Farmers Markets. Friend or Foe.

Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 11 months ago to The Gulch: General
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I have had some interesting conversations with customers recently about our local Farmers Market. I support the concept and believe it is how business was meant to be done. Producers sell their items directly to consumers. I am in the unfortunate position of having to compete with our local Farmers Market which is within walking distance of my retail store. In todays government controlled world it is clear that Farmers Markets are basically Black Markets. They operate on Saturday and Sunday when most government inspectors are off. Our local market is held on church property so they don't pay property tax. It is unlikely that they are complying with many of the costly mandates that I am. I still support the concept and I am surprised when speaking to customers about this that they usually say that they should "have to pay" their fair share. I always say that neither one of us should have to pay most of these fees. Curious if you all had any thoughts about this.

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  • Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    In the case of our Farmers Market it is held in a church lot which is non profit so they don't pay property tax.
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  • Posted by Robbie53024 11 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Correct. Unfortunately, politicians do not know that method of equalization, only the one whereby everyone pays more (so that the politicians can then spend it).
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  • Posted by Robbie53024 11 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That may be the effect, but I don't think that's the primary intent. If it were so, you'd see big companies proliferating. Besides, legally, you are required to report that income (there are many caveats, and I'm no tax lawyer so do your own research). So, technically, there's no tax evasion per se (now, what people ACTUALLY report may be different).
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  • Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Excellent. The interesting point for me is that Farmers Markets are basically a black market set up to avoid paying certain taxes and fees. Funny how many progressives shop there and don't realize this.
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  • Posted by Notperfect 11 years, 10 months ago
    I support them both. I try to shop at my local establishments when I can, but I also like the Farmers Markets. I also go to the Walmart of my choice to save when I can. That is the freedom all I can hope for. My choice.
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  • Posted by teri-amborn 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Well: If you go through the Gospels and use a highlighter pen to denote the circumstances where Jesus remarked: "Your faith has made you whole." and "I have never seen faith like this in all of Israel!", you will find that these individuals were simply "connecting the dots" spiritually. In other words: They had the ability to extrapolate meaning from the patterns of life.

    Ayn Rand had the ability to extrapolate meaning from the patterns of life ... therefore she was (and is) a woman of great faith.

    The word "faith" doesn't have any further meaning than to be able to deductively and inductively reason. "Religion" has given the word no meaning, or a Jesus said: "The traditions of man make the Word of God of no effect." .
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  • Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Hi DriveTrain. I have always felt the same. It is hard competing with that. I tread lightly because I don't want them to pay more. I want to pay less.
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  • Posted by $ DriveTrain 11 years, 11 months ago
    If "it neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg," it's not a problem, no matter how cheesy the unintentionally-comedic paeans to "organic" and other "green" dogma-points that sellers there may promote. And if anyone - no matter who it is - is able to sidestep legally any of the multitude of unjustifiable taxes, regulations and other mandates imposed on us, more power to 'em.
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  • Posted by strugatsky 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Funny that you've brought up that question... Currently, we are under the Soviet rule; the American Soviet rule, to be precise. But, the dictatorship of the proletariat is still a dictatorship of the proletariat, regardless of the nationality. And of the Constitutional freedoms? What constitution and what freedoms? The ones in the history books that no one reads or in the ones that are being taught currently with the New Constitution and that don't have freedoms? We are a skeleton of our former selves.
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  • Posted by Hiraghm 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Yes, and the Illegal Immigrants Amnesty Act was a deal with the communist controlled Congress to get the border secured. Just because they welched doesn't mean he was in favor of it.

    Don't be sorry about the facts. Let me ask you this...

    How eroded would your Constitutional freedoms have been under Soviet rule?
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  • Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Total hypocrite. I had a similar incident happen. I was talking politics with a leftie as he was getting in his SUV. I asked why he didn't have something more fuel efficient. He just laughed and said yeah I probably should get something smaller. Last I saw he got another SUV.
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  • Posted by johnpe1 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    well said, Teri; Thank You! -- j

    p.s. I have found that professing the baptist faith
    serves to 1) state that we are personally individually
    responsible to discern reality, across the entire spectrum,
    and 2) help me converse with more people to a greater
    positive extent, using terms which they understand.

    when I state that "my prayers are with you," it
    carries two primary meanings:: that I am sincerely
    interested in helping you in this circumstance,
    in this time, and that I consider your moral values
    to be laudable, worthy of heartfelt support.

    it works for me, and for those for whom I care,
    deeply. -- j
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  • Posted by jpellone 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    It's very simple Rich... Their attitude is "Do as I say, Not as I do". I got in a pissing contest with a business owners wife one day because when someone burned up all of those Hummers, She was so happy about it I could not believe it but then I pointed out that she bought the biggest engine Mustang she could (GT350) and the answer I got was "Well, I've always wanted one." What a hypocrite!!!!
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  • Posted by strugatsky 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Although I think Reagan was by far the best of what we had in almost a century, let me remind everyone that he is responsible for Resource Conservation Act, Illegal Immigrants Amnesty Act, Jobs Training Act, expanded Social Security and Homeless Assistance Act. Needless to say everyone of those acts came with it's own federal agency, a growing budget in perpetuity, more power to the elite and a corresponding erosion of Constitutional freedoms. Sorry, but those are facts.
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  • Posted by Hiraghm 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Exactly how was he to rebuild our military and exercise that wondrous foreign policy if he couldn't fund the military rebuilding, couldn't fund the foreign service, because the communist-controlled Congress shut things down while fighting over the budget? Either way, they would have won.

    And Reagan did the part more important than cutting the budget; he increased revenue by restoring faith in capitalism and America among the American people, and deregulating as much as he could get away with.

    Even Reagan couldn't get away with the dictatorial tactics that Obama does.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I am not going to disagree with you on his signing those bills. All I am going to say is that governing is a lot more difficult than it looks. Even as a president of my university's faculty senate, I have seen situations where I have learned that some battles are more important to win than others. You only have so much of yourself to put into each and every issue. I still think he did the best that he could. Yes, he did compromise more than we would have liked him to do, but the power of a president is (or at least was) limited. Reagan was no RINO. Every other Republican president or vice president in the last 50 years has been a RINO. Reagan's "failures" point to the importance of gaining a governing majority.
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  • Posted by Hiraghm 11 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    And the budget, per the Constitution, is ultimately the responsibility of Congress, not the President.
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