The Cyberactivist

As I figure most of the people coming here during this event are the type of people who enjoy taking action to help make the world a better place, this is an easy way to do just that.

Did you know that our government cut funding by more than $3 billion for conservation by farmers and that last year 200,000, 3 out of 4, were turned away simply because there was not enough funding to go around? So, do they increase the amount this year? Nope. They cut it. To help balance the budget so that we can bomb more innocent Iraqi children.

The fact is that many of the small family farmers are the ones who are in a position to help or hurt the environment. It would seem good policy to reward them for doing things to help it, like preserving open space and wildlife habitat, as well as reducing pesticide use and improving the water and air quality.

Did you know that row-crop subsidies soak up nearly 60% of all farm spending? Because of this problem and the non-interest of this government to protect the environment, many farmers who want to do things right suffer and then grow on areas that they had intended to set aside to keep afloat. How does this possibly help us?

Subsidies for farmers were set up about 80 years ago to help small farmers. Today, it is a much different picture. Most of the $20 billion goes to the large farmers who produce feed grains, rice, and cotton.

If you are as upset about this as I am and want to do something about it, there is a quick and easy way to do just that. You can simply go here to send an email to Congress to let them know how you feel about cutting conservation funding. If you want to read more about this issue, there is information on this site.

Action on this issue will help to not only help conservation and wildlife habitat, but will also be a boost to the small family farmers who are rapidly vanishing as agribusiness drives them out of business.