God Made a Farmer

[Andy Carson]

This ad made me sad, but also conflicted. Many of my family were farmers and most have moved off the far either entirely or thier farm income is heavily supported by off the farm income. The word seems to have moved on from a situation where the lifestyle represented makes sense. I am not going to pass a value judgement on the world, as I mostly feel conflicted about it. I do believe that this ad romantices the “farmer of old,” but the aspects that are emphased do not differ greatly from my experience. I have to say, the farmers I knew did not purposefully abuse the land, but they did not have some romantic idea that they were stewards of the land. This job as clearly was given over to God with little personal responsibility. Also, all the ones I know and knew struggled to make a profit every year, and saving money and making money was an ever present concept in thier mind. These were not monks or priests, but practical men living in a real world driven by the dollar.

I believe some modern farmers still fit this mold, but many do not and I am not hung up on it. It seems they have gotten split into two groups, one that got larger and larger and deals with spread sheets, amortization tables, and commodity market prices and hires people to take care of the “day to day” farming. The other that has gotten small and niche. These small niche farmers are, let’s face it, salesmen to a some extent. Really good salesmen are good at creating short quotes and memorable sales pitches. Many salemen are short on facts and data, but some are educated as to this aspect too. Either way, this is pretty much the opposite of many of the old time farmers I have known with thier direct, turse communication style, thier “my way or the highway” attitude, and thier negative view of “stuff they tell you in school.” How many of you can picture one of the guys in that ad pitching organic vegetables to yuppies? The ones I have known would view this as the ultimate humiliation, just a step above begging in the streets… Am I glad this attitude is dying off? Well, kinda… These guys had a lot of share, but they were far from saints. I believe we have to honor the good parts, but some of the parts simply do not fit into the world anymore. I attempt to improve, not emulate. Because of this, I have no desire to drive the same truck. Moreover, I feel that those that would want to drive the same truck are missing the point.

[J-L]

I think you can’t paint all the old timers that way. I am speaking of the older ranchers because that’s where I am at experience wise in my part of the country. I know of many who wanted nothing more than to keep doing it, and when taken from the land whether by financial need or old age/infirmity, they withered up fast.
Some folks never had the opportunity at furthering their education and may not have known any better practices existed, or what negative consequences certain things may cause.
You’re right about it being a sight to see one of these old cowboys making an organic sales pitch to some hippy types. My dad sure didn’t think much of them, think he’d swallow his tongue first.

I forgot to say, I am a truck ‘whore’. I like whatever I am driving at the moment. Toughest I’ve had is my F350 Stroke. Favorite to drive is my 3/4 ton Chevy. The Ford is a 6 speed manual, Chevy is an Allison automatic.

[Andy Carson]

For sure, JL. I certainly didn’t mean that all old timers were like that, but most of the ones I knew were, so this is just what comes to my mind. Its a totally subjective personal experience, and i am not saying this is why other ought to feel. Just sharing my feelings.

[J-L]

Understood, Andy.

[Carl Russell]

@Kevin Cunningham 39747 wrote:

…..We have to devise clever ways to have these simple transactions and make money work for our community. Because while I would like everybody to have a deep sense of our interconnected sustaining biological, ecological, and social community, the taxes still need to get paid.

I wasn’t saying that we limit ourselves to non-paying community support. I think the key comes down to defining our practices as being different from the corporate food system, and activating folks to take the stand of seeing their food, and natural resource, money going into those operations that contribute in real ways to the substance of our communities by adding quality to the connection to the land.

Not as easy as it sounds, I know, but it can happen one family at a time, if we continue to focus. Of course, I think we lose ground when faced by ads like this one…… well maybe not lose ground, but this cultural phenomenon of advertising messages and market share is pretty complex for sure…

Carl

[J-L]

I like the concept Carl.

As you say, not as easy as it sounds. When you have cheap (and mostly crappy, IMO) Walmart food around the corner, it seems impossible to compete.

On the bright side, you see many more farmers markets popping up out this way. They sell lots of produce, especially sweet corn (which we can rarely grow). It goes fast.

[Andy Carson]

@Carl Russell 39764 wrote:

Of course, I think we lose ground when faced by ads like this one…… well maybe not lose ground, but this cultural phenomenon of advertising messages and market share is pretty complex for sure…

I hear you. We can lose ground when observers look at the ads and say “I want to do everything like that guy.” It seems more logical to say, “isn’t it great how that guy does X, and I want ot do X too.” The ads are not supposed to work that way, of course. You are supposed to think that these people are so admirable, you copy everything they do, right down to the pickup they drive. Is this like wearing a cowboy hat to go to a country music concert held indoors? In some cases its hard to seperate the fundamental parts of a culture from its accoutrements… On top of that, it’s hard to sell the fundamentals and easy to sell the accoutrements. Tell people that if they drive a Dodge then they are a farmer, and you will sell some pickups. Tell people that if they wear a Stetson then they are a cowboy, and you will sell some hats. Tell people that if they wear patuli then they love the earth, and you will sell some oil. These are all fantasies perpetued by ads like this one that miss the point of who these people really are and what they really bring to the table. I wish so strongly that the public was not swayed so much by the marketing schemes of these slick salesmen. I am not sure how we get there from here. For me, I demand facts and substatiation of advertizers claims rather than poetry and testimonials. I recognize that not everyone thinks like me… I do think what ever way you think, you should put some thought into how you defend yourself from slick salesmens and the products they hock. I don’t believe this has to be by demanding facts and scientific studies (like me), but I think it is wise to have some defense that works for you and your mindset.

[Kevin Cunningham]

@Countymouse 39752 wrote:

It seems they have gotten split into two groups, one that got larger and larger and deals with spread sheets, amortization tables, and commodity market prices and hires people to take care of the “day to day” farming. The other that has gotten small and niche. These small niche farmers are, let’s face it, salesmen to a some extent.

I agree that there are essentially two groups of farmers and I certainly fit into the salesman niche marketing type but I also am an owner operator. We were talking about this with the crew at lunch the other day. I think what is decieving about the add is the idea that the “farmer” is also the one who is doing the “farm work.” I have also seen some video response by farm worker organizations that show who is really the face of agricultural work in America. It is immigrant workers, Mexican, and Latino, men and women doing the work of farming. What this add is portraying is that the farmer who owns the farm is out there doing the dirty as well as makng the business decisions. This is certainly the case on our farm, but this is not the way it is for most of American agriculture. I like to remind people this even within there specialty, niche, organic crops. I have a good friend who is a great farmer and still does the dirty work, but he has a contract to grow organic kale for some Whole Foods in the Bay Area. He is not a huge operator, he grows 5-7 acres of kale, his farm is also diversified with other crops, and he still sells at farmers markets. But he is not the one doing the harvesting of all that kale. He has a small dedicated crew of 3 Mexican guys, that work their butts off for him and they paid well. So is my friend a big timer no, but he spends most of his time in the office and the truck. This is all such a hard area to define.

@Carl Russell 39764 wrote:

Of course, I think we lose ground when faced by ads like this one…… well maybe not lose ground, but this cultural phenomenon of advertising messages and market share is pretty complex for sure…

Any way I guess what I am trying to say is that it is not clear cut and I think most people recognize that. They saw that in the ad when it aired. The best thing, the most wonderful thing about that Super Bowl ad was how much conversation it has sparked. That is a good thing. It still left some of us conflicted as it should because I think that if the farmer was out there more than maybe just maybe the face of agriculture would be a little bit different today. Just some ramblings….

[near horse]

I think perhaps a positive note from the ad is that those “values” assigned to farmers are something the public appreciates. And since those attributes they list are more associated with small diversified operations AND are marketable (obviously since someone shelled out six figures to show that in the super bowl time slot) – it behooves us to take advantage of that.

On a side note – if God made farmers, next time he needs to use some heavier gauge materials as this one is starting to wear out : )

[Kevin Cunningham]

@near horse 39770 wrote:

I think perhaps a positive note from the ad is that those “values” assigned to farmers are something the public appreciates. And since those attributes they list are more associated with small diversified operations AND are marketable (obviously since someone shelled out six figures to show that in the super bowl time slot) – it behooves us to take advantage of that.

This is what I was trying to say.

[Carl Russell]

@near horse 39770 wrote:

….On a side note – if God made farmers, next time he needs to use some heavier gauge materials as this one is starting to wear out : )

Like a Dodge truck???:p Cheap modern manufacturers…

Carl

[Andy Carson]

@near horse 39770 wrote:

I think perhaps a positive note from the ad is that those “values” assigned to farmers are something the public appreciates…AND are marketable…it behooves us to take advantage of that.

This is an excellent point that I had not appreciated. I agree this is a very good sign.

[grey]

I kind of wonder who the target audience was for that commercial. Was it the farmer? Flattering him and buttering him up to get him to buy a Dodge truck? Or was it the non-farmer? Holding up the farmer as a paragon of all that is wholesome and hard-working. “Buy this Dodge truck and you will be standing among the ranks of the noble farmer!”

Either way, I do appreciate that the Noble Farmer seems to now be a hero of mythical proportions. My father-in-law came from a farming family back east. He went to college and became a Noble Stock Broker and his whole family was proud. He was no longer scrabbling in the dirt with the rest of the farmers. He had broken the bonds of the poor dirt-workers and had attained the ranks of the salary man with clean fingernails and shiny shoes. He lived in the suburbs and had a few citrus trees in the back yard and very nice landscaping. White shag carpeting in the formal living room. Automatic sprinklers for the 10’x10′ patch of lawn. The family back east would probably be alarmed and confused to know that we are now farming with horses BY CHOICE and don’t have a single scrap of carpet in the whole house. I doubt they would see the “God Made A Farmer” commercial in the same light. But then, they probably don’t watch much television. Or buy brand-new trucks.

[mitchmaine]

Paul Harvey gave that farmer speech over 30 years ago. He wasn’t selling trucks. But he sure was selling nostalgia. That farmer he was talking about was hard to find even back then. That’s why we all heard it, sat up on the edge of the couch and paid attention. We know that guy. What ever happened to him. It was you dad. Or your grandfather, or neighbor. The honest one, that always gave it up straight. The one you could count on when everyone else was gone.
Why can’t people be like that now? There are people like that now. We probably all have it in us. I think it is the world around us that has changed. We don’t seem to have a real culture or a set of values anymore. But nostalgia sells trucks and people buy antiques and build timberframe homes.
That’s why i (we)work horses, isn’t it? we are(I’m) just looking for something real again. The best days are the ones out in the woods or fields alone with the horses. No parades or cameras. Just you and a working team doing real work. That’s when its best. I loved that ad. I didn’t even know what they were selling when it was over. I missed the truck thing, but I was sold.

[near horse]

@Carl Russell 39772 wrote:

Like a Dodge truck???:p Cheap modern manufacturers…

Carl

Doh! — That’s my rig you’re picking on. But ….. a lot of it is not built very well but so far (195,000 miles w/ repairs) it still drags my trailer and horses around :o.

@grey – I think there are plenty of “freeway cowboys” who will never tow or haul a thing let alone get on an unpaved road/trail/path with their pickups. But they like the image it sends when they roll out of their rig. That’s who I believe the target audience to be.

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