Family Farm

The Green Party loves the concept of family farms. Especially small, certified organic family farms. We even like the idea of productive hobby farms -- certified organic, of course. We love self-sufficiency, local sufficiency, regional self-sufficiency, even national self-sufficiency in sectors.

The green idea is that the more self-sufficient an area is then the more sustainable an area has the potential to become. Put another way, living within an area's means precludes the need to ravage the remainder of world for finite and dwindling resources. There is an ethical divide between how we live and how the remainder of the world is capable of living. We control all the money and technology and then tell the rest of the world to develop upward to our standard of living, knowing full well that it is impossible. And also knowing full well that it is undesireable from a Gaia well-being (polution, environmental degradation) point of view.

The problem is that as family farms have been totally unviable, they have virtually disappeared from the landscape. The Green Party has suggestions and ideas on saving the family farm but, like the ideas of all the other parties, there is nothing on the horizon which will save, restore and grow family farms in today's present culture.

Monumental problems have I solved so far with but the most simple of solutions:
health care, Korean nuclear weapons, Alberta beef, politician's pay, and poverty. Now I'm turning the sights onto the FAMILY FARM.

Being of limited intelectual ability I am forced to draw upon the techniques of problem resolution I used in solving the poverty problem -- the publically funded, FARMER-driven agriculture solution.

How about an income support of $50 per acre per year?

• each acre must be certified organic
• Canadian owned, of course
• NOT incorporated (a proprietorship)
• maximum of 320 acres
• cannot be a component part of another acreage
  

That should about do it, don't you think?

Bear in mind that certified organic land must be maintained and improved (in a specific manner) every year. Idle land does not qualify for continued certification.

OMG! Some of you sharp minded individuals out there will undoubtedly point out that I have by-passed the logical and consistent Herbinatified argument of consumer-driven food consumption.

Hmm, why did't I propose that?

I think that approach would prove to be too bureaucratic and difficult. It would complicate retail food sales too much.

Paying the family farmer is much simpler. Upon annual certification the owner's Citizen Card (cash account section) is automatically fluffed up the requisit amount. Note the the Citizen Card, as envisioned by me, has five sections. A sixth, cash account, section, would have to be added. The cash account would work just like a debit card -- it would have no usage restrictions.