I was disappointed to see a blog encouraging government assistance for farming. This blog requested that members contact Congress to ask that they pass the Local Farms, Food, and Job Act. First, the government cannot create jobs; the government creates taxes, they create regulations, they create obstacles to businesses growing and creating jobs - but they do not, never have, and never will create jobs in the private sector. The best way to create jobs is for the government to get out of the business of "creating jobs" and back to its sole purpose of national security and ensuring that commerce between the states is on a level playing field. Conversely, the government has stacked the deck against the small farmer, and picked the winners - BIG AG corporatism. Instead of asking for government assistance for organic and small farmers, it would be more effective to ask the government to stop assisting BIG AG with subsidies, and promoting megamonopolies with patent protections. What we need is an end to backdoor lobbying and hand-washing.
I do believe, that as long as we have food stamp and welfare programs, people should be able to use the subsidy at local farm markets. The fact that they can't should be proof enough that the government is not there to promote health or wellness for Americans. The government is concerned with one thing, continued dependence on tax dollars. When we take the "assistance," we become bound to the ever reaching arm of government policy. We have to change our mindsets and start relying upon ourselves, then we owe nothing, to no one.