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Jewish World Review Feb. 3, 2011/ 29 Shevat, 5771 Starving the World In Order to Save It By Arnold Ahlert
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
It is not often that two progressive shibboleths can contribute to so much world unrest at the same time. But if one takes policies resulting from the unwavering belief in both man-made global warming and Keynesian economics to their logical ends, both go a long way towards explaining the current unrest in the Middle East. And that's just for starters. What sparked that unrest could easily spread to much of the world. Let's "connect the dots."
What sparked the current situation in Egypt? The upheaval in Tunisia. What sparked the upheaval in Tunisia? Many Tunisians refer to the death of Mohamed Bouazizi, a 26-year-old fruit and vegetable vendor who had had his vending cart seized by police. Shortly thereafter, Bouazizi poured gasoline over his body, and lit himself on fire in front of a government office.
Yet even as Bouazizi's death is being dismissed as only tangentially related to the Tunisian revolution by many on the left, the symbolism of it cannot be so easily dismissed. It was emblematic of a hopelessness shared by those in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Jordon, all which centers around two main factors: high unemployment and the escalating price of food. And while high unemployment can lead to a certain level of unrest, history suggests that there is nothing more dangerous than a nation full of people with empty stomachs. Thus, while many in the media are comparing the unrest in Egypt to the Iranian Revolution of 1979, which was driven largely by religious unrest, it might be more accurate to compare it to the French revolution of 1789, which was driven largely by escalating food prices.
So what has caused food prices to escalate? Let's begin with progressive shibboleth number one, man-made global warming. It is no secret that progressives believe America's dependence on fossil fuels has led the planet to the brink of oblivion. And despite the fact that much of the data they used to "prove" such a scenario has been debunked, global warming, (aka climate change, aka climate disruption), is still being hawked with gusto to an increasingly skeptical public. Fortunately, most the AGW agenda is D.O.A. in Congress already. A Republican-led House which is currently writing a bill to ban the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, will make it even less likely that anything resembling job-killing climate legislation becomes law.
Unfortunately, it's already too late with respect to one of the most pernicious applications of the green movement, which is the use of crops like corn and soybeans to make ethanol. it doesn't matter that ethanol isn't even remotely fuel efficient with respect to either its production or use. What matters is that bio-fuel production has become the newest sacred cow of the farm lobby. To make a long story short, bio-fuel production, largely underwritten by the American taxpayer in the form of subsidies, has caused a tremendous shift in the planting habits of farmers. Farmers who stand to make a lot more money planting soybean and corn than wheat, rice, rye,oats, peanuts, etc. And not just American farmers. According to the United Nations "the share of vegetable oil consumption which is used for biodiesel production is expected to increase from 9% in 2006-08 to 20% in 2018."
Less land used for growing food, or using food itself to make fuel, equals escalating food prices.
More unfortunately, that's only half the story. Progressive dedication to Keynesian economics, despite its repeated failures, is the other half. Most specifically, Ben Bernanke's second round of Quantitative Easing, aka QE2, which has resulted in another 600 billion dollars of "liquidity," aka the American dollar, being tossed into the worldwide currency stream. The upside of QE2 is political: it is one of the primary contributers to a rising stock market, which might be the only thing keeping this president's popularity from sinking like a rock. The November election revealed the American public's discontent with this president, a large part of which was related to his economic policies--and that was with a Dow Jones Average somewhere in the eleven thousand-plus range. One can only imagine how much more of a "shellacking" Democrats might have received if the Dow was where it might have been without cheap dollars fueling its rise.
Unfortunately (there's that word again), commodities, of which food is one, are priced in U.S. dollars. And if you haven't guessed by now, cheaper dollars also drive the price of food through the roof. As economist Larry Kudlow explained in an article for National Review, "the Fed has been overproducing dollars for more than two years. Consequently, emerging markets throughout the world--and the food sector in particular--are suffering from rising inflation." How much inflation? Kudlow: "The CRB food index is up an incredible 36 percent over the past year, including 8 percent year-to-date. Raw materials are up 23 percent over the past year. Inflation breakouts have occurred in China, various Asian Tigers, India, Brazil, and other Latin countries. Even Britain and Germany are registering higher inflation readings."
Governments can withstand many challenges to their legitimacy, especially in autocratic societies. Unaffordable food prices is not one of them. Nothing concentrates the mind like hunger, especially when one is forced to watch one's children starving. During the beginning of the current uprising in Egypt, it was revealed that 40% of the population there lives below the poverty line. What is the poverty line? Two dollars a day, as set by the World Bank.
Sami Imam, a 53-year-old retired teacher who took part in Egyptian protests offers the ultimate insight into the fearlessness that the people of Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Jordan, Morocco, and Algeria have demonstrated in confronting what might have been deadly force used against them.
"The police cannot kill us because we, to all practical purposes (sic), are already dead," said the father of four.
Practically dead, and for what? Maybe Americans should consider that propping up worthless movements and odious government policies isn't limited to the Middle East. And as sad as it sounds, maybe they should be thankful that a large portion of Middle Easterners, many of whom already hold America in contempt, lack the education to understand the monstrous nature of a progressive movement which willfully ignores reality whenever reality conflicts with their agenda. Is there anything dumber than using food to make fuel?
Yes. Forcing millions of people to the brink of starvation in order to "save the planet."
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