Homegrown and The Climate Band Wagon
Why is it that anything you eat from your own orchard, garden or field always tastes better than what you bought from a shop? This week we have been eating pomegranates from our garden and I could swear they are the very best I have ever tasted. It was the same with our oranges earlier in the year. I know this cannot be true but it allows me to understand better why on TV the Marcus Wareing's of the world say their own homegrown veggies are the best tasting. They are adamant, stated as a fact. Is this true?
The answer is no, it is from a positive mindset brought about by the self-pride of producing your own produce or livestock. They must be good, I grew them, even to the extent of some deficiencies in quality are ignored. These deficiencies matter much less on homegrown produce than those you would reject if seen on the supermarket shelf. It seems this is true also of organic products despite the premium paid. Their flaws are tolerated while normal production is rejected, either dumped to rot in the field or fed to livestock.
“Whatever diet you choose to live by; veggie, vegan, omnivore, carnivore, flexitarian, pescatarian, aren’t we really lucky to have this choice? 864M people in the world are malnourished, 8.4M are in this country! They can’t choose.” - Simon Bainbridge, UK farmer
When I extrapolate this sense of well-being from growing your own food and low and behold it may give us some insight into why organic food is deemed by true believers as being so good in both taste and nutrition. They may be healthier for the planet, but nutrition-wise, no difference. Of course, we still have to prove this kind of production is sustainable. They taste nicer and better in nutrition because subconsciously you have programmed your brain to think and accept this in many parts due to the media. Sure, some fruit and vegetables are better than others, be they homegrown, organically produced or bought, there is no doubt. This is not a constant. Extensively produced meat products, especially pigs and poultry, definitely taste better than those intensively produced. Importantly, their welfare is also better. Even the fish you catch or lambs you rear nearly always taste the best. It is those positive vibes you have generated within your brain before you even taste the product that tilts the scales.
‘Life is like a homegrown vegetable, when you have control of it along with a positive mindset it is always much better. Life controlled by others is like a bought veggie; it always has flaws offering less enjoyment.” - Peter McSporran
Then this got me thinking about climate change and the Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt COP 27 Conference. Close to two hundred countries will be attending. I am told a whopping fifteen thousand are expected to attend. Think how much carbon will dump into the atmosphere. Amongst the bonafide scientists and those with political power, there will be the lobbyists and attention seekers. Probably lots of snowflakes. The last probably greatest in numbers. I can understand the world leaders being there, those of the developed world to protect their interests while looking for answers and those of the developing world looking for ‘crumbs’ from the wealthy nations in compensation for the negative impact the developed world has on their climate, real or imagined. Crumbs is probably the wrong word, rather loaves. Two totally different agendas. Anyway, when did ten people come to an agreement, let alone fifteen thousand? I made the mistake of representing Zimbabwe once at IFAP (International Federation of Agricultural Producers) in Turkey. Within a day, I realised International was the wrong title, as all were there representing their national interests, often at the expense of the other.
The western world has got itself into a real energy pickle. They believed the world had entered a new era where we thought humans were no longer animals and a place where global conflict would be a thing of the past. Any local conflicts would be so limited that they would not interfere with international trade allowing the free movement of goods and most importantly, energy in the form of gas and electricity allowing them to gleefully claim they have reduced their use of dirty fuels with no qualms about its production. In doing so they seem to have ignored the fact they have simply changed from coal to gas which is admittedly cleaner than coal but in doing so, they have reduced the exploitation of their own coal and gas sourcing rather just the cheapest, no matter the behaviour of the producing regime. No different as we did when the bulk of the oil came from the Middle East. Even today human rights are ignored. Those footballers that took the knee are happy to kick a ball around in Qatar. All so confusing.
Into this complacent world came the Ukrainian conflict making energy, especially gas, a political tool overnight exposing both their stupid policies and their misplaced pride on clean energy stats based on lies. Unfortunately, this at the expense to the person on the street who now has to shoulder the increased cost of just keeping their family warm. I suppose some of the most unaffected are those in rural Africa who will continue to burn firewood, contributing greatly to global warming by burning the trees and creating a plantless desert only having to extend extra labour to gather further from their doorstep for this depleting resource.
Being born in Scotland I still keep an interest in anything Scottish and as usual, was shocked that some of the bankrupt councils of that country are sending delegates to COP 27 as has that dreadful lady with the title of First Minister. To add injury to insult, probably just to attract attention to herself, she has pledged millions of Scottish taxpayers’ money to third-world countries as compensation. For what? No surprise that it is not for any meaningful practical applications, this means the donations are a fudge. The funds once dispersed will have no reporting accountability which I am sure the receiving governments will be pleased with making good use of them in staff expenses (broad definition) and new cars.
“The funds take Scotland’s commitment to addressing loss and damage caused by the climate crisis to £7 million and will enable communities to take direct action to address the impacts of loss and damage. This includes slow-onset effects, such as sea level rise and non-economic effects, such as the loss of cultural identity. It will also help to tackle existing inequalities, including gender inequalities, which are exacerbated by the effects of climate change.” - Scottish Government publication on 8/11/22
I have previously said, that we humans are destroying the world. We need to change and do so logically. Get rid of the airy fairytale crap for immediate action being demanded by these law-breaking snowflakes. We have previously chatted about the warped mindset to source external energy rather than homegrown. The latest thing is rather than reduce industrial pollution we must reduce those short-term dirty gases such as methane. This is despite methane having a short life while CO2 accumulates over centuries, even a thousand years. It is much easier to have a go at the rural people and farmers. One of the craziest ideas is buying carbon credits by purchasing or conserving existing forests. I am not talking about new trees, I am talking about old established forests. This seemingly allows executives and staff of businesses to fly around the world or drive large cars with a clear conscience declaring we are carbon neutral. What a load of shit.
“I think it is crazy to think you can claim your business is carbon negative by purchasing a remote existing forest. Both this and any new forests are not addressing the real problem. It is just like the better tasting homegrown fruit, a misconception.” - Peter McSporran
Further, by working at home how much more energy will that use to keep multiple workplaces heated rather than one central place of work? The answer will probably be, we leave the heating on at home all day anyway. I wonder has anyone looked into this?
An Uncomfortable Peace and the Birth of My Second Daughter
On returning to Zimbabwe from our European holiday in August 2022, we found the country relatively calm. There was still a lot of suspicion among the parties themselves with an uneasiness within the white community. Many of the white population continued to leave, as stated earlier, professionals and artisans were in demand throughout the world. A huge gain to them at the expense of Zimbabwe. Following the unilateral declaration of independence, Rhodesia prospered as the government officials, professionals, farmers and artisans remained. People with experience even when not officially recognised as qualified are what keeps an economy going including its service industries. Now following the end of Rhodesia and in essence white rule, many of these people left, leaving Zimbabwe in a similar state but not quite so bad as its other African colonies where most of the professions and administration were expatriates. The number that remained enabled Zimbabwe to continue to prosper although from early into independence political expediency and corruption started to erode these strong foundations. We were unaware of this at first and for the next fifteen years, the private sector prospered. This could not be said of government departments or parastatals. Senior civil servants were offered attractive packages to leave, not lucrative and senior posts were indigenised as soon as possible leaving middle management types little choice but to leave due to a lack of future prospects. Especially so of unskilled workers in state-run services such as the railways, power and water utilities including municipal and rural councils.
From time to time farmers were being arrested for no other reason other than some report by disenchanted workers or someone holding a grudge. The new government set up a network of spies throughout the country in every organisation. They knew how, after all, they were well-trained by the Chinese. Mostly, they were unseen by us except for a certain group known as the ‘Youth Brigade’ a quasi-paramilitary organisation made up of mainly ex-mujibhas (informers for the freedom fighters on the whereabouts of the Rhodesian forces). These people would intimidate our workers, force them to attend indoctrination meetings that went well into the night and ensured when there was a ZANU PF rally, everyone should attend.
One Sunday at lunch with my inlaws, I received a call from Darwendale Police, which still had a white member in charge, to get back to the farm as soon as possible as one of our tractors had been involved in an accident at California Farm. Strange, I thought. I had not given permission for the use of a tractor especially, as this was well off the farm on the road to Darwendale. California Farm had been owned by the Lubsers who after their son was killed in the war, lost heart and had subsequently gone broke. The AFC (Agricultural Finance Corporation), the lenders had repossessed the farm so at that time, it was vacant. On arrival at the accident site, I was shocked to hear four people had been killed including a child and a senior member of the Youth Brigade. The constables wanted to arrest me as the owner of the tractor, very much egged on by the Youth Brigade. Luckily, the member in charge had the courage to stay calm and it did not take long for the remaining passengers on the trailer to tell me the local Youth Brigade had commandeered the tractor illegally to take them to a ZANU PF rally in Darwendale. The senior member had insisted he drove, and in doing so thought he was capable of driving at full throttle. On approaching the bridge which was on a slight bend and on a slope, he lost control, panicked, leapt from the tractor to his death, at the same time the tractor and trailer careened into the small river. These sorts of incidents were not uncommon in the new Zimbabwe. Avoiding blame, although innocent in Africa is not an easy matter. An ex-farm manager of mine, Tony Leckie and his wife Helen were to eventually take over the farm and from then I always referred to that bridge as ‘Leckie’s Leap.’
On a happier note in early December while at a ‘late luncheon’ party at Phil and Cherith Roberts’, Diane informed me she thought we had better go home as her second baby was on its way. By this time ‘we boys’ were now exchanging war stories with a good whisky. I should inform you, the Roberts farmed some thirty kilometres from us downriver on the banks of the Hunyani River. Phil was one of the PATU stick members when we had a lengthy contact with a superior force towards the end of the war. His father, American born was said to have at one time been the largest tobacco grower in the world.
Diane wanted to go first home to collect essentials, some thirty kilometres away before heading into town a further sixty-six kilometres. Eventually, I agreed and all went well until I stopped the car at the railway crossing on seeing a bright light, thinking it was a train. After a while, Diane asked me why had I stopped and I said, “I am waiting for the train to go by.” She then informed me it was a floodlight at the CSC’s (Cold Storage Commission) feedlot. We then got home where I fell asleep while she packed. Frantically she now informed me we must leave immediately and set off to Lady Chancellor maternity hospital, dropping Storm at our inlaws on the way to town, just in time for our second daughter, Janine Tarn’s birth. I once more attended the birth despite feeling a bit dodgy. I would not have got through that night without partaking of Diane’s oxygen blended with laughing gas every time the midwife left the room.
“Stay sober when your wife is close to giving birth if you want to remain popular. A few extra dry days before the expected date is advisable and is worth it.”- Peter McSporran
Janine turned out a delight sleeping through the night, cried little, unlike her sister Storm who suffered terrible colic and would cry like a banshee. In fact, she was so quiet at night we often worried, but our fears were ill-placed as she turned out to be a happy child until she became a naughty teenager.
“All children are rarely naughty until they become teenagers. Before that, they are just adventurous in their efforts to test their own physical boundaries and their parents' tolerance.” - Peter McSporran
Disclaimer: Copyright Peter McSporran. The content in this blog represents my personal views and does not reflect corporate entities.
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