Greed hurts us all again

The rush to make money has once again worsened an existing problem.
The U.N., and others, is warning the world that water resources, already strained by over population, will become even more scarce from the increased production of corn and other crops for biofuels.

Also, since more corn is being sold to biofuel producers, diverting it away from food producers, the price of corn for food is increasing. The price of every other crop that is being diverted away from traditional uses to biofuel production is going up as well.

Winners and losers? In the short term, the winners are the farmers who convert their lands to grow more palm trees, more sugar cane, more of anything that biofuel producers will buy. In the long term, the losers are those very same farmers, along with anyone else who requires food. It may sound like a bit of an over-simplification and melodramatic, but it is true.

These problems and others, such as increased pollution from the increased use of synthetic fertilizers to support the additional crops and the conversion of forests into agricultural lands, have been discussed in length by ecologists, scientists, farmers, food producers, environmentalists and bloggers who can see beyond the need to make an extra buck, for quite some time now.

I don’t mean to get down on those poor countries who are struggling to make more money. They need to eat too. But their shortsightedness is going to affect everyone else. Using more land that hastens the shortage of one of our most limited resources and polluting it even more borders on lunacy.

The use of biofuels is a double-edged sword. It is better for the environment than fossil fuels and it increases energy security for many countries. The pitfalls affect social as well as environmental issues.

New studies from scientists, private agencies and governments are saying biofuels could do more harm than good. Instead of helping the environment, deforestation to grow more energy crops is increasing the threat of global warming.

Converting more land to agricultural use will prevent an ever increasing population from finding land to build homes on.

Pollution from synthetic fertilizers creates the need for more water purification systems which takes up more land.

There needs to be controls put in place to decrease the competition of agricultural lands in order to maintain a percentage of land for food production only. Developing countries will benefit most from this.

We need to look at long term solutions and not jump on the first immediate answer. How many times have individuals been burned in their personal lives by doing exactly this? When are we going to learn from our mistakes. This mistake is global and will have global consequences.

What is the real goal of this Iraq War and who is behind it?

Why are we still in Iraq? Why did we go there at all? Was it really to remove Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction? If that was the case then we have no business being there because there are no weapons of mass destruction.

Was it to remove Saddam Hussein from power? Mission accomplished, lets go home and resume our lives.

Was it to get control of Iraq’s oil resource for our own use? Not going to happen. Lets go home and work on alternative sources of energy like we should have been anyway.

Was it to fight terrorism? The only reason there are terrorist in Iraq now is because the U.S. brought them there by attacking Iraq. Let’s go home and protect our borders better and fight them here. I guarantee you they will not have the same will to fight us on our own turf.

Was it to show the world that we are truly the only world power and the rest of the world should recognize us for it? That isn’t working because if we truly are the only world power then we would have ‘won’ in Iraq by now.

Was it because war times have historically strengthened the U.S. economy by putting more Americans to work? Look around, we are losing jobs to cheaper foreign work forces. So, I don’t think that goal was achieved.

Was it so George W. Bush could ‘avenge’ his father for not taking out Saddam during the first Gulf War? Maybe he will some day decide to be candid enough to actually admit that there is more truth to this part of the story that he has ever let on.

As an American citizen, I am deeply confused about why we are there and why we stay.

The politicians and generals have all lied to us about how the war is progressing, all you have to do is read alternative news sources and listen to the troops who have actually served there to know that is true. Since they are lying to us about what is really happening there, they want something out of this war than what they are leading us to believe. Traditionally, 'winning' a war results in us marching away as the victor while people shower us with thanks and goodwill for relieving their suffering from the dictatorial rule of some madman. That, clearly, is not what is happening in Iraq. Therefore, a different goal has been set for Iraq.

The Pentagon, Haliburton, all of their subsidiaries and all of the other U.S. based contractors are making a lot of money off of this war. Profits they could not have dreamed of during a peace-time economy. As is usually always the case, if you follow the money trail you will learn the real reason behind why people in power do what they do.

Before this war started, Bush's handlers did not have an exit strategy. They did not plan for one because they knew there would be no exit. Why? One reason is that they planned to build military bases in Iraq to control the Middle East. This would extend America’s role of policing the world. If you are going to be the world’s police force you have to have police stations throughout the world.

Another underlying reason for not leaving is because of the oil reserves there. Bush's cronies at Haliburton and others would continue to make profits.

Just look at the fact that we still have military bases in Europe and Japan almost six decades after World War II. The U.S. does not give up strongholds easily. We will stay in Iraq indefinitely.

U.S. military and foreign policy does not account for the possibility of helping Iraq gain democracy and then leaving them to ‘sink or swim’. The U.S. military and foreign policy is to conquer and control. This alone is why the Middle East will never give up fighting the U.S. on their soil. The Middle East belongs to them, they will fight for it until their dying breath.

This policy of ‘American internationalism’ believes that we should dominate the world economy. Adherence to this policy will lead to the downfall of American power. Bush is stretching our grip too far. We should take a lesson from the Roman empire. They tried to stretch their control over the entire known world and their civilization fell apart. If we continue on this same path we will duplicate their fate.

The Pentagon budget is increased every year at the detriment of the U.S. domestic economy. Our educational system is suffering, our healthcare system is suffering, our citizens are suffering, except for Bush’s millionaire cronies who are profiting from this insane need to stretch U.S. control around the world.

Bush is currently working to expand the global missile defense system. This is the ‘big gun’ that will be used to back his idea of the Americanization of the world.

Our military has been undergoing the transformation to a police force long before George W. was inserted as president. The basis for this policy was born from a document drafted in 1992 by the defense department when, current vice president, Dick Cheney was defense secretary. That document saw the United States imposing its will and keeping world peace through military and economic power. When leaked in final draft form, however, the proposal drew so much criticism that it was hastily withdrawn and repudiated by the first President Bush.

The greatest danger that springs from the U.S. becoming the world’s police force is that all of our financial power and military might will be dedicated to maintaining that role. Once we become the world’s police force all our allies will back away and redirect their spending on domestic issues.

George W. Bush certainly did not campaign for this type of foreign policy while running for president but he has been doggedly pursuing it ever since. He is being led by conservative groups and he is only their ‘mouthpiece’. This says a lot about American politics today. The big lesson here is that it does not matter which person we the voting public elect as president, it is the groups behind the scenes who really decide this countries policies and we never have a say on who populate those groups.