Famine Among The Masses

The harsh reality of this summers heat waves where under the scorching sun what was supposed to be bumper crops of corn and soy are now withering. This was supposed to be a banner year in the harvest of major food crops which by the way would have led to lower costs everyone pays from consumables to gasoline now are left with no choice but to pay more dearly in everything that one buys. A major disaster in the making is unfolding right before our eyes here in the United States. It couldn't have come at a worse time. The quagmire of economic uncertainty has only gotten worse and now with this disaster underway in our food production just upgrades the difficulty that one is going to have in everyday living.


Just maybe all this could have been avoided and possibly some rescue attempts could salvage some of this years harvest. Let's look at the plain facts. Right now the major crops of corn, wheat, and soy are located on top of aquifers. In other words ground water is beneath the soil the very crops are planted in. In allot of areas though the groundwater is in a close enough proximity to have in place an aqua duct or what is now commonly called a pipeline similar to the oil pipe line connecting Alaska to the continental United States. Just suppose for an instant that such a pipe line connecting the ground water that is in these Aquifers to the location where much of our food supply is grown. This is where irrigation could just conceivably mean the difference between a healthy harvest or none at all, which is the case now.


Which so much attention that was focused by the Republicans now on the development of another oil pipe line and more profit for big oil none was focused upon the plight of the food harvests that literally mean whether one eats or not. It all boils down to this, man can live with out oil but cannot survive without water or food. There is no reason other than monetary concerns as why we haven't developed an intercontinental aqua duck system similar to the one that the state of Minnesota developed some 20 years ago. This especially since there is enough groundwater especially in Nebraska and lower Minnesota to pump into our areas where the need is the greatest to maintain healthy crops.


We have seen this scenario time and time again where regions that are so parched and other areas so inundated with rain there is no real equalization. Right here in Tampa, Florida for example over 99% of all rainwater goes directly into Tampa Bay rather than into holding facilities where the transfer of fresh water could be treated or pumped into places where the need is, again the greatest. The sewer system is so old and antiquated it is really not sufficient to handle the amount of rainwater that occurs all through-out the year. In the event of a major storm or hurricane where torrential rain floods the city streets again so much water is literally washed away. What a waste, when there is really no excuse other than the lack of political will to develop a system of fresh water transfer and rescue the most precious natural resource we have.


This catastrophe in the making is a direct result of the inconstancies of our political will. Where on one hand namely the Republicans are fixated on tax reduction and cost cutting at all costs and the Democratic party who are combating their own political agenda. But, none are really developing a plan of action to curb the onslaught of higher prices where each individual is still so financially strapped. We have come to the realization that even more financial hardship is already a reality. All because of the failure of governmental policies to address the very basic needs of us all.


Two of the largest areas that are known aquifers is under most of Nebraska and in southern Minnesota. Both of these areas compose a most abundant source of fresh water. More than enough to pump into irrigation systems around the farm belt to supplement when there is a shortage of rain. If we had in place a cross irrigation system tapping into these aquifers much of today's crop failures would now have been avoided.


The need is apparent that to further delay in developing such an irrigation system only precludes more crop failures in the future. In much of the world today there is a acute shortage of fresh water and food. If we don't intercede and develop systems for freshwater transfer the United States will fall victim to what much of the rest of the world is already facing, that is acute famine. We have the technology and the resources at hand, all that is needed is the political resolve to make sure a national catastrophe will never occur. To do nothing only pushes the United States closer to an economic and financial abyss where one more disaster would send this country over the edge never being able to climb back out. It is imperative for our national security and to recover our national economic stability this nation implements a National aqua duck and water transfer system.


To those skeptics who say how are we to finance such an ambiguous undertaking? All one has to do is look back in history where in the 1930's the WPA was instrumental in putting in place most of the infrastructure we still have today. Then in the 1950's the nations highway system again a very ambiguous project connected the nation with a cross section of highways making the transport of goods and services much less costly. Using that tried and true business analogy " It takes up front capital to generate more capital" is esentially the formula relevant to today. All were successful in creating more of a tax base from which more spending could occur. To let our farms fail due to natures reluctance to provide relief there literally are ways to assist nature when nature isn't assisting us. A national water transfer and irrigation project will be of grave importance for the health and stability of the United States.