My granddad was a doctor who accepted the occasional chicken in his time...

[JHB]

His practice was in rural Pennsylvania, and during the Great Depression he did, in fact, accept a chicken (or, more often, eggs or produce) from some of his patients.

Why?

Because it was the Great Depression, and they were small, dirt-poor farmers who didn't have anything else! And he could do that because most of the people paid him money.

Bartering doesn't pay the rent on office space, insurance bills, medical supplies, personnel salaries, and all the other overhead of a medical practice. And one family can only eat so many chickens, eggs, ears of corn, zucchinis, only need its house painted so often, or whatever, so bartering can only be a sideline.

There are names for medical systems that rely on barter to function. I think "third-world" and "medieval" are sufficient to get the point across: that this is not how it should work, and anyone who suggests it is simply doesn't understand the problem.

I think when campaign fundraising time comes, it'll be time to send Sue Louden a head of cabbage.

[MadMaddie]

1. I think she should be paid in cabbage....lets see how that

works for her.

[Gormy Cuss]

2. You'd think that it wouldn't need explanation

but thanks for articulating it for the Sue Dunderheads of the world.

[Tempest]

3. He also was a rural doctor

Can you imagine the mess, smell and potential for disease killing and gutting a chickens in an urban or even suburban area?

[JHB]

5. How many suburbs even allow keeping livestock?

Probably plenty, but there's also plenty that don't.

Not to mention back in the '30s more people lived on farms, so that's what they had.

[Ikonoklast]

11. There is a reason Avian Flu, Swine Flu, etc., originate in China.

The virus mutates and come out of an area just as you described; where large amounts of both humans and animals are in constant contact with each other.

[Raven]

4. My Grandfather too...homemade wine. :-)

[Skittles]

6. your granddad was a good guy

he understood the PRIDE many poor folk have

[Mojorabbit]

13. My husband accepts

vegetables etc. but can't do that for everyone. We have an office mortgage to pay as well as staff salaries.

[stray cat]

7. Send her a live chicken instead of her salary and pension

[Frances]

8. My grandfather also accepted non-cash payments

He was very bright, read constantly to keep up to date, and had attended Tulane Med School. However, he died before penicillin was discovered! He delivered babies at home (LONG before epidurals and other pain reducing techniques), set broken arms before there were X-ray machines. My point is that in the days of bartering, there were not the resources like labs and MRIs that are available that we have today.

[KittyWampus]

9. I WISH we could pay for stuff in zucchinis. They grow like crazy in the summer. I'd be rich.

But how much zucchini bread does anyone need?

[spanone]

10. today we need to pay in hybrid autos, flat screened teevees, walmart gift cards etc

[asjr]

12. I was born in my grandmother's house in

1932 by the family doctor. It was Depression and money was non-existent in that household. My grandmother kept chickens and a vegetable garden. Now I am wondering how many chickens or green beans or okra the doctor took home that day. It was Herbert Hoover's time for campaigning on the promise of "A chicken in every pot" platform. Now I may know what he meant by that. Everyone trusted that doctor except my mother. She later, after my body was blooming, would not let me go to him. She said if I had a nosebleed he would make me remove my clothes to examine me.