the subsidies change little from democrat to republican administrations. yesterday there was an article in the nyt on the secretary of agriculture and her critics, veneman. she attempted to argue that the government subsidies should be distributed more equally amongst farmers, but to no avail.
clinton's ag secy chimed in and said he would not touch the subsidy issue because he could make no difference.
the same wealthy farmers with political clout in washington get the bulk of the spoils.
the nyt had a good article on this several months ago, when the government numbers were released by the feds. the article included a usa county map. most of the fat cat farmers were on the great plains, from texas to canada. these guys have several thousands of acres in production each.
,,, probably the same group of farmers who know just when to buy and sell the Kiwi dollar each year as our export season gears up and slows down. A mix of subsidies and currency futures would mean you'd farm from the desk in your study as you stir the ice cubes in your gin.
Thanks for your comments, addressing the substance of the issues as they do (unlike some).