Medicine analogy -- Purpose of SANET-MG

ssikerd@muccmail.missouri.edu
Wed, 10 Jun 98 13:57:33 CST

Karen:

I agree. My understanding is that sanet-mg stands for sustainable
agriculture network mail group. While organic farming is certainly a
legitimate approach to sustainable agriculture worthy of serious
consideration, discussion, and even debate, it not the only approach
to sustainability worthy of thoughtful consideration or public and
private investment. None of us are wise enough to know with certainty
what is and is not sustainable over the long run. Forever is a long,
long time.

In my opinion, wisdom dictates that we be tolerant of different
opinions, open to a wide range of logical approaches, and civil in our
discussion our differences. This doesn't mean that we should embrace
anything and everything that comes down the road waving a
"sustainable" banner. We just need to be willing to listen with
respect and respond rather than condemn out-of-hand.

If others disagree with me regarding the purpose of sanet, I will
continue to scan the messages and learn more about the organic debate.
If others agree, I hope they will share their insights from a broad
range of perspectives concerning sustainable agriculture -- including
organic farming.

John Ikerd

______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Re: Medicine analogy
Author: Karen Mundy <karenm@vt.edu> at MU-Internet
Date: 6/10/98 11:55 AM


>Steve,
>Thank you for this message. I'm personally very tired of all the
bickering over organic. I was under the impression, perhaps mistaken, that
this listserve was sustainable ag., not just organic. Seems as if many
have lost sight of that.
>Good luck with your field day. k.
>
>At 10:36 PM 6/8/98 -0400, you wrote:
>>Yes, I see my medicine analogy has some holes. The point I was trying to
>>make is that we shouldn't compare farmers who use exhorbident amounts of
>>chemicals to those who use them sparingly. I've been able to reduce my
>>chemical usage to nearly half and I don't think it is fair to say that
>>I'm in the same camp as those who use full rates. Isn't this what
>>sustainable agriculture is all about? (as well as other aspects) Or is
>>the goal of sustainable ag to get everyone to be organic?
>>Steve Groff
>>
>>--
>>Attend our 5th annual Field day, July 29th. Check website for details!
>>"New Generation Cropping Systems": the cutting edge of sustainable
>>agriculture
>>http://www.cedarmeadowfarm.com
>>Steve Groff
>>Cedar Meadow Farm
>>679 Hilldale Rd
>>Holtwood PA 17532 USA
>>Ph. 717-284-5152
>>
>>
>>
>>To Unsubscribe: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with "unsubscribe sanet-mg".
>>To Subscribe to Digest: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command
>>"subscribe sanet-mg-digest".
>>

Karen Mundy
Rural Economics Analysis Program
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics (0401)
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24061
(540) 231-9443



To Unsubscribe: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with "unsubscribe sanet-mg".
To Subscribe to Digest: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command
"subscribe sanet-mg-digest".

To Unsubscribe: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with "unsubscribe sanet-mg".
To Subscribe to Digest: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command
"subscribe sanet-mg-digest".