Doomer Optimism DO 289 - Beef, Bartering, and the Agorist's Guide to Not Starving with Nigel, Nate, and Jason
Nigel Best doesn’t have time for your bullshit. He’s too busy welding gates, rotating cattle, building spiral staircases, and conducting “illicit beef transactions” in Craigslist parking lots.
Missouri woodworker and regenerative rancher Nigel Best joins Jason and Nate to talk about what it actually takes to make a living on the land—without going broke, without selling your soul, and without waiting for Washington to save you.
In this episode:
Why coming up hard isn’t a strategy (but flat tires and crooked fingers are part of the deal)
The truth about rotational grazing: genius in wet years, dumbass in droughts
How to raise beef when customers complain about prices and the president says you’re greedy
The case for land value tax as the only moral tax (and why nobody’s entitled to your heartbeats)
Why the informal economy beats W-2 farms and digital surveillance every time
Meat packer monopolies vs. the last stand of independent ranchers
Two competing theories of change: political antitrust warfare or agorist opt-out
Why every kid should work construction with crotchety old men before graduating high school
Fair warning: Nigel solves exactly zero problems in this episode. What he does offer is three decades of hard-won wisdom from someone who’s actually been “out there in the rain at midnight with their hand up a cow.” No Instagram-perfect farm content. No verbatim regurgitation of regenerative ag books. Just the unvarnished reality of feeding yourself, your family, and your neighbors in a system designed to extract value from everyone who touches it.
If you’re tired of influencers peddling theories and want to hear from someone who’s actually dragging their knuckles through it, this one’s for you.
Guest: Nigel Best (@NigelBest5)
Hosts: Jason & Nate
Topics: Regenerative Agriculture, Land Tax, Agorism, Beef Industry, Rural Economics, Informal Markets