online databases

[dominiquer60]

Dear fellow farmers’ market vendors,

I am looking to hear from anyone that has used or is faced with using the site called managemymarket.com.

It seems like a great way to reduce papers and streamline the market application process for market managers. Vendors fill in all sorts of info just short of a SS# and enter it onto the company’s database. Vendors click on the markets that they want to apply to and market managers can see all of the application info that is taken from the database, markets pay $13 for each accepted app. You can use the same site for all of you markets as long as they participate. I can truly see why it is so attractive to more and more markets.

However, it is not clear who owns the data base and the privacy policy seems too wishy washy. Who really has access to all of this private data? What would happen if someone hacked into or got a court order for all of this info. What value would detailed business info from thousands of small direct marketing farms be to someone, or some institution?

I am not a conspiracy theory advocate, but I am a former victim of being signed up for the NAIS without my permission to specifically do so. Tricky backdoor information gathering does happen, and I see that managemymarket has huge potential for easy info gathering under the patriot act and other such legalities, and illegalities. Now that the FDA has basically unlimited powers and no checks and balances in place, what is to stop them from finding all of the small farms selling the recall item of the month (from industrial Ag) and bullying a new reg on them. All from the safety of the patriot act and the home desk thanks to managemymarket.

My other problem is that our Market Board is mandating it, but it is not in our rules and regs which gets discussed by the members and voted on by the members.

3 of us are talking to lawyers in the morning, but I am extremely interested to hear of others take on this management program, managemymarket.com.

Thanks for listening,

Erika

[near horse]

Hi Erika,

This seems like one of those internet database issues that CAN be of great benefit to organizing, operating and expanding your market(s) BUT, as you’ve recognized, may be taken advantage of by those that seek to use it as such. You are right to question the legalities.
I’ll PM my Co-op friends andsellers to see if they’ve heard of this and what they’re opinion is of the risk/benefit.
A quick search of the company OX Systems didn’t throw up any red flags that I could see – they are based out of Portland OR.

Geoff

[dominiquer60]

Thanks for asking around Geoff.

It turns out in the brief privacy policy all market managers can see the detailed info about all of the farms. That is a lot of people that may certainly have good intentions but I will give a negative example of a true and current situation.

A fellow vendor does 11 markets, because he tends to question things he has a few people including a market manager at a former market that like to cause trouble. The manager from a former market keeps trying to pin him for buying in and would have access to information that they do not need nor should have access to, for trying to prove a crime that does not happen, “buying in.” Although our friend does nothing wrong and has nothing to hide, as evident of 15 farm inspections and no violations last year, only the markets that he attends should have his info, not the others out to “get him.”

The sad thing is that, so many other vendors are completely comfortable giving up their privacy to this database, we are not and are gearing toward a struggle that we don’t want to have. Perhaps keeping out of this database will only delay the inevitable, but someone has got to resist, just like those good towns in Maine demanding food sovereignty.

Erika

[mitchmaine]

hey erika, i hear what you are saying. penny reminds me often that i may be the worlds most cinical person. i just wonder if maybe the genie is already out of the bottle.
we pass personal information back and forth with each other all the time on the internet. and its out there for all the world to see. each time i make a purchase at some store i’m being asked my phone number. that kind of thing. facebook. we tried that for a while and it was fun but i couldn’t understand what it did or how or why to use it so we gave up. even here on dap, we trade ideas and information without thinking to hard about how it might be used with or without our permission. i tried to buy something a while back on credit and wes told i have no credit score. and that that was worse than a poor rating. and the fellow was telling me i should go out and buy something on credit to get a score. i tried to point out the irony of his remark but he lost it. over his head. just a few thoughts on “being out there”

[dominiquer60]

Good point Mitch, I try to be careful myself, now I am almost happy that I can’t figure out how to upload my website. This online market date base wants Employer and Tax ID numbers and a lot of other stuff that I barely trust our market manager with let alone all the other market managers or hackers or institutions and such. I facebook, which is increasing scary, I DAP and I even do eBay, but I only purchased items that I can pay for via money order, the internet dosen’t need my credit card info. I do not bank or pay bill online and it wigs me out that tax preparers can only efile from now on. Easy and quick is not always best, maybe today it is, but down the road it is likely to cause problems.

The no credit thing still perplexes me, I understand that in order to get credit you need to prove yourself reliable with payments, but if payments have always been with paper and not plastic they don’t count. I know a few around here that could run circles with cash around my credit card, but can’t get a loan without using collateral. What an insane “reality” we have created for ourselves.

Erika

[near horse]

Not to mention that if you buy with credit and pay it off monthly (and thus pay no interest) you are not considered a valued customer by banks. They want people who over spend but diligently make their monthly payments, even if their kids’ only get one decent meal per day. I find it repulsive that there are people who get paid plenty to figure out ways to “screw” the average citizen – ex. exhorbitant overdraft fees etc. I’m still waiting for the word to show up somewhere with my shovels and rakes and implements of destruction (a few torches too). 😡

[mitchmaine]

i got an idea the three of us would be on the “group w” bench

[near horse]

😮 Nice one Mitch! I think I’ve had a space on the group W bench for awhile complete with the “mother stabbers and father rapers.”

[dominiquer60]

I guess I am too young for that one…

Another angered market vendor, one with a little scotch in his veins too, came up with a way to rally the troops and overthrow the board’s manager my market decision. It entails rigging up a hand truck with segway (those modern vehicles that you stand on and roll around in the direction that you want) capabilities and reenacting the prebattle rally scene from Bravehearst at the market, complete with kilt and all. Funny thing is I think that it would actually work I just can’t get him to do it 🙁

erika

[Tim Harrigan]

@dominiquer60 25659 wrote:

I guess I am too young for that one…
erika

Then you need to look into Arlo Guthrie, “Alice’s Restaurant”

[near horse]

Hi Erika –
I did wonder if the Alice’s Restaurant references would make sense to “you younger folk”. It’s worth a listen/look – essentially about how a movement can develop.

So, with your segway idea, will you guys come sweeping through the market with your friend screaming “you can take away our market but you can’t take away our FREEDOM!”

That would be a youtube moment!

BTW- no feedback yet from my contacts.

[dominiquer60]

I have heard Alice’s but i suppose i should actually listen to it:)

Yes we will line up harvest knives, pruning shears and shovels, and my friend will play Mel on a hand truck, only he will lay of the Wild Turkey before hand so he has his wits about him. He is totally proud of his heritage, but we just can’t get him to wear a kilt, no matter how manly a plaid it is.

“that you may take our paper applications and accept us, but you will never compromise our privacy!”

Oh I like this better than the first draft we have, note to self.

erika

[Andy Carson]

Hey Geoff,
Do you sell at the Moscow farmer’s market? If so, you might recognize my grandparents (the Butlers). They sell the cedar deck furniture (mostly adironack chairs). They were telling me that Moscow raised the farmers market registration fee substantially for 2011. They are still definately going to the market, but might be open to some sort of shared site for a shared fee. I don’t know if the rules allow this, but my Grandpa is always looking to make a deal… Let me know and I’ll put you in touch by PM.

[near horse]

Hey Andy –

No I don’t sell there, yet but I do know your grandparents’ product(s) – although I don’t know them personally.

Moscow Farmer’s Market has been raising the prices to sell over the last few years, although I haven’t heard what the newest rates are. It’s getting to be where more of the slots are being filled by non-food enterprises – churches, other NGO’s etc. They might get a reduced rate even. That’s probably why the market is looking for a new organizer/manager.

If you don’t mind, what are your grandparents first names so I can say hi next time I’m at the market (in season of course).

[Andy Carson]

@near horse 25680 wrote:

If you don’t mind, what are your grandparents first names so I can say hi next time I’m at the market (in season of course).

Bobbi and Dale. My grandpa, as I was saying, is always interested in making a deal and either has, or knows where to find, a surprising variety of stuff. He might know where to find a good deal on some old pieces of equipment, for example. I don’t know this for sure, but if you are in the market for something old, unusual (or both) it might be good to pick his brain about it. He’s got a long and photographic memory. Wear your bartering hat.

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