So I totally forgot to post this in my last blog, and I just remembered it and felt like getting it out. There are a lot of big issues on the agenda that I was really concerned with: among health care, agriculture and their stances on marriage/abortion. Just a few things that are very important to me.
I was looking at Obama's voting record and I looked even farther into it and for the past four years, he has consistently and repeatedly not voted or voted no on any legislation that would seek to help out small-scale and family farmers (in other words, any non-corporation farm). This is a problem to me. The way our agricultural system is set up, it basically makes it impossible on regular farmers to make an income without going into financial debt or feel a heavy financial burden. The suicide rate of non-corporate farmers has quadrupled in the past twenty years.
This is a problem for us. Not only is it cutting out jobs and hiking up the price on our food, but it's leading to less biodiversity in our food system, higher food costs for a markedly less healthful food product and a market in which only a few corporations hold the fate of global hunger in their hands.
It really concerns me that he has not voted the past two years on the farm bill and voted no on legislation to adopt government sponsored farm insurance policies (which non-corporate farmers definitely need) and legislation that would grant subsidies to small/part-time farmers.
For those that don't know, subsidies are basically where the government gives money/supplemental help to farmers who grow certain crops....of which right now are corn and soybeans. However, you have to grow a certain amount before you get this subsidy. As it stands right now, your local farmers/smaller scale farmers who are already struggling do not get any governmental help if they are growing anything other than that. Farmers have increased land set aside to these two crops, cutting back on more healthful and environmental friendly crops that help to sustain the earth and produce a higher yield of crops. Also if you didn't know, these crops are not what we consider biodiverse. Instead of harvesting the most healthful or more seasonal strains, corporations have cut down the number of strains of so many crops to the one that suits their needs first and foremost.
There used to be hundreds of strains of potatoes. Now only a few dominant strains are grown, the first and foremost being russet potatoes. Are these the most healthful?! Are they the most nutrient dense?! Provide what our body needs?! Nope, instead they are the strain that makes the best french fries. Funny how that works huh?!
The strain of the most widely harvested lettuce......iceberg. Know what's ironic?! Our bodies do not digest it and it severely lacks in nutrients as compared to say red-leaf or romaine. But it "looks the best" and withstands transportation times better. Yet it does nothing for us!! I dare you to eat a lot of iceberg lettuce for about two weeks in a row and start paying attention to your poop. You will find you are literally pooping pieces of whole lettuce in your feces. Your body doesn't digest it!!!
Anyway back to my original point. Along with these subsidies being denied to part-time farmers, it only perpetuates the success of a few huge corporations who make a living off of one unhealthy, environmentally unsound monoculture that is wasting away the top-layer of our soil.
The fact that he hasn't voted on these bills shows he cares NOTHING about first our food system, what it's doing to the global food market, how sustainble it is, and it's effects on our environment.
So not cool with me. I haven't had a change to dissect his stances on healthcare yet but I can already assume from agriculture, marriage and abortion stances that I won't be happy with it.
Obama: doing nothing to solve global hunger, our nation's food/agriculture system, and pooping on our environment.
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