That's why I try to be the worst piece of livestock I can be. I'm a minimalist. I buy only what I need, and keep the bills down to very little. No telly, only a landline phone, no credit card, 32 year olde car, no vanity rubbish, cut my own hair, and the list goes on. I also only work part time, and with Sonik's help, we live rather well on a poverty level salary. . .though part of that is circumstances (and knowing where to shop). Our multi-millionaire landlord bought the property outright with cash, and he rarely raises the rent even though we have all kinds of perks. Garbage, water, heat is paid, we have covered parking and balcony. He also charges new people under the local average by about 15%, last time I checked.

One more thing. 90 odd percent of my time is spent in my 'nose cave' surfing the web, and reading awesome books that I buy from Dollar Tree for 1.25, so I'm not contributing shoite to the economy. And depending on the topic, I ship those books to a nose friend down south, a two (honourary) nose artist team up north, and give some to neighbours.

As for the chickens, I don't know about it being more humane via the factory farmed kills. It takes longer to hang upside down for how many minutes on the way to get 'waterboarded' and hopefully electrocuted before getting your head chopped off than it does to get your neck broken by traditional methods, not to mention the old time farm chickens weren't caged and allowed to have a life.

If I were filthy rich, and had chickens, they'd be egg layers only, and I wouldn't kill the roosters, but make them available for pets. I hear they can be sweet if raised right. If they're just let loose, not so much. But I wouldn't be commercial, so. . .

I also wouldn't kill them after they could no longer lay eggs. After all, I do have a strong Cathar slant.