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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alex MG who wrote (236494)	11/1/2013 10:21:49 PM
From: neolib	Respond to of 542201

I do bitch about ag subsidies, and indeed there is abuse there as well. Crop insurance is a huge farmer subsidy scam. The premiums don't come close to covering the payments. Instead the farm bill fills the gap. Much of the conservation reserve program is similar (and this despite me being VERY environmentally inclined and wanting farmers to be more so). I've done a huge amount of environmental enhancements on my farm, and the Conservation Reserve is always trying to talk me into taking their money. I tell them no thanks. I've seen many projects they have funded on a wide range of themes with other growers, and much of it is simply throwing money away. The problem is that each office has their allotment of money to give away, and these guys have a tough time in getting farmers to take some of it, so they turn a blind eye to what happens in the long run to the projects because the goal is simply to tick the check mark on a box in a form saying the money was spent for the intended purpose. The problem is that all welfare works pretty much the same way. Some of it does do some good, but much of it is wasted.