Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaelangelica
You certainly make a convincing argument.; yet the US is pilloried all the time here for subsidies.
EG
United States of America Farming Subsidies - 05/05/2005 - NSW Parliament
I will have to have another look at it.
The Australian subsides at the moment are exceptionally high due to the drought and The Farmer's political party being in power (until now). We are not really producing a lot. For example-Almost no rice will be grown this year and the biggest beef farm in the world will close down shortly-no water. |
Yes, its easy to blame america to deflect responsibility for ones own government, as politicians do. But I already did the math and produced the results indicating that divided per person, the people of australia pay more per person for the subsidies given. And you dont see headlines from various american newspapers lamenting how unfair this is.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaelangelica
There is virtually no Farm subsides in NZ and a very small import tariff for some countries.
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Its an impossible comparison by virtue of size and population.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaelangelica
The figures for US subsides seem very "rubbery" and hard to tie down EG
That same article claims
Another "rubbery" figure
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Why mess around with rubbery figures?
Census of Agriculture - 2002 Census Publications - Volume 1 Chapter 1: U.S. National Level Data
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaelangelica
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You dont have to be convinced, but you should provide better documentation to back up your claims. I mean the article is nothing more than an opinion piece very short on numbers.
The reality is Africa has been a poor investment over the years via internal issues. And its not just farming. I would not put my farm money in a place that cannot guarentee delivery of the product, whether due to environment or civil unrest. There are reasons why governments purchase their products from stable nations and those reasons are why governments invest in their own stability (such as subsidies).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaelangelica
How does tax money do that?
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Two small examples:
Does tax code send U.S. jobs offshore? - USATODAY.com
The Intangible Economy: Tax breaks
Additionally, to address one links claims that we pay farmers not to plant, yes, there is that too. Its various conservation programs that protect wetlands, habitat, and has given some land a rest, contributed to less topsoil losses, contributed to cleaner waters and provided stop-over and nesting areas.
