[Westy]

Our government spends about 40 Billion dollars annually subsidizing corn and soy bean crops. This artificially lowers the price of these crops well below the actual cost of production. This doesn't only result into cheaper ears of sweet corn and tofu. The majority of these crops get turned into cheap processed sugars and vegetable oils/fat that gets put into almost every multi ingredient food at the grocery store. Just try finding any multi-ingredient food that doesn't contain corn or soybean products. These are the ingredients that add the empty calories the the average person's diet that make them fat.

Obesity related issues are the #1 health related costs, and lets face it, everyone hates fat kids. Cut the subsidies on the **** that makes fat kids save health money on health care. Sounds like a win win to me.

 

[kidwoo]

I'm down with eating fat kids.






yeah and all that other stuff you said too

Actually no. I love hearing from welfare farmers on blm land for next to free, getting their products bought by the government and then telling the government to stay the fvck out of their lives. You can't buy that kind of comedy.

 

[4xBoy]

Is that an idiocracy tank top on that little fatty?

Porky there is built like the stay puff marshmallow man.

 

[Westy]

from http://www.heritage.org/research/agriculture/bg2043.cfm

The average farm household earns $81,420 annually (29 percent above the national average); has a net worth of $838,875 (more than eight times the national average); and is located in a rural area with a low cost of living

farm subsidy formulas are designed to benefit large agribusinesses rather than family farmers. Most farm subsidies are distributed to commercial farmers, who have an average income of $199,975 and an average net worth of just under $2 million.

farm subsidy formulas are designed to benefit large agribusinesses rather than family farmers. Most farm subsidies are distributed to commercial farmers, who have an average income of $199,975 and an average net worth of just under $2 million.

I would bet any senator voting on getting rid of subsidies would get visits from McDonalds, Coke, Pepsi, and other 'staple' food manufacturers

 

[Westy]

If the government actually cared about farmers they wouldn't let this **** happen.

http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/05/monsanto200805?currentPage=1

 

[stevew]

you don't fvck with flyover country motherfvcker.

 

[4xBoy]

If the government actually cared about farmers they wouldn't let this **** happen.

http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/05/monsanto200805?currentPage=1

What is the difference in Monsanto protecting the work they have done and Sony going after people for copyright infringement.

 

[Pesqueeb]

Westy, seen "Food, Inc"?

 

[bohorec]

If the government actually cared about farmers they wouldn't let this **** happen.

http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/05/monsanto200805?currentPage=1

Monsanto is like virus. If 10% of the documentary linked bellow is true then they and their retarded products should be wiped out from the earth.


http://www.twilightearth.com/environment-archive-2/the-world-according-to-monsanto-full-documentary/

 

[ohio]

Just like pharma, food chemistry has it's place. But anything grows big and powerful enough to meddle with government and markets, and **** turns ugly.

edit: and I 100% agree that farm subsidies should be abolished, EXCEPT as housing market welfare/stimulus. I think it is culturally important and currently economically advantageous to help truly small farms stay family farms and not get conglomerated. And possibly some minimal, temporary rescue fund for sequential bad crop years. No guaranteed prices, no permanent subsidies.

 

[dante]

Just curious, but is that net income, or gross? Because I'd imagine that the small farm has to pay for things like fertilizer, diesel fuel, seeds/seedlings, livestock, feed, vet bills, farm equipment, etc, not to mention their own health care and retirement. Also, with regards to net worth, I'm assuming that counts the land that the farm is on, correct? The only reason those numbers are so high is that a 10 or 20 acre farm located where land is going for 50k/acre suddenly has a very high theoretical "net worth". Then you can't do anything with it besides sell it and lose the ability to farm it... I agree that large farms most definitely *don't* need the subsidy, but anybody that thinks that small family farmers are living like millionaires is WAY off base.

 

[ohio]

The farmers I knew in Ohio all held down at least 1 other job and hung on to the farm out of tradition and culture. Though it's a form of socialism, I think it's worthwhile as a society to help keep these farms running.

The "farmers" I've met in California drive Bentleys and have never had a calloused finger in their lives. Their riches are built on illegal labor and government handouts (see California aquaduct). For any government dollars to go to these assholes to guarantee prices is an insult to all of us.

 

[Westy]

What is the difference in Monsanto protecting the work they have done and Sony going after people for copyright infringement.

I think it would be a better analogy to compare it with Microsoft protecting their operating system. Exept in this case Microsoft installs windows on your computer like a virus then sues you for not paying for it. The monsato genome spreads itself like any plant does, through pollen and birds spreading seed. If a farmer has a neighbor using the seed there is a strong chance that one not using the seed will end up with the genome in their seeds. Monsato is using strong arm legal tactics to sue these farmers to basically put a stranglehold on the market. They are suing farmers in cases they probably can't win but the farmers can't afford the legal fees so they are typically forced to settle out of court.

 

[Westy]

The farmers I knew in Ohio all held down at least 1 other job and hung on to the farm out of tradition and culture. Though it's a form of socialism, I think it's worthwhile as a society to help keep these farms running.

The "farmers" I've met in California drive Bentleys and have never had a calloused finger in their lives. Their riches are built on illegal labor and government handouts (see California aquaduct). For any government dollars to go to these assholes to guarantee prices is an insult to all of us.

Subsidies are done by the acre so the small guy who might need the help doesn't get as much as the big guy. Of course since the subsidies drive the prices down they actually end up hurting the small guy. They are largely benefiting the larger corporate farms and not the little guy.

 

[kidwoo]

The "farmers" I've met in California drive Bentleys and have never had a calloused finger in their lives. Their riches are built on illegal labor and government handouts (see California aquaduct). For any government dollars to go to these assholes to guarantee prices is an insult to all of us.

Shall I begin my rant on how assbackwards water rights also play into this?