Journal 8- Annie Wheeler

Part One:
      "In Distrust of Movements" was the essay that made me think the most in In the Presence of Fear.  Wendell Berry is talking about how movements effect the world and it's people.  The first statement that he made puzzled me and struck me with curiosity: movements are too specialized, they're not radical enough.  Later in the essay he states, "Once we allow our language to mean anything that anybody wants it to mean, it becomes impossible to mean what we say.  When "homemade" ceases to mean neither more nor less than "made at home", then it means anything, which is to say that it means nothing" (37).  These two sentences are very confusing, I still can't wrap my head around this!  When I hear that some cookies are homemade, I automatically think they were made at home.  So, is Berry saying that my thinking is leading to the loss of the meaning of word "homemade"?  I don't understand how this way of thinking is bad, "made at home" is the definition of homemade.  Another part of the essay that I related to is when Berry shared his thoughts that people don't know where their food comes from, they pay money for a house, or groceries or clothing but don't put much thought into how did this come to be?  After reading this, I realized that I am guilty, I don't give much thought as to where my eggs come from?  Where was this loaf of bread made?  Who made this shirt that I am wearing, where did it come from?  Maybe my way of purchasing items can change, I would have to do research before I buy, but it may be worth it. 

Part Two:
      One way that I can try to buy as an educated consumer in the near future is buying our family Thanksgiving turkey from a sustainable farmer.  According to gracelinks.org the price difference between a commercially produced turkey ($22 for 16 lb.) and a pasture raised turkey ($100 to $120 for 16 lb.) can be substantially different.  Again, you have to do your research because the packaging is not always truthful when it states the turkey was raised "cage free" or "naturally raised."  I would have to talk my parents into this large sum turkey, but I would like to try a pasture raised turkey to see if there is any difference in quality.  Sustainable farming is, "the production of food, fiber, or other plant or animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities, and animal welfare" (sustainabletable.org).  Sustainable farmers raise animals and crops without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, or modified seeds.  Sustainable farmers usually use crop rotation which helps to diversify the land that they are using, while rotating the crops and animals on one piece of land this creates layers of natural fertilization for the soil.  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States explains the financial troubles sustainable farmers have to deal with which makes the price go up for the consumer, these troubles include: organic food supply is limited compared to demand, post-harvest handling of organic foods results in higher costs because of the mandatory separation of organic and conventional foods, higher standards of animal care, along with many other reasons. 

As Joel Salatin said in the documentary Fresh, "we farm grass,
not the animal, grass will take care of the animals"