May 13, 2013 Action Alert from Nebraska Farmers Union! Many of you have at one time or another supported our efforts to get and keep clear and effective Country of Origin Labeling for U.S. food products. Thanks to all our efforts, COOL is now the law. That law was challenged by lawsuits from Mexico and Canada in the WTO. USDA has responded in a fashion that we support that makes more consistent and clear where the product was Read More …
Category: General Advocacy
College Girl, Economy, Jobs
The following article originally appeared on TradeReform.org. The following is a transcript of a YouTube video. It’s well worth listening to! I’m a graduating senior, and I’m not worried about the economy or jobs. It’s all much simpler than we’re being told. So let’s put our political differences aside, have some fun and get some answers to what I call “Questions.” Like: Where does money come from? When our country was wealthy, it was because we had the Read More …
“They (BIG Ag) suck the wealth from our rural communities”
In 1980 there were 62,000 hog farmers in Missouri, today in this country there are 67,000 left. Joe Maxwell discusses the power of BIG Ag and market concentration at the Local Foods Summit, on February 11th 2013, hosted by Mile High Business Alliance. Joe Maxwell a fourth generation Hog Farmer from Missouri and Vice President, Outreach and Engagement for The Humane Society of the United States, Maxwell works directly with family farmers, helping them organize into producer groups Read More …
Anybody But Obama
The best explanation I’ve heard for why the world did not end last month according to Mayan prophecy is that “every calendar has a beginning and end”–when the last page is torn off we simply start a new one. If it ain’t the end of the world then maybe its just time to turn the page. End of days came again, in November, when President Barack Obama was reelected to his second term. I don’t really think he’s Read More …
Mr. President, Time to Create the People’s Agriculture
Native American wisdom says that decisions should be made with the next seven generations in mind. When it comes to agriculture and the production of food, we don’t look ahead at all. By C. Robert Taylor and Rodrigo Rodriguez-Kabana Look and listen for the welfare of the whole people and have always in view not only the present but also the coming generations, even those whose faces are yet beneath the surface of the ground — the unborn Read More …
Cartels As Rational Business Strategy: Crime Pays
“Cartels have always been the highest concern of antitrust. They overcharge consumers many billions of dollars every year1 and there is a strong consensus that they should be sanctioned heavily. Yet, until now no one has ever seriously attempted to analyze whether cartel sanctions are at the optimal level. This Article is the first to undertake this formidable task. Surprisingly, it demonstrates that the combined level of U.S. cartel sanctions has been only 9% to 21% as large Read More …
A Tried and Tested Model to Follow for Rebuilding Our Economy
On the surface the “fiscal cliff” debate is all about the federal deficit. But the reality behind the talk is the weakness of the economy. In its current state it can neither generate anything approaching full employment, nor provide the tax revenue needed to support the basic functions of government. In fact the size of the national debt is not the issue. In the five years from 1940 to 1945 the U.S government drove the debt from 50% Read More …
Freedom of Choice at the Supermarket: Not
Your supermarket is a cornucopia, overflowing with fresh fruits and vegetables from around the world, no matter the season; counters full of meats, poultry, and fish; aisles stacked high with boxes and bags, cans and cartons of every kind of cereal, drink, dessert, and snack a body could want. Cornucopia, indeed. The typical American grocery store is stocked with 50,000 items, more than triple what it was 30 years ago. In 2010 alone, more than 15,000 new foods Read More …