Peanut Man
10 December 2007
Editor, Washington Post
1150 15th St., NW
Washington, DC 20071
Dear Editor:
Although insisting that Uncle Sam's current cotton-subsidy program is disgraceful, Jimmy Carter can't bring himself to call for its abolition ("Harvest of Misery," December 10). He asserts that, because West African farmers can produce cotton at less than a third of the cost of producing cotton in the U.S., "American farmers do need protection in the international marketplace."
Why? What moral or economic principle justifies Uncle Sam picking the pockets of most Americans (consumers and taxpayers) in order to line the pockets of some Americans (cotton farmers)?
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Chairman, Department of Economics
George Mason University
Editor, Washington Post
1150 15th St., NW
Washington, DC 20071
Dear Editor:
Although insisting that Uncle Sam's current cotton-subsidy program is disgraceful, Jimmy Carter can't bring himself to call for its abolition ("Harvest of Misery," December 10). He asserts that, because West African farmers can produce cotton at less than a third of the cost of producing cotton in the U.S., "American farmers do need protection in the international marketplace."
Why? What moral or economic principle justifies Uncle Sam picking the pockets of most Americans (consumers and taxpayers) in order to line the pockets of some Americans (cotton farmers)?
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Chairman, Department of Economics
George Mason University
Posted by Don Boudreaux on
Saturday May 17, 2008 at 3:10pm