From: Paul Zarembka (zarembka@BUFFALO.EDU)
Date: Tue Sep 28 2004 - 16:55:20 EDT
Since Sept. 13, the Nader/Camejo web site carries every day a new 'featured national asset', today being The Amish. Without saying so but connected to yesterday's press release for the Nader/Camejo Campaign -- "Global Climate Change Requires Us to Break Our Addiction to Fossil Fuels", it offers a way forward as humanity destroys millions of years of fossil fuel build-up. Since the Amish are close to Buffalo and I myself have furniture on order from them, I particularly identify with this message. Nader's campaign ought to be commended for their innovation in Presidential politics. As one other example consider the Sept. 18 'featured national asset': "United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America". Paul Z. P.S. The Nader/Camejo ticket is now on at least 33 state ballots, with 43 the maximum possible. That shows A LOT of hard, day-to-day work by widespread supporters, who could care less what detractors say. I believe that their ticket is on two positions in New York: 1. Peace and Justice, 2. Independence Party. ************************************************************************* Vol.21-Neoliberalism in Crisis, Accumulation, and Rosa Luxemburg's Legacy RESEARCH IN POLITICAL ECONOMY, Zarembka/Soederberg, eds, Elsevier Science ********************** http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/PZarembka http://votenader.org/issues/index.php?cid=71 The Amish The numerous contributions of the Amish people to American society are a source of rich pride, both to the Amish communities themselves and to the nation at large. Known for their simple lifestyle and for staying close to land and family, the Amish began in the seventeenth century as a religious group in Europe, and began coming to America in the early 1700’s. Since their arrival, the Amish communities in America continue to provide a constant reminder that there is more to life than simply increasing its speed. The accomplishments of the Amish are many and varied, but their agrarian and agricultural successes are among their most remarkable. Farming has long been a mainstay of Amish life and commerce, and their farms are simply things of beauty. To view an Amish farm is to sense a profound satisfaction, because Amish farms match the way we have always intuitively believed that farms should look and feel. The clean and angular design of the barn, the tall silo, the bunches of grain tied up in the field, the horses, and the plowed earth, all resonate authenticity and harmony with the land. These neat and organized farms represent much more than opportunities for aesthetic refreshment, however. They are extremely productive, and utilize farming strategies that are constantly being reviewed and imitated by farmers throughout America. Amish farms rarely have more than 80 tillable acres, which is about the maximum that a father and son can work on their own. The Amish idea is that a farm is best worked by one family. The farms employ a combination of techniques passed down through centuries and many of these hail from Switzerland, where the Amish originated. Crop rotation, natural fertilizer, and pesticide-free farming techniques are some of the common strategies utilized on an Amish farm. Sometimes more help in the form of available workers becomes available to an individual farmer and the Amish farm becomes even more productive, but when that happens, livestock or vegetables are added rather than acreage. The farm retains its manageability and highly organized structure of operation. While the rest of the world haggles over capitalism versus socialism, Amish society simply turns its back on every welfare program in the book, from public education to Medicaid. The 150,000 Amish in America are self sufficient because they are interdependent—on one another, not on the government. For example, if an Amish family has a $20,000 hospital bill that needs to be paid, the deacon of the church announces it from the platform at the end of the worship service, and all the Amish pay a small portion of the amount. This kind of cooperation and self-sufficiency extends into all aspects of the community, education included. Amish school is taught by Amish teachers, who in turn are trained by other Amish teachers. Amish quilts, cooking, horse drawn carriages, and many other charms of the culture draw a steady stream of visitors from throughout the country, and because of this Americans are aware that the Amish way of life has remained the same for centuries. By eschewing modern technology and sticking to their ways and traditions, the Amish people provide a model of how to avoid culture shock, how to stave off feelings of isolation from one’s community, and how to maintain an attitude of charitable giving and concern for one’s neighbor. They take care of one another while at the same time taking care of themselves. For more information, visit an Amish community and see for yourself that the simple life is a life well-lived. by Chris Pedersen In no way does the selection of any of these associations imply their support or endorsement of our campaign. These are our choices everyday, until November 2nd, 2004. We hope they prove enlightening and motivating.
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