Local /Sustainable vs "Big Ag" argument - meet reality

Here's a fact - there's a lot of people on the planet right now - and more arrive every day. And when they get here they are usually hungry.
Now - let's take that 6.5 billion people on the planet right now who need to eat and put that "billion" number in realistic terms...
Say this out loud - "One-One thousand". Come on - say it. "One-One thousand".
Saying that just once was only one second. That represents you in the scope of the planet. You are a single second. Now say it one time for everyone in your family - one time for each of them...
What did that take - 3, 4, 5 seconds of your time? Not a big deal so far...
Now what if you did that 1000 times - or 1000 seconds to represent the 1000 people you see on your morning commute to the office - you would be doing that for for nearly 17 minutes... Maybe not so bad in the scope of your life time - I'm sure on a daily basis we fritter away 17 minutes on other things...
If you were going to say "One-One thousand" for only a million people on Earth - you would be saying it for 11.5 days straight - non-stop (whew)... But here's where the scope of the planet comes into play - not just a cool "million" or a guesstimate at the number of people you see when going to work...
If you were going to say "One-One thousand" for all 6.5 BILLION people on Earth the zeros after the numbers start to catch up - get ready - you would be talking for a little over 190 years... YEARS!! That's over 2 lives worth of counting from birth to death to account for ever soul on the planet - as it is RIGHT NOW... and of that 190 years of counting - you are one second of that time. (and in the time you have been reading this - 255 more babies were just born)
We are at a place in history where governments talk about stimulus packages in the hundreds of billion dollar range without batting an eyelash - the magnitude of these numbers is sometimes lost on people... not because they don't care - but because our minds don't think in "billions".
It's with that sobering number in mind (6,500,000,000 people) I'll share a few succinct thoughts about what's happening to our planet - our economic situation - and the ability to keep feeding all those mouths:

• I'm completely supportive and practice buying as much food from as close to you home as possible. Local food is likely much healthier. It certainly is "better" for the resources of the planet by simply reducing transportation costs. It supports the local farmer. It builds local community. It just makes sense.
• I'm also in support of practicing sustainability. The more you can "do for yourself" - the less strain you place on the planet and others. And the more personal sanctification you have in feasting on your own harvest. The less you rely on others - the better contributor to society you become... it's the old adage - it's nice to get a gift, but always better to give one.
• I'm a fan of conservation. Conservation of electricity, water, resources in general. I'm also a fan of ecological conservation - not hippy save the whale stuff (but they are worth saving) - but hunting, fishing, land management kind of conservation. We are gonna be here a while longer I hope - so this just makes sense.
  
• I'm also - at this stage in the game - in support of what people refer to as "big ag". The massive mega-farms that provide the majority of our domestic food. It's not that I think it "great" - rather I think that to keep feeding the 6.5 BILLION mouths on the planet - for the foreseeable future - it's the only way things are gonna work... like it or not companies that "manufacture" seeds that boost yield are what keep most of the world from going hungry.
• I'm a BIG fan of refrigeration - just am - it's cool (sorry). And unless we, as a country, start to take power (call it oil, wind, solar, nuclear, big hamster wheels - I don't care) seriously... our prosperity as a nation may be in jeopardy. With 6.5 billion hungry people out there and the number skyrocketing every day - Our ability to provide for ourselves better look beyond just "food" in the conventional sense.

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