Congress Created Dust Bowl
As I drove north yesterday across California’s Central Valley, perhaps the most fertile region in the country, I saw these signs sprouting up everywhere.
Wondered if they were referring to something reader to which Peter Hughes alerted me two weeks ago when he e-mailed me a link to Sean Hannity’s interview with comedian Paul Rodriguez. That funny man, whose mother and family farm in the San Joaquin Valley (the southern part of the Central Valley), has spoken out as federal authorities, under the cloak of the Endangered Species Act, have “shut down vital pumps to farmers to help preserve” the delta smelt, a two-inch minnow.
This government action is costing many farmers their livelihood. As it prevents them from farming their land, it means the overall harvest decreases which means less food for all of us which means higher prices.
Oh, yeah, and if there’s less food, more people go hungry. All to save a tiny minnow. And I bet there are better ways to save this species, less costly to our own.
16 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
I say …let the desert reclaim its natural boundries. Lets look at the bigger picture folks.
Comment by bill — July 4, 2009 @ 7:26 am - July 4, 2009
I must be a robot or something… because whenever I hear a story about an endangered minnow or a slug or a weed, I think, “Who gives a sh!t about that??”
Really… honestly… Species go extinct all the time without anybody (including the planet) caring.
Comment by DoDoGuRu — July 4, 2009 @ 7:58 am - July 4, 2009
Move the minnow to the EPA headquarters in Washington and have a staff of minnow experts watch over it 24/7/365. Install a live minnow-cam and make screen savers for greens to put on their computers. Set up an endangered minnow preserve in the parts of Flint, Michigan they want to bulldoze. Place a bronze minnow in front of Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial. He would be looking down at the minnow and appear to be trying to teleport it to the reflecting pool. Replace the pyramid on the back of the dollar bill with a minnow and give the eagle something to think about. But save the minnow. Jobs and the economy can wait.
Comment by heliotrope — July 4, 2009 @ 9:18 am - July 4, 2009
Yeah, they’re only people. trying to make a living, bill. Why should we allow them to use technology to make their lives easier?
Hey, I know, Why don’t we stop sending groceries to Michigan? I say let the wilderness reclaim the state.
Comment by The_Livewire — July 4, 2009 @ 1:07 pm - July 4, 2009
I say …let the desert reclaim its natural boundries. Lets look at the bigger picture folks.
Please do say that, given the number of jobs that the Central Valley provides to Hispanic immigrants, both legal and otherwise.
And there we go; we can point out to people that the Obama Party thinks a two-inch minnow is more important than your job, your home, and your livelihood.
Comment by North Dallas Thirty — July 4, 2009 @ 3:49 pm - July 4, 2009
Once again, your culture continues to baffle me with its idiotic decisions to attempt to “preserve” something miniscule while ruining the lives of tens of thousands. As I recall, the pumps which transport the water from Northern California to its Central and Southern parts were gobbling up the poor Delta Smelt. The government decided to turn the pumps down or off so as to preserve the endangered species. How about adding more pumps that take in water slower and thereby increase the volume sent to the people who need it. Or, better yet, relocate the delta smelt to perserve it. Oh, I get it, that would be common sense and we all know that politicians dont stupe to the use of common sense.
Comment by Duff - Native Intelligence — July 5, 2009 @ 1:04 am - July 5, 2009
Duffy,
No, the issue is it would take money, which libs are unwilling to spend to help -people-. They’re more loath to spend their own money.
Example: About 10 years ago, we had a dear overpopulation problem in Sharon Woods park. The city authorized hunters to go in an thin the herd. Animal rights people were demanding the city airlift the dear to somewhere else. The city (wisely) laid out the cost and told the animal rights people it was too expensive for the city. They then said “If you want to cover the cost, personally, we’ll allow you to.”
Suddenly the animal rights lovers went silent.
Comment by The_Livewire — July 5, 2009 @ 10:33 am - July 5, 2009
“I say …let the desert reclaim its natural boundries. Lets look at the bigger picture folks.
Comment by bill — July 4, 2009 @ 7:26 am – July 4, 2009″
Yes lets eliminate the welfare state and let nature reclaim its natural boundaries.
Comment by cubanbob — July 5, 2009 @ 1:30 pm - July 5, 2009
These same folks are not above starving millions by pouring moonshine into cars. Same type of folks who would pay farmers to kill farm animals and destroy crops (price control) while people starved during the depression. They sure as hell won’t stop now.
Comment by ThatGayConservative — July 5, 2009 @ 2:15 pm - July 5, 2009
I say …let the desert reclaim its natural boundries. Lets look at the bigger picture folks.
Comment by bill — July 4, 2009 @ 7:26 am – July 4, 2009
You know, littleletterbill, the place where you live was once wilderness, too. Should we kick you out of your home so it can return to nature?
Or, are you only an “environmentalist” when its someone else’s home and livelihood that’s being sacrificed?
Comment by V the K — July 6, 2009 @ 11:07 am - July 6, 2009
No one should be surprised by this. The EPA really started because of the environmental movement. These administrative agencies have a lot of power, regardless of our constitution. This is a gross violation of property rights. I do not for one minute believe that these environmental groups have human life in their interest. They want to sacrifice progress, prosperity and happiness for creatures!! Those fruits and vegetables we buy are going to cost a bundle mark my words.
Comment by Scherie — July 6, 2009 @ 8:09 pm - July 6, 2009
…….just checked out the Judge that made the ruling; ex-marine appointed by Bush senior. Neo cons are so much fun to watch!
Comment by Pat Garity — August 10, 2009 @ 3:20 am - August 10, 2009
The congress created “dust bowl” is just road side politics. Ignore it. The federal govt was sued in 2008 (NWF vw NOAA) because they said it was okay to remove so much water from the Delta. George Bush campaign promised an unsustainable amount of irrigation water for farmers at the expense of salmon habitat. The entire California salmon fisheries industry was CLOSED due to population declines directly related to the over pumping of delta waters. How about those jobs and that food? The endangered fish is just an indicator of a much larger underlying problem. Agribusiness need to adopt more water and soil conserving methods. They do exist.
Comment by David Nelson — August 23, 2009 @ 3:05 pm - August 23, 2009
Farmers created the “Dust Bowl”, not Congress. Does anyone question that farms in california are 92% Megafarms owned by the Oil Companies( who manufacture the synthetic fertilizers?) and who pay their workers diddly squat? Or that these “farmers” pay almost NOTHING for the water, and are even to “grandfather” it to their children, who in many cases opt out of farming, but sell the water rights to tohers for a profit??? Does anyone say anything of the harmfull farming techniques used by farmers that relies to much on water and the destruction of the topsoil???
This just another disaster created by the bush administration!!!
Comment by garagehero — September 17, 2009 @ 5:31 am - September 17, 2009
Maybe if the “farmers” (agribusinesses) would stop selling their water rights to municipalities for a profit then maybe there would be enough water for the large water demand crops such as almonds.
Comment by Theryl McCoy — October 6, 2009 @ 4:50 am - October 6, 2009
The comment left by a Mr. David Nelson just shows how many uneducated idiots there are in our state. Before you make such rediculous statements regarding the water issues here in the San Joaquin Valley of California, why don’t you come here where I live in Firebaugh and educate yourself on the facts. Ignorance is alive and I can assure you that when Mr. Nelson is depending on a foreign country for his food supply instead of the hardworking farmers of California he will wish he hadn’t encouraged people to ingnore our plea’s for help.
Comment by Vicki DeFrancesco — January 11, 2010 @ 4:00 pm - January 11, 2010