The true price of liberalism

I'm a little disgusted these days. Gas prices are shooting through the roof and have gone straight to the moon. Food prices are going through the roof. It's almost reminiscent of the stagflation days of the 1970s.

And there is one big factor you can blame for both: ENVIRO-NUTS.

And Big Agribusiness. Hey, if the greenies can attach "Big fill-in-the-blank" to everything they hate, why can't I?

You can also blame the Federal government and their promotion of ethanol as an alternative fuel. What is ethanol made from? Corn. With the gas prices being so high and the federal government handing out mega-bucks to ethanol blenders, it's little wonder that wheat farmers are harvesting their crop and switching to corn. It's little wonder that dairy farmers are killing their cows and switching to corn.

Corn ethanol subsidies totaled $7.0 billion in 2006 for 4.9 billion gallons of ethanol. That's $1.45 per gallon of ethanol (and $2.21 per gal of gas replaced).

Even with high gas prices in 2006, producing a gallon of ethanol cost 38¢ more than making gasoline with the same energy, so ethanol did need part of that subsidy. But what about the other $1.12. Not needed! So all of that became, $5.4 billion windfall of profits paid to real farmers, corporate farmers, and ethanol makers like multinational ADM. Why is it the farm states put up with this?!

Where did those subsidies come from:
1. 51¢ per gallon federal blenders credit for $2.5 billion = your tax dollars.
2. $0.9 billion in corn subsidies for ethanol corn = your tax dollars.
3. $3.6 billion extra paid at the pump.

That's quite a bit when you figure it only made us 1.1% more energy independent and only reduced US greenhouse gases by 1/19 of 1%.

Read more here.

And with diminished supply, for those who actually paid attention in economics class, you get increased prices! That's scarcity.

Of course leftists don't think about you and me when they go on their great moral crusade to save the Earth from the likes of the evil, polluting American Empire and our evil, capitalistic system. We can't have the Earth turn into a big, burnin' ring of fire thanks to that fraud called Global Warming. Oh no.

Bakers are now lobbying Congress from the relief of higher wheat prices. If the damned market was allowed to do its job without interference, they wouldn't have to go before those corrupt bastards on the take from the ethanol lobby. Read more about this fleecing of America here.

Walter Williams nails it right on the head.

Ethanol production has driven up the prices of corn-fed livestock, such as beef, chicken and dairy products, and products made from corn, such as cereals. As a result of higher demand for corn, other grain prices, such as soybean and wheat, have risen dramatically. The fact that the U.S. is the world's largest grain producer and exporter means that the ethanol-induced higher grain prices will have a worldwide impact on food prices.

More from Dr. Williams. Class is in session!

The ethanol hoax is a good example of a problem economists refer to as narrow, well-defined benefits versus widely dispersed costs. It pays the ethanol lobby to organize and collect money to grease the palms of politicians willing to do their bidding because there's a large benefit for them -- higher wages and profits. The millions of gasoline consumers, who fund the benefits through higher fuel and food prices, as well as taxes, are relatively uninformed and have little clout. After all, who do you think a politician will invite into his congressional or White House office to have a heart-to-heart -- you or an Archer Daniels Midlands executive?

Read the rest here.

They're payin' for it, you eat it!

R. Lee Ermey as Gunny Hartman, "Full Metal Jacket"

Describes liberals and their obsession with all things green. They get to eat the jelly doughnut (having their precious little guilt assuaged) while everyone else gets to pay for it with higher prices across the board. It's not those evil rich corporations that pay dearly for your socialist schemes, but the little guy out there. Corporations like ADM (Archer Daniels Midland), the biggest maker of ethanol that profits handily and is in the pockets of everyone on Capital Hill, end up making out like bandits.

Guess we in the real world who really pay for the stupidity of liberals don't even get the common courtesy of a reach around. Thanks a lot! So drop your shorts as socialism and environmental whackoism (plus some corn farmers getting rich off that idiotic subsidy) have some fun at our expense and whisper BOHICA, BOHICA, BOHICA in our ears.