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9 Responses to 'Why do we accuse oil companies of price gouging but not farmers? Aren’t farm profits at an all time high?'

1. christopherc - November 8th, 2008 at 9:25 am

   Because not everyone knows of the farm subsidies and they and the farmers blame the gas prices for the extra cost. I’m sorry but I’ve hiked 30 miles and to me $4 bucks is cheap compared to walking!

2. aaa.still - November 9th, 2008 at 12:24 pm

   1. Because farmers are sacred cows to dishonest political populists, and “Big Oil” is not.

   2. Leftists are stupid enough to buy the dichotomy.

3. CEO JasonP - November 10th, 2008 at 10:09 am

   Do you know any farmers driving Mercedes’ and livin’ life in the fast lane?

4. Brian - November 12th, 2008 at 8:27 am

   I don’t think farmers profits are at an all time high. The farmers don’t get what you pay at market. There are expenses such as fuel to transport that gets added on and that is why prices have risen..

5. electronherdsman - November 12th, 2008 at 3:50 pm

   It’s more expedient and politically correct to bash big, evil corporations. The farmers turn is coming up, don’t worry, especially since most of them live in red states. It’s much easier to blame and demonize that find solutions.

6. Greg - November 15th, 2008 at 9:51 pm

   Who is “we”? You have a mouse in your pocket or something?

   Unless oil companies are gaming the futures market, then I don’t see how they are doing anything but benefitting from the spike in prices just like every other commodity based endeavor at the moment.

7. ¡Nü¢µlar ReÄç†ion!™ - November 18th, 2008 at 4:56 am

   Er. You do realize that higher fuel costs are responsible for the current rise in food prices? Also, most of the farmland is owned and operated by Big AgriBusiness™. Don’t worry; their turn is up next. After all, they get their share of criticism for unsanitary conditions regarding livestock and unsafe labor practices in slaughterhouses. (Read Fast Food Nation.)

   By the way, the agricultural subsidies, along with severe drought in other parts of the world, have more to do with the food shortages in the developing world (more cheaper to import than to produce locally) and have little or no impact on prices here in the States. (Big AgriBusiness™ rarely, if ever, passes on the savings gained from gov’t subsidies to the consumer.)

8. Dexmonte - November 19th, 2008 at 5:20 pm

   I don’t know the whole economic structure but:
   Corn prices are way up (tripled in 2- 3 years), primarily because of Ethanol production. The Ethanol process
   requires a lot of corn. This is taking a big share of
   the corn output that normally is used to feed livestock
   (cattle, pigs, chickens). Corn is also a major ingredient
   in the production of many types of food stuff.
   The demand for corn rose dramatically fast over the
   available supply, thus skyrocketing price.
   This is one of the major reasons for the rise in food prices.
   If it keeps up, I may rip out the lawn, and plant corn
   in my backyard.

9. LewDeKriS - November 22nd, 2008 at 10:23 pm

   Rising oil prices are affecting everyone… try to buy a car and ship it across the country, the cost has gone up about 50% over the last few years. Truckers everywhere are really feeling the pinch and this includes farming on all levels, not to mention farming equipment which so much as dependent on fuel.

   So if we’re paying more for oil, we’re all going to pay more for everything. Oil dependency is proving to be very precarious as time goes on.

   Anyway, this is really what I want to share with everyone and it really helps to explain some of this. Note – this is something that comes direct from both the automotive and business sectors…

   This was from today in fact and should help to answer this question…

   AIADA (American International Automobile Dealers Association)
   May 14, 2008

   AIADA’s FirstUp: The (Real) Reason Behind High Oil Prices

   The (Real) Reason Behind High Oil Prices
   On May 13, the price of a barrel of oil briefly hit a record of $126.98 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The reason was ostensibly that Iran was cutting oil production. But there is no gas shortage. In fact, in the U.S., stockpiles of oil climbed by 11.9 million barrels in April; they were up by nearly 33 million barrels since Jan. 1. At the same time, MasterCard’s May 7 gasoline report showed that gas demand has fallen by 5.8%. So why are prices still going up? Ed Wallace, writing in BusinessWeek, says prices are rising due to an unregulated commodities markets and greed. Commodities have often been the refuge for investors who have lost money on equities or fixed-income investments. If not restrained, they can drive up the price of goods that we can’t get out of buying. In the press we are bombarded daily with justifications for the high price of oil, such as strife in the Nigerian oil patch. However, the Senate took a dim view of those excuses, saying that manipulative hedge fund managers are “making bold predictions of shocking price advancements to come” and adding “more fuel to the bullish fire in a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy.”

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