Originally Posted by rshoffer

There is one area where American productivity still is the flagship for the world. The American farmer. Of course there are all kinds of changes occurring in the farming industry but (correct me if I'm wrong) we remain the breadbasket of the world. Before I moved here I befriended a family of farmers. Dad was in his mid 40's and took over the farming biz from his father. It was a huge operation... dairy, hogs, corn, wheat, soybeans etc. The male children went to Penn State to study farming then returned to contine their dad's profession. It was amazing to observe how hard they worked and how contented they were despite the risks, ups and downs, weather issues etc. Recently when I watched Glenn Becks scenario of the upcoming financial meltdown, hyper-inflation, rioting in the streets I thought that these self sufficient people will be the survivors.