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Drought Not a Big Calamity in India Anymore | Swaminathan S. Anklesaria Aiyar | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Foreign experts opined that India could never feed itself. William and Paul Paddock wrote a best-seller titled Famine 1975, arguing that the world was running out of food and would suffer global famine by 1975. They said aid-givers couldn't possibly meet the food needs of high-population countries like India. So, the limited food surpluses of the West should be conserved for countries capable of being saved."
"How then did the spectre of starvation vanish? Largely because of better distribution. Employment schemes in rain-deficit areas injected purchasing power where it was most needed. The slow but steady expansion of the road network helped grain to flow to scarcity areas. The public distribution system expanded steadily. Hunger remained, but did not escalate into starvation. By the 1990s, hunger diminished too.
Second, the spread of irrigation stemmed crop losses. The share of the irrigated area expanded from roughly one-third to 55% of total acreage."
"in 2009, which witnessed one of the worst monsoon failures for a century, agricultural production actually rose 1%"
"Agriculture accounted for 52% of GDP in 1950, and for 29.5% even in 1990. This is now down to just 14%. Even if one-twentieth of this is lost to drought, it will be less than 1% of GDP."
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
President Obama: Deporter-In-Chief | Alex Nowrasteh | Cato Institute: Commentary
President Obama: Deporter-In-Chief | Alex Nowrasteh | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Obama's DHS has so far deported more people than during the first six and a half years of George W. Bush's administration. Just shy of 1.5 million unauthorized immigrants have been forcefully deported from the United States under Napolitano's leadership. These annual deportation figures are higher that at any other time in U.S. history, pushing the backlog for deportation cases to a record 314,147 this June. The government is apprehending unauthorized immigration so quickly that it cannot effectively process them all."
"The so-called "Morton Memo" laid out the process of discretion and who would be eligible. Since then, a mere 5684deportations have been delayed — only 1.9 percent of the total."
" "Everyone eligible for a deferral under Obama's June announcement was already eligible under the Morton Memo," said immigration attorney Matthew Kolken of Buffalo, New York. "But since the Morton memo only favorably exercised prosecutorial discretion for 1.9 percent of all reviewed deportation cases, it's hard to be optimistic about Obama's most recent attempt to stem deportations for DREAMers." "
"The so-called "Morton Memo" laid out the process of discretion and who would be eligible. Since then, a mere 5684deportations have been delayed — only 1.9 percent of the total."
" "Everyone eligible for a deferral under Obama's June announcement was already eligible under the Morton Memo," said immigration attorney Matthew Kolken of Buffalo, New York. "But since the Morton memo only favorably exercised prosecutorial discretion for 1.9 percent of all reviewed deportation cases, it's hard to be optimistic about Obama's most recent attempt to stem deportations for DREAMers." "
Fool's Gold: British Taxpayer Is Olympics' Biggest Loser | Patrick Basham | Cato Institute: Commentary
Fool's Gold: British Taxpayer Is Olympics' Biggest Loser | Patrick Basham | Cato Institute: Commentary: "For the 2012 Games, London originally estimated total costs at $4.7 billion."
"an analysis by the Sky Sports TV network, which included the costs of upgrading public transportation, now puts the cost of the Olympics at a staggering $38.5 billion!"
"The Chinese government budgeted $14.2 billion but spent $40 billion on the 2008 Beijing Games. The 2004 Athens Olympics costs ten times the original estimate of $1.6 billion. A decade earlier, Spanish taxpayers were left $6.1 billion in the hole at the conclusion of the 1992 Barcelona Games.
And, it was three decades before the $2.7 billion owed from the 1976 Montreal Olympics was paid off."
"an analysis by the Sky Sports TV network, which included the costs of upgrading public transportation, now puts the cost of the Olympics at a staggering $38.5 billion!"
"The Chinese government budgeted $14.2 billion but spent $40 billion on the 2008 Beijing Games. The 2004 Athens Olympics costs ten times the original estimate of $1.6 billion. A decade earlier, Spanish taxpayers were left $6.1 billion in the hole at the conclusion of the 1992 Barcelona Games.
And, it was three decades before the $2.7 billion owed from the 1976 Montreal Olympics was paid off."
How Uncle Sam's Making Us Fat | Patrick Basham | Cato Institute: Commentary
How Uncle Sam's Making Us Fat | Patrick Basham | Cato Institute: Commentary: "This year, the USDA will spend more than $1 billion subsidizing the growth of four common food additives: corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, corn starch and soy oils (hydrogenated vegetable oil)."
"The USDA lectures and hectors us to avoid anything that's fatty, salty, sugary or filled with processed ingredients — like the ones our tax dollars subsidize."
"Last year, taxpayers subsidized farmers to the tune of $16 billion, reports the Congressional Budget Office. Among the more idiotic subsidies are $5 billion in so-called "direct payments" to farmers of corn, soybeans and other crops. These are paid simply for owning tillable farm land, even if the farmers don't plant on it.
On top of costing huge sums that could be better spent (or saved) elsewhere, farm subsidies perversely redistribute wealth to a comparatively few affluent farmers and agribusinesses."
"The USDA lectures and hectors us to avoid anything that's fatty, salty, sugary or filled with processed ingredients — like the ones our tax dollars subsidize."
"Last year, taxpayers subsidized farmers to the tune of $16 billion, reports the Congressional Budget Office. Among the more idiotic subsidies are $5 billion in so-called "direct payments" to farmers of corn, soybeans and other crops. These are paid simply for owning tillable farm land, even if the farmers don't plant on it.
On top of costing huge sums that could be better spent (or saved) elsewhere, farm subsidies perversely redistribute wealth to a comparatively few affluent farmers and agribusinesses."
Obama Didn't Build That | Marian L. Tupy | Cato Institute: Commentary
Obama Didn't Build That | Marian L. Tupy | Cato Institute: Commentary: "it is both morally and logically suspect for advocates of bigger government to berate businesses for using government services to which there is no private alternative because of government legislation. That is true of the de facto government monopoly on the provision of primary and secondary education, and high regulatory costs associated with private road-building."
"If it were as easy to succeed in business as the president suggests — just put together all the services that the government provides you with and enjoy your fame and fortune — why isn't everyone a successful entrepreneur?"
"successful entrepreneurs tend to be people who are alert to the opportunities that surround us but others cannot see"
"If it were as easy to succeed in business as the president suggests — just put together all the services that the government provides you with and enjoy your fame and fortune — why isn't everyone a successful entrepreneur?"
"successful entrepreneurs tend to be people who are alert to the opportunities that surround us but others cannot see"
In Praise of Government Gridlock - Mike Reid - Mises Daily
In Praise of Government Gridlock - Mike Reid - Mises Daily: " join in with the state to rob the rich or cut your kids' education (which you are already forced to pay for).
Californians do not get to choose between increasing taxes and cutting their state's bloated public pensions, which are now unfunded to the tune of $497 billion dollars. Neither do the voters have the option to cut the governor's pet project — a $68 billion high-speed rail line. That's not on the chopping block either."
Californians do not get to choose between increasing taxes and cutting their state's bloated public pensions, which are now unfunded to the tune of $497 billion dollars. Neither do the voters have the option to cut the governor's pet project — a $68 billion high-speed rail line. That's not on the chopping block either."
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