Do You Know?

John Darvill

1990

Published in:

The Northwest Technocrat, 2nd quarter 1990, No. 319

... To compound the obvious, food is essential to all life, but one would be hard-put to appreciate this from the procedures we practice. As is the case with all Price System practices, money or profit must be the first consideration, and in today's economy that means a lot. At a recent conference of bankers in Winnipeg, Manitoba, they were told that to buy a modest 960 acre farm costs over $500,000; this breaks down to a conservative $300 an acre, and the equipment to work the land and store crops adds another $200,000. Added to this the farmer would need an operating loan of $50,000 to pay for items such as feed and fertilizer. In order to pay that debt and make a modest profit, the farmer would have to produce at least 41 bushels of wheat per acre and 73 bushels of barley; that would take good farming techniques. This, of course, means that fewer young people consider it worth the risk. According to Statistics Canada, the number of young people entering farming is dropping. The number of people under 35 going into farming fell from 42,000 in 1971-76 to 28,000 in 1981-86. The number of young farmers forced to give up their farms rose from 16,000 in 1976-81 to 21,000 in 1981-86. Add the problem of manpower to the environmental problem, and our future ability to grow food looks bleaker.

... When politicians become concerned about a problem, you can be assured it is getting serious. In a recent meeting in Orlando, Florida, the Canadian Agriculture Minister Don Mazankowski told top farm officials from major agricultural trading nations that a crisis management plan for food safety was necessary in the light of recent food scares. It was suggested that the world's top food exporters work towards adopting common international standards for food safety; it was felt that this would prevent crises from undermining consumer confidence in the food supply. Not only is it becoming more difficult to grow food, but we are at greater risk in eating it.

... To accentuate the economic difficulties, the Canadian Wheat Board and the Canadian Grains Council, reports that the net cash flow for prairie grain farmers was 41% lower at the end of the 1980s ($1.9 billion) than at the beginning of the decade ($3.2 billion). These prices are not adjusted for inflation. In a Price System, farming is first and foremost a business; when it becomes a financial burden it ceases to operate.

... There is reason to believe that the Rafferty-Alameda dam project in southeastern Saskatchewan poses some environmental problems, and for this reason a court ruling was issued calling for another environmental review of the project. However, work would not stop on the dam; the company claimed they had a valid license and would proceed. Who says we are showing more concern for the environment? Again, monetary considerations lay first claim.

... While we are on the subject of the environment: in the U.S. each year, more than 50,000 cubic metres of commercial low level radioactive waste are produced. This contains about 645,000 curies -- curies measure the strength of a radioactive substance. What sort of health risk does this pose? One-millionth of a single curie ingested in the body is cause for significant concern.

... The Koala, the furry marsupial that looks so friendly and cuddly in photos, is in danger of extinction. Over the past 50 years the population of Koalas has dwindled from several million to 400,000 and is continuing to decline. This decline is the result of the destruction of its habitat and the unchecked spread of disease among the animals. Nearly 80% of the Koala's natural habitat and food supply has been wiped out by human development along the eastern coast of Australia. This is another example of man's relentless extermination of other animal species which if continued much longer will lead to his own.

... The infrastructure of the U.S. is falling apart, not the least of which is the roads. At the present time there is $14.5 billion sitting in the Highway Trust Fund and a further $15 billion in other transport related funds. That's nearly $30 billion sitting gathering dust -- or more to the point gathering interest. This enables the government to make it appear that the overall budget deficit is smaller than it actually is. However, in the meantime, costs are rising; it is estimated that a two-lane highway in fair shape can be resurfaced for about $125,000 a mile, but if it is allowed to continue to deteriorate, the eventual cost could be as high as $600,000 a mile. For a government that prides itself on its business acumen, this seems like a poor practice.

... We are supposed to be entering an era of peace, but what of prosperity? The government is proposing to bring tens of thousands of U.S. troops and their families back from Europe. Repatriation would cost an estimated $65,000 per person, and, if they are discharged from the service, they then enter the job market. In turn, of course, more domestic base closings seem inevitable thus affecting the local economies quite drastically. An estimated 65,000 workers either have lost or will lose their jobs as a result of recent defense cutbacks; more and more people are looking for fewer and fewer jobs.

... Washington, D.C. is looked upon as the capitol city of the greatest power on earth. But Washington, D.C. is also the murder and crime capitol of the U.S. and thereby of the world. From 1988 to 1989, the city's public drug treatment facilities, 28 in number, treated 5,173 patients. So many addicts are seeking outpatient treatment that they must wait an average of two to six months. Washington, D.C. is earning it's name as the per capita murder capitol of the nation. The first three weeks of 1990 saw 34 killings and that's ten more than for the same period last year when January had a record of 52 murders. The population of the capitol's prison system has almost tripled in ten years, to 9,300 at the end of last year -- in cells designed for 7,000. It is ironic that this is the legislative capitol of this decaying system and that the most apparent sign of that decay should reside in the same city.

... Our social problems include: soil erosion, polluted soil, water pollution, water depletion, polluted air, decaying infrastructure, congestion, homelessness, poverty, violent crime, health problems, an inadequate educational system, an economy burdened with debt, trade deficits and an inability to take care of the needs of the populace. All of these faults, and more, point to the inadequacies of the Price System -- a system that was not designed for, nor is capable of dealing with these problems -- all of them serious, and that together, spell catastrophe. Either we come to grips with what has to be done, or life as we know it will cease to exist. Shall we continue in a vain attempt to maintain an obsolescent system? Or shall we take steps to remedy this serious situation and start to take care of this planet we call home. We cannot do both.

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