Sunday, February 13, 2005

Shock and Awe In Indiana

Here's a pretty picture of human nature at its brightest:

Indiana farmers voted for President Bush in large numbers, but they didn't know his next budget would immediately begin cutting farm programs.

[snip]

"When farmers face increased costs for seed, feed and fertilizer and increases in property taxes, there's no way they can pass those costs along to the next level," Villwock said. "Farmers need a reliable safety net for when times get tough."
Don't we all.

Let's see if I can explain what's going on here in simple terms. We had a certain amount of taxpayer money. Bush gave most of it to his friends and family. Then, he spent money we didn't have, and put the burden of debt on our children and grandchildren. That left us without enough money to pay our bills. And now, you folks who were so righteously indignant about other people's hand-outs and entitlements are learning that you're not going to get yours, either.

There's a lot of other stuff you're not going to get, and some of it is going to be very hard to live without. And you can't blame it on gays or liberals or Michael Moore. To use a homely agricultural metaphor, it's your own fault for putting the fox in charge of the henhouse.

Enjoy your "victory," folks. Here's hoping your fond memories of Bush's "mandate" will keep your bones warm when winter rolls around and you can't pay your heating bills.

4 comments:

echidne said...

Heh. We all need a safety net, indeed. But the conservatives think it only applies to themselves and the good people who are just like them.

I have always felt that most conservatives have no ability to empathize and that's why they are conservatives. Margaret Thatcher is a good example of this. Only if they have experienced a particular thing themselves will they see it as a valid problem. Otherwise it's all about grabbing your bootstraps with your teeth and pulling.

Watch 'n Wait said...

Too many people forgot the old saw, Be careful what you wish for... In this case, they wished for Bush, and with Bush comes his policies. All of them. And none are compassionate nor conservative. So they wanted 'em, now they got 'em. Maybe they'll learn something.

Revere said...

This is a dilemma. I want to empathize with these folks. I just can't.

Bitterness is like that.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the Richard Clarke post above (excellent) and for this. Just a few minutes ago on way home from the post office saw rustbucket car still bearing its "Bush-Cheney 04" sticker and had to wonder why anyone poor would vote for the wealthy special interests candidate. And how long it will take them to figure out it was a mistake. cgreen