Whats your thoughts on my idealistic...idea?

In England , its amazing how much money a couple of apple trees *could* save you.

The problem is that indpendent businesses have been decimated by the big supermarket groups- who will only pay fuck all for produce.
So people often struggle to sell their produce to small indep shops.

BSR is right , I suspect.Fruit picking is low skilled and worth fuck all vs machines or 3rd world labour.
You need something "value added" , as I see it.

 

Why would i not want to do it anymore? If i have a cause that i am willing to spend my life working towards to try to make my community a better place, then i think its safe to say that even if it is a total flop, id still have faith in it. I wouldnt just say fuck it and go on living my life like the rest of the mindless fucking world: shopping at wal-mart, ignoring the problems that dont face our social class, watching the boob tube, fueling corporate america.

I feel that if i have faith in the community then the community will have faith in me to make this work. and if the bums dont feel like working, then great, they can walk their happy ass to the ymca. My overhead cost after my initial start up would be minimal. the most that i would have to pay would be for property taxes. If i dont have people who want to help, fine, atleast i have 5-10 cabins that i can rent out at an honest price. It's not like i would take out some enormous loan that i would need to pay back with the money i make from my charity drive. thats rediculous to assume that i pay a fixed rate without a fixed income.

 

if you are really serious about this, i would start making inroads to learning how to operate a business, organizing the right people, writing grant proposals and getting out there to talk to people who have the money you will need...all the while learning about the practices you want to implement

 

You wouldn't want to do it anymore because you'll grow up by then, and you'll give up on saving the world because you're not a dumb fellow. Take my word for it. You will simply learn to focus on making your own life better, and the life of your friends and family, instead of trying to change the entire world, which is a shithole.

As I've already stated, you won't have the means to start off this community and this project. Most people can't even afford one such cabin, not to mention land. You will have to be extremely career oriented for a while, and you don't strike me as the corporate type, or a doctor or lawyer for the matter.

...and you really should pick up an economics textbook.

 

Good and selfless idea. But lawyers will find a way to fuck it up.

 

I know how to operate a business, and i know people who are experienced with grant proposals, and ive got a few people who work at the song of the morning ranch (commune, similar to what i have stated) that are willing to help me with this. its just a few years in the making because like i said before, id like to keep it as privately run as possible.

 

It's a very nice idea, and I hope you can make it come to fruition.

 

I guess you dont fully understand me. I've always been the helping type. my friends and family are all hardworking individuals who have a fine life, and dont really need any improvement. id rather improve the lives of people who are just struggling to survive. I dont want to save the world, i know i cant even make a dent. i just want to make someones day. and if i can do that by offering them food and shelter in exchange for work for a period of time, then by all means, i will.

Land is cheap where i live (5k an acre at most usually) and cabins are easily constructed for less than 20 grand a piece. It's not like im going to need millions to get my idea started. even if it doesnt live up to my grand scheme, If i make an impact on just a handfull of peoples lives, then my mission is complete.

and dont challenge my understanding of economics. I know how the shit works, and i think its wrong the way it does. its focused more on profits for a few of the rich, while exploiting the poor, sending them deeper into poverty. im not trying to change the whole economy. just the economy of my immediate area.

 

Listen, if you ask Topher, people will always give you a million reasons why you shouldn't do something.

Don't put yourself down, the world will try to do that for you.

Go for it.

 

Thank you lode. I appreciate your support.

And i also have to thank BSR. If it werent for him challenging it, i wouldnt have realized how deeply i feel towards this.

 

Hell, even I say go for it if you really want to. Don't listen to my cynical ass.

I just want you to make sure that you understand exactly what you're doing.

Anyhow, good for you, it's a noble idea.

How do you plan to make the money to start it up though?

Economics cannot be "wrong" in a capitalistic system, they are designed to fit the system. I think that the economical system here is next to genius, especially in the way that it controls, checks, and balances itself... but I'm a strong believer in personal responsibility and don't pity the poor too much.

 

No that gentleman is right. It's not very pragmatic and will be a lot of hard work.

 

Well, I thank you for your "support" first off.

But about making money: I'm a senior in high school right now. My girlfriend is a sophomore. Im in it with her to the end, no question about it. Shes planning on going to college, im not. I intend on getting certified to be an electrician, and joining a union, and working my ass off while living a life of close to poverty, because that is my comfortable standard of living, and basically saving my money until my girlfriend graduates from college. When that happens (six years from now) we are both joining the peace corps. At that time, I invest. I invest all of my money that i have saved in CD's, Trust's, Mutual Funds, maybe even a little in the market. (depending on economic situation then) At the end of our tour in our foreign country, we will each recieve 6,000 for our transition back into the world from our loving government. My girlfriend actually owns her own cabin in a small town up north, so we will use our combined 12,000 to survive there until we have enough money from our investments and our careers to start up what i have stated in the former posts. It's a far stretch, and a little bit of a hope. and if my money doesnt dole out right, i'll start my own company, and see where it goes from there.

 

That is ridiculously idealistic.

All I can say is: good luck.

 

It's only idealistic because it hasnt been done before. But then again, im almost certain that no one has met a couple like me and my girl before either. And like i said, im not trying to change the world. Im trying to help people. Hell, im sure ill end up having people staying with us in the cabin that she owns. The idea that i initially posted would be after years upon years of saving and investing. I honestly dont expect it to ever get to that extent, but id like to see it do that. Give it twenty years or so, and i'll see what i can do with it/

 

No one has done it before because it's extremely impractical, and actually a rather big financial risk. You have all of your money invested, instead of simply gathering interest in a bank.

It is much more of a feasible idea if you give it 20 years.

Why don't you want to go to college?

 

Because if im going to spend four years of my life on anything, id want it to be something that i want to learn about IE: philosophy or horticulture. considering the cost of tuition to be 20k+ per year, id be 80k in debt before i even had a decent paying job, which, with a degree in horticulture or philosophy, i wouldnt expect to find a decent paying job. which is alright with me because like i said before, i have a very low standard of living. i just need the bare essentials and good friends and the occasional herb. And i can go into a skilled labor job, join a union, retire by 55, however im smart with my money. I dont take risky investments. if i take out CD's, they are a guaranteed return, low risk, low return. the only risk lower than cd's are savings. and they have unbearably low interest rates. So, i can probably end up retiring with my 401k prior to 55, and collect social security shortly after. (if its still there by the time im old enough to retire)

 

Can't you get grants or scholarships?

I'll tell you this much right now... philosophy is bullshit.

You can actually go to an agricultural university, get a degree as a grower (2 years max study) and make pretty damn decent money working in the industry. I'm an assistant grower, and it's a very fun and fulfilling job (really physical too, which is good).

Don't count on social security too much.

 

lol, Im the kind of person who learns what they need to know, and goes on with life. So, to say the least, my grades are wretched. not to say that im incapable of making the cut (a few semesters i pulled a 3.6). so scholarships are a no. grants, maybe. student loans. omg, ive had so many offers for student loans, i think that FAFSA knows im not getting scholarships.

Where do you work at? Because i have a friend who has a four year degree in horticulture from a state university, and right now is working at good will.

But overall im fine to just live my life as an electrician. Im excellent with electronics, and home wiring is a snap. especially considering that i have a friend whos a masters electrician and hes pulling in 75k a year just to go around and inspect other peoples work. which works for me, because im slightly lazy, and would rather spend my time with my family or working in my garden than at work.

 

People don't go to college to learn, at least not for most majors. They go to college to get a piece of paper that would guarantee a good job.

You will have to work a lot as an electrician, but whatever suits you.