Mary Beth Danielson: Mashed potatoes, microwaves and a cup of cocoa

The Journal Times Online ^ | Jul 23, 2005 | Mary Beth Danielson

[hedgetrimmer]

Decades ago a woman whose in-laws were religiously conservative Mennonite people told me this funny story.

The grandmother cooked noon dinner every day for her husband, their adult sons and all the farmhands. Since the farm was mostly worked by the muscle power of either men or horses, those hard-working men were monumental eaters. The grandmother roasted, boiled, whipped and baked walloping amounts of home-canned vegetables, mashed potatoes, big servings of meat, heavy desserts.

My friend was very surprised the day she walked into the grandmother's traditional farm kitchen - and there was a brand-new microwave oven. (This was in the 1970s, before microwaves were common anywhere.) The grandmother explained with a twinkle in her eye, "Oh, it's real good for melting butter and for warming up potatoes and gravy when the men work late. Though I have to say what I like best is after they all go back to the fields after dinner, and I can make myself a quick cup of cocoa and sit down and rest my feet a bit."

I've read a little about some of the guiding principles in Amish and other simple-life religious communities. Folks do not cling to old ways for the sake of being old-fashioned. What they are trying to do, and succeeding at quite brilliantly, is this.

They arrange their lives on the basis of what choices will preserve interconnections in their community.

It isn't that Amish people are against gasoline engines; some use engines to help accomplish some chores. But they won't buy cars, because then they'd owe more money than they can earn on their farms, and they would have to organize their lives around banks and wages. (Right?) And their kids would get in those cars and blow right past the neighbors, on their way out into the world. (Right?) Usually one family will have a telephone, and everyone else will use it for ordering supplies or for emergencies. But if every family had one, then they wouldn't have to run over to each other's houses to ask to borrow this or that, or to make small arrangements, or to visit with each other - and all those small moments of connection would be lost. The community would be less vital, less strong, less rich.

Also, theologically speaking, one of the ways they believe they know God is through the interconnected give and take of the people in their community. So they believe they would know God less if they didn't honor and safeguard their interconnectedness.

I've been thinking about this.

What are the values by which we are living lately? We can cobble together long strings of words that say what our moral and religious values are - but the way we live says more than the words we use.

I was talking with an older gentleman who was worried about modern trade agreements that make it profitable for American corporations to move their factories to poor countries. (The Central American Free Trade Agreement is soon up for vote in the House of Representatives; the Senate passed it two weeks ago.) What the man said to me was what so many are say these days. "How will American families stay strong if we keep exporting so many jobs?" What I saw in my mind's eyes as he talked were the awful slums that circle Guatemala City. That Ring of Misery (for that is what they call it) and slums similar to it in cities around the word are the other end of the unease we feel.

In these slums live people who were, not so long ago, citizens of rural areas. They were never rich, but they had at their fingertips generations' worth of subsistence living skills. But one cash crisis - paying a doctor, a bad year for crops, someone in the family developing a special need - changed everything. The family leaves the countryside to look for work in the big, dangerous, alienating city.

Think how well you would do if you had to walk to Chicago next week, then start from scratch, with no resources. Where would you live? What would you eat? Desperate folks work for the low wages that undercut workers from the richer countries. It's more cash than they could earn in isolated rural areas, though it's seldom enough to maintain a decent living for even a poor family.

Obviously, all trade agreements are not bad. But when we negotiate them, we always have choices. What do we value more? The salaries and perks of upper management? Upticks in the stock price of the company? Or the communities that are challenged and sometimes destroyed when companies move out and move in? We need to ask better and harder questions. When the decision-makers around us are voting budgets, changing laws, creating agreements - are they considering what these changes will do to the workers' communities that will be affected by them? CAFTA makes many of us nervous. So many forces and stresses around us these days keep us from being connected to each other.

Racine is reeling from the violence of this summer, from the storm of gunfire that shattered a neighborhood and took the lives of three young people last weekend. There are no simple solutions, other than we need to honor and preserve every good connection we can.

The Mennonite grandmother had it right. Don't buy the hype or stuff being shoved at us, unless and until it helps us feed each other, respect each other, enjoy each other. Until it creates a space in our day for cocoa.

Write to Mary Beth Danielson c/o The Journal Times, 212 Fourth St., Racine, WI 53403.

[hedgetrimmer]

Toward the end of the article, the author poses a few interesting questions about America's values and the "free trade" system.

[hedgetrimmer]

CAFTA PING

[Restorer]

They are indeed interesting questions. However, most of those who ask them apply them to others, not to themselves. They want to force others to keep living in their "traditional, connected ways," while they themselves enjoy all the perks of modern life.

[bigsigh]

I know that microwave was an Amana!

[raybbr]

Thanks for the ping. We are now going to here about how she missed putting in her story her lament for buggy whips. As if the only thing important in life is taking money away from someone in a trade. Just to say, "I got more than you."

[hedgetrimmer]

I disagree.

You know of course that the purpose of the government of the United States is to protect individual rights, don't you?

She is remarking on how far afield our Congress has gotten when it comes to the rights of the individuals living in the communities affected by "free trade" and illegal immigration.

The Congress is treating people (in the United States and in the "free trade" partner countries) like pawns in a global scheme. The Congress is not necessarily protecting the individual, but is forcing him to participate in globalization, the terms of which are settled not locally, not nationally in Congress, but in Davos, Uruguay, Doha, in the G8, the WTO, the Summit of the Americas and so on, without his consent.

[jocon307]

"Also, theologically speaking, one of the ways they believe they know God is through the interconnected give and take of the people in their community. So they believe they would know God less if they didn't honor and safeguard their interconnectedness."


Thanks for posting this.

[hedgetrimmer]

So they believe they would know God less if they didn't honor and safeguard their interconnectedness."

This is a variation of the old-fashioned American value of standing up for your neighbor, so he will stand for you, in your time of need.

[RATkiller]

I agree with you completely. NAFTA and WTO have been a disaster for the people of the US except for a small group. They were able to arrange things so they could transfer the modest wealth of people in the middle or low end of the economic scale to themselves (but in aggregate is a fairly large amount). They will wring all the money and wealth from us and move on. And, of course, the people of the US are being called stupid for not adapting to a changing world that they had no say in creating. It's as if you dropped a lobster into a boiling pot of water and saying "That stupid lobster couldn't adapt to the changing environment. It's his fault he died."

In the future, you will see the "South Americanization" of the US; you will have wealthy people living in walled, gated communities with armies of guards. They will be clipping Chinese bonds watching the peons kill each other over scraps of garbage.

[Ladysmith]

Ah, but don't you realize that our government's main purpose is to keep the economy stable and running?

That's what my instructor claims, anyway...

[Dat Mon]

Thanks for the ping. Time for a little rant...

I think what we are seeing is the greatest bait and switch ever sold.

We are being sold on Free Trade...the common assumption being that this means Free Trade of GOODS. But the actual market for trade of American GOODS in CAFTA is not that significant. I'm all for free trade of GOODS as was traditionally defined...and where comparative advantage works to both partners mutual benefit.

Instead...the switch is to SERVICES...i.e...CHEAP LABOR. Eliminate a high paying American job and replace it with a low paying guest worker , illegal, or resident native labor job.

IMHO, in one case we are going to see organized multinational job shops established which have a pipeline into the villages and the jungles of Central America...pulling these poor illiterate, uneducated people out to 'migrate' to the US for jobs.

Or conversely, using native Central Americans to be employed by companies there in the jungle making products for consumption by Americans.

The objective is simple...increase profits by lowering the wage scale...and the requirement for insurance, social security, OSHA, etc.

Now, I'm all for increasing productivity and making the US a more business friendly environment. But we don't need CAFTA to do that. If we want to help ALL Americans and ALL American business...we reform our tax, regulatory, and our legal systems. Thats too hard. Nobody is pushing for that. Whys that?

Instead...the government is keeping the tax code as it is...and is going to CHOOSE the winners and losers in the great free enterprise American dream.

The government is dividing Americans into groups and camps...some go forward...others go backwards.

It starts with the social entitlement system...which designates special interest 'victim' groups for special privileges and perks..even for procuring government contracts if you have a small business.

It continues with the tax and regulatory system...with loopholes and exemptions for politically connected companies and people.

It continues with the 'new age' enforcement of property laws...such as in the Kelo vs New London decision.

Finally...it climaxes in these large complex trade agreements.

Let me answer my own question...there is little desire to reform the system we have now...because many wealthy connected people LIKE IT JUST AS IT IS.

If we reformed our tax and regulatory systems FIRST...free trade of GOODS could be a winning proposition.

Instead...these trade agreements..coupled with our already established socialized entitlement and crony capitalistic systems...are going to lead to MORE socialism, more UNIONS...not less.

Its all because of the SERVICES aspect of these agreements...the LABOR ARBITRAGE....thats where the rubber meets the road.

Read through the agreement...you will find page after page specifying limiting conditions for American business to go in and compete against native Central American labor and services...provisions to insure that the local powers that be get their prime piece of the action....as they do now.

On the opposite side...little or no restricitons and conditions for foreign organizations to come into the US and do business...and offer services.

[B4Ranch]

My wife and I had one for almost 20 years. Good machines!

[Paul Ross]

Bump.

I think you are partly on the money. The biggest promoters behind the Administration may be such. Clearly, some of the promoters are fully on board with that vision...as espoused by the lefty, Xlinton-appointed Thomas PM Barnett (recently fired from the Naval War College). He expressly advocated PRECISELY this kind of borderless Western Hemispheric Economic Bloc. Analogous to the views of the New York Times Thomas Friedman. Both are disengenous lefties of course.

I suspect at least 50% of the more vociferous FR free trade proponents, who act in clear coordinated fashion here, are in fact agents for that. These 50% have shown a clear disdain for any other threads on Free Republic, ignore all security topics and constituional, and pretend to be pro-defense and pro-constitution, but never seem to know anything about those topics except what they could have picked up reading a couple month old copy of Newsweek. And they show a demonstrably MSM-slant on all such views as they purport to have as self-styled conservatives, or libertarians or what-have-you. When busted on their ingorant liberalism, they demand "evidence" and links to be controverted...while providing nothing of any susbtance of their own. They are a complete waste of bandwidth.

The fact that Barnett was a Clinton crony, and his views about the obsolesence of the nation state, and sovereignty jive extremely closely with Strobe Talbott and Madeline Allbright's...is telling to me. We know that Dick Cheney was impressed by him, and had Rumsfeld keep him on. We also know that GWB himself has echoed views and policies consonant with the Kool-Aid that Barnett was spouting from his perch.

Thus, I think it likely that the rot you describe has spread much further. Needless to say, I agree that the CEOs and internationalist managers who have been sold this bright shining lie...are duped. As Cheney would say, "BIG TIME."

The hardline socialists have concocted this vision to sucker them in. And to the great discredit, both morally, ethically, intellectually...and spiritually...these slobs have taken the bait and are running with it. Thus, we have an unholy convergence...not an alliance per se, of the underlying agendas of the Left (which was ALWAYS dedicated to this) and now those who have the money or power (temporarily as they will soon find out)...when the system collapses. I would not dignify them as being Rightists. They have no loyalty to their fellow American, or the Constitution.

I would be tempted to say that the immense crash and destruction of their existence would almost be just deserts. Except, for the unfortuante circumstance that they are taking us, the great middle class, down with them. In fact, they are targetting us...and have ZERO UNDERSTANDING of what the results will be. You can bet that once they have implemented their designs though, the 2nd Amendment will go bye-bye. I.e., "Uneasy rests the crown...."

But as I said, even irrespective of domestic discontent, they have no idea what will be happening globally, or how soon.

[Paul Ross]

The Congress is treating people (in the United States and in the "free trade" partner countries) like pawns in a global scheme. The Congress is not necessarily protecting the individual, but is forcing him to participate in globalization, the terms of which are settled not locally, not nationally in Congress, but in Davos, Uruguay, Doha, in the G8, the WTO, the Summit of the Americas and so on, without his consent.

CAFTA is unconstitutional in both letter and spirit. And while the Constitution endeavors to preserve our special liberties...remember contextually its main purpose was to "form a more perfect union." because of the miserable failure of the balkanized 13 colonies to act as a nation, to think as a nation, and to be a nation. CAFTA betrays that very union to unwarranted and unconstitutional concerns for the rest of the globe. Globalist indeed.

[neutrino]

This is an interesting post, on a number of levels. Thank you for posting it.

[hedgetrimmer]

You should distill this post and email blast it to as many newspaper editors as you can get email addresses for.

[hedgetrimmer]

You're welcome!

[Old Professer]

I see a stringer headed for the creel:

My friend was very surprised the day she walked into the (Mennonite) grandmother's traditional farm kitchen - and there was a brand-new microwave oven. (This was in the 1970s, before microwaves were common anywhere.)

Here we are confronted with a neophyte reporter, a 35 year old memory and a 30 minute deadline and the epiphany takes place between the keyboard and a long-ago stick of hard butter and hard chocolate in a house with no refrigerator.

Also, theologically speaking, one of the ways they believe they know God is through the interconnected give and take of the people in their community. So they believe they would know God less if they didn't honor and safeguard their interconnectedness.

I guess somewhere shortly after the hardscrabble life and the 1967 introduction of the Radar Range, this mythical Mennonite family found a compromise between machines and God.

The Mennonite grandmother had it right. Don't buy the hype or stuff being shoved at us, unless and until it helps us feed each other, respect each other, enjoy each other. Until it creates a space in our day for cocoa.

At least this last "quote" starts out on the right foot before slipping into the chocolaty mess that passes for social commentary in today's IHop of the absurd.

[indthkr]

"this kind of borderless Western Hemispheric Economic Bloc"

What people like Barnett and his ilk really mean is that their will be new and heavily defended borders in the Western Hemisphere; its just that they will be the 15-foot concrete walls that surround the gated communities (and villages) of the 8-figure-salaried elites.