Posted on 03/05/2012 5:24:23 PM PST by opentalk
..Tofteland held the farm together after his father was killed, survived drought and the great flood of 1993. Then, commodity prices sank in the mid-1990s. And like most farmers, he has seen too many friends die young.
Such are the hazards of life on a farm.
But all that Tofteland has worked for was nearly lost in one fell swoop last October. This time, it wasn't a crisis brought on by tragedy or Mother Nature. It was the work of Wall Street and commodity power players in Chicago, a scandal that has become known simply as MF Global.
Tofteland had $253,000 in an account with the brokerage firm, money he planned to use to cover his farm's operating loan. As MF Global went bankrupt last fall, customers' segregated accounts were raided in clear violation of exchange rules. When the dust settled, more than 38,000 MF Global customers -- including thousands of farmers, ranchers and grain operators who used the firm to hold money for transactions on the futures market -- were out more than $1.2 billion.
...His seed bill last year was $230,000; fertilizer cost $150,000. In addition to his own land, he farms acreage he rents at a cost of $450,000. He has another $1 million tied up in equipment, plus four full-time employees. "We're talking big numbers, and you're taking all these risks," he says. "And you can get hailed out, droughted out, flooded out at any time."
That's why the MF Global scandal hurt so much: a financial tsunami that nearly wiped everything away
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
hmmm...I thought “faces planting season” was next month...
you know...”Spring Break”...
You notice they lay the blame on “Wall Street”. It’s a street. The Democratic crooks took the money.
Corzine deserves to enjoy the pleasures of a max security prison. He destroyed the livelihoods of thousands. But, instead of calling GHWB a friend, his buddies are Bam and Plugs. He won't do a day in prison. We let our country turn into a corrupt banana republic.
He notes he can track a hog from his farm to somebody's table.
Yet somehow, he ponders, authorities haven't fully tracked the missing $1.2 billion, or who was behind it. "It's either ignorance or fraud," he says. "Money doesn't vaporize. If my account is empty, somebody else's is full.
This administration has been a thorn to small farmers, with their regulations. It is interesting that this missing money seems to impact a large percentage of small farmers. Seems an intentional target.
You are 100% correct. Most farmers are not socialists and would never support BHO2.
Yup you got “Lonesome’’ , the Dems. Out and out thieves. Jon “Daddy Warbucks’’ Corzine the biggest among ‘em. Hows things in The Bay State today, are you still ‘’lonesome’’? BTW I don’t know if you’ve ever actually seen the real Wall Street but it’s little more than a glorified alley way really. You could spit across it no problem.
But not a prosecutable violation, apparently. In Hopeychangey America it all comes down to party affiliation.
The “probe” has all the earmarks of an Inspecteur Closeau comedy.
“Sen-at-tour Cor-oh-zine, haf you a lee-scense for zat monee”
“But it is not my mon-ee.”
“Oui, exactament! Ouse monee iz it zen?”
“I am own-ly oldin’ it for zee farmeurs.”
“Oo are zese farmeaurs?”
“Tragedie, Inspecteur, no one can tell!”
“Quelle damage! Merci, I haf soll-ved za case! Zee farmeurs haf stolen ze monee from ze brokers! Bon jour, monseur!”
It breaks my heart for these farmers who lost/had their money stolen. Farmers work the land and can be destroyed by crop failures, weather, insects, and all sorts of things. They have to be optimists as they are always facing things like increased fertilizer, pesticide, and tax costs. Plus they cannot control what the market will be for their product. If they have a GOOD year, they need to sock that money away for the BAD years.
The farmer carries much burden on his back. He is one of the ones pulling the wagon as those riding in it glide along through life. The riders in the wagon are provided Health Care benefits, paid vacations, sick days, and pension plans. In contrast, sick or not the farmer HAS to work. The farmer pays his own health costs or has to find an affordable plan. If he is lucky, his wife works and has him on her plan. Vacations, if they exist, have to squeezed in and someone has to oversee their animals and the farm. Retirement: Many farmers never have a nest egg built up big enough for that to happen.
He could sell his farm, but Capital Gains will eat up so much of his gain that he is STUCK. Then if he dies, the family often can’t afford the death taxes and are forced to sell regardless of the market conditions. Uncle Sam wants his money in 9 months after the death.
Go Galt. Die broke.
Better: when you know death is near, sell the farm to your kids for $1.00 each! (I’m sure the scum in DC have found a way to make that illegal too, but I hope not.)
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