The Farm Bill Would Make a Soviet Central Planner Blush

[Brian4Liberty]

The Farm Bill Would Make a Soviet Central Planner Blush
By Daren Bakst

Every five years, Congress takes a holiday from the principles that made this country great and turn to central planning policies that were in vogue in 1933. This nightmare holiday is the farm bill.

Right on cue, the current House passed a nearly $1 trillion farm bill Wednesday that puts faith in Washington, DC and disrespects the farmers and ranchers who actually make agriculture the booming industry that it is today. The policies put forward are just a continuation of the status quo, or worse, and an important procedural step to separate food stamps from farm programs inexcusably may not happen.
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No program captures the farm bill's central planning better than the sugar program. The program controls supplies by limiting how much sugar that processors can sell each year and by import restrictions that reduce the amount of imports. This has led to domestic sugar prices that have generally been at least double world prices for decades.
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The government handouts remain as generous as ever in the House and Senate farm bills. Even modest reforms have been completely ignored. For example, many farm programs have a cap on the amount of subsidies that can be received.

However, the largest farm program, crop insurance, has no such cap. Taxpayers subsidize about 62 percent of the premiums for farmers. According to the Government Accountability Office, a modest $40,000 cap on premium subsidies in 2011 would have saved taxpayers $1 billion and had no effect on the amount of subsidies received for 96 percent of participating farmers.
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Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2014/...ner_blush.html

Isn't it interesting how many subsidies and tax incentives go to the banking, debt and insurance industries?

[Natural Citizen]

Isn't it interesting how many subsidies and tax incentives go to the banking, debt and insurance industries?

And remember also that billions of dollars in subsidies will now go to some of these major farming companies. Many of which are owned by the very lawmakers who claim to be against the nanny state. It's a hoot alright.

[EBounding]

Isn't it interesting how many subsidies and tax incentives go to the banking, debt and insurance industries?

[Brian4Liberty]

Log rolling:

Democracy and Power 113: Vote Trading

“I’ll vote for your legislation, if you’ll vote for mine.”

It is never said in public, but the act occurs constantly within our government. Regularly, our leadership requests a specific legislation, and our politicians agree to the request if the leadership includes his project. Politicians trade votes for their respective benefit, which is seldom for the benefit of most Americans.

Political insiders call this “log rolling,” and the expense to the American public is enormous. This blatant taking of property incrementally reduces everyone’s wealth, security and freedom.

Our Federal government oligarchs - Republican and Democrats – have “log rolled” the Farm Bill. Farmers and ranchers exchanged politically poisoning subsidies for crop insurance and food stamps for millions of Americans. Indirectly, our grocery industry benefits tremendously as well. And... our big, deceptive, incompetent government bumbles along reducing every American's wealth, security and freedom.
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Hoping not to awaken Americans to this “log rolling” deal, Speaker Boehner rushed the bill through the House, where he needed and received Democrat support. Then, Sen. Harry Reid will manipulate the bill through the Senate. Quickly, President Obama will sign the legislation into law.
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More:
http://www.freedomworks.org/blog/ted...ompetent-and-d

[Brian4Liberty]

Roll those logs...

[Natural Citizen]

Roll those logs...

See, this here is why we need to ask these idiots what their position is on science. They're clueless. and they are getting a free pass by being able to avoid the issue and continue to sell their tyranny based upon some "free market" nonsense.

Sugar beet industry converts to 100% GMO, disallows non-GMO option

Two large companies, Beta Seed and West Coast Beet Seed, supply seed to sugar beet farmers in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Minnesota, North Dakota, and other states where the beets are grown. Harvested beets are processed by seven processing companies, the biggest being American Crystal Sugar Company, based in Moorhead, Minnesota. These processors supply beet sugar, which accounts for one-half of the US sugar production, to food and candy manufacturers, such as Mars and Hershey’s.

Three years ago, these processors decided to convert the entire US sugar beet production to Roundup Ready genetically modified varieties, developed by Monsanto Company. The industry said farmers needed the GM beets for better weed control.

Unlike corn and soybean production where non-GMO alternatives are available, the sugar beet processors did not want that option.

“This was a coordinated effort to genetically modify an entire sector of the processed food industry simultaneously and without holdouts that might otherwise have provided a source of conventional beet sugar to fulfill non-GMO consumer demand,” Morton says.

Pffft. "Sugar program"...my ass. What we have here is Monsanto proving, yet again, who the elected ones truly serve. This is, again, demonstrating the merge of corporate entities and government officials to steer legislation in the favor of special interests. This is not "free market". This is fascism.

What he really means is that he's just another politician in the pocket of these biotech companies who legislate for the interests of these dangerous corporations.

One of these day's I'm going to get a twitter and start nailing these aholes. Should probably just go ahead and do it, I suppose.

[Brian4Liberty]

Pffft. "Sugar program"...my ass. What we have here is Monsanto proving, yet again, who the elected ones truly serve. This is, again, demonstrating the merge of corporate entities and government officials to steer legislation in the favor of special interests. This is not "free market". This is fascism.

What he really means is that he's just another politician in the pocket of these biotech companies who legislate for the interests of these dangerous corporations.

Wow. So Monsanto has complete control over the beet seed market?

[Travlyr]

Wow. So Monsanto has complete control over the beet seed market?

That's what I read. If I read it right, all beet sugar processed in the U.S. is GMO.

[LibForestPaul]

Roll those logs...

So we are subsidizing consumption for other citizenry...wow