China Taking over Canadian Farms!

[grassfarmer]

Good post Oneoff, single farm families that need 40
quarters cannot be deemed efficient by any means. I
like the Hutterite model, hard working people living
on the land working collectively for a common goal. A
typical colony with 10,000 acres and 25 families is
supporting each family off 400 acres through the
added enterprises of livestock. I believe that type of
land use efficiency and productivity offers great
opportunity on the prairies. Proof that this works is
that virtually every Hutterite kid remains in
agriculture, can't say that about the general farm
population.

[JDGreen]

What else do they know grassfarmer? They are uneducated and held like slaves. Only they don't know it. The freedom to learn is stripped from them. I work with many of the runaways and spend hours with them in winter months. Its not all what your making it out to be.

[parsley]

You should move to China, grassy. You'd love it
there, where one bIg state farm manager could
direct your daily work. The big picture consisting
of quotas and central planning and robot
obedience would satisfy your need to be under a
bIg protective umbrella, akin to a hill of ants, to
robotically cranking out the daily output.

You would find contentment, excitement and a
noble cause for the greater good in the People's
Republic. I'll tough it out with jdgreen. Pars.

[parsley]

By the way grassy, you'll be locked in. Cuba
locks in their people, too. But it's all for the
greater good. No sense having bastards around
that cherry pick countries. What kind of execution
is the most suitable for fellow escapees, grassy?
Shooting or poisoning them? Pars

[bobofthenorth]

What a bunch of paranoid crybabies.

You're happy enough when the foreign capital is raising the value of your land but you cry foul if a neighbour sells to someone who isn't "local". Get over it. The most important asset western Canada needs is people. If the Chinese want to become Canadian citizens, live in our communities, buy supplies, equipment, groceries, houses, etc., etc. then bring them on.

[bucket]

The chines will come and along with them the containers they need to live and send back produce in the empties. Don't kid yourself, the chinese are looking for food not wars.

They can buy wheat for alot cheaper than potash.

And grassfarmer, if you think the hutterite commune is a good model and they are self supporting give your head a good shake. They collect more government money than you and I will make in ten lifetimes. And until recently they paid no taxes because they were considered a church. They have their own bank that was filled to the roof when the prices went through the roof in the 70s. Sheeesh!! Then they went through the 80s with cash and doubling their money every 3 years when interest rates went through the roof. And don't forget they were snuggled pretty tight to the NDP for a few years as well. Dwainee used to visit them regularly.

I always wonder why people are given a brain and refuse to use it.

[Burbert]

Racism is alive and doing well on
Angriville, it seems!!!!!!!!!! Fu bigoted
redneck sonsabeeches...... Head tax is
what ya need ta get a level Comedian
playing field.

[grassfarmer]

Parsley why should I move to China or Cuba? I'm
quite happy here. I'm not the one bitching about the
situation here SF3 is. Always talking up the free
enterprise model and then the first to cry to the
Government when everything isn't going their way.
Funny I get branded the socialist here when I'm the
free enterprise guy, the guys pretending to be the
free enterprise guys are the real socialists.
The Hutterite kids are free to leave the colony if they
want to. They can walk out and into a driving job in
the oil patch tomorrow if they want to. Some do, most
choose not to.
So bucket under what auspices are these huge sums
of money given to the Hutterites?

[BFW]

I think the Chinese are simply loking to invest the dollars they have built up in their foreign currency reserves. I remember people complaining about how the Japanese were buying up all the prime real estate in certain areas. Again they were investing foreighn exchange surpluses. Obviously good times if you are looking to sell good farmland on the Canadian prairies. Taking on a bunch of debt to expand, not so much.......

[mcfarms]

They must feel it has value even at these levels, should make you optimistic for the future of the industry. I've had to compete with Oil money, real estate money, hutterite money, european money, it's normal for capital to flow to where there is a perceived return.

[bucket]

Every person over 18 on a colony has to file a IT return. If you are married with children there is the child tax benefit and more than likely every family on the colony is receiving one. Thats probably an easy 15 grand a month direct to the bank account.

Then there is the issue of education, they get supplied a teacher instead of a bus and the kids learning at a school. Government money there as well. Imagine how some communities' schools would be if there was an extra 50 kids at them every day. Use the noggin please.

You are right they can leave the colony but when you go back everything goes to the colony - bank account and all.

I am sure the hutterite colony is a great model to getting work done but most work to live not live to work. In other words, do they interact socially within the community other than to come for groceries and see the doctor. Anyone ever see a hutterite play hockey, baseball, waterski etc?????

Its just a model that doesn't interest me as it seems to be a slave model of the 1800s.

[farmaholic]

Hutterites have the same human attributes as anyone else, that being said, there are likely some dynamic relationships within the colony as well. If you want a job for life and have most of your "basic" needs met that wouldn't be a bad place to be. I think it comes at a bit of a cost though-not alot of individuality. It may be a model suitable for some but I think I will opt for my lifesylte over theirs. Overall, they are and industrious ambitious bunch.

[bucket]

But they are not socializing with local communities. Having a teacher provided at a colony seems idiotic to me, when these kids should be at a local school that is being threatened with closure because they don't have enough students. The government won't pull the teacher to save money at a colony, but they will close a school and bus kids furthur. Meanwhile a school bus drives by the colony every day and a teacher drives out. That is a government subsidy no matter how you look at it.

Sorry folks, I am not a racist but I look at things like this and say WTF.

[fjlip]

BFW that does make sense. The US has had a trade deficit with China for years that amounts to billions. As well as other countries.
Time to invest in food security. They are planning ahead. Have always tried to move markets.
Oneoff, easier to buy out large farms to get big acres than deal with many small farms. Big fish eaten by bigger fish.

[grassfarmer]

Maybe you need to use your brain Bucket?
The tax situation you outlined is no different than if
there were 25 "mini SF3 families" each farming 400
acres.
Government money in schooling them - no different
than anyone else. In fact as they are in school for less
years than a regular kid the bill should be less. What
you are failing to realize is the colonies are their own
communities - just as 50 extra kids might be good
for a non-Hutterite school equally it is good for their
own farm based community. They tend to socialize
within their own culture, within the colony and by
visiting other colonies but many interact with the
outside community too. My Hutterite neighbours here
attend local community events like Fall suppers and
some of the kids do play hockey in town. Hutterites
are increasingly taking leadership roles in wider
industry organizations like the Pork councils.
Compared to some rural areas dominated by old
farmers in their 70 with no successors the colonies
are a bright oasis of youthful exuberance, a people
with goals in mind and the desire and ability to
succeed. Look at their record - they are fantastic
achievers - you cannot deny the success their system
has.