Farmers Threaten To Block US-Mexico Border Crossings [NAFTA]

Voice of America News ^ | Dec. 28, 2002 | AP, AFP and Reuters

[madfly]

Angry Mexican farmers are threatening to block U.S.-Mexico border crossings on New Year's Day to protest the lifting of tariffs on agricultural products under free trade rules.

The farmers say they fear they will not be able to compete with U.S. and Canadian producers when tariffs are removed on January 1 as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The farmers and their supporters are calling on the Mexican government to do more to protect the agricultural sector.

President Vicente Fox refuses to re-negotiate the free trade agreement, but he has pledged to help the farmers compete with the United States and Canada.

Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

[Reaganwuzthebest]

And the only thing we'll get out of the whole deal is more illegal immigration.

Isn't NAFTA wonderful?

[Grampa Dave]

I find this very interesting that the Mexican farmers say they can compete against our farmers.

After Nafta was signed I heard/read a lot of bitching and moaning from farmers, ranchers, orchard growers and rice farmers that they couldn't compete against the Mexican Farmers.

Now the Mexican Farmers are complaining!

[THEUPMAN]

they couldn't compete against the Mexican Farmers.
Now the Mexican Farmers are complaining!
maybe there having trouble finding cheap labor ......
why pick tomatoes when you can cross the boarder and get it all ...
a job picking tomatoes, free education for the kiddies, free health care for the whole clan .... and .... if you work it out just right ... gov. subsidies out the yang.

ya , I bet those mexican farmers WILL have a hard time competing.

[wita]

Precisely what I remember, the great Florida tomato waste.
They threw them away rather than get next to nothing for them because nafta opened the mexican tomato floodgates.

[Grampa Dave]

You may have the answer here:

Now the Mexican Farmers are complaining! maybe there having trouble finding cheap labor ...... why pick tomatoes when you can cross the boarder and get it all ... a job picking tomatoes, free education for the kiddies, free health care for the whole clan .... and .... if you work it out just right ... gov. subsidies out the yang. ya , I bet those mexican farmers WILL have a hard time competing.

[concerned about politics]

After Nafta was signed I heard/read a lot of bitching and moaning from farmers, ranchers, orchard growers and rice farmers that they couldn't compete against the Mexican Farmers.

Yep. The "sucking sound" works both ways.

[Ben Ficklin]

Mexico Ends Practice of Giving Land to Poor

Local Level Response to Agrarian Reform in Mexico

[madfly]

ping.

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[Tacis]

I'm sure Presidente Fox will be able to use access of American agricultural products as a bargaining chip. Put it on the list of things we can already do legally but Mexico won't allow because they, well, are Mexicans. Mexicans are the most arrogant people in the world and the ones with so little to be arrogant about.

There will be some reason, at the last minute, that these farmers will get their way. But, the northward movement of drugs by Mr. Fox and his drug lord friends and employers will continue as usual.

[Grampa Dave]

Equal Opportunity "Sucking Sounds" Quite often when something like this happens, it might not be a bad thing for the end consumer.

[1rudeboy]

And the only thing we'll get out of the whole deal is more illegal immigration.

Let me see if I've got this straight. Without NAFTA, you would be complaining about illegal immigration. With NAFTA, you would be complaining about illegal immigration. Any possibility that NAFTA has nothing to with your position?

[1rudeboy]

sorry, nothing "to do" with

[Ben Ficklin]

Golly Gee, Agrarian Land Reforms are happening on the other side of the world too

[Sparta]

Somebody please call the WAAMBULANCE for the Mexican farmers.

[Reaganwuzthebest]

Said it before, I'll say it again: ten years after NAFTA Mexico's two greatest exports are still drugs and illegal aliens. The US became a superpower on its own, we didn't need treaties like NAFTA to do it. I don't know why Mexico, with all its resources can't make a decent go of it, but what I'm seeing here is they are looking for any excuse they can find to send their people up here, and the failures of NAFTA is just another one.

It is time we closed the border, enforced our laws and make Mexico stand on its own two feet. Trade with them yes, but only if it doesn't drag us down to their level economically and financially.

[WRhine]

maybe there having trouble finding cheap labor ...... why pick tomatoes when you can cross the boarder and get it all ...

a job picking tomatoes, free education for the kiddies, free health care for the whole clan .... and .... if you work it out just right ... gov. subsidies out the yang.

ya , I bet those mexican farmers WILL have a hard time competing.

That's exactly what's happening. You hit the nail squarely on the head.

[Free the USA]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[FreeSpeechZone]

Erasing Our Borders

[FreeSpeechZone]

Immigration: A Warning From Denmark