Swineherd Philosophy 101: Christian Anarcho-Capitalism – A Pig Farm as a Microcosm
Since informing my family of my decision to quit being a lawyer, close my father’s law firm, and try to support my family as a pig farmer in the woods, their support and love has been . . . incredible. I don’t think I’ve gotten one negative response to what I’m planning on doing. I have an amazing family and that includes all my in-laws.
That doesn’t mean that they have not given me their honest opinions about the challenges and concerns ahead. My brother in-law responded: “I’m not sure if you’re a complete loon or if this is brilliant, but it looks pretty fun.” And while he was joking, he was actually spot on.
I am a complete lunatic.
They say Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
Well I define a lunatic as someone whose mind is filled with cognitive dissonance and therefore is unable to live out their beliefs. And for the first 40 years of my life, I have met that definition. But I don’t want to be a lunatic anymore.
I want my mind to have a logical, systematic philosophy AND be able to live out that philosophy with my actions in everyday life.
That’s why I say that I want to be a Swineherd Philosopher Theologian, Esq.
Christian Anarcho-Capitalism for the Glory of God
If you went over to the About page, you should now be aware that I do not take myself very seriously and I love the dumb movies my generation grew up on. The Dude made an appearance responding to those of you who will call this my mid-life crisis. As always, my big brother came through in the clutch. While he didn’t put his response into meme form, I will:
Most people will read Christian Anarcho-Capitalism and dismiss it out of hand as the theory of an insane lunatic. Others will think that the terms are inherently contradictory. While a few will reason that it just cannot work in the real world.
Well, I’ve thought about it and so far, Christian Anarcho-Capitalism is the only philosophy I can come up with that does not require cognitive dissonance that I am able to attempt to live out.
So what is Christian Anarcho-Capitalism? It really is simple:
I want to be able to stop randomly, at any time of the day, and be able to immediately know that I am doing what I am doing in order to bring Glory to God.
How did I come up with this radical philosophy for life? I asked myself a simple question: What is the most important thing that I believe?
I believe I am a Christian.
If I believe I am a Christian, then what? Well I agree with the Westminster Catechism: Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
So if my chief end is to glorify God, then regardless of what I’m doing I should be able to do it in a manner that brings Glory to God.
How Then, Shall I Live? Sorry Francis A. Schaeffer, but it’s Anarcho-Capitalism.
Anarcho-Capitalism is an explosive term and there will be much more in depth discussions of its meaning and application. But put simply, what I mean by Anarcho-Capitalism is living by the Golden Rule, engaging in commerce through the free market, abiding by the non-aggression principle, and in general:
A Pig Farm as a Microcosm
My plan is to not just set forth a logical and systematic explanation of Christian Anarcho-Capitalism, but also to live out that philosophy as a Swineherd at Sasquatch Wallows.
I’m sure many will read my writings on Christian Anarcho-Capitalism and will rail against me for my thoughts and beliefs. Being located just outside of Portland, just being a Christian will probably get me “cancelled” and prompt Antifa (short for Anti-First Amendment) to come knock down my door. But I want to ask those people, how do you want me to change my actions?
Here is how I will live out Christian Anarcho-Capitalism at Sasquatch Wallows:
First, I’m going to acknowledge that the world population is not going to become vegan. That people will keep eating pork. And in order to help feed people, I’m going to raise pigs to sell for meat.
Second, I want to raise pigs naturally, sustainably, and ethically in a manner that stewards God’s creation and brings Him glory by employing the radical theory of letting pigs be pigs.
Third, I’m going to sell my pigs on the open market to the highest bidder.
Yes, that is correct, I’m going to sell my pigs on the open market to the highest bidder.
The horrors! Capitalism . . . EEEKKKK! Gross! Socialism is the Future!!!!!!
Time for a basic economics lesson through the lens of pig farming.
If you are a commercial pig farmer today, your goal is to make $5 per pig. Yes, $5 profit for a 250-pound pig that you fed and took care of for the past 6-8 months, which was after taking care the sow for her 4 months of pregnancy. Almost a year’s worth of work to raise a pig for a profit of $5.
Of course, this $5 profit is only possible if you use modern factory farm Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations with the cheapest feed possible, that being corn and soy, which is kept so cheap through government subsidies.
At auction, lean hogs sell for between $0.60 and $0.70 per pound. Thus, a 250 pound butcher hog will generate $175 in revenue. To make your $5 profit, you need to keep expenses under $170 per hog, and that’s if you get a good price at auction.
It takes 800 pounds of feed to produce a butcher hog, plus shelter, water, waste disposal, veterinarians, and a lot of labor . . . all of which cost money. A lot of money.
Now, I have nothing against our commercial farmers, even those that utilize CAFOs. They are trying to feed the world. Which is an ethical and moral objective. And to feed the world, you must produce food as cheaply as possible. But there must be a better way than the way we’re doing it now.
Let’s say you want to raise a pig in a natural manner; give it pasture and feed it organic supplemental feed. The going theory is that giving pigs pasture will reduce their feed consumption by about 30%. So you’re still looking at about 560 pounds of organic feed.
Organic feed costs approximately $0.50 per pound. So just the commercial feed for your natural pig is $280. Way to go, you just lost $105 on that pig you raised. Don’t worry, you’ll make it up in volume. (That’s called sarcasm).
But of course, people raising pigs on pasture with organic supplemental feed wouldn’t be caught dead selling their pigs at the livestock auction. That’s below them. They sell their pork at farmer’s markets, through Community Supported Agriculture, or online for prices that you would need to take a second mortgage out to afford.
For instance, there is a well-known farm in Oregon that raises pigs in an ethical manner (but not organic or even raised without the use of Genetically Modified Organisms) that has bacon, hams, and pork roasts on their website at a price of $10 per pound, plus shipping. And for anyone that’s been to a farmer’s market, you know $10 per pound is common.
That’s a lot of money considering the retail price for pork is around $3.00 – $3.50.
That price discrepancy leads to a very low demand for natural, sustainable and ethical pork that costs $10.
Honestly, I want to be a natural pig farmer, but even I rarely pay the high price for natural pork even though it tastes infinitely better, is better for you, and better for the environment. And the reason is simple:
However, I think everyone would agree that a pig is not being a pig as God intended by living in a concrete building without room to move, standing on slats over a pit of its own excrement, and being fed commercially processed feed to make them grow as fast as possible.
So the question becomes, can you raise pigs in an natural, ethical, and sustainable manner AND at costs that can compete with the current commercial commodity prices so you can feed the world.
I believe the answer is yes. You can lower costs and increase profits by letting the pigs be pigs and stewarding God’s creation in a way that brings Him glory.
But in order to bring down the cost of natural, ethical, and sustainable pork across the board you must have a large enough supply. That supply will only come through one of two ways:
1) convincing pig farmers that there is a better way to raise pigs that will generate more profit or
2) putting a gun to pig farmers heads and regulating how they raise pigs so that it meets your definition of natural, sustainable, and ethical.
Given that my philosophy of life is Christian Anarcho-Capitalism, I’ll go with the former option.
As such, I plan on selling my pigs for the highest prices I can. If it works, others will follow or create their own model for more natural, sustainable and ethical farming. The higher supply will lower costs. More and more people will be able to afford natural, ethical, and sustainable food. The foods that only the upper-middle class can afford now will be affordable for those with lower incomes. The “inequality gap” will shrink.
Basic economics.
And all without the government telling me what to do.
All Glory to God.