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The first step in fixing America is killing the welfare state.

The belief that Americans won't do farm work often stems from perceptions of modern labor trends, where low-wage agricultural jobs are frequently filled by migrant workers. However, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck illustrates a historical reality: during the Great Depression, desperate Americans, like the Joad family, took on grueling farm labor to survive when no safety net existed. This suggests that necessity can override cultural or economic preferences. Today, welfare programs and better job opportunities reduce the incentive for Americans to take such jobs, but history shows they will when survival is at stake. The contrast highlights how economic conditions and social policies shape labor choices more than inherent unwillingness.

The first step in fixing America is killing the welfare state. The belief that Americans won't do farm work often stems from perceptions of modern labor trends, where low-wage agricultural jobs are frequently filled by migrant workers. However, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck illustrates a historical reality: during the Great Depression, desperate Americans, like the Joad family, took on grueling farm labor to survive when no safety net existed. This suggests that necessity can override cultural or economic preferences. Today, welfare programs and better job opportunities reduce the incentive for Americans to take such jobs, but history shows they will when survival is at stake. The contrast highlights how economic conditions and social policies shape labor choices more than inherent unwillingness.
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[–] • 1 pt (edited )

Grapes of Wrath was as much about poverty in the depression as it was a treatise and love letter to socialism. The whole thing about workers camps and collectives, farmers offering to pay 13 cents/bushel peaches and then giving 5 cents...indentured servitude basically as many of the poor migrant families were borrowing money from the collective to pay fees and fines, etc.

Great film by John Ford but an even better book. There's a truncated BBC play (radioarchive.cc was gold) that's actually really well done; if anyone wants it I might be able to find it in my audio file archives.

Now the poor just stick their hand out and scream raysist.

[–] • 1 pt

Company towns comes to mind. The founding of the Knights of Columbus was rooted in Irish poverty in the 1840s. Greedy farm owners taking advantage of semi starving workers is what? A lever that forces collectivism. Yet they then hire "breakers" to enforce their actions. Read "Hard Times" by Studs Terkel to get a perspective.

[–] • 1 pt

In that respect it is like Sinclair's Jungle. No one really gave a fuck about his socialist BS, but everyone was like WTF about meat packing. Take from it what you will.

[–] • 1 pt

Another great book

[–] • 0 pt

Back when the cheap immigrant labor was white.

[–] • 1 pt

Lol no kidding. The Jungle turned into a bizarre love letter to socialism, all the interesting bits about the early gory days of meat packing were surmounted by his politics.