Considering that crop prices are at their highest since, well, ever, why is Congress about to pass a farm bill that increases subsidies? And while I can understand some subsidies to small farmers (to help them along, preserve open land from development and have extra land available for crops in an emergency) it appears that most of this largess will go to large corporate farmers. The bill has passed with veto proof majorities in the House and Senate, with lots of Republicans joining the Democrats. The GOP has learned NOTHING from 2006 and will lose (and deserve to lose) more seats this November as a result.
How about a better idea -- let's get off of subsidies. I am hopeful on biofuels, so instead of an ethanol subsidy that has done little for energy independence while increasing food prices let's go with the Zubrin plan. Require within three years that all automobiles that use gasoline must also be able to accept ethanol and methanol. Wider use of methanol, made not from food crops but rather from stalks and non food crops, should help reduce food prices.
And while we are at it, let's end the tariff on Brazilian ethanol, made from sugar and with a higher energy produced to used ratio than corn based ethanol.
Showing posts with label congress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label congress. Show all posts
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Waterboarding
Why can't we just all admit it -- Congress lacks the courage to outlaw waterboarding.
Republicans won't do it because they then will have to admit they were wrong.
Democrats won't do it because they expect the next president to be a Democrat and they do not want to look soft on National Security.
John McCain, however, thinks the 2005 Detainee Treatment Act and the 2006 Military Commissions Act already make it illegal. He even suggests anyone waterboarding after 2006 is guilty of war crimes. (Why is this man not president?)
The red herring in all this is the claim that outlawing torture will put the US at risk. I look at it this way. If something happens in the heat of battle I may look at it differently than if something happens at Gitmo. If a 20 year old sergeant under fire somewhere in Afghanistan threatens a prisoner to reveal a sniper's nest, I view that differently than waterboarding someone captured 6 months ago in a prison. The whole ticking time bomb thing is the creation of t.v. writers (all of whom are now on strike anyway).
Republicans won't do it because they then will have to admit they were wrong.
Democrats won't do it because they expect the next president to be a Democrat and they do not want to look soft on National Security.
John McCain, however, thinks the 2005 Detainee Treatment Act and the 2006 Military Commissions Act already make it illegal. He even suggests anyone waterboarding after 2006 is guilty of war crimes. (Why is this man not president?)
The red herring in all this is the claim that outlawing torture will put the US at risk. I look at it this way. If something happens in the heat of battle I may look at it differently than if something happens at Gitmo. If a 20 year old sergeant under fire somewhere in Afghanistan threatens a prisoner to reveal a sniper's nest, I view that differently than waterboarding someone captured 6 months ago in a prison. The whole ticking time bomb thing is the creation of t.v. writers (all of whom are now on strike anyway).
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