Senate Passes Farm Bill

Watching a Senate debate requires having something else to do at the same time. The viewer is never quite sure if everything is happening on the screen, but likely not. We all understand that there are many contexts in which back channel negotiations or off the record conversations are taking place, and how the back scratching thing works. Surely senators often feel divided between what's good for my state versus what's good for my country. The added piece for me is what's good for "my people," and my people are more than just those who share my skin color, economic status, vocational choice, and region of the country.

So, it's good to know that the Senate passed its version of the farm bill last week. It's good to know that the farming industry, with all of its complexities and challenges, will continue to feed our people of this country and many around the world. It's good to know that there's a linkage between the land and the city, and that people in the city who cannot afford quality food to eat will be able to do so via provisions of this $288 billion or so bill.

I'm also glad that an amendment was passed that reopened the class action suit that has marginalized so many African American farmers. Those numbers are compelling and those people must be taken note of. We owe it to them. We belong to them and they belong to us.

Here's a link that provides a better summary, but perhaps we'll visit again about the farm bill on these pages when the committee work has been done and the president has signed off on it.