Government is usually faulted for moving too slowly, taking too long to catch up to the will of its citizens. The mandated ethanol production targets are an example of government moving too quickly, before the science of ethanol - as it related to global warming - was really understood. Now that it is better understood, this is a giant screw-up that has more serious ramifications than just massive give-aways to industrial agriculture. The problem is leaking into our food supply, and does anyone really expect the feds to move quickly (or to move at all) to correct their error, especially in an election year?
[A food/health aside: The farmer quoted in the Post article argues that food costs as a proportion of the average household budget is much less than it used to be. That's true, but that's because so much of the food Americans eat is processed food which is the end result of the industrialization of agriculture; back in the 1950's, food cost more because it was real food. Now so much of what we eat and drink contains some kind of corn-based chemical concoction that's cheaper than the real food alternative. As long as we continue to ramp up corn-based ethanol production, those processed food-like items are bound to get more expensive. So maybe this ethanol thing isn't all bad, if it means that real food becomes more of a part of the national diet once again?]
Here's another food prices / ethanol article on the front page of today's Sun.
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