles or NYC will rival or underperform the poorest areas in the south.

And your wealthy southern suburbs will outperform or rival any posh LA or NYC school district.

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

#68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That really is the way it sounds (at least to my ears). Accent is unrelated to intelligence. The only person here making that connection is you.

How about this: > One of the things this article doesn't touch on is the very deep roots of hog farming in rural NC and the general prevailing attitude of "This is how we've always done it and I don't want no gubment telling me what I can and can't do with my land!" vs. One of the things this article doesn't touch on is the very deep roots of hog farming in rural NC and the general prevailing attitude that this is ho…

And at the same time, it tries to invalidate the point of view being expressed. They don't want the government over regulating their business. Something that many, even in this forum agree with. But only in their own area of expertise.

Regulation for thee but not for me.

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

#69

One of the things this article doesn't touch on is the very deep roots of hog farming in rural NC and the general prevailing attitude of "This is how we've always done it and I don't want no gubment telling me what I can and can't do with my land!" There is a sense of pride in being a hog farmer like your daddy and your granpappy and your uncle and you hope to pass down those roots to your sons some day. As to why th…

I wonder if their grandparents also used copious amounts of antibiotics on their animals...

Antibiotic use in livestock became prevelant in the late 50s, so yes. In fact, they probably used more back then because it was yet to be discovered that it was causing resistance issues.

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

#70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That really is the way it sounds (at least to my ears). Accent is unrelated to intelligence. The only person here making that connection is you.

How about this: > One of the things this article doesn't touch on is the very deep roots of hog farming in rural NC and the general prevailing attitude of "This is how we've always done it and I don't want no gubment telling me what I can and can't do with my land!" vs. One of the things this article doesn't touch on is the very deep roots of hog farming in rural NC and the general prevailing attitude that this is ho…

There's a lot to say about how ya'll're jumpin' to conclusions on intelgence 'sif ya'll was a buncha nucular scientist. But that's not my intention. I just wanna note:

A nasal accent caused by elevated exposition to manure would be literally dumb -- some phonemes are silent. That's funny in a cynical way and even if that's nothing to laughe at, it's noteworthy.

There's also the thing about the mere mention of bad things invariably eliciting negative emotions, which is why we have curse words, and perhaps why farmers don't wanna take shit from noone. And there's the disphemism-treadmil, which is why, IMHO, the substitution of curse words for clinical terms is a vain effort.

This whole subthread is purely about NC and language, so it's rather off-topic.

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