1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:04,680 Speaker 1: From UFOs to psychic powers and government conspiracies. History is 2 00:00:04,760 --> 00:00:09,080 Speaker 1: riddled with unexplained events. You can turn back now or 3 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:12,079 Speaker 1: learn the stuff they don't want you to know. A 4 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:25,360 Speaker 1: production of I Heart Brading. Welcome back to the show. 5 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:27,520 Speaker 1: My name is Matt, my name is Nol. They called 6 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:29,880 Speaker 1: me Ben, and you're joined as always with our super 7 00:00:29,880 --> 00:00:34,279 Speaker 1: producer Paul Mission Control decond. Most importantly, you are you. 8 00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: You are here, and that makes this stuff they don't 9 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:40,319 Speaker 1: want you to know. This is going to be an 10 00:00:40,360 --> 00:00:44,959 Speaker 1: interesting episode today. I want to go ahead and congratulate 11 00:00:45,080 --> 00:00:49,840 Speaker 1: everyone who did not judge today's episode by the title alone. 12 00:00:50,640 --> 00:00:53,320 Speaker 1: I think the title of this is actually the surprisingly 13 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: unboring story of farm subsidies. Yeah, it could be interpreted 14 00:00:58,440 --> 00:01:00,959 Speaker 1: as a snooze fest, but you know, you know us, 15 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:04,360 Speaker 1: you know this show. There's not a snooze fest amongst. 16 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:06,319 Speaker 1: It remas me of that part in Wayne's World where 17 00:01:06,319 --> 00:01:09,240 Speaker 1: he's doing the green screen and he's like, hey, I'm 18 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:13,399 Speaker 1: in Delaware because Delaware seems like the most boring place, 19 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:17,039 Speaker 1: but as it turns out, it's incredible tax haven. Yeah, 20 00:01:17,040 --> 00:01:20,840 Speaker 1: that's true, secret excitement all around. That's why all of 21 00:01:20,880 --> 00:01:24,479 Speaker 1: your credit cards and many of your banks are based 22 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:28,160 Speaker 1: for some reason in Delaware, Dover, I believe because the 23 00:01:28,240 --> 00:01:33,240 Speaker 1: laws are different. Now, this topic was not something that 24 00:01:33,800 --> 00:01:35,919 Speaker 1: the three or four of us came up with on 25 00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:40,399 Speaker 1: our own, Like many of the best suggestions for this show, 26 00:01:40,880 --> 00:01:45,560 Speaker 1: this came to us from a listener email from the 27 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:50,840 Speaker 1: Raven with a Y. Now, the Raven, maybe I can 28 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:54,320 Speaker 1: remove the definitive there and just call you Raven. Uh. 29 00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:57,800 Speaker 1: You sent us this fantastic email. It's it's a little 30 00:01:57,800 --> 00:02:00,080 Speaker 1: bit long, so we're just gonna read some excerpts, but 31 00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:02,960 Speaker 1: we're gonna set it up. And Uh, I gotta say, 32 00:02:03,120 --> 00:02:06,520 Speaker 1: my friend, I like the way you right, Oh for sure, 33 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:13,200 Speaker 1: especially adding adding in your own sound effects. Says greetings, gentlemen, 34 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:17,240 Speaker 1: I bring you information for a possible episode. The topic 35 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:20,120 Speaker 1: may seem boring on the surface, but I feel as 36 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:23,880 Speaker 1: though something is a miss I present to you. Farm 37 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:30,240 Speaker 1: subsidies submitted for your approval. Don't done. Yes, my friends, 38 00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 1: farm subsidies. I don't know much about it, but I 39 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 1: noticed odd things with a specific company, so there may 40 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:42,600 Speaker 1: be other things out there. Here are the facts. First off, 41 00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:45,720 Speaker 1: there's no such thing as a dumb question, So what 42 00:02:45,800 --> 00:02:50,600 Speaker 1: the hell is a farm subsidies. Farm subsidies are essentially 43 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 1: cash given from a government. The US does this as 44 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: well as many other countries to support agribusinesses. These can 45 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:05,320 Speaker 1: be absolute life savers because being a farmer is difficult. 46 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:09,560 Speaker 1: It's a dicey proposition. Farmers can use the money provided 47 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:13,680 Speaker 1: by the government to ride out risk and the potentially 48 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: enormous losses involved in this unpredictable industry. Like you can't 49 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:21,760 Speaker 1: predict the weather all the time, you can't predict how 50 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:25,160 Speaker 1: you're going to interact with commodities brokers. You can't predict 51 00:03:25,520 --> 00:03:31,079 Speaker 1: demand as accurately as people would want. Farm subsidies are 52 00:03:31,160 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 1: a thing that is pretty close to mission controls heart. Uh. 53 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:38,400 Speaker 1: And we did check to make sure it's okay that 54 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: we said that. But you know us, we always we 55 00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:44,800 Speaker 1: always like to lean on people with personal experience. We 56 00:03:44,920 --> 00:03:49,680 Speaker 1: like primary sources. So if you hear us pausing when 57 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:53,040 Speaker 1: we say something and then quickly correcting ourselves, it maybe 58 00:03:53,240 --> 00:03:56,800 Speaker 1: because Paul gave us the glare of death through the 59 00:03:56,880 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: studio window. And this is a little known here, This 60 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 1: has never happened before. Paul's Mike Mission controls. Mike is 61 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:08,760 Speaker 1: alive right now, So like if he wanted to, he 62 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:13,280 Speaker 1: could say a word, but he's not going to. I'm 63 00:04:13,320 --> 00:04:17,880 Speaker 1: feeling a sense of foreboding. Said that, he's like this 64 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,680 Speaker 1: cartoon rabbits. So it's like, if you don't have something 65 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:23,599 Speaker 1: nice to say, don't say nothing at all. So Paul 66 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:26,000 Speaker 1: is going to chime in if he has something nice, 67 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:32,720 Speaker 1: A k A helpful correct. Yes, farm subsidies, though you 68 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:36,039 Speaker 1: may have heard them tossed around in in a lot 69 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:40,920 Speaker 1: of headlines recently, you're gonna read language like farm bailout. Yes, 70 00:04:41,040 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 1: that's the one that I've seen the most. So these 71 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:46,760 Speaker 1: things have a long, long history here in the US. 72 00:04:47,240 --> 00:04:51,720 Speaker 1: The Homestead Act in eighteen sixty two granted land in 73 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:55,120 Speaker 1: the West to anyone willing to farm. It said, just 74 00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:59,040 Speaker 1: show up, make food, and you can have the land 75 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:01,600 Speaker 1: it grows on. And then in the same year there 76 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:04,840 Speaker 1: was something called the Moral Act m O R R 77 00:05:04,839 --> 00:05:09,520 Speaker 1: I L L that was past This funded colleges of agriculture. 78 00:05:09,560 --> 00:05:14,840 Speaker 1: So Uncle Sam always knew that food was important, and 79 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:19,039 Speaker 1: the government intervened multiple times throughout this country's history to 80 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:24,720 Speaker 1: assist assist in the creation of farming interest like the 81 00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:29,040 Speaker 1: Federal Farm Loan Act that would give you pretty generous 82 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:33,239 Speaker 1: loans if and only if you're a farmer or starting 83 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:36,040 Speaker 1: a farm. Yeah, it's one of those things is humans. Um, 84 00:05:36,080 --> 00:05:38,040 Speaker 1: we need water, we need to be able to breathe, 85 00:05:38,160 --> 00:05:41,279 Speaker 1: we need shelter, we need love, and we need food. 86 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:46,400 Speaker 1: Food is very important, and food production becomes very very important, 87 00:05:46,520 --> 00:05:49,360 Speaker 1: especially when you're in a time of crisis, like of war. 88 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:54,039 Speaker 1: Let's say that's why this, uh, the subsidizing were the 89 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:58,280 Speaker 1: assistance with farming is so essential because each of us 90 00:05:58,360 --> 00:06:01,599 Speaker 1: has to eat. So let's them to nineteen twenty nine. 91 00:06:02,400 --> 00:06:07,719 Speaker 1: Let's do it nineteen nine, in which the Agricultural Marketing 92 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:13,560 Speaker 1: Act of ninety nine it established the Federal Farm Board, 93 00:06:13,720 --> 00:06:18,359 Speaker 1: which sought to keep crop prices manageable, keep them from 94 00:06:18,880 --> 00:06:23,200 Speaker 1: absolutely bottoming out. So farmers were, um. The hope was 95 00:06:23,279 --> 00:06:28,640 Speaker 1: that they would limit crops, but that didn't really take um, 96 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:34,320 Speaker 1: and then the bureau bought and stockpiled these crops in 97 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:37,760 Speaker 1: order to you know, kind of manipulate supply and demand 98 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:42,000 Speaker 1: by limiting supply. And then um, it kind of switched 99 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:48,359 Speaker 1: gears and transformed into the Farm Credit Administration in nineteen 100 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: thirty three, and then in nineteen thirty three, Congress signs 101 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:57,039 Speaker 1: what's called the Agricultural Adjustment Actor A A A. Again, 102 00:06:57,160 --> 00:06:59,120 Speaker 1: I know we can get the weeds here, but this stuff, 103 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:01,000 Speaker 1: this will be important later when we get to the 104 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:03,359 Speaker 1: weird part of this. We'll all be glad that we 105 00:07:03,480 --> 00:07:09,360 Speaker 1: know this now. So this Triple A Agricultural Adjustment Act did, 106 00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:13,040 Speaker 1: uh did something very similar to what you were talking about. 107 00:07:14,000 --> 00:07:18,480 Speaker 1: It reduced crop output. It paid farmers to not do 108 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:21,680 Speaker 1: their job. And you think, why on earth would you 109 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:24,080 Speaker 1: do that? Do we need more food? Isn't this whole 110 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:27,040 Speaker 1: thing about all of us needing to eat? Right? But 111 00:07:27,240 --> 00:07:30,200 Speaker 1: you also want people to make a living because if 112 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:34,400 Speaker 1: everybody is growing a ton of this an example, Paul use, 113 00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:39,080 Speaker 1: if everybody has a bumper crop and grows a great 114 00:07:39,080 --> 00:07:41,760 Speaker 1: amount of wheat, then how are they going to be 115 00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:45,280 Speaker 1: able to sell it? Because the price will plummet And 116 00:07:45,320 --> 00:07:48,040 Speaker 1: then you're you, as a farmer, are being punished for 117 00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:52,200 Speaker 1: doing well. So, yeah, you're right. It really is about 118 00:07:52,320 --> 00:07:58,760 Speaker 1: supply and demand. And this Triple A this had some 119 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:05,360 Speaker 1: extreme results. Crop prices in general doubled within just four years, 120 00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:11,320 Speaker 1: and the Supreme Court overturned the Triple A because it 121 00:08:11,440 --> 00:08:18,040 Speaker 1: was it was putting taxes on people who processed crops, 122 00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:20,960 Speaker 1: but it was giving money to farmers, and then they 123 00:08:21,000 --> 00:08:24,040 Speaker 1: tried to fix it again in ninety eight, and then 124 00:08:24,800 --> 00:08:28,160 Speaker 1: when a lot of farms were being foreclosed upon, the 125 00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:33,800 Speaker 1: Emergency Farm Mortgage Act was a government intervention that gave 126 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:38,000 Speaker 1: farms the life saving loans they needed to continue their businesses. 127 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:40,840 Speaker 1: So in the same year, in eight, we've got the 128 00:08:40,840 --> 00:08:44,840 Speaker 1: New Agricultural Adjustment Act creatively named because it was like 129 00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:47,760 Speaker 1: the new one UM, and that kind of took care 130 00:08:47,800 --> 00:08:49,520 Speaker 1: of some of the issues that were presented by the 131 00:08:49,600 --> 00:08:55,600 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty three version UM. And this price support system 132 00:08:55,720 --> 00:08:58,800 Speaker 1: as it was referred to, kind of uh petered out 133 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:03,079 Speaker 1: in the nineteen nine these Well that's exactly yeah, but 134 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:05,120 Speaker 1: but that's sort of when it run its course, and 135 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:10,679 Speaker 1: the federal government was able to pretty astoundingly guarantee farmers 136 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:14,440 Speaker 1: a high enough price to stay in business, to actually 137 00:09:14,440 --> 00:09:18,560 Speaker 1: make a profit for their families. How is this accomplished? Well, Uh, 138 00:09:18,559 --> 00:09:23,760 Speaker 1: it paid farmers to make sure again manipulating supply and demand, 139 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:27,920 Speaker 1: make sure the supply did not exceed the demand. Then 140 00:09:27,960 --> 00:09:33,079 Speaker 1: the government subsidized farmers to keep crop lands idle so 141 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:39,760 Speaker 1: fallow fields, essentially in order to prevent um. Basically waste 142 00:09:39,880 --> 00:09:44,680 Speaker 1: crop waste over production also actually bought out any excess 143 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:50,120 Speaker 1: crops UM it then either stockpiled them or gave them 144 00:09:50,120 --> 00:09:54,200 Speaker 1: away to lower income families throughout the world. So it 145 00:09:54,240 --> 00:09:56,880 Speaker 1: had kind of a philanthropic wing to it as well. 146 00:09:57,120 --> 00:10:01,960 Speaker 1: And then in for arm subsidies. UM, it's kind of 147 00:10:02,040 --> 00:10:04,640 Speaker 1: the year for peak farm subsidies when it reached a 148 00:10:04,720 --> 00:10:10,200 Speaker 1: record twenty two billion dollars. Can I bring something up 149 00:10:10,200 --> 00:10:13,400 Speaker 1: here that we that happened in nineteen nine. I think 150 00:10:14,600 --> 00:10:17,440 Speaker 1: it's something that Paul was talking to us about earlier 151 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:21,800 Speaker 1: off Mike called the Conservation Reserve Program. UM. Can we 152 00:10:21,800 --> 00:10:24,959 Speaker 1: talk about that now, Yeah, exactly, because we we kind 153 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:28,080 Speaker 1: of just mentioned it there. UM. It's called the Conservation 154 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:31,080 Speaker 1: Reserve Program or CRP, and I'm reading this from the 155 00:10:31,160 --> 00:10:34,679 Speaker 1: f s A dot U, s d A dot Gov. Um, 156 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:38,120 Speaker 1: this is a program that UH, in exchange for a 157 00:10:38,240 --> 00:10:41,640 Speaker 1: yearly rental payment, farmers enrolled in this program agree to 158 00:10:41,679 --> 00:10:46,840 Speaker 1: remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production and plant species 159 00:10:47,280 --> 00:10:51,960 Speaker 1: that will improve the environmental health and quality. So it's 160 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,240 Speaker 1: these it's these contracts and not a contract. I guess 161 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:57,720 Speaker 1: it's you sign up for this program, then portions of 162 00:10:57,760 --> 00:11:01,359 Speaker 1: your farmland are just kind of let to go wild basically, 163 00:11:01,520 --> 00:11:05,280 Speaker 1: which allows the soil to regenerate. It's probably better for 164 00:11:05,400 --> 00:11:10,920 Speaker 1: local wildlife, you know, especially herbivores amongst the fauna. Uh. 165 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:13,760 Speaker 1: Then we can see the logic here, even though it 166 00:11:13,800 --> 00:11:17,320 Speaker 1: sounds maybe a little Joseph Heller esk at first, like 167 00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:21,480 Speaker 1: what you're paying me not to do something? But it 168 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:26,520 Speaker 1: fields many people argue that it is necessary. Of course, 169 00:11:26,559 --> 00:11:29,240 Speaker 1: not every anybody who has ever tried to buy like 170 00:11:29,760 --> 00:11:34,080 Speaker 1: a dragon for or a pomegranate quickly learns or avocados 171 00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:37,160 Speaker 1: for good, to say, quickly learns that not all crops 172 00:11:37,200 --> 00:11:40,760 Speaker 1: are subsidized here in the US. Out of all of 173 00:11:40,840 --> 00:11:44,840 Speaker 1: the crops that farmers grow, there are only five that 174 00:11:44,880 --> 00:11:50,960 Speaker 1: are subsidized, corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, and rice. And that's 175 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,520 Speaker 1: because the grains here in this list are the big, 176 00:11:54,520 --> 00:11:58,280 Speaker 1: big players. If you just took the edible stuff from 177 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:01,720 Speaker 1: what we named rice, wheat, beans, corned and you added 178 00:12:01,800 --> 00:12:05,800 Speaker 1: up all you added up all of those crops, and 179 00:12:05,800 --> 00:12:08,760 Speaker 1: then you looked at how much food all the people 180 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:14,320 Speaker 1: on earth collectively, eight eighty percent of it would be rice, wheat, soybeans, 181 00:12:14,320 --> 00:12:18,600 Speaker 1: and corn, think about food processing and how many products 182 00:12:18,679 --> 00:12:22,400 Speaker 1: exist in grocery stores across the world that are based 183 00:12:22,559 --> 00:12:25,560 Speaker 1: in one of those or if not multiple, well not 184 00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:28,840 Speaker 1: even not only stuff in grocery stores. Think about ethanol 185 00:12:29,400 --> 00:12:31,719 Speaker 1: that comes from corn, and I don't want to jump 186 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:32,959 Speaker 1: the gun. I'm sure we're gonna get into this a 187 00:12:32,960 --> 00:12:35,480 Speaker 1: little more later, but I believe some of those subsidies 188 00:12:35,520 --> 00:12:38,320 Speaker 1: went away under the Trump administration. So a lot of 189 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:41,400 Speaker 1: farmers are having trouble now because they grew excess corn 190 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:43,680 Speaker 1: that they could then sell, you know, to be made 191 00:12:43,679 --> 00:12:47,079 Speaker 1: into ethanol. And I think because of our moved by 192 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:50,960 Speaker 1: this government to more like um coal kind of based 193 00:12:51,240 --> 00:12:54,760 Speaker 1: things and fossil fuels, those subsidies kind of were changed 194 00:12:54,800 --> 00:12:57,000 Speaker 1: in a negative way that affected some of these farmers. 195 00:12:57,400 --> 00:12:59,400 Speaker 1: Well yeah, and and also across the world we talked 196 00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:03,559 Speaker 1: about this before, been those these things that can be 197 00:13:03,600 --> 00:13:08,280 Speaker 1: produced rather cheaply or like, you know, somewhat cheaply in 198 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:12,120 Speaker 1: more rural places. It's like the reason why it represents 199 00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:14,080 Speaker 1: that much of the chloric intake is because it's it's 200 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:16,920 Speaker 1: fairly cheap to do, and you can make a lot 201 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:19,040 Speaker 1: of it and it can just be the staple in 202 00:13:19,080 --> 00:13:21,920 Speaker 1: your diet. It can be financially cheap, but for those 203 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:26,040 Speaker 1: people who are growing these crops and in developing countries, 204 00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:31,000 Speaker 1: it's incredibly time intensive. Right with time exactly. And I 205 00:13:31,040 --> 00:13:34,880 Speaker 1: don't mean to downplay what it takes to to totally 206 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:37,720 Speaker 1: have a functioning rice patty or something whis I just 207 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:40,440 Speaker 1: mean overall, if you think about all of the crops 208 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:42,720 Speaker 1: that are out there, the things you could be planting, 209 00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:45,760 Speaker 1: that's why these make up that much of the chloric intake. 210 00:13:45,840 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 1: And that's a huge important point. It's only going to 211 00:13:48,160 --> 00:13:51,480 Speaker 1: become more profound as we continue. If we look at 212 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:54,679 Speaker 1: the state's overall, the states in all the U. S territories, 213 00:13:54,920 --> 00:13:57,600 Speaker 1: and we'll see that there are some clear front runners 214 00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:02,200 Speaker 1: in the farm subsidy industry, and make no mistake, it 215 00:14:02,320 --> 00:14:07,720 Speaker 1: is an industry by itself. Those top five states are Texas, Nebraska, Kansas, 216 00:14:07,880 --> 00:14:14,120 Speaker 1: shout out to Mission Control, Arkansas, and Illinois. In seventeen, 217 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:17,840 Speaker 1: according to the e w G Farm Subsidy Database, these 218 00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:21,040 Speaker 1: five states received thirty eight point five percent of the 219 00:14:21,160 --> 00:14:25,920 Speaker 1: seven point to billion dollars distributed through these subsidy programs. 220 00:14:26,160 --> 00:14:30,480 Speaker 1: Now astute listeners. Though you'll notice that that number is 221 00:14:30,600 --> 00:14:35,440 Speaker 1: much smaller than the number we we cited earlier. Uh, 222 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:41,440 Speaker 1: farm subsidies were twenty two billion, and now if we 223 00:14:41,480 --> 00:14:44,960 Speaker 1: go to seen, they're down to seven point two billions. 224 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:47,440 Speaker 1: So we see a lot of waxing and waning here. 225 00:14:47,680 --> 00:14:52,920 Speaker 1: It's not a consistent amount of funding. Is odd, just 226 00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:56,680 Speaker 1: with inflation and the way that goes overall that it 227 00:14:56,680 --> 00:15:00,760 Speaker 1: would reduce by that much, right, right, because you know, 228 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:05,640 Speaker 1: we can explain that by saying, well, different times are changing, right, 229 00:15:05,680 --> 00:15:09,560 Speaker 1: and some administrations have different names than others. And of 230 00:15:09,600 --> 00:15:13,560 Speaker 1: course it would be naive to say that, uh, some 231 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:17,920 Speaker 1: of the increases were not uh somehow pushed by special 232 00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:21,600 Speaker 1: interest groups. Right, that's just the reality. But what about 233 00:15:22,160 --> 00:15:25,480 Speaker 1: other what what about other crops? Because those five things 234 00:15:25,520 --> 00:15:29,920 Speaker 1: aren't everything people grow. They're also peanuts, sorghum, and mohair. 235 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:37,840 Speaker 1: These things get smaller subsidies. What is mohair? What is sorghum? Paul? 236 00:15:37,920 --> 00:15:43,000 Speaker 1: What is mohair? All right, I've just never heard of it. 237 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 1: Mohair is the fabric, That's that's what. That's what Benny 238 00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:51,520 Speaker 1: and the Jets were electric boots, a mohair suit. You know, 239 00:15:51,600 --> 00:15:55,560 Speaker 1: I read it in a magazine. Uh th that was 240 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:59,640 Speaker 1: a fabric. It is from mohair made from angora goats. 241 00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:02,000 Speaker 1: I used to think he was saying mole hair suit, 242 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:05,720 Speaker 1: which would be weird because aren't moles kind of suitless 243 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:10,600 Speaker 1: or like furless? Ye there, Yeah, that goes back to um. 244 00:16:11,320 --> 00:16:13,640 Speaker 1: It is interesting because it's like cotton, right, you can't 245 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:16,760 Speaker 1: eat it, so why are we subsidizing it? I believe 246 00:16:16,840 --> 00:16:20,480 Speaker 1: it goes back to maybe the nineteen fifties. It's for 247 00:16:21,080 --> 00:16:24,800 Speaker 1: goat and sheep producers as they wanted to They wanted 248 00:16:24,880 --> 00:16:28,760 Speaker 1: to be able to have the ability to make cheap clothes, 249 00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:32,840 Speaker 1: clothing and so on. But what about the other things 250 00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:37,320 Speaker 1: we eat? Because unless you're vegan, you're eating other stuff, right, 251 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:40,240 Speaker 1: the stuff other than these grains. You're eating fruits, you're 252 00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:43,160 Speaker 1: eating vegetables, and if you're an omnivore, you're eating meat 253 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:45,560 Speaker 1: or and I know there's several of us in the 254 00:16:45,600 --> 00:16:48,120 Speaker 1: audience who are like, I'm as close to a carnivore 255 00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:50,120 Speaker 1: as you can get. Well, if you're only eating meat, 256 00:16:50,160 --> 00:16:53,440 Speaker 1: that still does affect you, because what doi livestock eat. 257 00:16:53,560 --> 00:16:58,520 Speaker 1: They eat grains, and the people who create the meat, 258 00:16:58,680 --> 00:17:01,440 Speaker 1: fruit and vegetables that you eating, your local grocery store 259 00:17:01,560 --> 00:17:05,080 Speaker 1: or restaurant or your local Applebie's. Of course, Uh, they 260 00:17:05,200 --> 00:17:09,920 Speaker 1: only benefit from things like crop insurance or disaster relief, 261 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:12,680 Speaker 1: and that still can be a lot of money. Between 262 00:17:13,800 --> 00:17:17,920 Speaker 1: seventeen a total of three hundred and sixty nine point 263 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:21,400 Speaker 1: seven billion dollars in crop insurance and disaster relief. We're 264 00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:24,679 Speaker 1: paid out to someone, and so that's our lay of 265 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:27,760 Speaker 1: the land. Now, if you if you took a survey 266 00:17:27,760 --> 00:17:29,520 Speaker 1: now of the US, you would find that there are 267 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:34,920 Speaker 1: two point one million US farms. Percent of these farms 268 00:17:35,200 --> 00:17:37,600 Speaker 1: are I'm gonna I'm gonna say it this way, quote 269 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:43,080 Speaker 1: unquote family owned. Scare quote their family owned. But please 270 00:17:43,080 --> 00:17:47,680 Speaker 1: don't think that's like a small one acre field with 271 00:17:47,760 --> 00:17:51,960 Speaker 1: someone just growing carrots because they like to know. I mean, 272 00:17:52,119 --> 00:17:55,960 Speaker 1: you're you're talking about hundreds of acres A lot of 273 00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:59,359 Speaker 1: times dozens would probably be coming. But then thousands of 274 00:17:59,400 --> 00:18:03,359 Speaker 1: acres is going to be also, very very common. But 275 00:18:03,440 --> 00:18:07,119 Speaker 1: that didn't just happen overnight. These are generationally held lands 276 00:18:07,200 --> 00:18:10,760 Speaker 1: that are expanded, you know, and passed down right, Yeah, 277 00:18:11,080 --> 00:18:14,800 Speaker 1: I mean we still use phrases relating to that practice 278 00:18:15,280 --> 00:18:18,199 Speaker 1: in office jobs across the planet say don't you know, 279 00:18:18,280 --> 00:18:21,879 Speaker 1: don't sell the farm, or someone's gonna buy the farm 280 00:18:21,960 --> 00:18:25,360 Speaker 1: or farm it out or farm it out there we go, Yes, exactly. 281 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:27,399 Speaker 1: The farm is the one thing that can sustain us 282 00:18:27,400 --> 00:18:29,600 Speaker 1: if everything goes bad, I'm gonna send you to the 283 00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:32,760 Speaker 1: funny farm. Yeah, now I'm thinking of farm is an 284 00:18:32,760 --> 00:18:38,520 Speaker 1: acronym like free all real Americans. I don't know. I'm 285 00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:41,840 Speaker 1: working live. This isn't always gonna be a real Americans. 286 00:18:42,160 --> 00:18:45,920 Speaker 1: America today feels like that book Animal Farm, And I think, 287 00:18:45,920 --> 00:18:48,560 Speaker 1: now you might just be naming things with farming. That's true, 288 00:18:49,040 --> 00:18:52,600 Speaker 1: but but yes, yeah, they do play this vital role. 289 00:18:52,640 --> 00:18:55,320 Speaker 1: We see it in language. Why are we know why 290 00:18:55,359 --> 00:18:58,359 Speaker 1: farms are important? Of course, everybody kind of likes eating. 291 00:18:58,600 --> 00:19:02,760 Speaker 1: That's a that's a trend we can rion. But why 292 00:19:02,760 --> 00:19:06,600 Speaker 1: are farm subsidies important? Because they get they get a 293 00:19:06,640 --> 00:19:10,400 Speaker 1: tough they get a tough run. Occasionally in this country 294 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:14,000 Speaker 1: and in others, people will say, well, you know, farm 295 00:19:14,080 --> 00:19:20,439 Speaker 1: subsidies are symptoms of something called protectionism, but of course 296 00:19:20,760 --> 00:19:25,800 Speaker 1: they're also necessary. Yeah on some level. Yeah, where are 297 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:28,720 Speaker 1: you going to get all the food that your country 298 00:19:28,800 --> 00:19:31,480 Speaker 1: is going to eat, especially in the United States, Well, 299 00:19:31,520 --> 00:19:33,120 Speaker 1: you can get it from a bunch of other places. 300 00:19:33,240 --> 00:19:34,960 Speaker 1: You have it all shipped in if you want to, 301 00:19:35,400 --> 00:19:38,760 Speaker 1: But that's a little dangerous relying, you know, depending on 302 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:43,159 Speaker 1: your percentage of relying on imported foods to feed the 303 00:19:43,200 --> 00:19:47,280 Speaker 1: majority of the citizenry. Um, so it is very important 304 00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:49,919 Speaker 1: to have that kind of thing in you're not in 305 00:19:49,920 --> 00:19:55,440 Speaker 1: your pocket, but at yes exactly, yeah, yeah, because otherwise 306 00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:58,760 Speaker 1: you will be at the mercy of the private entity, 307 00:19:59,160 --> 00:20:01,760 Speaker 1: the nonprofit or the other country that is feeding you, 308 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:04,919 Speaker 1: or just travel and logistics. I mean, you know, so 309 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:07,040 Speaker 1: many things can break down in a system like that. 310 00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:09,840 Speaker 1: Look at what's going on with coronavirus now and how 311 00:20:10,040 --> 00:20:13,399 Speaker 1: you know that's really affecting trade with other countries, shipping 312 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:17,720 Speaker 1: and ship exactly. Yeah. Uh. Sales of face mask or 313 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:20,000 Speaker 1: going through the roof even though a lot of people 314 00:20:20,040 --> 00:20:23,000 Speaker 1: have no idea how to use them, Yeah, I don't. 315 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:26,680 Speaker 1: I mean, apparently it's largely not to nag anybody or 316 00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:28,440 Speaker 1: but if it makes you feel better, But I think 317 00:20:28,480 --> 00:20:33,480 Speaker 1: it's largely like almost like ineffective. It's it's not gonna 318 00:20:33,480 --> 00:20:36,960 Speaker 1: work if people are already practicing basic hygiene. Right, wash 319 00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:39,520 Speaker 1: your hand. You guys know everybody listening, you probably know 320 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:41,840 Speaker 1: the rule. But just to say it. If you're worried 321 00:20:41,880 --> 00:20:45,080 Speaker 1: about contracting uh, certain diseases, or if you're in a 322 00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:47,320 Speaker 1: place where you think there might be a lot of 323 00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:51,359 Speaker 1: nasty bugs around. Whenever you wash your hands, you just 324 00:20:51,640 --> 00:20:53,919 Speaker 1: sing in your head or out loud. If you have 325 00:20:53,960 --> 00:20:56,000 Speaker 1: a song in your heart, just sing the Happy Birthday 326 00:20:56,000 --> 00:20:58,160 Speaker 1: song twice. That's how long you need to wash your 327 00:20:58,160 --> 00:21:01,080 Speaker 1: hands to actually disinfect them with soap and water. Yeah, 328 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:06,040 Speaker 1: Or you know, memorize like an m One song or 329 00:21:06,080 --> 00:21:08,000 Speaker 1: you know something like that, and you'll you'll be good 330 00:21:08,040 --> 00:21:11,640 Speaker 1: to go dead preys maybe way of life with stick Man. Yeah, 331 00:21:11,720 --> 00:21:14,560 Speaker 1: just do like if you do that, maybe most of 332 00:21:14,600 --> 00:21:18,000 Speaker 1: the song, you're you're good. So you're up early Matt 333 00:21:19,080 --> 00:21:21,359 Speaker 1: right to us if you get that reference, right to us, 334 00:21:21,400 --> 00:21:24,600 Speaker 1: if you get that reference. So the thing is, you 335 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:27,360 Speaker 1: guys are exactly right. Countries have to have to eat, 336 00:21:27,400 --> 00:21:30,280 Speaker 1: and if we don't take proactive steps to ensure that 337 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,760 Speaker 1: we have some kind of food supply, then everyone will 338 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:37,840 Speaker 1: be left to the cruel whims of fate. The government 339 00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:41,240 Speaker 1: has a job when it comes to food production and 340 00:21:41,359 --> 00:21:44,399 Speaker 1: to make sure ideally that regardless of what's going on 341 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:47,040 Speaker 1: with the economy, regardless of what kind of wars are 342 00:21:47,080 --> 00:21:51,439 Speaker 1: happening domestically or abroad. People are able to eat, and 343 00:21:51,520 --> 00:21:56,720 Speaker 1: that is why food production occupies a weird spot in 344 00:21:56,840 --> 00:22:02,320 Speaker 1: the pantheon of domestic businesses. It's kind of like, uh, 345 00:22:02,359 --> 00:22:05,600 Speaker 1: you know, a lot of governments support or subsidize their 346 00:22:05,640 --> 00:22:09,720 Speaker 1: aircraft industry because they also need planes. Ideally you don't 347 00:22:09,760 --> 00:22:12,000 Speaker 1: have to be buying those from another country, So food 348 00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:15,280 Speaker 1: has to be in some way supported at least that's 349 00:22:15,320 --> 00:22:20,960 Speaker 1: the common the common wisdom so far here in But 350 00:22:21,040 --> 00:22:24,919 Speaker 1: there are other reasons we need farm subsidies beyond just 351 00:22:25,080 --> 00:22:30,040 Speaker 1: the the brutal realist geopolitics of it. Yeah, and this 352 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:32,960 Speaker 1: is where you get into things like money and how 353 00:22:33,080 --> 00:22:35,399 Speaker 1: much it costs. And we're going to talk about that 354 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:46,200 Speaker 1: right after a quick word from our sponsor. We're back. 355 00:22:46,280 --> 00:22:51,719 Speaker 1: So I'm going to be completely transparent here. I lived 356 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,640 Speaker 1: a long time farmers in my family, but I lived 357 00:22:54,640 --> 00:23:00,640 Speaker 1: a long time without knowing the or even understanding the 358 00:23:00,680 --> 00:23:08,480 Speaker 1: commodities trade involved. The commodities trade for farmers is essentially 359 00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:11,600 Speaker 1: an open exchange where people agree on the price of 360 00:23:11,640 --> 00:23:14,360 Speaker 1: a crop. Because we talked about crop prices going up 361 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:16,560 Speaker 1: or going down, but we never talked about how they're 362 00:23:16,600 --> 00:23:21,080 Speaker 1: actually assigned. Yeah, how does that number get there? Uh, 363 00:23:21,160 --> 00:23:25,200 Speaker 1: it's kind of weird. So they they trade on these 364 00:23:25,200 --> 00:23:29,280 Speaker 1: things called futures. Now this isn't too complicated. Think about 365 00:23:29,280 --> 00:23:32,040 Speaker 1: it this way. Anytime you plant something in the ground, 366 00:23:32,040 --> 00:23:34,960 Speaker 1: it takes a certain amount of time to then harvest 367 00:23:35,080 --> 00:23:38,480 Speaker 1: a consumable product, and so within that you get like 368 00:23:38,560 --> 00:23:41,560 Speaker 1: this almost like stock market of its own, kind of 369 00:23:41,600 --> 00:23:45,520 Speaker 1: where people are like placing bets on the success or 370 00:23:45,600 --> 00:23:47,880 Speaker 1: like the way a certain crop will behave. And there's 371 00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:50,960 Speaker 1: obviously conditions that feed into that, whether it's whether or 372 00:23:51,359 --> 00:23:53,800 Speaker 1: you know, pestilence or any kind of conditions that are 373 00:23:53,800 --> 00:23:56,240 Speaker 1: out of people's control. So when you start trading on 374 00:23:56,320 --> 00:23:58,240 Speaker 1: future as, you're kind of trading on the promise of 375 00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:00,760 Speaker 1: a thing that doesn't exist yet. Um, Like you know 376 00:24:00,800 --> 00:24:04,720 Speaker 1: about the tulip bubble in the Netherlands where tulip bulbs 377 00:24:04,760 --> 00:24:08,040 Speaker 1: were worth so much money and it created this like 378 00:24:08,359 --> 00:24:11,040 Speaker 1: supply that exceeded demand and it just kind of tanked. 379 00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:14,600 Speaker 1: But futures is interesting because you're right, Matt, Like they 380 00:24:14,600 --> 00:24:17,400 Speaker 1: do it with whiskey too. You you you buy stock 381 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:22,920 Speaker 1: in whiskey barrels that take decades sometimes to age. It's 382 00:24:22,920 --> 00:24:25,479 Speaker 1: a really interesting concept of futures. It is a little 383 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:28,159 Speaker 1: weird to wrap your head around, but it also is 384 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:31,760 Speaker 1: strangely straightforward. Ben, does there anything you want to clarify 385 00:24:31,760 --> 00:24:34,640 Speaker 1: about that? I think we hit it. Yeah, yeah, it's gambling, right, 386 00:24:35,320 --> 00:24:38,040 Speaker 1: it's it is. It is gambling, but it's a necessary 387 00:24:38,119 --> 00:24:43,640 Speaker 1: system because you know, imagine you plant a crop at 388 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:46,400 Speaker 1: a time when you saw the crops selling for I'm 389 00:24:46,440 --> 00:24:49,440 Speaker 1: just making up numbers here, saw it selling for five 390 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:53,920 Speaker 1: dollars a bushel, and there was nothing like a commodity exchange. 391 00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:57,520 Speaker 1: You couldn't make an agreement that your crop would when 392 00:24:57,560 --> 00:25:00,520 Speaker 1: it was time to harvest, also sell for five dollar bushel. 393 00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:03,800 Speaker 1: And without that, what happens if you put all in, 394 00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:06,520 Speaker 1: all this work and now it's only selling for fifty 395 00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:10,160 Speaker 1: cents of bushel? You know, it's it's it's a gamble 396 00:25:10,280 --> 00:25:16,560 Speaker 1: that people. You could compare it maybe to a utility bill. 397 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:21,120 Speaker 1: Some utility bills will give you the opportunity to pay 398 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:23,920 Speaker 1: your bill on what's called a variable rate, right for 399 00:25:24,119 --> 00:25:27,040 Speaker 1: power bill per therm or something, or you can get 400 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:30,200 Speaker 1: a fixed rate for six to twelve months, which maybe 401 00:25:30,240 --> 00:25:33,639 Speaker 1: a little higher than you would want, but is it 402 00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:36,120 Speaker 1: gives you the advantage of consistency. So that's what people 403 00:25:36,160 --> 00:25:38,040 Speaker 1: are looking for. And you know, one of those ways 404 00:25:39,240 --> 00:25:42,520 Speaker 1: really screwsy out of money. And I still I'm not 405 00:25:42,600 --> 00:25:45,600 Speaker 1: sure which way is the best or the worst, and 406 00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:48,159 Speaker 1: I've done both in the course of my lifetime. I 407 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:49,920 Speaker 1: just want to put in ear so we get to 408 00:25:49,960 --> 00:25:52,440 Speaker 1: the kind of connected up to the next thing. Just 409 00:25:52,480 --> 00:25:55,359 Speaker 1: that concept of betting on what the crop is going 410 00:25:55,440 --> 00:25:57,080 Speaker 1: to be like by the time we get around the 411 00:25:57,119 --> 00:26:01,359 Speaker 1: harvest time. That concept that I'm gonna lock in this 412 00:26:01,480 --> 00:26:05,399 Speaker 1: price with a futures contract of how much bushel is 413 00:26:05,400 --> 00:26:07,160 Speaker 1: going to cost or a barrel or whatever it is 414 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:11,159 Speaker 1: is going to cost, and then from that future's contract, 415 00:26:11,600 --> 00:26:15,920 Speaker 1: I'm gonna take out giant loans for all this stuff 416 00:26:15,960 --> 00:26:19,199 Speaker 1: that that it costs for a ton of money that 417 00:26:19,280 --> 00:26:22,760 Speaker 1: it costs to actually make this harvest. Yeah. Yeah, So 418 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:28,439 Speaker 1: a lot of farmers rely on loans. You borrow in 419 00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:31,159 Speaker 1: the spring and that's when you plant your seeds, and 420 00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:33,199 Speaker 1: then you pay your debt in the fall when you 421 00:26:33,280 --> 00:26:37,240 Speaker 1: sell your harvest. And that also makes it feel, you know, 422 00:26:37,359 --> 00:26:39,919 Speaker 1: like you're like you're gambling, You're doing a little bit 423 00:26:39,920 --> 00:26:43,040 Speaker 1: of roll of the dice in Yolo. People could argue, 424 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:46,400 Speaker 1: but this also means that if you have a few 425 00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:50,080 Speaker 1: years where, for one reason or another something completely beyond 426 00:26:50,119 --> 00:26:53,399 Speaker 1: your control crops were bad, or crops were good but 427 00:26:53,480 --> 00:26:58,240 Speaker 1: prices were low, then you are one catastrophe away from 428 00:26:58,280 --> 00:27:02,639 Speaker 1: possibly going under, you know, getting getting the farm uh, 429 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:07,080 Speaker 1: you know, foreclosed upon, or having to sell a bunch 430 00:27:07,119 --> 00:27:11,200 Speaker 1: of equipment or something like that. And from the statistics 431 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:16,240 Speaker 1: we saw many farms can't can't survive about two years 432 00:27:16,240 --> 00:27:20,320 Speaker 1: of bad luck without going under or getting in serious 433 00:27:20,359 --> 00:27:24,240 Speaker 1: trouble because farms can't move. It's the thing. You can't 434 00:27:24,240 --> 00:27:27,320 Speaker 1: pull up your tent steaks. Really, I mean, shoot, most 435 00:27:27,359 --> 00:27:29,720 Speaker 1: of us, I'm just gonna put myself in this category 436 00:27:29,840 --> 00:27:34,000 Speaker 1: can't afford two months of bad luck in their current 437 00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:37,679 Speaker 1: financial situation. Just put that out there. So imagining like 438 00:27:37,760 --> 00:27:41,320 Speaker 1: being a big business, like a farm with with all 439 00:27:41,359 --> 00:27:43,920 Speaker 1: of this uh based on loans that you have to 440 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:47,280 Speaker 1: take out every year. I get anxiety just thinking about it. Man, 441 00:27:47,840 --> 00:27:51,600 Speaker 1: whenever somebody asked me to predict specific numbers, it always 442 00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:54,080 Speaker 1: feels like a trap. Why else would you ask what 443 00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:56,440 Speaker 1: to do that? Yeah, well, I mean you know, it's 444 00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:59,120 Speaker 1: a whole different podcast. But this is one of those 445 00:27:59,160 --> 00:28:01,920 Speaker 1: things and one of the reasons maybe at some point 446 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:06,679 Speaker 1: we should explore self harm and farmers and like you know, 447 00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:10,160 Speaker 1: suicides and things like that. The pressure is just immense, 448 00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:12,680 Speaker 1: I mean, to perform and so many things like again 449 00:28:12,680 --> 00:28:14,080 Speaker 1: that we were talking about, are out of your control 450 00:28:14,119 --> 00:28:17,880 Speaker 1: acts of God, you know, crazy wet weather patterns and storms. 451 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:20,679 Speaker 1: And this idea of you know, climate change maybe or 452 00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:22,920 Speaker 1: maybe not being a thing, sure seems like it's a 453 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:25,080 Speaker 1: bit of a thing that has a real impact on 454 00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,320 Speaker 1: a lot of people's lives, especially in that industry. Agreed, 455 00:28:28,720 --> 00:28:33,560 Speaker 1: And so we've we've painted a very broad picture of 456 00:28:33,560 --> 00:28:37,720 Speaker 1: of how this industry works. And it seems, like you said, no, 457 00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:40,680 Speaker 1: it seems pretty easy to understand once once you go 458 00:28:40,760 --> 00:28:44,280 Speaker 1: through some nuts and bolts on it. But not so fast, 459 00:28:44,760 --> 00:28:48,080 Speaker 1: because first it appears that the image of the small 460 00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:52,240 Speaker 1: family farm that many people outside of farming communities think 461 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:55,880 Speaker 1: of is not as accurate as we might imagine. We 462 00:28:56,000 --> 00:28:59,480 Speaker 1: know that it was true at some point, but now 463 00:28:59,640 --> 00:29:02,480 Speaker 1: just turn a profit. As as you guys said earlier, 464 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:07,200 Speaker 1: you have to accrete more land volume. Baby economy is 465 00:29:07,240 --> 00:29:13,200 Speaker 1: scale capitalism, right, the only the only ideology that can 466 00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:16,800 Speaker 1: take a T shirt that says, you know, screw capitalism 467 00:29:16,840 --> 00:29:21,320 Speaker 1: and then sell them across the planet fifteen dollars of pop. 468 00:29:21,560 --> 00:29:23,600 Speaker 1: I mean, people get mad, but that's that's how the 469 00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:27,160 Speaker 1: system works. The problem here is that when it comes 470 00:29:27,160 --> 00:29:32,520 Speaker 1: to farm subsidies, ideologies aside a strong body of critics 471 00:29:32,680 --> 00:29:37,160 Speaker 1: argue that this system has a dark side, a dark 472 00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:41,600 Speaker 1: side that's more expensive than you think. Here's where it 473 00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:46,280 Speaker 1: gets crazy. Yeah, I mean, it's no secret that this system, 474 00:29:46,400 --> 00:29:50,320 Speaker 1: just like many systems, just isn't perfect. There is an 475 00:29:50,320 --> 00:29:55,840 Speaker 1: absolute litany of problems. First, since not all crops are 476 00:29:55,840 --> 00:29:57,480 Speaker 1: eligible for subsidies, like we said at the top of 477 00:29:57,520 --> 00:30:01,800 Speaker 1: the show, countries can get in to situations where there's 478 00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:07,200 Speaker 1: a lack of diversification of crops. Farmers who really need 479 00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:11,320 Speaker 1: subsidies might be forced to grow crops that are dictated 480 00:30:11,440 --> 00:30:18,000 Speaker 1: by these programs, which affects variety or diversity of agricultural 481 00:30:18,240 --> 00:30:22,400 Speaker 1: products in the market, which then ultimately defeats the purpose 482 00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:28,440 Speaker 1: of lowering agricultural imports because then products that aren't produced 483 00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:31,760 Speaker 1: locally are going to have to be farmed out as 484 00:30:31,760 --> 00:30:35,920 Speaker 1: it were elsewhere. Yeah, I mean think about Okay, so 485 00:30:35,920 --> 00:30:40,880 Speaker 1: so think about that we're we're the government. We're saying, okay, 486 00:30:40,920 --> 00:30:44,840 Speaker 1: we'll pay you uh to give you some to give 487 00:30:44,880 --> 00:30:47,600 Speaker 1: you a support net, right, a safety net, rather a 488 00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:51,640 Speaker 1: support network, a safety net while you are growing food 489 00:30:51,720 --> 00:30:53,600 Speaker 1: for the nation, and we'll try to make sure that 490 00:30:53,640 --> 00:30:55,600 Speaker 1: you can make some sort of living off it, but 491 00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:59,200 Speaker 1: only if you grow the following things. And then someone's like, well, 492 00:30:59,800 --> 00:31:04,080 Speaker 1: I grow tomatoes. You you guys hate to me. What's 493 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:06,960 Speaker 1: what's going to happen? How do I survive as as 494 00:31:07,000 --> 00:31:11,120 Speaker 1: the tomato guy? And then they naturally say, and you 495 00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:13,840 Speaker 1: can't blame people, they say, well, forget tomatoes. I'm going 496 00:31:13,880 --> 00:31:17,920 Speaker 1: to grow a different crop that is way less risky. 497 00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:22,360 Speaker 1: That means eventually this domino effect occurs and no one's 498 00:31:22,360 --> 00:31:26,200 Speaker 1: growing tomatoes, right, and then something happens where we need tomatoes, 499 00:31:26,560 --> 00:31:29,360 Speaker 1: and we think, well, we should have been nicer to 500 00:31:29,400 --> 00:31:31,800 Speaker 1: those other countries. You should they come to me a 501 00:31:31,880 --> 00:31:33,960 Speaker 1: year ago. No, it's true. I mean you really do 502 00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:36,760 Speaker 1: have to do. You have to chase those subsidies in 503 00:31:36,800 --> 00:31:39,600 Speaker 1: the same way like film production, as you know the people, 504 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:42,440 Speaker 1: you go where the money is, you go where the 505 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:45,200 Speaker 1: best tax brakes are. And it's just not even a 506 00:31:45,280 --> 00:31:48,240 Speaker 1: question like sure, maybe I love blueberries. It's my favorite 507 00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:50,400 Speaker 1: fruit of always wanted to be a blueberry farmer. But 508 00:31:50,440 --> 00:31:53,560 Speaker 1: there just isn't that same money for blueberries as there 509 00:31:53,640 --> 00:31:58,960 Speaker 1: is for for corn yep, and there's not. There's not 510 00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:01,880 Speaker 1: a silver Bullets oution for that. Another problem is that 511 00:32:01,960 --> 00:32:06,800 Speaker 1: this leads to discrimination against some farmers, right, That's that's 512 00:32:06,800 --> 00:32:11,440 Speaker 1: the thing. If you insist on growing a non eligible crop, 513 00:32:11,840 --> 00:32:14,760 Speaker 1: then you have a higher chance of failure, and if 514 00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:17,960 Speaker 1: you play ball with the government and grow a subsidized crop, 515 00:32:18,040 --> 00:32:21,040 Speaker 1: you have a higher chance of success. Somebody's putting their 516 00:32:21,080 --> 00:32:24,200 Speaker 1: thumb on the scale. And people who are against government 517 00:32:24,320 --> 00:32:27,080 Speaker 1: intervention just in general, right, people who lean a more 518 00:32:27,120 --> 00:32:31,640 Speaker 1: a little more libertarian would say this, this is not 519 00:32:31,840 --> 00:32:34,520 Speaker 1: the correct way to address the system. That this becomes 520 00:32:34,560 --> 00:32:38,080 Speaker 1: big government too quickly. And it is a very it's 521 00:32:38,120 --> 00:32:41,200 Speaker 1: a very big bet that we're placing the other problem, 522 00:32:41,400 --> 00:32:47,560 Speaker 1: environmental damage. You want. If you were a traditional farming outfit, 523 00:32:48,080 --> 00:32:52,600 Speaker 1: then you rotate crops. You plant crop A one season, 524 00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:56,240 Speaker 1: you plant crop B another and they kind of interact 525 00:32:56,320 --> 00:32:58,479 Speaker 1: with each other to feed the soil to keep it 526 00:32:58,520 --> 00:33:02,320 Speaker 1: from being uh the worthless because eventually, if you grow 527 00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:05,200 Speaker 1: the same thing. Depending on the crop, then the soil 528 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:08,640 Speaker 1: will just not sustain it. It It won't be as nutrient 529 00:33:08,760 --> 00:33:12,080 Speaker 1: rich because all the other identical crops wanted the identical 530 00:33:12,160 --> 00:33:14,920 Speaker 1: stuff in the dirt and there's less of it to 531 00:33:14,960 --> 00:33:16,720 Speaker 1: go around. It makes sense. I never thought of it 532 00:33:16,760 --> 00:33:20,280 Speaker 1: that way. It's really interesting. I I only took one 533 00:33:20,560 --> 00:33:24,640 Speaker 1: very minor gardening class at a local place every year, 534 00:33:24,640 --> 00:33:27,080 Speaker 1: but it was really that was the big takeaway from me, 535 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:30,520 Speaker 1: was rotating crops and figuring out how you actually get 536 00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,440 Speaker 1: your soil to be ready for a certain plant and 537 00:33:33,480 --> 00:33:36,360 Speaker 1: then switching that out so then the nitrogen gets back 538 00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:39,360 Speaker 1: in or the levels of nitrogen and pH balance and 539 00:33:39,360 --> 00:33:41,920 Speaker 1: everything gets correct. It's very I mean, it's fascinating. I 540 00:33:42,040 --> 00:33:44,680 Speaker 1: never thought about it before. I thought, oh, here's some dirt, 541 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:47,200 Speaker 1: put some stuff in there and then it'll grow. Yeah, 542 00:33:47,240 --> 00:33:52,760 Speaker 1: but you have to wait. That's why there's agricultural science colleges. 543 00:33:53,320 --> 00:33:57,200 Speaker 1: And the other aspect here is, of course this is related, 544 00:33:57,280 --> 00:33:59,080 Speaker 1: but it's not a one to one. Thing is the 545 00:33:59,240 --> 00:34:03,120 Speaker 1: enormous use pesticides, which were later proven to be quite 546 00:34:03,120 --> 00:34:08,120 Speaker 1: delatorious to uh, anything that wasn't a certain crop, as 547 00:34:08,160 --> 00:34:13,040 Speaker 1: well as animals like people, people scoffed at us to 548 00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:15,120 Speaker 1: brag a little bit. People scoffed at us back in 549 00:34:15,160 --> 00:34:17,880 Speaker 1: two thousand and nine when we said there's solid proof 550 00:34:17,920 --> 00:34:22,879 Speaker 1: that a class of pesticides called neo nikotonoids are are 551 00:34:23,280 --> 00:34:28,960 Speaker 1: directly responsible for the collapse in domestic b populations. And 552 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:32,239 Speaker 1: it turns out we were right. Well, we the scientists 553 00:34:32,239 --> 00:34:34,359 Speaker 1: who did the research, were right, and we just set 554 00:34:34,400 --> 00:34:42,000 Speaker 1: it into microphone. We just listened today. Good job, Well, 555 00:34:42,640 --> 00:34:45,560 Speaker 1: this this is true. So at this point you might 556 00:34:45,560 --> 00:34:48,880 Speaker 1: be saying, wait, how does this affect me, Matt Noel 557 00:34:48,960 --> 00:34:51,640 Speaker 1: Mission control bend. I'm not a farmer. I have nothing 558 00:34:51,680 --> 00:34:54,560 Speaker 1: against them, but I'm not a farmer. What does this 559 00:34:54,600 --> 00:34:57,440 Speaker 1: matter to me other than you know, I'm paying my 560 00:34:57,640 --> 00:34:59,920 Speaker 1: tax dollars, right, and I don't have a control of 561 00:35:00,040 --> 00:35:03,080 Speaker 1: where they go. And I do like rice cakes, and 562 00:35:03,120 --> 00:35:05,440 Speaker 1: I like rice cakes, you know. Uh. And I've always 563 00:35:05,480 --> 00:35:08,759 Speaker 1: thought of myself as a blueberry farmer tomato guy, that's right, 564 00:35:08,880 --> 00:35:12,000 Speaker 1: My local thie restaurant is like one of my favorite spots. 565 00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:14,520 Speaker 1: I can see that because now they finally give you 566 00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:17,719 Speaker 1: the appropriate heat, right, yeah, and just really great rice. 567 00:35:18,120 --> 00:35:20,759 Speaker 1: This guy's a hard time convincing people in restaurants to 568 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:24,239 Speaker 1: give him the amount of heat or spicy wants tie 569 00:35:24,280 --> 00:35:26,279 Speaker 1: places will say you want it tie hot, and they 570 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:29,440 Speaker 1: look at you really serious, and I go, yes, I 571 00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:33,240 Speaker 1: mean it. Can you make it hotter? And pro nolan, 572 00:35:33,320 --> 00:35:36,840 Speaker 1: I have seen that in action. Don't question me. No, 573 00:35:36,960 --> 00:35:41,319 Speaker 1: it's true. Matt is a spice monger. Absolutely spice un 574 00:35:41,640 --> 00:35:47,760 Speaker 1: spice lord. Yeah, yeah, spice lord. So traveling without moving, 575 00:35:48,080 --> 00:35:51,960 Speaker 1: traveling without moving. So it affects you in another way, 576 00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:55,160 Speaker 1: and it's very important. Let's walk through it. When people 577 00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:58,040 Speaker 1: are paid to focus on certain crops, those crops end 578 00:35:58,160 --> 00:36:00,480 Speaker 1: up being cheaper. And when they end up being cheaper, 579 00:36:00,560 --> 00:36:03,279 Speaker 1: they become a more common part of your diet. It's 580 00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:07,719 Speaker 1: just easier. And that is why grains overall make up 581 00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:12,440 Speaker 1: one fourth of the average American diet. Another fourth of 582 00:36:12,480 --> 00:36:17,240 Speaker 1: it is made entirely of oil from corn, soybeans, and canola. 583 00:36:17,840 --> 00:36:22,960 Speaker 1: Fruits and vegetables. If you're keeping score, are a ten percent, 584 00:36:23,080 --> 00:36:26,400 Speaker 1: less than ten percent and more than six percent of 585 00:36:26,440 --> 00:36:30,120 Speaker 1: these farm subsidies go to stuff that your your old 586 00:36:30,160 --> 00:36:33,479 Speaker 1: middle school or high school nutrition teacher would have called 587 00:36:33,560 --> 00:36:37,480 Speaker 1: junk food, corn syrup, high fruit. This corn syrup which 588 00:36:37,520 --> 00:36:40,040 Speaker 1: isn't everything isn't at the top part of the food 589 00:36:40,080 --> 00:36:46,080 Speaker 1: pyramid supposed to be Yeah, fat soils, yeah, yeah, it's 590 00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:48,919 Speaker 1: supposed to be in the food pyramid has its own problems, right. 591 00:36:49,360 --> 00:36:53,040 Speaker 1: But you, if you are from the US, or if 592 00:36:53,040 --> 00:36:55,560 Speaker 1: you've ever traveled here, I'm sure you've noticed when you 593 00:36:55,600 --> 00:36:58,120 Speaker 1: read the ingredients of stuff that corn is in a 594 00:36:58,200 --> 00:37:01,719 Speaker 1: lot of things, not even things you would expect, right, 595 00:37:02,120 --> 00:37:07,680 Speaker 1: manufacturing products. And part of that goes back to the subsidies. 596 00:37:07,719 --> 00:37:11,800 Speaker 1: So you could build an argument then that the federal government, 597 00:37:12,400 --> 00:37:18,799 Speaker 1: through its food subsidization is contributing to America's obesity problem 598 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:21,879 Speaker 1: because again, high fric those corn serupers and everything. I'm 599 00:37:21,960 --> 00:37:25,280 Speaker 1: sure our friends Lauren and Annie over on our sister 600 00:37:25,320 --> 00:37:30,040 Speaker 1: podcast Savor have an episode about corn syrup. But it 601 00:37:30,200 --> 00:37:32,640 Speaker 1: is it can be bad for you, at least when 602 00:37:32,680 --> 00:37:35,160 Speaker 1: you're consuming it at the level that most people do. 603 00:37:35,719 --> 00:37:41,000 Speaker 1: US farm subsidies also blocked global trade. Uh. This this 604 00:37:41,120 --> 00:37:43,239 Speaker 1: is its own thing. We won't spend too much time 605 00:37:43,239 --> 00:37:49,240 Speaker 1: on this, but uh, US farm subsidies have an effect 606 00:37:49,520 --> 00:37:55,840 Speaker 1: beyond the domestic market. In fact, you can hear multiple 607 00:37:55,920 --> 00:38:01,800 Speaker 1: voices in developing countries arguing against these subsidies in developed countries, 608 00:38:01,960 --> 00:38:05,200 Speaker 1: because if you're a farmer in a wealthy country that 609 00:38:05,239 --> 00:38:08,440 Speaker 1: can pay you a guaranteed price or even give you 610 00:38:08,480 --> 00:38:11,640 Speaker 1: a safety net, and if things go sideways, then it's 611 00:38:11,719 --> 00:38:14,520 Speaker 1: much easier for you to sell stuff than it is 612 00:38:14,600 --> 00:38:17,760 Speaker 1: if you're the same kind of farmer in a less 613 00:38:17,760 --> 00:38:21,960 Speaker 1: developed country whose government does not give you subsidies. So 614 00:38:22,160 --> 00:38:26,239 Speaker 1: one of the most well known examples of how uh 615 00:38:26,280 --> 00:38:31,200 Speaker 1: these policies can affect farms, even even if they're outside 616 00:38:31,200 --> 00:38:35,240 Speaker 1: of the country as the subsidies is the relationship between 617 00:38:35,280 --> 00:38:42,480 Speaker 1: Haiti and the US involving rice. So Haiti is developing country. 618 00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:47,680 Speaker 1: It had the capacity to produce rice. It does have 619 00:38:47,760 --> 00:38:50,480 Speaker 1: the capacity, but at one time it was able to 620 00:38:50,560 --> 00:38:54,480 Speaker 1: produce all the rice that needed for its people. However, 621 00:38:54,719 --> 00:38:58,319 Speaker 1: now that is no longer the case. Six of the 622 00:38:58,360 --> 00:39:04,680 Speaker 1: food consumed in Haiti is imported. They lowered tariffs and 623 00:39:04,760 --> 00:39:08,400 Speaker 1: so they were flooded with rice that was cheaply produced 624 00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:12,560 Speaker 1: in the United States and was able to outcompete rice 625 00:39:12,600 --> 00:39:15,520 Speaker 1: farmers in Haiti because they didn't have those subsidies, they 626 00:39:15,520 --> 00:39:21,400 Speaker 1: didn't have helping hand from Uncle Sam, and this meant 627 00:39:21,520 --> 00:39:26,400 Speaker 1: that the domestically produced rice was displaced so this is 628 00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:30,560 Speaker 1: a thing we're removing. That trade barrier led to a 629 00:39:30,680 --> 00:39:34,800 Speaker 1: very real cost for the people of or the farmers 630 00:39:34,920 --> 00:39:39,080 Speaker 1: of Haiti. So the people of Haiti were able to 631 00:39:39,120 --> 00:39:44,600 Speaker 1: get food at a lower cost, but the rice farmers had, 632 00:39:45,080 --> 00:39:49,520 Speaker 1: you know, they got painted into a corner. According tox 633 00:39:49,560 --> 00:39:51,399 Speaker 1: Fan and the I m F. I actually, I want 634 00:39:51,440 --> 00:39:55,880 Speaker 1: to correct myself here. I believe now okay, Haiti is 635 00:39:55,960 --> 00:40:00,600 Speaker 1: importing sixty of its food overall, but a e percent 636 00:40:00,680 --> 00:40:04,279 Speaker 1: of the rice is imported now, which is crazy because 637 00:40:04,320 --> 00:40:07,640 Speaker 1: it would have been if not for this trade stuff, 638 00:40:07,640 --> 00:40:11,680 Speaker 1: it would have been entirely self sufficient country. You know this, 639 00:40:11,680 --> 00:40:13,879 Speaker 1: This is a real issue here, and I would say 640 00:40:13,880 --> 00:40:16,400 Speaker 1: a lot of the problems arise because of the next 641 00:40:16,719 --> 00:40:20,080 Speaker 1: thing we're going to talk about. When you're we've the 642 00:40:20,120 --> 00:40:24,840 Speaker 1: way we've been talking about this, it makes it feel like, Okay, 643 00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:28,120 Speaker 1: it's a farm, it's a family, it's a you know, uh, 644 00:40:28,360 --> 00:40:30,600 Speaker 1: you know, whatever you want, whatever a family looks like 645 00:40:30,640 --> 00:40:33,360 Speaker 1: to you. It's that just living on a farm and 646 00:40:33,400 --> 00:40:36,719 Speaker 1: producing a thing. But as we find, these subsidies are 647 00:40:36,760 --> 00:40:42,359 Speaker 1: not necessarily for that type of farming situation. And we'll 648 00:40:42,360 --> 00:40:52,640 Speaker 1: get to that after a word from our sponsor and 649 00:40:52,680 --> 00:40:55,440 Speaker 1: we're back. There's another problem, and you can see it 650 00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:58,200 Speaker 1: in the example that we just gave about the Haitian 651 00:40:58,320 --> 00:41:02,440 Speaker 1: rice and and a deal stuff. That's that's a whole 652 00:41:02,480 --> 00:41:05,680 Speaker 1: different bag of badgers. The point we're making is that 653 00:41:05,719 --> 00:41:09,760 Speaker 1: these subsidies overall throughout the world, in whichever country they occur, 654 00:41:10,040 --> 00:41:14,200 Speaker 1: they tend to help high income business, not the poor 655 00:41:14,719 --> 00:41:17,719 Speaker 1: rural farmers that so many people think of when they 656 00:41:17,760 --> 00:41:21,000 Speaker 1: hear the word family well when they hear the term 657 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:24,759 Speaker 1: family farm. As a matter of fact, the majority of 658 00:41:24,800 --> 00:41:29,560 Speaker 1: this money goes to huge agribusinesses and the numbers are spooky. 659 00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:33,600 Speaker 1: So between nine seventeen, the top ten percent of recipients 660 00:41:33,680 --> 00:41:37,479 Speaker 1: got seventy seven percent of the two hundred and five 661 00:41:37,560 --> 00:41:41,719 Speaker 1: point four billion that was distributed, and that is according 662 00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:45,000 Speaker 1: to the e w G Farm Subsidy Database. Then the 663 00:41:45,040 --> 00:41:48,200 Speaker 1: top one percent received twenty percent of the payments, and 664 00:41:48,280 --> 00:41:51,400 Speaker 1: that kind of averages out to around one point seven 665 00:41:51,480 --> 00:41:55,880 Speaker 1: million per company. Fifty people on the Forbes four hundred 666 00:41:55,880 --> 00:41:59,960 Speaker 1: lists of the wealthiest human beings in America received farm subsidies. 667 00:42:00,400 --> 00:42:03,560 Speaker 1: On the other hand, sixty of US farms did not 668 00:42:03,800 --> 00:42:07,040 Speaker 1: get any. And you remember Raven who wrote to us 669 00:42:07,040 --> 00:42:08,919 Speaker 1: at the top of the show and include us into 670 00:42:08,960 --> 00:42:12,839 Speaker 1: this topic. We will let this savvy listener sum it up. 671 00:42:13,120 --> 00:42:17,360 Speaker 1: We've got rice Lands Foods Incorporated at five hundred and 672 00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:23,800 Speaker 1: fifty four million dollars, producers, Rice Mill Incorporated, UH three 673 00:42:23,960 --> 00:42:29,040 Speaker 1: million dollars, farmers, Rice co Op hundred forty six million 674 00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:35,040 Speaker 1: dollars UH number four only forty eight million received, and 675 00:42:35,080 --> 00:42:38,560 Speaker 1: it trickles down from there. It's pretty big. Describe a 676 00:42:38,680 --> 00:42:42,839 Speaker 1: big old dip in. Uh So, what's what's the deal? Well, 677 00:42:42,840 --> 00:42:45,880 Speaker 1: the one thing you'll notice is that it's all sure, 678 00:42:46,960 --> 00:42:50,719 Speaker 1: very uncreatively named corporations, if I might add, and it's 679 00:42:50,760 --> 00:42:54,719 Speaker 1: a precipitous dip from one rank to the next, from 680 00:42:54,760 --> 00:42:57,239 Speaker 1: five fifty four all the way down to three four 681 00:42:57,680 --> 00:43:01,200 Speaker 1: and then number four. Only forty eight million, I say, 682 00:43:01,239 --> 00:43:04,160 Speaker 1: only forty eight millions. I don't think any of us 683 00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:06,520 Speaker 1: have been in a situation where we said, you know, 684 00:43:06,560 --> 00:43:09,440 Speaker 1: it's only forty eight million. It's not like fifty. We 685 00:43:09,480 --> 00:43:13,920 Speaker 1: can still go to David Busters later. Sorry, it's it's 686 00:43:13,960 --> 00:43:16,400 Speaker 1: my dream to be to David Busters with an ungodly 687 00:43:16,440 --> 00:43:20,920 Speaker 1: amount of money. I wouldn't you rather have David Busters tickets? 688 00:43:21,760 --> 00:43:24,360 Speaker 1: I guess so, yeah, yeah, I would want to participate 689 00:43:24,360 --> 00:43:26,279 Speaker 1: in their currency. Right, they won't take your money there. 690 00:43:26,360 --> 00:43:30,319 Speaker 1: David Busters only tickets. I don't know why casinos bothered me, 691 00:43:30,360 --> 00:43:33,239 Speaker 1: but I love David Busters. It's kind of the same thing, 692 00:43:33,280 --> 00:43:35,239 Speaker 1: but for kids, right well, se yeah, I mean it's 693 00:43:35,280 --> 00:43:38,719 Speaker 1: it's half it's really for drunk adults kind of more 694 00:43:38,719 --> 00:43:41,520 Speaker 1: than anything. Okay, well I haven't been. I haven't been 695 00:43:41,560 --> 00:43:43,520 Speaker 1: in a long time. I thought you'd never been. It's 696 00:43:43,520 --> 00:43:45,160 Speaker 1: about to be very sad for you talk about it 697 00:43:45,239 --> 00:43:47,920 Speaker 1: so much. Yeah, I love the idea of it. At least, 698 00:43:47,960 --> 00:43:51,279 Speaker 1: when are we gonna go? Let's we should go. That's 699 00:43:51,280 --> 00:43:53,160 Speaker 1: our show, folks. You guys want to go to Chunky 700 00:43:53,239 --> 00:43:56,000 Speaker 1: Cheese with me and my kid? Yeah, because you have 701 00:43:56,560 --> 00:43:58,920 Speaker 1: to have a kid. It's like a playground at a 702 00:43:58,960 --> 00:44:01,680 Speaker 1: public park, right, it's creepy if you don't have a 703 00:44:01,760 --> 00:44:03,879 Speaker 1: kid there. Not to divert too much from the topic 704 00:44:03,920 --> 00:44:06,000 Speaker 1: of hand, but did you guys know, maybe I've mentioned before, 705 00:44:06,000 --> 00:44:08,319 Speaker 1: they have this crazy system where when you go in, 706 00:44:08,560 --> 00:44:11,360 Speaker 1: you get an invisible ink stamp on your hand and 707 00:44:11,400 --> 00:44:13,440 Speaker 1: on your kid's hand, and they have to match, and 708 00:44:13,480 --> 00:44:15,799 Speaker 1: they like shine a light on you before you leave, 709 00:44:15,880 --> 00:44:18,000 Speaker 1: to make sure you're not like running off with someone 710 00:44:18,040 --> 00:44:22,080 Speaker 1: else's kid. Pretty clever I can do in this system. Yeah, yeah, 711 00:44:22,280 --> 00:44:24,920 Speaker 1: I mean I'll go. I'll go with you Matt if it. 712 00:44:25,719 --> 00:44:28,560 Speaker 1: Yeah yeah. Do they have ski ball? They do? They 713 00:44:28,560 --> 00:44:34,000 Speaker 1: have laser Tag. No, I'll still go, but I won't 714 00:44:34,040 --> 00:44:38,279 Speaker 1: stay along. They have this Yoshi's Haunted Mansion game that 715 00:44:38,480 --> 00:44:42,759 Speaker 1: is pretty awesome. I'm in. I'man assuming that this whole 716 00:44:42,800 --> 00:44:46,600 Speaker 1: thing doesn't burn down before we get a chance to go. Raven, 717 00:44:46,680 --> 00:44:51,120 Speaker 1: you also noted the possibility of another conspiracy, and we'll 718 00:44:51,200 --> 00:44:55,560 Speaker 1: quote from your letter here. You said the bigger payouts 719 00:44:55,600 --> 00:44:59,600 Speaker 1: were substantially higher than all other years, and they happened 720 00:44:59,640 --> 00:45:04,080 Speaker 1: at the same time two thousand, two thousand one, two 721 00:45:04,120 --> 00:45:08,040 Speaker 1: thousand two. Now, remember we had that statistic that you 722 00:45:08,120 --> 00:45:12,040 Speaker 1: quoted at the top. Theirinal in the subsidies were huge. 723 00:45:12,080 --> 00:45:16,160 Speaker 1: There were twenty two billion dollars. But Raven says, I 724 00:45:16,200 --> 00:45:19,960 Speaker 1: don't see a record of a natural disaster or anything 725 00:45:20,000 --> 00:45:24,160 Speaker 1: that could warrant the need for so much assistance. Raven 726 00:45:24,160 --> 00:45:27,480 Speaker 1: continues and says, for a company like rice Land Foods 727 00:45:27,520 --> 00:45:30,200 Speaker 1: that boast almost a million dollars a year in revenue, 728 00:45:30,480 --> 00:45:33,120 Speaker 1: why would they need so much in subsidies? And why 729 00:45:33,120 --> 00:45:37,000 Speaker 1: are the top three also rice Riceland Foods and producers 730 00:45:37,120 --> 00:45:41,520 Speaker 1: Rice mill are both also based in Stuttguard, Arkansas. That's 731 00:45:41,520 --> 00:45:44,200 Speaker 1: a place with less than nine thousand people. And so 732 00:45:44,280 --> 00:45:47,320 Speaker 1: this leads Raven to conclude what the US just pays 733 00:45:47,360 --> 00:45:50,080 Speaker 1: them to exist. Plus they get insurance so if they 734 00:45:50,120 --> 00:45:53,160 Speaker 1: lose money, they can file in insurance claim. You can't 735 00:45:53,200 --> 00:45:57,719 Speaker 1: tell me, says Raven. There's no conspiracy here. So I 736 00:45:58,719 --> 00:46:00,640 Speaker 1: have to ask you guys, you know, is it is 737 00:46:00,640 --> 00:46:03,719 Speaker 1: it possible that this is corruption? Is this what is 738 00:46:03,719 --> 00:46:08,920 Speaker 1: it pork barrel politics? Is somebody pocketing these millions of dollars? 739 00:46:08,960 --> 00:46:13,000 Speaker 1: I mean, these are corporations, so I'm sure that the 740 00:46:13,160 --> 00:46:16,840 Speaker 1: executive suites are, you know, getting their vague in the 741 00:46:17,040 --> 00:46:21,480 Speaker 1: form of bonuses or performance compensation or something. I would say, 742 00:46:21,480 --> 00:46:24,399 Speaker 1: it just feels a bit odd because you know, they 743 00:46:24,440 --> 00:46:29,799 Speaker 1: need that money to stay in business. It it does 744 00:46:29,960 --> 00:46:34,680 Speaker 1: feel weird that the companies wouldn't attempt to like pivot 745 00:46:35,000 --> 00:46:38,080 Speaker 1: to maybe something else. It wouldn't require that level of 746 00:46:38,120 --> 00:46:42,040 Speaker 1: like I think it was fifty of the profits coming 747 00:46:42,120 --> 00:46:47,360 Speaker 1: from or fifty five of their income coming from government subsidies. 748 00:46:47,640 --> 00:46:50,360 Speaker 1: It seems like you'd you'd have to switch and start 749 00:46:50,400 --> 00:46:53,319 Speaker 1: doing something else, just knowing that if you end up 750 00:46:53,360 --> 00:46:56,560 Speaker 1: losing those subsidies, depending on who's in office and the way, 751 00:46:56,719 --> 00:47:01,040 Speaker 1: you know, the winds of change from whatever government becomes, 752 00:47:01,520 --> 00:47:04,239 Speaker 1: you know, whatever as to which crops become priority. I mean, 753 00:47:04,360 --> 00:47:07,840 Speaker 1: like as to whether or not those subsidies continue, because 754 00:47:07,880 --> 00:47:10,520 Speaker 1: they may not, because there's a big debate now about 755 00:47:11,239 --> 00:47:13,600 Speaker 1: a lot of times it's portrayed as in one hand, 756 00:47:13,680 --> 00:47:17,200 Speaker 1: you have subsidizing crops and farms, in the other hand, 757 00:47:17,280 --> 00:47:21,879 Speaker 1: you have snap and uh, you know, helping those who 758 00:47:21,880 --> 00:47:27,080 Speaker 1: are in need. Like like, yeah, food stamps are just 759 00:47:27,440 --> 00:47:31,960 Speaker 1: food assistance programs. So in a lot of times it's 760 00:47:31,960 --> 00:47:35,440 Speaker 1: not those those two things aren't necessarily connected. But maybe 761 00:47:35,440 --> 00:47:39,400 Speaker 1: it's just they appear to be connected in people's minds, 762 00:47:39,520 --> 00:47:43,680 Speaker 1: and lately they've been tied together in like taking money 763 00:47:43,680 --> 00:47:48,560 Speaker 1: away from food assistance and adding money to subsidizing farms. 764 00:47:48,800 --> 00:47:51,799 Speaker 1: The idea of being that those two things are so 765 00:47:52,920 --> 00:47:56,960 Speaker 1: inextricably intertwined that you're kind of putting money in the 766 00:47:57,040 --> 00:48:00,560 Speaker 1: same place in a weird but that's yeah, I wouldn't 767 00:48:00,600 --> 00:48:03,520 Speaker 1: you say that's somewhat disingenuous. I think it's very disingenuous 768 00:48:03,600 --> 00:48:07,239 Speaker 1: because you what you could be doing is all of 769 00:48:07,280 --> 00:48:12,440 Speaker 1: those over you know, creating too much supply, and all 770 00:48:12,480 --> 00:48:15,160 Speaker 1: of these things being paid not to create food. Why 771 00:48:15,239 --> 00:48:19,600 Speaker 1: would you just not have specialized processors like farmers and 772 00:48:19,640 --> 00:48:23,080 Speaker 1: processors to make specialized foods that are then specifically for 773 00:48:23,120 --> 00:48:26,880 Speaker 1: those programs that are just then free. They're paid for 774 00:48:27,040 --> 00:48:30,279 Speaker 1: with the subsidy itself. Well, ultimately the bill comes due, 775 00:48:30,520 --> 00:48:34,120 Speaker 1: you know, someone gets left holding the end voice at 776 00:48:34,120 --> 00:48:36,440 Speaker 1: the end of the day. But it is a good 777 00:48:36,520 --> 00:48:40,600 Speaker 1: question because governments also try to get in front of this, 778 00:48:40,719 --> 00:48:44,319 Speaker 1: for lack of a better corporate term, by buying up 779 00:48:44,520 --> 00:48:47,680 Speaker 1: those excess crops and saving them for a rainy day 780 00:48:47,960 --> 00:48:52,280 Speaker 1: or saving them for people who need assistance. But also, 781 00:48:52,719 --> 00:48:56,560 Speaker 1: you know, it is not disingenuous to argue that snap 782 00:48:56,680 --> 00:49:02,839 Speaker 1: and agricultural subsidies are related, because if the government is 783 00:49:04,000 --> 00:49:08,920 Speaker 1: paying for um for food assistance of some sort, then 784 00:49:08,960 --> 00:49:13,640 Speaker 1: it wants the lowest price, right. And it's strange because 785 00:49:14,040 --> 00:49:16,160 Speaker 1: you can see how there might be a conflict of 786 00:49:16,200 --> 00:49:19,279 Speaker 1: interest there at some point, like if you if you 787 00:49:19,360 --> 00:49:23,840 Speaker 1: put too much money into subsidizing farms, maybe it affects 788 00:49:24,000 --> 00:49:27,520 Speaker 1: the price of food that the government pays for under 789 00:49:27,520 --> 00:49:31,120 Speaker 1: snap in in a way that they didn't anticipate or 790 00:49:31,160 --> 00:49:35,040 Speaker 1: in a way that they do not find favorable. So 791 00:49:35,120 --> 00:49:37,120 Speaker 1: sometimes the left hand doesn't know what the right hand 792 00:49:37,160 --> 00:49:39,640 Speaker 1: is doing here. And that's not saying that anybody is 793 00:49:39,719 --> 00:49:42,200 Speaker 1: necessarily a bad actor. That's just saying that this is 794 00:49:42,440 --> 00:49:45,319 Speaker 1: a complex system with a lot of moving parts, a 795 00:49:45,320 --> 00:49:48,360 Speaker 1: lot of stakeholders, and a lot of people with goals 796 00:49:48,600 --> 00:49:51,960 Speaker 1: that contradict one another. So of course they're gonna butt heads. 797 00:49:52,520 --> 00:49:56,000 Speaker 1: But one thing is for sure, raven Uh, there is 798 00:49:56,040 --> 00:49:59,360 Speaker 1: a lot of money in play here, and money tends 799 00:49:59,400 --> 00:50:03,240 Speaker 1: to make p both, if not terrible, a little less 800 00:50:03,239 --> 00:50:08,040 Speaker 1: worried about ethics in general. Related episode, for anyone who 801 00:50:08,080 --> 00:50:12,319 Speaker 1: hasn't heard it, check out check out the podcast that 802 00:50:12,360 --> 00:50:16,759 Speaker 1: Matt Nolan I did on whether wealth makes you a 803 00:50:16,840 --> 00:50:24,560 Speaker 1: bad person. Studies are fairly conclusive and terrified, like you're 804 00:50:24,680 --> 00:50:28,560 Speaker 1: literally more likely to take candy from children. Someone did 805 00:50:28,600 --> 00:50:32,400 Speaker 1: that study and I think replicated it. Money can't buy happiness, 806 00:50:32,400 --> 00:50:34,799 Speaker 1: but it's sure can make you an a soul. There 807 00:50:34,840 --> 00:50:38,080 Speaker 1: we go, There we go. I want that crocheted and 808 00:50:38,160 --> 00:50:41,760 Speaker 1: hanging up somewhere, you know, one of those little circle frames, 809 00:50:41,880 --> 00:50:44,880 Speaker 1: you know. Yeah, I want to carry that as a 810 00:50:44,880 --> 00:50:48,600 Speaker 1: placard around and replace all the live, laugh love signs 811 00:50:48,600 --> 00:50:50,719 Speaker 1: I see with with that, I can't do that. You 812 00:50:50,760 --> 00:50:53,840 Speaker 1: can't replace other people's signs. It's up to them, you know, 813 00:50:54,000 --> 00:50:56,040 Speaker 1: if they want to live, they want to laugh. Wow, 814 00:50:56,160 --> 00:50:58,719 Speaker 1: I sound like a monster. Hey, I want to bring 815 00:50:58,800 --> 00:51:01,960 Speaker 1: up monster. Sure? Uh No, I want to bring us up. 816 00:51:01,960 --> 00:51:05,720 Speaker 1: There's something I was reading earlier today about finding ways 817 00:51:05,760 --> 00:51:09,279 Speaker 1: to get more money out of these farm subsidies. And 818 00:51:09,520 --> 00:51:13,399 Speaker 1: it was and correct me if I'm wrong, Ben, Paul Noel, 819 00:51:13,800 --> 00:51:17,360 Speaker 1: uh or you listening out there. Um, I believe the 820 00:51:17,400 --> 00:51:20,200 Speaker 1: amount of money you can get in this subsidy for 821 00:51:20,400 --> 00:51:25,120 Speaker 1: farming was eighty thousand dollars per individual. Then you could 822 00:51:25,160 --> 00:51:29,960 Speaker 1: go into like a co op or into a UM, 823 00:51:30,360 --> 00:51:34,920 Speaker 1: create a group or company. Then that has um a 824 00:51:34,960 --> 00:51:36,960 Speaker 1: group of individuals, and then each one of them could 825 00:51:36,960 --> 00:51:39,000 Speaker 1: get eighty thousand, and then that co op can get 826 00:51:39,040 --> 00:51:41,719 Speaker 1: a you know, a much larger sum in subsidies from 827 00:51:41,760 --> 00:51:44,400 Speaker 1: the government. Then you can use that for a larger 828 00:51:44,440 --> 00:51:48,719 Speaker 1: farming operation essentially, And I I don't know exactly what 829 00:51:48,760 --> 00:51:50,319 Speaker 1: the limits are for any of that stuff. But it 830 00:51:50,360 --> 00:51:53,600 Speaker 1: does seem as though you could exploit this system in 831 00:51:53,640 --> 00:51:56,000 Speaker 1: a couple of ways just by teaming up. Is that 832 00:51:56,080 --> 00:52:00,560 Speaker 1: do we know if that's correct? It's they're definitely they're 833 00:52:00,600 --> 00:52:03,680 Speaker 1: definitely loopholes that are in play. I mean, that's the 834 00:52:03,719 --> 00:52:08,719 Speaker 1: only way that uh, only a hundred thousand individuals could 835 00:52:08,719 --> 00:52:12,120 Speaker 1: collect se of the money at play here. So then 836 00:52:12,160 --> 00:52:15,480 Speaker 1: I just wonder what the we're We aren't able to 837 00:52:15,560 --> 00:52:19,279 Speaker 1: really explore the full numbers here, but how that is 838 00:52:19,320 --> 00:52:22,600 Speaker 1: affected when you, let's say you build those numbers up 839 00:52:23,520 --> 00:52:27,120 Speaker 1: and you have a large enough operation that you do 840 00:52:27,239 --> 00:52:31,880 Speaker 1: get into the you know, five hundred million dollars subsidy 841 00:52:32,280 --> 00:52:37,800 Speaker 1: range um. That's ah, that's pretty astonishing. And I wonder 842 00:52:38,200 --> 00:52:42,239 Speaker 1: at what point that five million dollars is actually sustaining 843 00:52:42,280 --> 00:52:46,000 Speaker 1: and making like generating real wealth for the individuals involved 844 00:52:46,040 --> 00:52:49,120 Speaker 1: as we were talking about, Like, I wonder how wealthy 845 00:52:49,239 --> 00:52:53,799 Speaker 1: actually some of the people running those large companies are. Right, 846 00:52:53,920 --> 00:52:57,920 Speaker 1: because you've heard the phrase land rich, cash poor. There 847 00:52:57,960 --> 00:53:02,719 Speaker 1: can be people like through a variety of different financial instruments, 848 00:53:03,080 --> 00:53:06,560 Speaker 1: you can you can appear to be much you can 849 00:53:06,600 --> 00:53:09,399 Speaker 1: appear to have much less or much more money than 850 00:53:09,520 --> 00:53:12,200 Speaker 1: you actually possess, you know what I mean, especially when 851 00:53:12,200 --> 00:53:18,440 Speaker 1: you're leveraging loans, leveraging future speculation gets involved. It's true, 852 00:53:18,600 --> 00:53:20,759 Speaker 1: there there is a lot of money at play, and 853 00:53:20,800 --> 00:53:24,040 Speaker 1: there are many opportunities to game the system. That is 854 00:53:24,080 --> 00:53:27,480 Speaker 1: not the same thing as saying that people are thieving 855 00:53:27,719 --> 00:53:30,319 Speaker 1: or doing that. You know that they're purposely doing that, 856 00:53:30,640 --> 00:53:34,040 Speaker 1: just saying the opportunity is there. We do know that 857 00:53:34,080 --> 00:53:37,280 Speaker 1: the farm subsided program, at least the modern version of it, 858 00:53:37,360 --> 00:53:40,640 Speaker 1: has occupied a special place in the halls of Congress 859 00:53:40,960 --> 00:53:44,520 Speaker 1: and in the halls of various presidential administrations. Like you 860 00:53:44,520 --> 00:53:48,719 Speaker 1: guys remember, uh, the auto industry bailout, right or the 861 00:53:48,800 --> 00:53:55,120 Speaker 1: bank bailout. People were up in arms, torches, pitchforks, you know, 862 00:53:55,360 --> 00:53:58,560 Speaker 1: both sides of Congress had some had some angry words 863 00:53:58,640 --> 00:54:02,680 Speaker 1: to say, and it was hotly debated. But the U. 864 00:54:02,760 --> 00:54:05,319 Speaker 1: S d A created the new farm subsidy program just 865 00:54:05,400 --> 00:54:09,920 Speaker 1: like out of thin air. Congress didn't really have anything 866 00:54:10,000 --> 00:54:13,359 Speaker 1: to say about it. Uh, And we know that if 867 00:54:13,360 --> 00:54:17,040 Speaker 1: we look at the state of subsidies today, Uh, they're 868 00:54:17,120 --> 00:54:20,200 Speaker 1: they're going to continue. In twenty nineteen, the federal government 869 00:54:20,239 --> 00:54:26,440 Speaker 1: delivered the biggest aid package it had delivered in fourteen years. 870 00:54:26,960 --> 00:54:33,279 Speaker 1: You know, the price of farm subsidies has spiked. These 871 00:54:33,320 --> 00:54:35,640 Speaker 1: subsidies aren't going to go away. They may wax and 872 00:54:35,719 --> 00:54:38,760 Speaker 1: wayne in terms of the total money paid out by 873 00:54:38,960 --> 00:54:42,239 Speaker 1: the government and hence the taxpayer. And the question is 874 00:54:42,400 --> 00:54:45,360 Speaker 1: should they go away? Because we know that there's growing 875 00:54:45,400 --> 00:54:49,879 Speaker 1: instability in the global climate, and we know that that 876 00:54:49,960 --> 00:54:53,520 Speaker 1: means even just that alone means that further government intervention 877 00:54:53,719 --> 00:54:58,920 Speaker 1: is probably in the cards. Even people who would otherwise say, 878 00:54:59,160 --> 00:55:03,959 Speaker 1: you know, no big government whatsoever, even those people will 879 00:55:04,080 --> 00:55:06,960 Speaker 1: will sometimes make an exception and come out in defense 880 00:55:07,160 --> 00:55:11,680 Speaker 1: of things like, you know, the military, right, or the 881 00:55:11,719 --> 00:55:16,080 Speaker 1: agricultural industry, especially if they're involved in the farming industry 882 00:55:16,280 --> 00:55:20,840 Speaker 1: and are otherwise solidly libertarian. I'll say this is different 883 00:55:21,120 --> 00:55:24,120 Speaker 1: because everybody needs to eat. Now, what do you think 884 00:55:24,120 --> 00:55:27,040 Speaker 1: about this, folks? What are farm subsidies? Are they in 885 00:55:27,160 --> 00:55:31,759 Speaker 1: economic necessity? Are they an opportunity for a quagmire of 886 00:55:31,960 --> 00:55:36,480 Speaker 1: large scale billion dollar level corruption? Are the fun combo 887 00:55:38,040 --> 00:55:42,400 Speaker 1: like a number two? The yeah? Is it? Is it 888 00:55:42,480 --> 00:55:45,800 Speaker 1: a necessity? And corruption with a side of fries in 889 00:55:45,960 --> 00:55:50,120 Speaker 1: sour gum? And when what is it? Mohir and Mohair 890 00:55:50,280 --> 00:55:54,799 Speaker 1: mohir container just sprinkled on top. Yeah, you don't like 891 00:55:54,840 --> 00:55:58,120 Speaker 1: a little hair on your burger? No, I I feel 892 00:55:58,120 --> 00:55:59,680 Speaker 1: like that's not a hot take. I don't think So 893 00:56:00,200 --> 00:56:02,160 Speaker 1: what if we get so many emails from people who 894 00:56:02,200 --> 00:56:05,240 Speaker 1: are like, I can't believe you guys eat on hairy burgers? 895 00:56:05,680 --> 00:56:07,279 Speaker 1: Have you ever got a hair stuck in your throat 896 00:56:07,280 --> 00:56:09,000 Speaker 1: and you pull it out and it just doesn't stop? 897 00:56:10,840 --> 00:56:15,600 Speaker 1: Like a gross stage magician, just like the like the ring. Yeah, 898 00:56:15,640 --> 00:56:22,600 Speaker 1: I never had that, man. You Nope, me either. Okay, good, 899 00:56:22,760 --> 00:56:25,960 Speaker 1: I was worried for a second. Uh. But but we 900 00:56:26,000 --> 00:56:27,640 Speaker 1: do want to we do want to hear from you 901 00:56:27,880 --> 00:56:30,919 Speaker 1: because this is this is a very serious topic. There's 902 00:56:30,960 --> 00:56:34,200 Speaker 1: a lot of money on the table, and one of 903 00:56:34,239 --> 00:56:36,359 Speaker 1: the one of the biggest points we have to make 904 00:56:36,440 --> 00:56:41,719 Speaker 1: before we end the episode today is this. Obviously, this 905 00:56:41,840 --> 00:56:46,439 Speaker 1: weird arrangement has has a lot of imperfections. Obviously there's 906 00:56:46,480 --> 00:56:51,480 Speaker 1: plenty of room for conspiracy and corruption and later cover ups, 907 00:56:51,520 --> 00:56:55,719 Speaker 1: but that should not be taken in any way to 908 00:56:55,800 --> 00:57:00,840 Speaker 1: be an allegation against all farmers. Farmers throughout American history 909 00:57:00,920 --> 00:57:03,799 Speaker 1: and in the modern day are some of the hardest 910 00:57:03,800 --> 00:57:07,960 Speaker 1: working individuals in this country. Full stop. There you go. 911 00:57:08,320 --> 00:57:10,640 Speaker 1: That's exactly what I would say. Paul, do you wanna 912 00:57:10,920 --> 00:57:13,000 Speaker 1: do you wanna give shout out to any farmers out 913 00:57:13,040 --> 00:57:16,800 Speaker 1: there that have been listening to the show, he says. 914 00:57:16,880 --> 00:57:22,480 Speaker 1: Paul says, I send you my admiration and love. Um 915 00:57:22,520 --> 00:57:25,280 Speaker 1: and oh he's given me his phone number. Okay, uh 916 00:57:25,480 --> 00:57:27,480 Speaker 1: oh no, he says he's going to retract that, but 917 00:57:27,600 --> 00:57:29,640 Speaker 1: he does send his admiration. So we in the room 918 00:57:29,680 --> 00:57:36,760 Speaker 1: here only get his contempt and icy stairs. But but 919 00:57:36,920 --> 00:57:39,520 Speaker 1: you know, it's he's a he's a tough love producer. 920 00:57:39,560 --> 00:57:43,080 Speaker 1: You gotta respect the guy. So it's all about the 921 00:57:43,120 --> 00:57:46,480 Speaker 1: chase with Paul, so as he is gonna kill us. 922 00:57:46,760 --> 00:57:50,800 Speaker 1: So as always, we want to thank you for tuning in. 923 00:57:50,920 --> 00:57:53,440 Speaker 1: We want to hear from you. You can find us 924 00:57:53,560 --> 00:57:57,120 Speaker 1: any number of ways because this concludes our episode, but 925 00:57:57,200 --> 00:58:00,200 Speaker 1: not our show. Some of the best parts of our 926 00:58:00,280 --> 00:58:04,120 Speaker 1: episodes are the parts that you generate in conversation with 927 00:58:04,320 --> 00:58:07,360 Speaker 1: our fellow listeners. Online. You can find us on Facebook, 928 00:58:07,400 --> 00:58:08,840 Speaker 1: you can find us on Twitter, you can find us 929 00:58:08,880 --> 00:58:12,600 Speaker 1: on Instagram. We love to recommend our community page. Here's 930 00:58:12,640 --> 00:58:15,560 Speaker 1: where it gets crazy. If you don't want to do that, 931 00:58:16,160 --> 00:58:18,200 Speaker 1: but you should but if you don't want to, you 932 00:58:18,240 --> 00:58:20,560 Speaker 1: can give us a call. Our number is one eight 933 00:58:20,760 --> 00:58:25,040 Speaker 1: three three st d w y t K. Leave us 934 00:58:25,040 --> 00:58:27,320 Speaker 1: a message, tell us what you're thinking. We look forward 935 00:58:27,360 --> 00:58:30,000 Speaker 1: to talk into you and or at least hearing from you, 936 00:58:30,080 --> 00:58:33,240 Speaker 1: and then maybe you'll get a call back. Who knows. Um, 937 00:58:33,360 --> 00:58:36,160 Speaker 1: if you if you feel like this whole episode was 938 00:58:36,200 --> 00:58:38,600 Speaker 1: just a giant tease to hear Paul's voice and you 939 00:58:38,600 --> 00:58:41,240 Speaker 1: didn't get it, head on over to movie Crush. You 940 00:58:41,280 --> 00:58:44,760 Speaker 1: can find him. You search up his name, Paul decant Uh, 941 00:58:44,840 --> 00:58:49,000 Speaker 1: searching on the internet if you want to track him down. UM, don't, 942 00:58:49,040 --> 00:58:52,720 Speaker 1: don't you know, not like in a creepy early super 943 00:58:52,760 --> 00:58:57,919 Speaker 1: creepy way. Just do it in a standard creepy way, 944 00:58:58,000 --> 00:59:00,520 Speaker 1: you know, waiting outside, staring up at as window in 945 00:59:00,560 --> 00:59:02,960 Speaker 1: the rain. It's all good, holding up a giant jukebox 946 00:59:03,000 --> 00:59:05,800 Speaker 1: playing in your eyes by Peter Gabriel or you know, 947 00:59:05,840 --> 00:59:08,880 Speaker 1: whatever your choice of music. Just make it happen. I 948 00:59:08,920 --> 00:59:12,560 Speaker 1: would say Casey Musgrove is probably a good good call. Uh, 949 00:59:13,160 --> 00:59:15,200 Speaker 1: it's a weird plug for that. I have no idea 950 00:59:15,200 --> 00:59:17,800 Speaker 1: what I would say that or if if you know, 951 00:59:18,280 --> 00:59:21,480 Speaker 1: if you have if you have input here and especially 952 00:59:21,560 --> 00:59:25,720 Speaker 1: if you have personal experience with farm subsidies and you 953 00:59:25,800 --> 00:59:29,040 Speaker 1: have seen, you know, allegations of corruption, or you have 954 00:59:29,160 --> 00:59:32,640 Speaker 1: seen the system work beautifully. We want to hear from you. 955 00:59:33,040 --> 00:59:35,760 Speaker 1: If you're one of those people and you say, I 956 00:59:35,880 --> 00:59:38,800 Speaker 1: have something to say. I hate the Internet. I remember 957 00:59:38,840 --> 00:59:41,960 Speaker 1: your Facebook episode from a few years ago. We do too. 958 00:59:42,080 --> 00:59:46,360 Speaker 1: We do too, And I, like many people, hate using phones. 959 00:59:47,280 --> 00:59:49,960 Speaker 1: But I want to contact you somehow while you are 960 00:59:50,120 --> 00:59:52,640 Speaker 1: in luck, friends and neighbors. We have one more way 961 00:59:52,640 --> 00:59:54,520 Speaker 1: to contact us. You can send us a good old 962 00:59:54,520 --> 01:00:16,840 Speaker 1: fashioned email. We are conspiracy at iHeart radio dot com 963 01:00:00,080 --> 01:00:18,240 Speaker 1: m H. Stuff They Don't Want You to Know is 964 01:00:18,240 --> 01:00:20,760 Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio's How Stuff Works. For 965 01:00:20,840 --> 01:00:23,200 Speaker 1: more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the I heart 966 01:00:23,280 --> 01:00:26,040 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 967 01:00:26,080 --> 01:00:26,760 Speaker 1: favorite shows.