The Missouri Farm Bureau questionnaire is like a final exam in a college course on agriculture, economics, and politics. The Farm Bureau policy statement is comprehensive and detailed. I wish other groups took their political endorsements as seriously. Here are the first two questions:
1. If elected, what will your legislative priorities be for agriculture and rural America?
I think the phrase "legislative priorites" is at war with the phrase "Rural America."
The phrase “rural America” used to mean something. It was symbolized by a man of hard work, faith, values, character and community. The opposite, “urban man,” meant impersonal anonymity, the atheist, the gambler.
"Rural America" used to be:
• a nation under God;
• founded on spiritual belief and trust in God;
• a place where the Ten Commandments were taught in every school;
• a place where abortion, drug abuse, and homosexuality were not condoned;
• personally concerned for the poor, not lobbying for government assistance;
• a model of thrift and living within one's means;
• forgiving, not vengeful;
• people who stood for limited government, property rights, and personal responsibility;
• opposed to the United Nations and global socialism
But alongside all those rural values are "legislative priorities": a wish-list for a political Santa Claus, filled with demands for federal funding of all sorts of agriculture-related or -benefiting programs. The desire for federal funding of these programs is both unconstitutional and inconsistent with the values of "rural America."
Whatever “Rural America” used to be, “Rural America” is now online, and the difference between “rural” and “urban” is disappearing. This is because of the growth of the Federal Government, with its control of education, its war on religion and morality, its usurpation of community and church oversight of charity, its debasement of the currency and manipulation of credit through the “monetization of debt,” its denial of property and privacy rights, and its subsidization of wasteful and destructive special interests.
The Federal government is the most profound enemy of agriculture and "rural America."
Rural America must no longer be another “special interest” looking for favors from the federal government. Rural America does not need a Congressman “experienced” in tinkering with the system and manipulating the legislative process. If Rural America “gets” 1% from Washington, it must surrender 20%. This war will not be won wearing Saul’s armor.
My “legislative priorities” are basically to repeal the “legislative priorities” of the Republicans and Democrats over the last few generations.
Congress passes very few laws compared with the regulatory agencies. If elected, I would spend most of my time “evangelizing” the rest of Congress to be faithful to the Constitution and America’s original vision of “Liberty Under God.”
2. What do you believe are the biggest challenges facing American farmers and ranchers?
Giving up federal benefits, subsidies, and “protection.” In order to receive these benefits, it is believed that some “compromise” is necessary, meaning, allowing other special interests to have their benefits. In this way the federal government has expanded to tyrannical dimensions (if the government identified in the Declaration of Independence could be called a “tyranny” half a dozen times, our present government is far, far more tyrannical).
The biggest challenge facing rural America is looking past short-term promises by politicians and looking down the road to the long-term conseqences of today's appropriations.
List of mofb blog posts in this series
Comments on related Farm Bureau policy:
Missouri Farm Bureau Philosophy
Religious Life
Patriotism
Education
Moral Issues
Welfare
No comments:
Post a Comment