Why Food For Fuel Is A Terrible Idea

Benzinga ^ | 9-2-2011 | Jonathan Chen

[Repeal The 17th]

Look, let's get this thing clear; I quite definitely told you.
No you did not.
Yes I did.
No you didn't.
Yes I did.
No you didn't.
Yes I did.
No you didn't.
Yes I did.
You didn't.
Did.
Oh look, this isn't an argument.
Yes it is.
No it isn't. It's just contradiction.
No it isn't.
It is!
It is not.
Look, you just contradicted me.
I did not.
Oh you did!!
No, no, no.
You did just then.
Nonsense!
Oh, this is futile!
No it isn't.
I came here for a good argument.
No you didn't; no, you came here for an argument.
An argument isn't just contradiction.
It can be.
No it can't. An argument is a connected series of statements intended to establish a proposition.
No it isn't.
Yes it is! It's not just contradiction.
Look, if I argue with you, I must take up a contrary position.
Yes, but that's not just saying 'No it isn't.'
Yes it is!
No it isn't!
Yes it is!

[Former Proud Canadian]

Ok, so 75% of the corn crop is used as food or as cattle and pig feed (humans still eat cattle and pigs) or to produce other foods or beverages that humans consume. The other 25% goes to ethanol only because of the subsidy and tariffs. Without those tariffs and subsidies, that portion would also be used as food or to produce other foods. Even though 100% of the corn crop would be used for human consumption, or to feed animals that would be consumed by humans if there was no subsidy, you still claim corn is not a basic food crop. Ok, I tire of the semantic argument.

How about these facts. Not a single post from you or any of your fellow corn growers addresses my major points, I will repeat them for you. You can thank ME later.

1. Without subsidies, the ethanol industry would not exist. That's because the production of ethanol does not make economic sense. If it did, you wouldn't need a subsidy. The cost to produce ethanol from corn exceeds its market value. You and your ilk advocate collecting money from your fellow citizens at the point of a gun to subsidize ethanol production.

2. The US government is running a large deficit, I'm not sure if your are aware of this little fact. In fact, it borrows over 40 cents of every dollar it spends. So it is borrowing 40% of the ethanol subsidy. The borrowing power of the US government will soon end and subsidies like this are hastening that event.

3. Subsidies aren't enough to support this industry. It also requires a tariff on foreign ethanol because domestic ethanol costs too much to produce and cannot compete on the world market. A tariff is just another tax.

4. Demand and use of corn as a feedstock for ethanol drives up the price of corn. Corn is used as animal feed, human food, and as a feedstock for other food products, as you must know. Increasing the price of corn, buy burning 25% of it as ethanol, increases the price of beef, pork, and a host of other food products. Some people even blame the increase in corn and other foodstuffs for riots in many foreign countries, but I digress.

Facts are stubborn things. Semantics can be argued forever. Why don't you address the facts?