Thomas Jefferson believed that the U.S. ought to be a nation of small farmers, each owning his own land, independent and self-sufficient. But the new farm bill is all about what’s wrong with food production in the U.S. now. A quick review of the $1 trillion 2013 farm bill — it’s actually the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012; Congress didn’t get around to passing it last year — not only makes it clear how small farmers are second-class citizens, but also pushes for chemical sugar substitutes and GMO food and fails to take provisions to prepare American agriculture for climate change.
If that’s not enough, the bill also cuts food stamps to the poor by about $20.5 billion.
Cuts to Food Stamp Program
It is the case that food stamp usage is up by at least 70 percent since the financial crisis in 2008. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is spending an estimated $70 billion on the program this year.
The new farm bill, which every Republican on the House Agriculture Committee hasapproved, will cut some $20 billion in food stamps over the next decade. That means nearly two million people, mostly from low-income working families with kids and older Americans, will be hungry and that as many as 210,000 children could lose access to free school lunches and breakfasts due to their eligibility for these being linked to their family’s food stamp benefits.
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8 comments:
It's because big corps own the politicians esp the democratic ones. The big corps and the democrats would love nothing more than our food supply to be controlled by a handful of corps.
Don't believe for one second it is is The Republicans whose hands are in the pockets of big business. They are for the small guys.
Obama's the worst. He's all but licked the butts of the corp executives who drag him around by the nose.
If you can't feed 'em, don't breed 'em.
get your heirloom seed today.
should have cut the food stamp program by 70 billion this year alone
"cut the food stamp program?" Obama wouldn't do that. He's not allowed. His masters the corp executives won't let him. They are making billions off of this expansion.
I have recently been seeing ads to bring people on to food stamps - get more sheeple dependent on the government...then they'll vote for your reelection!
The people I know on food stamps, abuse them by selling them for 50 cents on the dollar.
Yep 12:56-that's exactly what they do because they know they can pick up a box of food at the enabling food pantries, where quite a few sell the $30 box of food for less than 10 bucks.
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