After listening to some of the problems with the legislative package known as "The Farm Bill" on the PBS program ‘Bill Moyers Journal’, it becomes really clear that while we worry incessantly (some would say needlessly) about the outcome of the Presidential election, there are other things that are much more important, and will have an impact on our lives much more far reaching.

"The Farm Bill" is something that attempts to cope with all the inequities, financial and otherwise, of the farmers and ranchers in the nation, yet somehow has become such a convoluted document that even its authors have to continuously recheck to see what it encompasses.

One of the things that has been added to the bill, which gets re-authorized every so often, is the Food Stamp program, which, while helping the needy get proper nutrition, is often abused by those not in need and has become a pet peeve of many.

Other problems include disaster relief which has historically been taken advantage of legally, by many who were not in need, having had no real disaster strike. The monumental waste is fully chronicled on the program, with reasons shown as both justifiable and ridiculous. That is the crux of the problem. One of the examples given is the story of how ranchers and farmers in Texas were allowed to claim relief funding during the time after the space shuttle disintegrated, and pieces fell back across that state. The funding was built-in to allow for the inconvenience of those areas stricken, but no needs testing was done, therefore allowing many to claim aid truly not needed. The total amount of aid was staggering!

While no one but the most hard hearted would try to remove the help for those truly in need, it is easy to see why the fiscally conservative will point to the wastes of the system, and this bill in particular, to shout how this sort of federal funding should be curtailed, or stopped completely. It also is easy to see that it is totally impossible to legislate morality, as so many people who were legally entitled to aid, and took advantage, were morally prohibited.

Much of the problem stems from the way that legislation is written. The scope of a bill may start very limited, but in order to allow passage, disparate things are allowed to creep in, possibly making a bill intended to save the bison of our land, also about changing the way license plates for cars get made (just an example). As intelligent and thoughtful as the framers of the Constitution were, it is too bad that more guidelines on successful drafting of legislation did not survive.

Changes in legislation should be many, but the problem of focus is the one area needing the most work. If each bill drafted could only have one area of concern, it would make clear the absolute merit of the idea presented. It would also make the line-item veto totally unnecessary.

more on "The Farm Bill" 

Quote of the day:
I have opinions of my own — strong opinions — but I don’t always agree with them. - George Bush

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Tags: legislation, bill moyers journal, pbs, the farm bill