Paths converged with the dirt trail as it broadened into a gravel country road. Instead of jungle, Jonathan passed rolling pastures and fields of ripening crops and rich orchards. The sight of all that food growing reminded Jonathan of how little he had eaten for lunch. He detoured toward a neat white farmhouse, hoping to find his bearings and maybe another meal.
On the front porch, he found a young woman and a small boy huddled together crying. ”Excuse me,” said Jonathan awkwardly. “Is there any trouble?” The woman looked up, eyes wet with tears. “It’s my husband.
Oh, my husband!” she wailed. “I knew one day it would come to this. He’s been arrested,” she sobbed, “by the Food Police!”
“I’m very sorry to hear about that, ma’am. Did you say ‘Food Police’?” asked Jonathan. He patted the dark head of the boy
sympathetically. “Why did they arrest him?”The woman gritted her teeth, fighting to hold back tears.
Scornfully, she said, “His crime was that of growing too much food!”
Jonathan was shocked. This island was truly a strange place! ”It’s a crime to grow too much food?”
The woman continued, “Last year the Food Police issued order telling him how much food he could produce and sell to the country folk. They told us that too much food would lower prices and so hurt the other farmers.” She bit her lip slightly then blurted out, “My husband was a better farmer than all the rest of them put together!”
Instantly Jonathan heard a sharp roar of laughter behind him. A heavyset man strutted up the path from the road to the farmhouse. “Ha!” he sneered, “I say that the best farmer is the one who gets the farm. Right?” With a grand sweep of his hand, the man glared at the woman and her son and commanded, “Now get your things packed and out of here! The Council of Lords has awarded this land to me.”
The man grabbed up a toy dog that was lying on the steps and
thrust it into Jonathan’s hands. “I’m sure she can use the help, boy. Get moving, this is my place now.”
The woman stood up, her eyes glaring in anger, “My husband was a better farmer than you’ll ever be.”
“That’s a matter of debate,” the man chuckled rudely. “Oh sure, he had green fingers. And he was a genius at figuring what to plant and how to please his customers. Quite a man! But he forgot one thing – the Council of Lords sets the prices and crops. And the Food Police enforce the Council rules.”
“You parasite!” yelled the woman. “Your farming methods are incompetent! You waste good manure and seed on everything you plant, and no one wants to buy what you grow. You plant in a ?ood plain or on parched clay, and it never matters if you lose everything. You just get the Council of Lords to pay for the rot. They’ve even paid you to destroy entire crops.”
Jonathan frowned, “There’s no advantage in being a good farmer?”
“Being a good farmer is a handicap,” answered the woman as her face reddened. “My husband, unlike this toad, refused to ?atter the Lords and tried to produce honest crops and real sales.” Shoving the woman and her boy off the porch, the man growled, ”Enough! He refused to follow the annual quotas. No one bucks the Food Police and gets away with it. Now get off my land!” Jonathan helped the woman carry her belongings. The woman and her son walked slowly away from their former home. At a bend in the road, all turned to take one last look at the neat house and barn. “What will happen to you now?” asked Jonathan. The woman sighed, “I can’t afford to pay the high food prices. Luckily, we’ve got relatives and friends to rely on for help. Otherwise, I could beg the Council of Lords to take care of Davy and me. They’d like that,” she muttered bitterly. She took the young boy’s hand and picked up a large bundle saying, “Come along, Davy.”
Jonathan gripped his stomach – now feeling a little more sick than hungry.
Brainstorming
Why are some farmers paid not to grow crops?
What would that do to the price and availability of food for consumers?
How does that affect poor people?
What kinds of dependency arise?
How does the government benefit?
Are there real examples of this behaviour?
Why do we have import duties on food?
What ethical issues are involved in the use of force?
Commentary
In many countries efficient farmers who grow an abundance of food, or sell food at too low a price, can be fined and imprisoned. This government meddling in the economy is a violation of individual rights and, as a practical and humane matter, is detrimental to consumers. The reason people are poor is not because some farmers produce too much. High production lowers prices and benefits everyone including the poor. Instead, people are made poorer because efficient farmers are prevented from producing. Such intervention is accomplished by government control boards, tariffs and subsidies. Even efficient farmers lose the incentive to produce. Once subsidies are introduced, they tend to remain in place forever. It would take unusual courage on the part of a politician to remove them.
If there is no government interference, consumer demand will control what and how much is produced by the prices they are willing to pay.
To know more about the book: http://www.jonathangullible.com/
Commentary by Janette Elridge
You may purchase the print edition of this book from The Liberty Institute, New Delhi.