Reddit reviews Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal: War Stories from the Local Food Front

I've got some on my counter right now (waiting for it to separate, so I can use the whey to ferment some veggies). This stuff is not easy to come by. It's ironic that our supposed right to privacy allows abortion but we can't consume milk.

The supposed dangers of milk (and necessity of pasteurization) are largely a result of feeding grain to cattle in crowded conditions instead of allowing them to eat grass on pasture. As a result, the cow's digestive system (naturally pH neutral) become acidified, leading to bacteria that can survive in that environment, such as our digestive systems, making us sick.

For a great read on how deeply government intervenes/interferes in the food system (with all sorts of negative consequences for the environment, animals and human health), read Everything I Want to Do is Illegal. Made a bit of a libertarian out of me.

Excellent film.

As a companion piece for libertarians, I would recommend Everything I Want to Do is Illegal by libertarian/organic farmer Joel Salatin who is featured in the film. (Here is the essay that inspired the book.)

This is a book by Joel Salatin and he is absolutely the man.

One Google Search Later Holy shit, it's actually a real book. I thought it was photoshopped.

http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-To-Do-Illegal/dp/0963810952

I looked up the book https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-Do-Illegal-Stories/dp/0963810952

I know your joking, but it's actually written by a farmer in the US.

Amazon Link for those interested

Salatin is an unconventional farmer who raises grass-fed beef, pastured poultry, and pastured pork. He is very innovative and has a lot of things to say about the relatively recent pitfalls of American culture. He probably is most recognized for his appearance in Food Inc. and he has done multiple Ted talks. Check him out- this is the the future of farming! He's also authored multiple books

Read Joel Salatin's Everything I Want to Do is Illegal, and you won't even want to eat "USDA Organic".

They want to quash small, local agriculture. Read "everything I want to do is illegal" by Joel Salatin for a whole lot more of what you just described.

i would prefer more consumer choice. while food regulations may have started with safety and the public good in mind, now they are used as a way to keep competitors out of the market
for example its easy for Tyson and Perdue to comply with regulations that cost millions, but if someone wanted to get into the meat market those regulations which aren't really scalable to small setups would bar market entry and often they are written by the established companies to do just that.

I think we need to have informed consumers making intelligent decisions and where and who they buy from. If i trust the local farm and want to buy unpasteurized milk from him because i value its health benefits then the FDA shouldn't have the ability to send in a SWAT team to shut him down

Its sad that feedlot meat, Twinkies and Mt Dew are "Safe" and approved but the food from our gardens represents "Public Health Threat" if we were to sell it.

for more on the ugly side of US Food Regulations i refer you to Joel Salatin https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-Do-Illegal-Stories/dp/0963810952

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=war7BsnrPLY

Anyone who liked this interview should read Joel Salatin's book: "Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal: War Stories From the Local Food Front"

I highly recommend this book. It will make you want to tear your hair out with concrete examples one after another of the evil banality of the food police.

Amazon

I can't.

But the point is to re-examine laws after they are passed and see if they are having the intended effects. In the case of the drug laws, it hasn't worked, so it should be time to reconsider them.

You should read Joel Salatin's Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal. There are so many bogus laws and codes in place for our "safety" you wouldn't believe.

Something something Polyface Farms, something something Joel Salatin.

What makes you think they wouldn't have started selling it without regulations? if there was no need for licensing they could have literally walked into any liquor store or bar and said "Hey im George Clooney can you do a test run of some of my tequila" without ever needing to go through government.

Someone like Clooney is an outlier because he is rich and famous but there are tons of stories of people doing things they love and are good at, but are prevented from monetizing it because of regulations. Like that guy in LA making bread in his kitchen, he was fined thousands of dollars for selling bread because he didn't have a commercial kitchen and correct licenses. This despite the fact that he ran a tight ship and his customers loved him. IIRC he had to pay like $20k+ out of pocket, then a couple years later California legalized selling homemade food.

There is a popular green/sustainable farmer called Joel Salatin who wrote a book about how regulations are killing small farms and food businesses and how they make it too onerous for small operations and local food growers to serve people.

>If you believe it's possible to allow wealth to concentrate into the hands of a very small minority

This happens under government. Government props up monopolies and creates barriers to entry into the market, hampering competition.

Corporations love regulations, because it helps them. Small businesses don't have armies of lawyers to sift through the tax code for them.

Here is a good source:

http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-To-Do-Illegal/dp/0963810952/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380744203&sr=8-1&keywords=why+everything+i+want+to+do+is+illegal

I can provide alternatives if you'd like. Name an area and let's see how regulations could effect competition.

You can always buy a copy

At first I thought you implied that this book is about bestiality.

Then the Amazon page reconfirmed that it's about big-business laws.

I don't ever want to be shocked like that again

Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal

Explosions are cool, man. What better justification do you need than that?

PS: happy independence day! Here's some light reading until boomtime. http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-To-Do-Illegal/dp/0963810952

Jefferson owned slaves. "Living wage" is not a concept that existed in 1776.

>the ability of people to provide for themselves

This ability does not include the right to employment at a wage that you deem acceptable. Given Jefferson's agrarian predilections, it was about the ability to grow your own food and sell it to make a living (thanks to the government, this has become very difficult). It was not about the ability to work less than x hours per week and still earn a living that meets your standards.

>If a government or other institution of men works against all people securing those things then it is a bad government or other institution of men and should be dissolved.

I agree. And threatening my employer's livelihood if he does not pay me an above-market wage is an oppression that works against his safety and happiness. I don't need the government to step in and decide how much my labor may or may not be worth.

>More likely that people in the 3rd world would take offense to the suggestion that they don't need electricity or clean water even though standard of living and life expectancy totally rise with increased access to either.

Have you ever met or talked with anyone from the third world? I have, and some are highly stressed by modern American life even though they have all those things. You're projecting your values onto them.

Not to mention that nobody arguing for a living wage is talking about having just enough money for clean water and electricity. Those are infrastructure issues and have very little to do with affordable living.

> innovate

https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-Do-Illegal-Stories/dp/0963810952

This story would fit right in with countless stories provided by Joel Salatin in his book "Everything I want to do is Illegal"

https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Want-Do-Illegal-Stories/dp/0963810952/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493743855&sr=8-1&keywords=everything+I+want+to+do+is+illegal

what difference does it make then? I mean if you're really just arguing over which detail gets implemented or not, why bother? Yes, there are obviously things that could be taken too far (e.g. the police can walk into your home anytime they want), but this bill is probably going to be reasonable to some extent.

Lets talk PATRIOT Act or FISA. Is there really anything really wrong with these bills in your mind? Personally I am against them because all they did was to increase the scope and power of government without making us safer. The same can likely be said for this s510 bill, that it will expand the scope of government, but you'll still be as likely as ever to get food poisoning. However if you think that every little bit of regulation helps make the world a better place, then this bill (along with the PATRIOT Act) will be a good thing in your mind.

just to argue one detail though:

> Section 105 -Sets forth provisions related to produce safety, including to require the Secretary to: (1) establish science-based minimum standards for the safe production and harvesting of those types of fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities to minimize the risk of serious adverse health consequences or death; and...

OK, this section will impose additional rules about sanitation and other safety provisions. This means that smaller producers will be forced to buy additional equipment to meet regulations. this will push up their costs and force them to compete less against larger producers (i.e. the ones that favor this bill).

If you ever read Joel Salatin, he describes how these little small requirements add up and push out small producers. For example, he described how a regulation to require a sink was necessary when slaughtering chickens. The sink would improve cleanliness, since the workers would obviously wash their hands and equipment more, right? Well in his case, he slaughtered chickens only every few months and did it out in a field. There simply isn't the bacteria buildup that is seen in large slaughterhouses, so why should he pay to have a plumbing out into the middle of a field? in addition, the local regulations would have required the plumbing to be in a walled facility and be a certain square footage. All this would have added up to be a huge expense to simply kill a couple hundred chickens every few months.