Obama Agriculture Secretary: Rural America “Becoming Less And Less Relevant”… Or as Obama calls them, bitter clingers. WASHINGTON (AP) — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has some harsh words for rural America: It’s “becoming less and less relevant,” he says. A month after an election that Democrats won even as rural parts of the country voted overwhelmingly Republican, the former Democratic governor of Iowa told farm belt leaders this past week that he’s frustrated with their internecine squabbles and says they need to be more strategic in picking their political fights. “It’s time for us to have an adult conversation with folks in rural America,” Vilsack said in a speech at a forum sponsored by the Farm Journal. “It’s time for a different thought process here, in my view.” He said rural America’s biggest assets – the food supply, recreational areas and energy, for example – can be overlooked by people elsewhere as the U.S. population shifts more to cities, their suburbs and exurbs. “Why is it that we don’t have a farm bill?” Vilsack said. “It isn’t just the differences of policy. It’s the fact that rural America with a shrinking population is becoming less and less relevant to the politics of this country, and we had better recognize that and we better begin to reverse it.”
My first knee jerk reaction to the above comment would be it could be very easy to enlighten people. Just stop producing food products for 30 days and I'm sure the attention of the growling bellies would enhance a few brain cells to wonder where our food comes from. His comments are directed mainly at the red vs blue voting when it come to rural vs any place else in the US. But voting preferences aside he is voicing the truth in that the divide between those of us who live in rural areas have a much different thought process than most of America. And as our government moves closer toward socialism the gap will only become larger. Rural life or the mindset is still stuck in the past. We are fiercely independent, have deep convictions that there is a God, and vote conservative. These are all the items that liberal socialist cough up their lunch about. In their mind these are the most backward of people with very low intelligence and need guidance to be delivered from the hell hole of country life. I have always thought that racial profiling is nothing compared to the attitudes I have been a recipient to over the years when you mention that you farm and live in the country. One example I still laugh about is when my wife a gifted artist was crafting figurines from Fimo clay. She had developed a market in New York City and was doing quite well with it. One of the curators of the store in New York was in Florida and wanted to pick up a piece from my wife. My wife had explained to the woman that her husband farms for a living. So when the woman arrived to the house my wife was on the phone and I had to greet the woman and keep her company until she broke free. This woman spoke real S-L-O-W to me so I C-O-U-L-D understand her. HOW ARE YOU? I HEAR YOU FARM. DO YOU HAVE INSURANCE. This went on for a long 15 minutes. In her mind only people with sub par intelligence would actually farm. Stories like this and hundreds of others have continued my entire career. I don't even mention what I do unless asked and then talk about stopping the conversation, they have nothing to add to that. What they don't know is most farming operations are multimillion dollar investments with a minimum 4 year degree or higher. We are 1-1.5% of the population and feed ourselves and the world. We have no sidewalks, fast internet connections, cell towers, police and fire protection is almost non existent, and consider it a local drive under sixty minutes (Our post office is 67 miles round trip). We pay our taxes with nothing to show for it. And he wonders why rural folks think a little out of the box compared to suburbanites... So Tom Vilsack (spelled Vile-Sack) can speak harsh words to rural America but I hope he does it with his mouth closed so the food doesn't drop out...
I'm not sure that his advice isn't good advice...and I think that it applies to all of us. Unfortunately, we are becoming less and less relevant as more and more people in this country no longer share our values. And maybe we DO have to pick our battles a little more carefully, to prevent losing them all. I dunno...just a thought. The Constitution is supposed to protect us from much of what is happening...but unless people actually CARE about it...it is just a piece of paper.
Hopefully I did not come across as too hard or hateful to those of us who live anywhere that is not considered rural country life. I happen to live in a small rural town with three red lights but my post office for example is a few minutes away. Where I farm is a different story, it truly is 67 miles roundtrip to pick up a package and we tend to rely on neighbors other than anything associated with any form of government because we are so far out. One of my concerns for the last couple of years has been who is going to feed me when I am at the age of enjoying "Wheel of fortune" for the highlight of my day. Sorry about that but my father who is now 80 spends our time together retelling what TV shows he watched. I have been involved with farming in Florida since I have been 15, I have watched many changes happen in those years to our industry but the most alarming is that "NO" young people are getting involved in our farming field. At one time I was one of a group of young men in their early twenty's who held positions as managers and such. Now at 48 I am still the young group with potential to hold the values, skill and hope to continue feeding the world with whatever crop they chose to grow. There are no young people coming up the "pike" who intend to farm in the future. What young men and woman involved in the farming world are doing is sales because it eliminates the hardships of working outdoors all day and the yearly onslaught of weather that blesses and curses what you have done in previous months. I feel an urgency to pass along what I have learned through hard knocks to those coming up behind me. But I fear that we as Americans will be reliant on other countries eventually for their food purchased at the grocery chains because there is no identity to where our food actually comes from. The thought of a farmer is some hayseed with overalls on with a few teeth missing, and I see no way to convince those who eat three meals per day to consider otherwise. The sad part is that I see no effort to provide a new generation to replace the old in what broke us free from hunters and gatherers....
No offense taken Ralph. My home town was a small town when we moved there, I had cattle grazing behind my house, and our mascot is the Fightin' Farmer. Now it's been absorbed into the monster known as the DFW metroplex. You are not alone in seeing a lack of younger folks who want to take on hard work. It's everywhere. I'm constantly astounded at how many believe they should be handed authority and rewards without any demonstration they can handle either. Ask Kesley about his future step son on that one. I'd laugh if it wasn't so sad...
No offense taken Scott, I hear what you are saying... I just don't know the answer or see one in the future.... The sad part is I don't really blame them, I just lost $300,000 to some mysterious problem not figured out at this time to one of our crops hitting the ground. It could be six different things but probably is a mixture of all the problems. This has become a common occurrence unfortunately the last 5-7 years in our business. If you are employed in sales for example you have a brief separation from issues like this and WHY would you want to be directly affected to the ramifications to dealing with this.... The farmers life for me.... :shock: :?