The woman who does her grocery shopping at the Boston Public Market

They exist, you know! Inspections of farms and paperwork, too.

Most often, organic farming uses the same pesticides just differently sourced. On top of that, they often have to use more pesticides because it's less effective than the stuff being used on non-organic farms but they can't live off a reduced yield or produce that people won't find "good" enough to buy.

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/science-sushi/httpblogsscientificame...

Umm, that last sentence is just 100% false.

http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/ag-and-food-statistics-charting-th...

It was priced out. You want cheap groceries, your store has to be located on cheap real estate (and you need cheap oil, and relaxed environmental regulations, and relaxed food-safety regulations, and someone somewhere has to work for poverty wages to grow your food, and...)

I can't believe Roche Brothers, the exact same stuff they have at hannafords and stop and shop for sometimes double the price.

So don't shop at Roche Bros and shop at Stop and Shop instead. That's the wonderful thing about a free market economy. Enough people want what each is offering that each can find its niche in the market and thrive.

I'm a Market Basket fan myself, but I also buy fish and meat from Whole Foods.

MB has a good selection of certified organic produce, too. They also have a lot of local produce from small farms, in season.

I do find the Dewey farmer's market, Mini Roche, and this new market to be very convenient for those "I need only one thing to make dinner tonight" moments. I don't want to get home and have to go to the grocery store when I can just grab two peppers nearby.

For many folks knife skills are a challenge as well using spices and maintaining a pantry of spices.

The one time I visited was on a Sunday, early afternoon, and quite a few of the food/produce stalls were closed. So maybe weekdays/Saturdays are better if you want the full experience.

I take it that you are completely unfamiliar with how much food that is.

Hint: it is a LOT more than you can carry - particularly if there are teenagers involved. Think "full grocery cart".

Honey, even I drive to the grocery store. It is one of the few reasons that I even own a car in the first place. I have a similar family to this shopper, so I know damn well that it is a lot more than will even fit into a goddamn bob trailer.

And I get the challenge. However, whether Ms. Adams purchases organic sprayed from heaven produce versus the stuff laced with poisons that the majority of us schmoes have to suffer with, is really in the 'who the heck cares" category. On the other hand, this might be considered "news you can use" by the Hill's denizens.

is good for the local farmers but who else? The folks who have means to buy foodstuffs from the Boston Public Market (which is funny since the majority of the "public" really can't afford to purchase much there). It makes some of us feel good (meaning virtuous - i.e. I am supporting the local farmer) to shop at these places (as well as local farmer's markets) but in getting the most bang for your buck it stops sort since the need for healthy food for the masses will not be fed by the local farmer. The need is too big, too great and most of these farms are smaller scale establishments catering to those who can afford $10 a pound for grass fed beef (by way of example).

You are correct that food justice is a complicated issue. I give you that in spades.

These are the market rates for parking on a weekday in this area.

The garage owners wouldn't be charging these rates if the market didn't support them.

Any business that validates parking is paying the garage owner part of the difference between the public rate and the validated rate. And the business recoups those costs by building in those costs to its pricing structure, whether it be a restaurant menu or the rent charged to market vendors. And the market vendors recoup their rent by what they charge their customers.

If I walk in and show my commuter rail ticket, will I get a voucher I can hand to the MBTA?

Then why should motorists be treated any differently?

Unless you're telling me that all these business would shrivel up and go out of business if they didn't validate parking.

When businesses validate parking, every patron of that business is paying a part of that parking, whether they drive or not.

Sure sounds like a subsidy to me: pedestrians and transit users subsidizing drivers.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/15/business/economy...

Then direct your anger at the reporter Karen Taylor.

And that's squarely where it resides.

That sure smacks of elitism, given the questionable evidence of whether non-organically-grown produce is more dangerous for you than organic.

The market is not about organic, it's about local. Her willingness to spend a premium to buy there is creating local jobs. We should be thanking her rather than trotting out the tired "elitist" canard.

Why does anger have to be directed anywhere? I am seriously not seeing what either of these women have done wrong. I realize that many regular UHub posters feel strongly entitled to the claim of moral superiority that comes with shopping at Market Basket, et. al, but has that entitlement really been seriously threatened because one woman (whose target audience would seem to be residents of Beacon Hill, and possibly Back Bay) profiled the shopping habits of one of her neighbors?

Bob. I think you've been here long enough to know that people jump at the chance to chastise someone because of the simple fact that the someone may have more money than them.

Yeah, but when it's someone you know personally, someone who in no way deserves this crap, it kind of brings the point home.

I suppose the iceberg lettuce and loaf of white at Shaw's is for the proletariat.

Did the article say anything about iceberg lettuce, white bread, and Shaw's? Is there even a shred of evidence that this person looks down on people who buy those things there?

Take a look in the mirror and think about your values, your principles, and your priorities, and ask yourself if that is really the kind of person you want to be.

I used to love rabbit. It's also a pretty sustainable, ecologically sound way to raise meat But one day, the connection between the rabbit on my plate and the rabbits I kept as pets as a kid became too strong, and I don't eat it any more. That's a slippery slope that I fear is going to lead me straight to a vegetarian diet, which would be OK, except for the fact that I enjoy eating meat...

...who got his panties in a bunch over someone getting flocked (which really surprised me, I thought you were joking).

Yes, maybe "hate" was a strong word, but the mockery of the woman is way over the line. Keep in mind, all these comments are based on her food choices, and from people who cherish high-end coffee (Dunks? Never) and $10+ craft beer. Hypocrisy is alive and well.