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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTexas farmers who'd go bust without government largesse express disdain for Obama and govt. largesse
(Bloomberg) John Loepkys story is one of Texan self-reliance. Starting out in the mid-1980s with less than $100 in his pocket, Loepky first found work on farms and by the mid- 1990s owned his own land. Today he coaxes cotton, peanuts and wheat out of 3,300 acres of parched soil in Gaines County, getting as much as $2.4 million in revenue on a good year.
In bad years -- like 2011 -- he can rely on the government for help. Record-low rainfall triggered record-high crop insurance payouts of $125 million last year to local farmers, with taxpayers subsidizing $30.8 million of the $46.9 million of the premiums paid in the county that year. Loepky received about $1 million, which paid half of his loans for the year.
Landowners such as Loepky who rely on the federal safety net are less fond of the man who heads the government offering it. Gaines voters backed John McCain -- who voted against reauthorizing farm payments in 2008 -- over subsidy-supporting Barack Obama by 83 percent to 16 percent, the most lopsided margin among the top 10 aid-receiving counties in the U.S.
Republicans understand business better than Democrats, says Loepky, 47. We need strong banks, low taxes. We need a safety net for farmers, but we need other things too. ...................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-05/texas-sized-safety-net-supports-county-voting-83-against-obama.html
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Texas farmers who'd go bust without government largesse express disdain for Obama and govt. largesse (Original Post)
marmar
Apr 2012
OP
no_hypocrisy
(46,202 posts)1. “We need strong banks . . . . "
Same "strong banks" would foreclose on Mr. Loepky's property and farm in a New York City minute.
gateley
(62,683 posts)2. Somebody needs to explain this to them. And I mean sincerely, kindly explain it. They
just don't get it, they're getting their information from poisoned sources. They need to understand the reality.
izquierdista
(11,689 posts)8. Reality needs to slap them in the face.....HARD!
All of the kind explanations will do nothing for them. Just like explaining to an alcoholic or a smoker what their addiction is doing to them. At least when he is getting the bad news, it will only be that his livelihood is over, not his life.
aaaaaa5a
(4,667 posts)3. Whats the matter with Kansas.... err Texas. nt
Autumn
(45,120 posts)4. That hot Texas sun has burnt that mans brain to a crisp
Sad.
KG
(28,753 posts)5. unfortunately, stupid isn't nearly as painful as it needs to be...
provis99
(13,062 posts)6. hypocritical lousy welfare bums.
that's all they are.
I notice the jackass was also an illegal immigrant.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)7. Farmers need a safety net..
Anyone else, not so much.