I’m not making it up. This actually came out of the mouth of Dear Leader during a PBS interview when the reporter asked whether he had any idea of how he might address soaring oil prices (his friends in Big Oil are experiencing record profits, btw). Look at what he said (Think Progress has the video):
GHARIB: Well, you’ve pressed OPEC to increase oil production –If you want more of McSame, John McCain was asked what he would try to do to address the impact of oil prices on the economy, and his answer sounds like he had the president’s dunce cap on.BUSH: I did.
GHARIB: And they didn’t do it. Let’s say that OPEC did pump more oil. How much do you think that that would bring down oil prices, by $20, $30?
BUSH:You know, I don’t know. You’re going to have to ask the experts that. I’m just a simple president. But I really don’t know what it would do. I do know that the main problem is supply and demand and excess supply obviously would help.
Now it wasn’t as if they couldn’t see this coming, particularly with Bush’s bomb-the-Middle East cowboy diplomacy.“What do you do for the person who just saw gasoline go from three and a quarter to three fifty on its way to $4?” [CBS’s Scott] Pelley asked.
“I would love to tell you that I have an immediate answer for that. And I don’t. The only way we are going to fix it is to eliminate our dependence on foreign oil. We’ve got to have a crash program, a all out effort,” McCain said. “But, I can’t give you straight talk and tell you that tomorrow I can change the price of a gallon of gas.”
Plus, automakers are perfectly capable of making cars that are more fuel efficient, but attempts to do anything about Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards have been minimal and fought all the way. Congress passed and Bush signed The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which requires in part that automakers boost fleetwide gas mileage to 35 mpg by the year 2020.
35 mpg?! 2020?! Well, that’s our government at work at a snail’s pace.
While the eco-folks out there think it’s great that gas prices are rising — because they are low in comparison to other countries and encourage less driving, more carpooling and use of mass transit — they fail to recognize the serious problem for people who live in areas where there isn’t a decent transit system, none at all, and no organized efforts encourage ride-share.
The burden of higher gas prices also inordinately affects the working poor, many cannot afford to live in expensive metro centers where they work, and must commute by car to work and to obtain goods and services easily available to city dwellers, draining low-wealth wallets even further. The problem of rising prices is complex and reflects a complete head-in-the-sand attitude by our elected officials in DC and effective lobbying by the oil and auto industry. That it is all results in a rise of inflation shouldn’t be a surprise either; those costs have to be passed along eventually.
For either Bush or McCain to say they can’t think of any impact they can have on this issue shows an inability or unwillingness to lead.
***
Hey folks, did you notice there’s not a peep from the free market folks who complain about “socialized” medicine and government programs to help the poor? Do you hear any screeches of “let the market work things out” when Bush decided to bail out Bear Sterns, which experienced a good old run on the bank situation that “required” the government to step in.
Oh that’s right. It’s “too big to fail” — you’re going to hear a lot of that in upcoming weeks and months as Bush’s and McCain’s big money backers are going to show up with their hands out.
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And more that the dim bulb has uttered int he past few days…
Wow, our Bumbler-in-Chief, who thinks that his war is “romantic”, got one right.
He’s due for one more if he’s going to hit the “stopped clock” mark. Maybe he’ll say water is wet.
Well Dubya now is turning into a good keynesian socialist, bailing out everybody. And guess what the democrats are doing? (still being no backbone of course)
Why are we bailing out Bear Stern? What impact does it have to average middle class and working people? This is S&L scandal all over again.
http://www.americablog.com/2008/03/where-are-all-of-free-market-people-now.html
Where are all of the “free market” people now?
Now that the Fed has chopped interest rates (and will chop again, not that it’s going to translate into lower rates for consumers) and they pumped $200 billion into Wall Street, I’d like to know where exactly the so-called free market/industry self-regulate people are. Where are they?
I thought he was our “CEO President”? Or does that just mean he runs the country into the ground and then gets off scot-free?
It’s kind of sad when a president with an MBA can’t say anything intelligent about economics.
If he’s a “CEO President”, then he has a golden parachute ready and millions of dollars in place so he can scamper off to a life of worry-free luxury when he gets fired…oh yeah.
im in a silent panic right now, i dont know how im going to afford $4 a gallon..& whats more, the price of fresh foods (meat, vegs, & fruit) just skyrocketed at the market… the only thing i could afford was a few potatoes & two organges. and this has to hold me over until my next paycheck..the rest is grains, canned & processed foods. i am fucked.
and its not like i can sell my home &move away from this, nothing is selling!
So, in other words, his “experience” as an oil man continues to be “What my Saudi Friends tell me to do”.
I guess this is what passes for “experience” for the presidency, eh?
OMG, bluebonnet… have been there and know that fear. Had that exact shopping moment of buying a few potatoes and margarine to last me a week. Hang in there…
Bluebonnet, I’m kind of freaked out by seeing something I haven’t seen since I was a kid - people buying multiple large bags of staple foods because prices are skyrocketing!
My parents used to do that - we had stuff stored in the sofa because we lived in a small trailer. We went to the warehouse store 60 miles away and overloaded our small car - stuff stacked between me and my brother in the back seat, under my feet, on top of the hand break, etc.
We got 50lb bags of dry milk at the feed store.
Well, back to the 70s it is!
I wish you all kinds of luck and a better economy. You might see if others around you are in the same boat and can do some serious bulk buying.
That said, some pious people who love them some W are in for a rude surprise when the bank comes for that SUV or their house. As the Levellers say:
Bluebonnet, what state are you in?
I hear you bluebonnet. I’ve taken to growing a garden, or trying to, to be able to feed my kids something other than preprocessed crap. The higher the fuel costs the higher the shipping costs. Their father works at a truck stop and hears all kinds of stories from local small time truck drivers who are losing money in diesel costs daily.
But of course what do BushCo and McSame care, it’s not them suffering.
Ms Kate, we saw a man in his 40’s and a nice backpack hitchhiking here in central Maine this week (25 degrees and still huge snowbanks!!) and when I mentioned it to Charlie, he said that with the gas/oil/food/etc prices up, we were going to see ALOT more of this.
Within 4 miles, another one.
I’m lucky. Been able to stock up on canned goods for a month or so. Our pantry can stretch out for quite a bit if needed. But even the “scratch and dent” salvage places now are selling goods at about what items would have been normally last year. Example: dented box of spaghetti for 75 cents/ in supermarket, $1.19. Anyone else remember 3 for a buck??
As soon as it’s spring, we’re doubling our vegetable garden and I’m learning to can this year, just like my mom did in those same 1970’s. MA Jeff, for one, is a pro at this…
bluebonnet, I just did a quick search for local food banks/ governmental food stamp requirements; there’s alot of resources out there. Maybe give that a try? I suspect it’s gonna be a “first come first serve” for many of these before they’re no longer available or able to remain open due to lack of funds.
thanks, louise; that means something. to know others have gotten through tough times…it’s just that ive been slipping into poverty & i cant put the skids to it no matter what i do. i feel so out-of-control. i cant even begin to think about what kind of shape i’ll be in in 3 months…
“I’m kind of freaked out by seeing something I haven’t seen since I was a kid - people buying multiple large bags of staple foods because prices are skyrocketing!”
i love in MI, the only mass transit is buses ,& that isnt an option for me due to a number of factors.im in the position,now, at 3.25 a gallon where i can *only* drive to work & back; i cant go anywhere else, or i might not have the money i need to get me to work by the end of the work week.
I saw that too! I didnt understand until you said that!
I was looking at an old lady with a shopping cart overflowing & wondering why one little old lady needed all that food… she’s obviously lived through the Great Depression, too. i never totally understood why people who had lived through the GD were so …well, broken, when i t came to anticipating troubles coming. ..but now i do. once you set your mind to the thought that you wont have food enough to eat, or medicine, or a job & roof over your head, once these are made really real to you & not just a possibility, it’s like a angry rat’s been loosed in your head, circling round & round all the time, you can even lay your head down at night & have a moment of calm before you drift off… you wont get over that; it permanently changes the way you perceive & handle stresses like these.
bluebonnet, I just did a quick search for local food banks/ governmental food stamp requirements; there’s alot of resources out there. Maybe give that a try? I suspect it’s gonna be a “first come first serve” for many of these before they’re no longer available or able to remain open due to lack of funds.
i lost my post. gah.
reprise:
im working poor, i wont qualify for those things. ihave a home (behind in payments, but still hanging on), and i work–it just gets me by right now. in metro detroit, im sure there are families worse off than just me.
i dont have land. id love to grow in pots, but there is too many chemicals around here & im worried abt them getting in the food.
gas gaugers are out in force now, too, i see; raising the gas prices .10-25 cents from the 3.25 its at now. no rhyme or reason other than greed, as it’s willy-nilly where they are up or down..
That’s what I was afraid of; this is gonna be REALLY hard for urban folks. Super big hugs, bluebonnet.
That aside, the practical. Been awhile since I was over there commenting (got into political discussions more), but over at Feministe, there are alot of great folks who have been discussing poverty/hunger/options and ideas far better than I could ever lay out.
One gal, kactus, has had some incredibly moving posts; she was in Detroit for years before she moved to Green Bay and knows what one can do to survive on essentially air. Perhaps she and others have some ideas? Give them a try- head on over and scope out the archives…AND DON’T GIVE UP HOPE!
i looked up the food banks again. i may be forced to try them. i feel ashamed to, though. & i know that i will doubly so if im taking food from kid’s mouths. im going to try & get by with the dry soup mixes, potatoes,etc as long as i can. though i would really love some fresh fruits…
bush & his ilk are the devil, but when i hear rich enviromental do-gooders be so that are so self-satisfied about tthe rise in gas prices & who evidently dont give a flying fuck about anyone in the crunch like me, i want to wring their pampered necks.
Great Biscuit help you, another thing people had to do years back in the Depression was rent out rooms to others who couldn’t afford their own home. With that comes risks, but 90 % of the world are good and decent folk…a thought.
Im going to! Thank you, louise (you got me tearing up ) XO
bluebonnet, DEFINITELY go to Feministe- we’ve had alot of VERY good, supportive discussions about the “shame/guilt” factors of poverty. There is NO shame to be had; that’s a societal stigma that is worse than being hungry and/or poor. The sooner understood and discarded, the sooner you can control the fear and logically look for answers. I cannot stress how simply knowing YOU ARE NOT ALONE helps your soul.
I have definitely been there myself- thank goodness for my Charlie, who pawned everything of value we had years ago to save our home, feed our family, and keep me sane when the fear froze me. He worked part-time at a food bank as to get a reduced rate on food; it was the only way we got fresh vegetables into the house for awhile.
Oh, c’mon; everyone knows I’m a smartass and rotten bitch; don’t go being nice! Got a reputation, ya know! (me too re:tears…)
A thought:
Amanda et al, can we come up with some sort of post regarding sharing of ideas and resources? Maybe create it as its own new catagory?
I know for one that “Local.com” can help one search for farmers’ markets using your zip code…
There are some incredibly smart and resourceful folks here on Pandagon and this is gonna get much worse before it gets better. IMO, it’s time to start thinking about how to help folks just SURVIVE.
Thanks!
If Bush and his cronies aren’t ashamed for having created this situation, why should anyone else be ashamed for doing what they need to to do survive it?
Ezra Klein estimated a few months back that if ordinary workers had captured their fair share of economic growth during the past 30 years, the median wage would be about $20K a year more than it is now. Instead, that money has gone to the top 5 percent or so, and tax giveaways have enabled them to keep more of their income than at any time since before WWII.
Shame — instead of anger and action — at not having enough money just helps people shove the whole inequality mess under the rug.
For the past couple of years now, I’ve been writing a book about the decline and fall of the intra- and interurban streetcar system in the United States and Canada. It used to be possible to go not only within cities, but from city to city in a lot of areas in the United States by mass transit. All that is gone.
I’d just like to say that while as far as I know the Bush family didn’t really have any direct connection to the events between 1920 and 1960 that did for most of these rail system, people like him caused exactly the problems people like bluebonnet find themselves in.
I am very sorry to hear what’s happening with you — Detroit is one of the worst places to be unable to drive. It used to have one of the best inexpensive transit systems in North America…
For what it’s worth, 35mpg by 2020 is just embarrassing. Another thing I learnt in my research is that in 1957, General Motors was selling a car that got 40 mpg, the French-built Renault Dauphine. We’ve come so far (backward) so fast…
I live in L.A. and I cringe every time I have to get in my car and go any place. Our gas prices, depending on which neighborhood you’re in, are between 3.50-3.70$ and I’m trying to drive less but in L.A. that’s very hard. Public transportation is alright but it takes you forever and a day to get anywhere and I can’t depend on it for work at all. I do temp work right now and I need my car for the day to day transportation, though once I get a steady job again I’m looking into getting a bike. As far as food goes, I’m buying in bulk as well, lots of staple foods or enough food so that if I make a dish I can eat leftovers for days on end.
Right now I’m doing the naughty thing and supplementing my income with teh credit cards, though I don’t use them often and I only have two with very low spending limit and I’ve been dutiful in trying to either pay them off or keep the monthly payments low. It sucks but I can’t keep running to the parents for money, they’ve got their own problems in the mid-west.
I certainly hope that getting these Republicans out of the presidency (Bush and never McCain) will start to help things but I fear they may be too far gone.
Bluebonnet, found this:
http://www.gcfb.org/site/PageServer?pagename=history
CALL THEM.
Well, I’m blind. So I don’t drive…at all. And don’t buy gas…at all.
That said, the price of gas is affecting me as well. I am not below poverty line but I do have a “working class” income. So it does hurt and affect me as well. Food prices have gone up significantly in the past year, presumably due to shipping and distribution costs. I do live where we have a decent public transit system, but the price of bus tickets has risen, as well as the fact that plans to increase or add to the bus system has been scrapped. Other bus routes have decreased in frequency. This means that I am sometimes required to take a cab where I used to be able to ride a bus, and cab fares have risen. In addition, since it is problematic for me to shop in brick and mortar stores, I shop online a lot, even sometimes getting my groceries delivered. Delivery and shipping charges have also increased.
We are so dependent on oil that it is felt throughout the economy by everyone. I am all for new and more environment friendly solutions to be developed, and for people to drive less. But if anyone thinks that you can just stop driving and no longer be affected by oil prices, they’d be wrong.
For food banks, it really depends on the area and what’s going on, but it’s extremely unlikely that you using a food bank will cause some other person (much less a child) go hungry.
In areas where there are shortages of supplies, they might require some declaration of your situation(because they *can’t* help everyone who asks) , but I know that, at some point in the not-too-distant past, there were food banks that worked on the basis of “come in, we give you X amount of food, no questions asked”.
“I thought he was our “CEO President”? ”
“It’s kind of sad when a president with an MBA can’t say anything intelligent about economics.”
He got what is known as a Gentleman’s schloarship. Meaning he was a c-student and that was due to his family connections and donations to the school. Not based on his abilities or working hard to overcome any shortcomings.
As for his being a CEO he couldn’t find oil in Texas. Every business he was set up with went belly up.
The big shock for me (I don’t drive) was randomly noticing that DIESEL prices are so far up, and close to gasoline prices. I seem to recall they were always a fraction of gasoline, wth happened?
Ok folks, this is going to be painful, for a while, but we can’t continue on the road we are. (Confession, I’m one who cheered when gas prices went up - because nothing else seems able to stop America going down the road to destruction it was on- and no, I’m not rich, just a realist.) Where I live in the Midwest, we are losing truck and family farms to development daily. THus, we are forced to ship food from California and Mexico and Chile and… We can grow our own food around here 10 months out of the year. - Local is less infleunced by oil prices.
Check out www.localharvest.org for local foods info - including farm markets. You can get better produce and meat that way, too. FInd some firends to share a side of pork or beef. It can be very economical.
bluebonnet - there is a program in Detroit
http://www.aiga.org/resources/content/4/1/2/6/documents/lin.pdf
for community gardens. Start there. commumity gardens are fantaastic - if there isn’t one in your neighborhood, contact your local Cooperative Extension Office, they can help you - with the canning part, too.
I like the resources site idea, but really a lot of it needs to be local and real, not virtual community..
I wish I could have a veg garden this year. I had one the last two years. But we’re in a severe drought and there is no watering allowed, of anything, and I can guarantee that’s only going to get worse as the summer starts and it gets hotter and drier. I need to get a rain barrel, but those are $100 and up like a rocket, and I can’t do it for at least the next couple months. (I’m a grad student with no financial support other than what I have through the school, and there was an accounting change that has me living on 2/3 of my usual monthly stipend for the next couple months, which isn’t large in the first place.)
bluebonnet, there’s absolutely no shame in checking out food banks, and you don’t need to feel guilty. If you’re at the point of living on a few potatoes, that’s the point when it’s okay to find out where you can get some food aid.
For me, it’s just going to be a lot of bean chili and lentil soup. I’m planning to try serious couponing; I’m wondering if the cost of the Sunday paper plus the cost of subscribing to the Grocery Game is going to wipe out the coupon savings, though. (Costs come to $17 a month; we’ll see if I can save that much.)
And maybe we’ll look into renting out a room in our house. A friend of mine was trying to rent a room in his, and had a lot of trouble finding a renter who was willing to have a background check done. We did have one friend rent from us for 6 months while working a short-term job, and it made living expenses a lot easier to deal with.
I wish I lived in a place where public transit was reasonable. But I don’t.
God, Bush is friggin’ moron. No wonder he couldn’t run a business, even with his half-assed Harvard MBA. He’s supposed to be an oil guy and his answer on oil prices isn’t even remotely correct. 1. Suppliers like the Saudis can’t pump much more oil at this point. They’re at capacity. 2. Oil and gasoline supplies are actually ok at the moment. There’s enough supply to go around and the slowdown in the US economy means that it’s not going going up as much over the next year as they were anticipating. 3. What’s really causing the price of oil to spike is market speculation. Two or three years ago, institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds, and other big money movers were plowing billions into mortage CDO’s. We all know how that ended. The credit market in the US has collapsed, stock markets are in the doldrums, so the only place to stick money is in commodities and oil. Because a lot of commodities are priced in dollars, that’s also putting downward pressure on the USD.
Unfortunately, until traders and investors start seeing safer places for short-term investments, this cycle will continue. Sucks to be us, particularly since we’ve got this Very Special president around for another nine months.
I rented a room when I was in college; many kids want to live near campus rather than on but can’t afford. My parents were thrilled that I was living with adults (a lovely widow with a big house; she had 2 or 3 other people renting) instead of getting an apartment with a bunch of college kids and raising hell. Maybe call any local colleges and see if there is a need?
My parents have had both a veggie garden that they are very dependant on and a hand-dug well for over 40 years. So routinely, they put out a row ofabout 20-30 5 gallon pails along the side of the house away from the sunlight to catch any rain for watering their garden. They’ve also had to use that same water for flushing toilets when the well was especially low.
These kinds of brainstorming conversations are going to become far more common-place and I think we are going to see both the best in people as well as the worst come out. Fear and uncertainty do that…
Diesel is closer to crude than gasoline is too.
Diesel is already over 4 bucks here. Those folks that bought a diesel car/truck thinking they will dodge high prices have been in for a surprise for nearly the last year.
I guess they charge more for diesel now because they can.
It’s why gas is so expensive now to, because they can. Who’s going to stop them? World record profits mean lots of money to spread around in the form of that ‘free speech’… wink wink nudge nudge…
What’s on the horizon is pretty scary, and I’m going to finally impose some of the austerity measures I should have enacted a long time ago. I’m fortunate enough that the local economy here is reasonably healthy, so when my grad school funding ends (in June), getting a job will actually be within the realm of possibility. Public transit is decent here, and I can use Zipcar for those times in which public transit would be too much trouble.
While it’s not directly related to oil/gas prices, the first thing any president could to at least begin to alleviate the economic problems of this county would be, of course, to get U.S. forces out of Iraq and end the enormously wasteful spending on that ridiculous war and occupation. The next thing, as I see it, would be to begin dismantling the “empire” of overseas military bases. The current structure and deployment of the U.S. military is not congruent with the nation’s actual security needs and we’re wasting badly needed resources to maintain it.
Food prices are skyrocketing because of the great rip-off known as ethanol. There was a story about it on MSNBC this morning. Farmers are putting aside more and more land for ethanol and less for food. I don’t know how the mid-western Senators and Governors can defend this.
How can anyone possibly be shocked by Bush’s “simple president” comment?
It just shows, yet again, where his true priorities lie.
BUSH:You know, I don’t know. You’re going to have to ask the experts that. I’m just a simple president.
Dipshit, you’re the fucking President of the USA. If you don’t know how to do it personally, you just get someone else to figure it out and then implement that strategy. Get Cheney to create a new secret program group specifically designed to solve this issue. Use the CIA to lean on Oil Executives. Think for like two minutes!
Un-be-fucking-lievable!
a RAIN BARREL is $100?? C’mon people, time to get creative.
Here’s the story Ben mentioned; I read it earlier online:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23632933/
RAIN BARREL: as in try CraigsList, google whatever. Jesus Murphy.
Found this about making your own rain barrel:
http://www.cityofbremerton.com/content/sw_makeyourownrainbarrel.html
Seems like a bit of a pain, though. But no more so than my parents’ rain bucket system- got great upper body strength, even as a middle-aged SAHM, from hauling those things so much as a teen. The trick is to have the garden as near as you can to the buckets!
I was at the grocery store this afternoon. I cringed when the cashier gave me the total. The cashier was a high school kid who said, “Yea, food prices are through the roof! I hear gas could go up to $3.49 this summer”. I thought to myself, “Dude, you have no idea. You are in for one hell of a future”. I didn’t have the heart to tell him.
Reading this thread is making me cry. I’m in the same boat as most of the rest of the commenters here. I make an OK living, but all my expenses have gone up at least 10%, including my property tax, house insurance and utilities. I can’t even think about my medical bills. I’m a cancer survivor. I’m through with treatment but still being closely monitored. I just send the clinic a small payment monthly and cross my fingers.
Hang on folks, we’re in for a bumpy ride.
Due to a quirk of personal life not matching national trends, we seem to be doing fine. I graduated a year and a half ago and got a good job that isn’t in any peril that I know of*. I don’t know what we would have done two years ago, however, as I was a graduate student on less than half my current income.
So here’s some thoughts of things those of us who are doing okay can do for the Bluebonnets and Bad Kitties in our lives and communities:
1) Invite a friend to dinner if you suspect that they might be struggling. Insist they take the leftovers.
2) Donate to the food bank. Go to warehouse stores? Get cases of stuff and give it. Call and ask what they would like you to bring.
3) Volunteer to distribute meals, fill bags at the pantry before the open times, etc. Move that food!
4) Take somebody shopping so they won’t have to use their fuel. This is really important in areas where you have to drive some distance to the store.
5) Offer to carpool a couple times a week.
Our kids’ school has a “First Fridays” where the kids bring in food on the first friday of the month and proceeds go to three local food banks. It is usually 60 bags a month, and the kids sort it.
YES we can blame W for this mess, but there is still some space to help our neighbors instead of wringing our hands.
If anybody has other suggestions to add, please do.
*Having public transit, a single car, an energy efficient home that we noticed was energy efficient (and the realtor didn’t … and the seller was happy we noticed …) and a mortgage we can swing on a single income or two reduced incomes helps us a lot … but those were choices we made long ago when we seemed to be the only ones who remembered “last time”.
When the dollar was strong, Europe was the Yankee’s playground. Idiot students and working proles could go to Yurp and live quite well with the almitey dollah. Now that there is parity, the same folks now live at the level of the gastarbeiter. Which is to say, poor. And the folks with money live in the city center with shops, amenities, and convenience. The Muslims live in high-rise storage units far, far away..in case of rioting, the army can level the place without damaging property.
“For the past couple of years now, I’ve been writing a book about the decline and fall of the intra- and interurban streetcar system in the United States and Canada. It used to be possible to go not only within cities, but from city to city in a lot of areas in the United States by mass transit. All that is gone.”
Interrobang, I was privileged to take a couple classes at Cal-Poly, Pomona, from a historian whose hobby was studying and writing about the history streetcars in Southern California.
SoCal had a very comprehensive urban rail system in place by the early 20th century. This was almost entirely gone by the 1950’s.
It’s almost as if there were Republicans undermining our infrastructure even then…
Watch the price of “milk”, “meat” and egg. They are the best inflation indicator.
The price of future grain is also shooting up. (australian and NY market, so this isn’t even close to over. It will get worst for next 3 months)
—-
http://centralillinoisproud.com/content/fulltext/?cid=6801
Skyrocketing prices for grain and fertilizer means Smith puts most of his money into his farm, leaving him with little to play with.
Smith said, “The grain price has gone up tremendously, too. Two to three years ago it was $2, now we’re at $5, five and a half.”
It’s a hit other local farmers can relate to.
Farmer Brad Harding said, “Right now in Central Illinois, commodity prices are at historic highs.”
Farmers say they aren’t to blame for the rising costs.
Harding said, ”The falling value of our dollar is really what’s driving our food costs a lot higher.”
Making it harder to feed the pigs and cows.
Smith said, “It’s hard for the livestock people to feed their livestock at $5 corn.”
farming cost is going up. It’ll be interesting to watch price of corn flakes.
http://www.rrstar.com/belvidere/x1870706028
The diesel market made history last week, hitting record prices across the nation. In Rockford, prices hit $4 per gallon Friday.
Last year’s national average for diesel fuel, used by trucks, trains, tractors and ships was $2.744. In Illinois, the average price for diesel in 2007 was $2.819.
Farmer Earl Williams, who tends to about 1,000 acres in Winnebago County just south of Cherry Valley, said the high cost of diesel is going to make everything farmers do more expensive, from tilling to harvesting.
“Then, it’s going to cost us more to get our corn to the market, too.”
Demand for corn is greater now than ever before, Williams said, thanks to the global market, livestock needs and ethanol production. That means farmers get more for their crops just at the time that they’re paying more for fuel.
Consumers, already paying more for gasoline, will begin feeling the results of soaring diesel prices eventually, say the people who operate their equipment with diesel fuel.
Re: rainbarrel. Try to find a food grade blue barrel - some storage/moving palces carry them. Buy a plastic spigot (hardware store). insert - voila! rainbarrel. Use corrugated plastic pipe to connect to gutter. @ $20 or less.
Save “gray water,” recyle in garden.
You can plant potatoes in old stacked tires. on your patio. A single one will work for lettuce.
Read the “Focfire” books form teh library.
Read One Acre and Security” by Bradford Angier
Caroline, have you got, or can get your hands on thin cotton cord? Unwaxed candle wick cord might be best.
I’ve seen this as a desert watering system — run cotton cord over the vegetable rows and hang more cord down over the plant so that it will hang only a few inches about where the root is. Instead of watering dirt all over the garden, you are delivering water only to the roots of your crop. It also reduces the need for weeding.
You could have the main cord go to something like a coffee can with a hole put in the bottom just big enough for the cord(punch it with a nail), and put a few quarts of water in the can which will gradually drain out along the cotton to drip on the root system.
A rainbarrel won’t help you if you don’t have rain!
If you find one, make a “funnel” top for it with aluminum foil and cardboard or scrap plastic. This will prevent rain that went in from becoming water vapor going out.
our rainbarrel, from freecycle, is actually an Olive Oil barrel. It has a spout and everything. We use it to handwater seedlings or handwater plants in our small garden, and to wash down the driveway when it is too full.
This reminds me of a sculpture in the Fremont neighborhood here in Seattle called Waiting For The Interurban. It’s composed of bronze statues of people waiting to be picked up by the regional train system that once existed here.
Back in the day (late 19th/early 20th century), you could take the Interurban from the north end of Puget Sound (Everett) all the way to the sound end of the Sound (Olympia, the state capitol). Not anymore. The best you can do now is take the Sounder from Everett to Tacoma, but that service isn’t as comprehensive as the Interurban once was.
Bluebonnet, you have nothing to be ashamed of. I remember growing up poor as dirt in Michigan in the 80s, and know full well the steaming shame that you can feel. Screw that.
It’s time to break out the bean recipes, my friends. Black beans, red and kidney beans. They’re cheap and nutritious. Plus, the have their own song!
Beans, beans, the musical fruit!
or is it
Beans, beans, good for the heart!
Ms Kate:
Great ideas for helping out. I have one thing to add:
Donate money to Food Banks. In my experience (and I’ve run an annual Food Bank support drive for the last seven years), food banks can buy more with your money than you can. Most food banks have deals with grocery warehouses to buy food at cost, for example.
Having cash means that they can buy the things they need to provide balanced diets, instead of just trusting to luck (or never offering anything that is a perishable good). Also, monetary donations can be stored for the future for no cost and allow better planning. Warehouse space to store donated items costs money.
BTW, I do love the photos of Dear Leader, who wouldn’t be able to make proper change for a dollar without help.
Explains the economic mess of late, eh?
Bluebonnet, Louise has great generosity of spirit even if I’m not tearing up (after all, what would Dr. Laura think?). However, her assetion that 90% of the population is basically decent and trustworthy is, I regret to report, not true.
Extensive anecdotal and limited first-hand evidence back up my misanthropic claim. I’d start playing the state lottery before I got a boarder. Just saying.
Every post I make has at leat one typo lately.
maybe brokeback president can spend more time with king saud in his ranchhouse. where were all you poor sufferers when so many were being driven homeless. welcome to the crowd!