Via the Brimginham News: State farmers lobbying against cut in subsidies
The Alabama Farmers Federation opposes the cuts, noting that farm subsidies account for less than 1 percent of the entire federal budget and are critical to keeping farms in business, especially when prices drop. Their members are in Washington this week meeting with members of Congress.
If it is the case that the only thing keeping certain farms from goig out of business is government subsidies, I would argue that that is a prima facie case that those businesses are not needed, because they aren’t supported by the market, and therefore there is no need for the subsidies in question.
Further, the reason that prices often plummet is because of too much supply. Again, I submit: there is no need for these subdies. We will all have plenty of food without them.
Yah, I’ve posted about this recently, too. The most important reason to end farm subsidies (not just here but in the EU, too): it would give a boost to Third World agriculture. Want to eliminate extreme poverty in the world? Dump developed world agricultural subsidies.
Comment by Dave Schuler — Thursday, March 17, 2024 @ 12:00 pm
Yeah that way we can be held hostage by other countries when our food supplies are cut off. I say the 1% is a small insurance policy that we will always have our own food should a world war occur that limits our supplies.
I’m fo a free market as well, but there are some things that should not be outsourced. One being a basic food supply. Another being development of our weapons systems used by our troops.
Comment by Digger — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 5:44 am
The Case For Farm Subsidies
PoliBlog has a piece where he dismisses farm subsidies as a waste of money and that farms should be allowed to die if they aren’t profitable. Spurred by this recent article where the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture talked of cuts…
Trackback by Diggers Realm — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 6:17 am
Digger,
There is no way that ending farm subsidies will result in the outsourcing of all our food production.
And unlike oil, even if it did, we cold always just plant.
Comment by Steven Taylor — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 7:15 am
Unlike Oil, you can’t just plant. Heh. If you let farmland go fallow it take a long time for it to be back up and running.
Comment by Digger — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 8:31 am
You both have good arugments, but I believe there’s a hidden issue here.
Part of the reason farmers are being squeezed out of business is companies like ConAgra. These giant food companies have been slowly, quietly and surely taking over privately owned farms for years through the use of “Eminent Domain” laws. At the same time, they’ve negotiated back-door water rights deals that put private farmers and even entire cities at their mercy. With these acquisitions, they get to set the price of both water supplies as well as agricultural products.
From where I sit, removing these farm subsidies from private farmers will only allow these big companies to come in, take the land and create a monopoly market hidden from public view. Not to mention the expansion of genetically modified food products.
David Eccles
Comment by David Eccles — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:29 pm
Private corporations cannot use eminent domain laws, nor can they just take land.
And, exactly what is the paranoia about genetically altered foods?
Comment by Steven Taylor — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:33 pm
Moreover, and specific to the argument over subsidies, is the fact that the corporate famrs gets the subsidies as well (indeed, they get more than do the small family farms).
Comment by Steven Taylor — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:34 pm
There’s one other item I noticed about the article.
“Already Congress is scaling back the depth of Bush’s proposed agriculture cuts. One idea is to keep some of the farm programs intact and instead carve some savings out of nutrition programs like food stamps.”
Why do our representatives feel they can save the budget by cutting or eliminating programs which hurt the poorest of our population? Is that really what “Family Values” are all about? Just asking.
As for genetically altered foods, the paranoia lives in the fact that at this time, no scientist can conclusively state what effects this will have on food as well as people.
Here’s a link to a law firm in Los Angeles specializing in Eminent Domain. The section titled “What is a Public Use” is particularly telling of the current loopholes.
Comment by David Eccles — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:48 pm
http://www.eminentdomainlaw.net/power.html
Here it is.
Comment by David Eccles — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:49 pm
The link makes my point: eminent domain is a power of government, not private entities.
Comment by Steven Taylor — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 12:59 pm
Why do you think Agriculture has lobby groups? Because they thought it would be fun?
Comment by David Eccles — Friday, March 18, 2024 @ 1:02 pm