Do as I say...not as I do!

"Why are food prices so high?"That phrase has been uttered a lot lately. Many of my friends who do not work in the agricultural industry ask me about the high prices because of my connection to ag. They complain about ethanol subsidies and how they are causing their food prices to jump. The challenge for people in ag is to effectively communicate a message that explains why things are the way they are. Global demand, change in export agreements, weather, all contribute to higher food prices. Also, fuel prices impact your food costs as well. Sometimes, I fear we are not so good at talking about the big picture.
The main problem, in my opinion, is that everyone wants to blame someone else for the current situation. Let's take high gas prices for a moment. Some would have you to believe that it is the "evil" oil companies that are controlling everything and screwing the American public. Now let me state for the record that I do believe the oil companies are part of our problem. But who among us wants to admit that our consumption is at an all-time high? We certainly want to have our cake and eat it too. None of us wants to change our habits. Recently, our "Eco Friendly" Gov. of California admitted that he flies his private jet from Sacramento to LA about 5 times week so he can sleep in his own bed at home. Rather than re-locate his family to the Capital his solution is to burn more jet fuel in a hour than a small car uses in a year according to the Helium Report, an online publication for buyers for luxury items. By the way, it is about a 3 hour flight each way so that adds up to 3 cars a flight 5 times a week. He buys carbon credits to offset his pollution so I guess that makes everything in the world good again. My point here is not to pick on an easy target as much as it is that we all need to think responsibly and rationally about how we are living. The Govenator favors legislation that would make it more difficult for car manufacturers to meet emission requirements or everyday Californians to pay more for higher emission standards but that is their problem. He will "jet-set" where and when he wants because it is his desire to so.

We all need to look toward reasonable solutions and stop pointing the finger at the other guy and own up that we all need to be better stewards. But please, those of you in power don't tell us to do as you say and not as you do!