subsidize ME....

Once again, I have become riled while watching the news. Why do i subject myself to such turmoil, especially while on the treadmill? I mean, I already don't want to be on the flippin' thing, then i go ahead and watch the news, and then i wonder WHY i watch the news......

To wit:

This morning our local CBS Affiliate WCAX ran a story about possible milk subsidies. Here is the transcript:

"MONTPELIER, Vt. - Milk prices are expected to tumble in the coming months.
U.S. Agriculture officials say officials say milk supply currently outweighs demand, in large part due to the mild winter weather across New England and other parts of the country which lead to overproduction. The Vermont Senate Agriculture Committee has set a hearing for next week to address the issue. It'll take place Wednesday April 11 from 9 A.M. to noon. "

In a press release titled, "...Increasing the Price of Milk Paid to Vermont Dairy Farmers", located on the Vermont Senate's Committee on Agrigulture web page, the public is told that there will be a hearing next week: "the hearing will address the steps dairy cooperatives are taking to ensure that Vermont dairy farmers receive the highest price possible for their milk..."

Soooo...wait just a tic. Supply is HIGH. Demand is LOW. Shouldn't the PRICE GO DOWN????? Nope. The government wants to artificially inflate the price of milk. Have you bought milk lately? Now i know where the expression "Holy Cow" comes from!!! Who is going to foot that bill to the dairy industry? ME! I DON'T EVEN LIKE THE STUFF, AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY EXTRA FOR....NOTHING!!!! For a product that no body wants. Well, not enough people want it. Some do. And that's fine. Where will this end? And, as I am sure many of you know, this isn't the first time that the government has done this sort of thing. It is rampant, apparently. But not nearly as wide spread as it might be. For example(s)....

Let's say that I lived in one of the towns that was devastated during Irene, and I owned an auto repair business, with towing service, etc. Let's say that I was able to take in about (i have no idea what is realistic here, so i am picking the number for easy math) $4,000 a month. Not only did 20% of my customer base get destroyed, but my entire business was lost; tools, physical property, vehicles, customer's vehicles. Since I haven't been able to repair or replace my business over the past 7 months, based on the above diary subsidization model, I feel that the state of Vermont needs to pay me $4k/month every month until I can get my shop working again, and then a percentage of that every month until all of my former customer base has been restored to where it was the day before the storm. Seems fair to me.

What about the Maple Syrup industry? This year's production season was very short. Based on the above reasoning, the state of Vermont should subsidize maple syrup producers for their lost profits.

This would (should?) also hold true for my friend who decided this past fall to knit hats to try to sell to skiers when they came to Vermont. She made 3,000 beautiful hats. But because the skiing season wasn't what it has been, demand for the hats was low, but supply was high. Do you see a trend here? YES! Why doesn't the state of Vermont just jump in and make sure that, even though she has decided to try to sell the hats for half of what they are worth, she still gets the other 50% from the state's coffers.

Makes perfect sense to the Agriculture department....I dont' agree. What say you?