Grain, Markets, Starvation, Fuel

The Post has a great summary article on what is happening to poor people because of moderate increases in prices of grains:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/26/AR2008042602041.html

It was bad enough when people were speculating on housing, driving its price up. I always thought this quite odious- to be altering the price of a necessity for people for the purpose of making a profit. But to do this on FOOD?!!?!??! Monstrous.

The glim bright side in such a situation would be that farmers might actually start being able to make a living, but it seems most of the profit is being taken on the middle-men trading stage, so that's not so much the case, but appears to be increasing farmers' income some.

Most ironic line:

"Some are even trying to grow their own vegetables."

Let us hope that in twenty years we aren't so out of touch with food that someone writes in the newspaper, "Some are even trying to cook their own food."

And doubly horrible that one of the chief food problems in the US is too much food. Lord, have mercy.