When I read today about a dairyman in Upstate New York who committed suicide, I got mad. Really, really mad.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35029724/ns/us_news-life/
He lived about 100 miles from me. He was a conventional dairyman, not organic, but frankly all farmers have been on a long, hard road the past 18 months or so.
He killed his milking herd, one by one, with a rifle. All 51 were killed. Then, after penning a note to his wife and family, he pointed the rifle on himself.
I can almost understand the cow killings. Even though it is horribly, horribly wrong, I can see how he may have justified it in his mind. We are all stewards, remember, of the animals. Some Christians believe that animals have no souls, referring to a Bible reference that says, in part:
“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ (Genesis 1:26, NIV)”
Nothing definitive there, in my view, and as a Christian I believe I actually will be with all my duly departed animals in heaven. Maybe he felt that way, too. Maybe he didn’t want to go alone.
Maybe, instead, he wanted no one else to have them. There is something very personal about our relationships with our four legged friends. Deeply personal.
Maybe he didn’t want the bank to have them.
Here’s what I know: FarmAid is buried with phone calls from farmers in desperate straits, considering suicide as an option to relieve the stress of low milk prices and burgeoning debt. Farm Bureau reports the same.
Friends, our farmers are in real, real trouble. It’s mostly because we want cheap milk, and record low milk prices (akin to 1970′s pay prices) have caused an enormous amount of stress on small family farms throughout the U.S.
I would GLADLY pay more money for milk if it helps farmers and returns money to the farm. It’s why we buy and support organic milk programs. Doing so ensures that small families can raise their kids without the necessity of farm subsidies and food stamps. Organic farmers can send their kids to college. They make a fair wage.
Cheap milk ($1.99 a gallon in our area) isn’t cheap.
It is very, very expensive.
Let me know how you feel: dean@getnymilk.com
January 27, 2010 at 4:04 am |
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January 27, 2010 at 6:52 pm |
let not the sun go down upon your wrath. ephesians 4:26
whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all your might. ecclesiastes 9:10
February 25, 2010 at 5:43 pm |
I just found your blog and love it. I could not agree with you more – people need to start paying up for quality food for the good of their health, the environment, and the growers. It drives me nuts that people will eat garbage and scrimp so they can buy an Hermes bag. Hello, what’s more important? and if you’re really that vain, what makes you more attractive – being healthy or your clothes?