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Frank Germann      Response 9

Question 9: Describe briefly what you feel is the greatest challenge facing Minnesota farmers right now. Outside of lobbying the federal government for support, specifically describe three actions, programs, or laws that you would support as governor to meet the farm crisis. If your programs involve new state expenditures, how would you pay for them?

Obviously, the greatest challenge facing Minnesota farmers right now
is low commodity prices. Today's farmers are victims of past federal
programs that promoted overproduction by paying subsidies above market
prices and by encouraging farmers to expand through low cost loans (at
rates below market). These economic dislocations are the root of
today's low prices for commodities. Farmers are paying the price for
these past government programs, just as tomorrow's farmers will have
to pay the price for any government programs to bail out todays
farmers.

Two hundred years ago, farmers comprised 98 percent of our nation's
population. Throughout our history, people have been moving from
farms to employment in urban areas, and this has been accomplished
gradually and in general without severe economic dislocation or
hardship. In fact, this process has resulted in greater prosperity
and higher standards of living for all. Government, however, has
interrupted this gradual, progressive process with its agricultural
programs to "aid" the farmer, with the result that farmers now face a
sudden, severe economic adjustment. Several decades of experience
with government farm programs has proven they exacerbate the problem
in the long run. If we didn't have the farm programs of the 1950's,
60's, 70's, and 80's, we wouldn't have the farm problems of the
1990's.

While the socialists want the government to bail the farmers out by
offering price supports and all kinds of government programs, we
Libertarians are not going to offer any. That is what caused the
problem we have now.

We all feel sorry for any farmer, or any business person for that
matter, that must lose his business, but it is wrong to tax the
general population to keep any businessman afloat.

Furthermore, price supports only encourage more excess productivity
which in turn produces more surplus. Low and high prices are the
market's message to the businessmen. Prices tell them when to use
more resources to produce more or to use less resources to produce
less. Government interference in markets interferes with that very
important market message.

On the other hand, low commodity prices encourage more consumption,
more hogs, more beef, more chickens to feed. More consumption then
drives prices back up. This is the market solution to the problem.
Of course the consumers are the great beneficiaries of the market
system. They benefit from lower priced pork, beef, and chicken.

The Libertarian solution for the government is simple. Do nothing.
The markets are at work. Government can do nothing but screw things
up.

Frank Germann http://www.tipsmith.com/candidates/germann.html
Libertarian candidate for governor of Minnesota FGermann@Juno.com