Just like any people there are all types. Different "sects" of Amish just between here and the Pennsylvania border. Mennonites, Amish, etc.. The ones closest to me seem to follow the strictest guidelines. The one down in Pennsylvania seem to be more modern, wearing multi colored clothes, roller blading etc.. One thing they have in common is decimating our natural resources. They are constantly being ticketed forfishing violations especially taking over limits and undersized fish. They "hunt" by driving woods for deer with up to 50 people pushing small lots. Nothing is left unshot. I know a few that trap but don't know what their philosophy is on that. I do know by talk to them that with hunting and fishing they believe it was all put there for them from God to do with what they see fit. Just my observations by living around and talking to them

I still have a little 2 cylinder 2 cycle maytag. Had it running 40 years ago or so. My mom used it long ago on a wringer washing machine. Its easier on clothes than a scrub board. Easier on the operator too.

All those names in SE Nebraska are familiar except Kaufman. Also Borntraeger and Gingrich. And Swartz. The current Bishop is Swartz, and many are leaving because of him.
My Sons hired a couple of young Amish who had left the clan. They were enjoying their new-found freedom and wanted to be rodeo cowboys so they weren't very dependable and ended up getting sent down the road.
My Sister does taxes for some of the Amish. One of them had a piece of paper for "sale of (loose women)" Spelling of HORSE is important.

I haven't seen Amish mafia on TV for a couple years.

Lived around the Amish all my life. Had them work for me 40 + years. 90% of them there should be a bounty on. Of the remaining 10%, 5 are good people, 5 could go either way depending on what day it is

A quote I posted two years ago on this thread. It still applies and I suspect always will.

My cousin in Md. has a bunch near him, he's also friends with the local gynecologist, Doctor told him they schedule exams for the Amish women on Mondays, cause Saturday is bath night, and by the end of the week things are getting a little gamey.... LOL

I started reading this thread and thought it seemed awfully familiar, then read my own comment from 2 years ago and figured out why. AJE, just had to revive a 2-year-old thread to tell us they were jacklighting deer eh?

Gary, have you got the international definition of "motor" changed to your own yet?

I've never known any real Amish, but I've known 3 ex-Amish, named Schwartz, Yoder and Troyer. I see here those are all common names. I met them all different places and times, with no connection to one another. All 3 are honest quiet men and hard workers, and don't talk much about the old life.

Now, the Mennonites around here are probably the finest, hardest-working group of folks I've ever met. A Mennonite contractor built a 2400 sf shop for my old company, dirt to paint in 6 weeks. A friend of mine worked on a framing crew for a different Mennonite builder, and their specialty was building little 2-3 bedroom ranch houses in a single day. It was a crew of 7, I believe, and they'd show up in the morning to a foundation and leave that night with the shingles, doors and windows in. They're impressive to watch.

Would I rather live by a group of hard working people seemingly stuck in time or live in Chicago or Saint Louis where they just take what they want (or what they believe they are owed).

All people, if they choose, do the best they can, where they are, with what they have.

When we're put in "people groups," whether religious or not, it makes no difference to the "choose" portion of one's heart. We all steer toward what we love.

Blessings,
Mark

Yeah I tend love the ways the hardworking people have over the ways of the looters and rioters. Nothing says I have to choose to live by them. Maybe Lot left his oasis not so much because of the people but because of their ways. If I have a choice I encourage things like hard work and discourage the other. Choice seems to be a shrinking commodity now a days. Unless of course in the instance of liberals and their choice.

I'm kinda with ya Foxpaw. I don't care how light or dark you are or who your papa was or wasn't. I'm just not big on sloth (so says my carnal side!)

There are a lot of Amish-run businesses around here and I frequent quite a few of them. I get my hydraulic hoses from the local tractor repair business. It's interesting to see the older, steel-wheeled tractors in the repair bays next to the newer, English owned machines.

The Amish I know are shrewd businessmen and great bargainers. I bought my back-hoe used from an Amish-owned tool shop. It was a classic negotiation complete with dollar amounts written on slips of paper and slid cross the counter. Also, the old "I'll-have-to-clear-that-with-my-boss" tactic was used where he'd disappear into the back of the shop for a few minutes at a time even though I knew he was the owner of the establishment.

He started at $25,000.00 and I started at $15,000.00. After about thirty minutes of back and forth we settled at $18,500.00 and his business would transport it to and from my job sites for one month or until I got a trailer, whichever came first.

It was a good deal for both of us.

That's Awesome Lugnut^^^!

They do credit, but it is in-house credit. Generally, a group, or an individual amish family that has wealth will loan money to other Amish...usually the young bucks just getting started that need money to buy ground.

They do a lot of credit around here. We have old order and new order Amish and I worked with many that took out USDA FSA agriculture loans to start their farms and get going. Yes they preferred to utilize in house credit but that was not always available. They were willing to take significant credit risks and some had very low equity in their farms when getting started.
Amish is an offshoot of the Mennonite religion started by Mennen. There are typically three orders within each of the two with less rigid, typical and old order. There are Mennonites with rubber tired vehicles which they drive. The new order Amish here did not have cars but used a lot of gas powered equipment. They had cell phones but no land lines and now electricity in the house but that electricity for the farm and barn. Years ago one of the larger feed companies in the Mid-West was McNess which was owned by a Mennonite. He would hire a driver to drive around to all the businesses that used McNess feeds. He did very, very well. Don't know where that brand ended up.
Most of the original old order Amish came to WI during WW11 when many men were drafted and due to their non war stance the Amish worked many of the dairy farms in central and western WI and then bought their own farms over time. Many of the later Mennonites that came were from eastern PA where they could sell land for 5 times or more what an acre of cut over farm land here cost.

Bryce

My Sis worked in a bank and Amish were constant customers.