It's organic, clean, not shot up with antibiotics and growth hormones.
The produce is fresh, ripe.
I hadn't had a really good fresh tomato since the ones my mom grew in the backyard many years ago.
Fruit is tree ripened, not picked early so it can age in the back of a truck on the way to the market.
I forgot how good fruits and veggies can be until we got here.
That's because in the United States, the family farmer, who used to lovingly grow our food, raise the cattle and keep the Great Plains fertile, is a dying breed.
They fed us through wars, the Great Depression; they fought through the Dust Bowl and floods; they put their lives and livelihood on the line
so the people of the United States could eat. Now, many of them are going hungry.
Nelson, Young and Mellencamp started the organization in 1985, responding to a comment made by Bob Dylan during the Live Aid show that July. Dylan said: "I hope that some of the money…maybe they can just take a little bit of it, maybe…one or two million, maybe…and use it, say, to pay the mortgages on some of the farms and, the farmers here, owe to the banks…"
Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof was pissed, saying Dylan's comment was a "crass, stupid, and nationalistic thing to say," although he subsequently said Farm Aid is "a good thing."
The thing is, the people of the United States really hadn't heard such a "crass,
stupid, nationalistic thing" with as much benefit to this country since the anti-war movement. Unfortunately, it hasn't heard such a "crass, stupid, nationalistic thing" since Dylan made that comment, even though the nation was thrust into wars, criminal activity and soiled by a lack of leadership for decades.
The deterioration of American values and principles, sacrificed to the corporate gods, is one reason for my exile in Mexico. It won't be that long before most good American jobs are shipped here, anyway, so why not get ahead of the curve? But, that's another topic for another day.
In 1985, when the first Farm Aid concert was held in Champaign, Illinois, it was huge deal, garnering a lot of press and live television coverage from start to finish.
Saturday, when they take the stage in Kansas City, the only way to see the show is online at the Farm Aid website. (The netcast begins at 5 p.m., CDT.)
There's not as much hoopla these days, not as much of a buzz. At least not as much as there should be.
You see, people should be angry that the quality of their food has slipped significantly. They should refuse to eat meats that have been shot up with drugs, poultry that has been caged since it broke the egg, and fish that come from fouled waters.
They should be ashamed that the few remaining family farmers have to live on subsidies for not growing food, that their fields sit fallow, when they could be growing enough to feed a hungry world.
They should be outraged by the government allowing practices that are geared more for profit than quality. So many corners have been cut to help the corporate farmers that the industry, once foursquare and strong, is now rounded out and rolling all over the place, out of control.
Down here, tomatoes aren't perfectly symmetrical. Some are larger than others. But, that's how they grow, unlike the 'hot house," mush available in the states that all look alike, are the same size and taste like an old sponge.
Down here, you can get mangoes that have been allowed to ripen on the tree, cactus fruit that is actually sweet, papayas the size of watermelons.
Gringos are usually the ones snapping up most of the packaged and microwaveable foods. The locals mostly shop the outer perimeter of the store, packing in fresh meats, fruits and veggies. They get their rice and beans out of a barrel, and their fish was caught that morning.
The local organic markets? Well, actually, just about everything you get at the supermarket is organically grown.
Mexico, by American standards, is a poor country, yet the food grown here is high quality and the cattle is healthy and well-tended. The local farmers and ranchers work hard, tilling the hard desert soil, irrigating land that has been struck by drought for four years now, and being productive throughout it all. They waste nothing and are grateful for all they have. That's why Mexican cooking is more rustic than exotic.
What does this have to do with Farm Aid and the American family farmer?
Farmers and ranchers are fairly respected down here. They are recognized for their hard work, their industry. Farm Aid is trying to restore some of that dignity to the American family farmer, who has been rudely kicked to the curb, stomped on by the corporate giants, and mistreated by their government.
I don't know if Farm Aid will ever be able to break the death grip corporate farming has on the United States. I doubt it. But, at least somebody is trying to do something about it.
Thanks, Willie, Neil, John, and Dave.
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