This is so true! The author of this article laughs at the “counter cultural” eco whack jobs who think they are “sticking it to the man” by eschewing the eeeevil capitalist corporations who provide our food, and who put on airs of socialist elitism by buying their food from a local food coop:
if we are driven to act, even based upon some imaginary construct, we are still acting in accordance with market principles. It’s an example of the Misesian idea that all human action is an effort to relieve some discomfort about the way things are.
As much wailing and gnashing of teeth that goes on in the dugouts of the left, they are still batting .050 when coming up to bat. Yeah, I’m not happy with the push toward socialism and the teetering tower of madness that our economy has become, thanks to the asinine tax and spend policies of the Democrat party. In spite of all that, there are still basic facts to be faced: eventually, our behavior is ruled by capitalist ideals. It has to, because other economic models fail.
The consumer receives better-tasting produce at a lower price than can be had elsewhere. Additionally, for those who care about such things, they are purchasing more than just vegetables: they are purchasing the air of superiority and ecofriendly street cred that comes from shunning the corporate grocery store and sharing in something that they believe to be one step away from a hippie commune. That reality doesn’t support such a conclusion is immaterial; if we are driven to act, even based upon some imaginary construct, we are still acting in accordance with market principles. It’s an example of the Misesian idea that all human action is an effort to relieve some discomfort about the way things are.
Rather than striking a blow at the evils of the free market, CSA members exemplify voluntary exchange in its purest form. I and the farmer “beat the market” in this transaction, largely because of the direct nature of the buying and selling. I walk away from the exchange having purchased produce at a lower price by accepting a little bit of risk, while the farmer, having cut out the wholesaler, walks away having sold the fruit of his labor at a higher price.
Capitalism seeks out win-win scenarios. Other scenarios will result in participants walking away from deals. Other models punish producers on behalf of the “oppressed”. Instead of oppressing the unfortunate, there are more opportunities for success – sometimes extreme success – in a capitalistic economy than in other systems, just for the fact that as soon as one becomes more successful in socialistic or communistic societies, the extra success is removed from the producer and “distributed” to the less productive. After making stops in the usually corrupt redistribution channels, of course.
The smugness belongs to the capitalists, frustrated and dismayed that we may be:
Additionally, I purchase the satisfaction of knowing that the “muddleheaded socialists” loading up and comparing their reusable shopping bags are unwitting participants in a market economy that they claim to reject. For me, that satisfaction alone is worth almost the price of membership. The vegetables are just a bonus.
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