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Mid MO | I was in school when hogs went to 8 cents. Had a job in the rural sociology dept. There was a lot of talk of the farm crisis. One of my favorite professors had been a hotline counselor trying to save people's lives. He was glad he had tried to help but he was very forthright that if he was asked again he wouldn't be able to put himself through it a second time. Took a terrible toll on him.
Remember before terrorists, when the militia men were the prominent whack jobs? A good portion of the militia members were exfarmers who went broke in the 80's. The experience had radicalized them. They were mad as hxll and were acting out, waiting for the revolution.
If you need to talk with someone, don't forget the church. I also worked with the Rural Church Center while at school. My observation at that time was that communities up North: Dakotas, Iowa, Wisconsin , Minnesota... understood the crisis and had built systems for supporting people spiritually. They seemed far ahead of what I saw in my own community. | |
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Farmer suicide rates
