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severe_neuropathy t1_j4mg64h wrote

Reply to comment by rayfound in How do non electric heat operated fans work? by ranman12953

Some use electric power tools as well, as you said they mainly care about being off grid so they run generators when they need electricity.

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LonelyPerceptron t1_j4mjn40 wrote

Generators that are fueled by the kerosene they make from pine sap on forests that they control, right? They don’t just buy gas/diesel from the corner store who buys it from the refinery that makes it from grid-connected power, right?

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Painting_Agency t1_j4mp7o9 wrote

Trying to gotcha the Amish when you have a superficial understanding of their beliefs isn't really a useful activity.

Their society has its own sins but they believe technology shouldn't alienate people from community and their heritage. They adopt new ways cautiously and with reservation, for instance, a telephone used to sell crops or to call for aid in an emergency. Using gasoline as needed to aid farming or the household is something they have considered and in some cases accept.

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pm_me_good_usernames t1_j4mp68u wrote

For at least some Amish I think the main rule is they're not allowed to enter contracts. So they can buy gas and batteries but they can't have mains electricity, they can use a phone as long as it's pay-as-you-go. I'm pretty sure that varies between groups; each Amish community basically has its own rules. I know some of them don't use electricity at all, but they can use pneumatic power tools. And there's still a fair few pay phones in Amish country they can use to call doctors and veterinarians and people like that. There's also other groups of Anabaptists like Mennonites that are similar to Amish in some ways but different in others, even some that drive cars and work in offices but just always wear long sleeves no matter the weather.

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Painting_Agency t1_j4ncuve wrote

> Mennonites

There are at least a few Mennonites attending the veterinary school where I work. Women, otherwise honestly I might not have recognized them as such. They show up wearing their home sewn dresses and bonnets, and go to classes in a teaching hospital where they learn about every high-tech treatment that veterinarians now have access to.

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