“Manufacturing, and its attendant commerce, as European evidence had so graphically shown, distorted relationships among men, bred dependence and servility, and spawned greed and corruption which became a canker on the society. A nation of farmers, on the other hand, each of whom owned his own plot of land, who was free and beholden to no one, would assure the preservation of those qualities on which the strength of a republic depended.” - Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson wrote this in 1875 when he saw two dangerous threats to his ideal Agrarian Democracy, financial speculation and the development of urban industry. Both of these dangers threatened to rob the people of their independence that they retained as farmers. You have debt, as Jefferson termed “financial speculation”, on one hand and factory work on the other. These two things he believed would rob people of autonomy, which is essential for a republican citizen. Jefferson’s ideal was a democratic and self-governing nation is best entrusted to a society that is predominantly agrarian. An agrarian society of small, self-sufficient family farms. Jefferson wrote in Query XIX in Notes on the State of Virginia, about a discussion of the advisability of establishing manufacturing in our new nation, Jefferson stated his conviction that agriculture, not manufacturing, should be the primary economic base of the country. He knew that it could not be beneficial economically, but because it would assure the best kind of society.

We are once again on the cusp of yet another major economic downturn. A downturn that will inevitably inflict damage far beyond financial markets and economies. When the first census counted farmers they were nearly one-third of our nation, at nearly 32 million in a total population of 106 million. The last census in 2017 measured only 3.3 million farmers in a nation of over 300 million people. That’s merely about 1%. I often wonder if Jefferson was right? It seems to me as our society moved away from agrarian to industrialized that we have been robbed of our dignity and independence. The autonomy that Jefferson alluded to hardly exists. One might argue the vast benefits of our modern, industrialized society and you can’t deny many of them. Take a step back and look at the state of our political system and governments. Can we go back to an agrarian society? Should we? I don’t have all of the answers, but the cynical side of me doubts that its possible.

I have made some major changes in my life in recent years. Parker Creek Ranch the business was a great adventure for over a decade. I tell people it was my Masters and PhD in farming, business, economics and marketing. What an amazing learning experience it was. We still sell bulk beef direct-to-consumer and peddle a few eggs at the local country stores. Beyond small commerce we treat our ranch more like a homestead. It’s financially break even at best considering the cost to do business and the worsening drought. We have a large, bountiful garden that we often share vegetables from with our community. We grow native trees and grasses to help restore our degraded landscape. Our management is highly focused on restoration and enjoyment. I hope that we can remain a shinning example of what’s possible. Mandy and I both have “town jobs” that we are very grateful for. We do often reminisce the days of working from dawn till dusk, farmers markets and the hardships we faced. It was grueling work, yet somehow very satisfying. I too dream of an agrarian society because I still believe in the Renaissance of small, family farms.

I will leave you with a quote from one of my favorite authors, Edward Abbey. “If America could be, once again, a nation of self-reliant farmers, craftsmen, hunters, ranchers and artists, then people would have little power to dominate others. Neither to serve, nor rule. That was the American Dream.”