The Influence of Farming on the IS Economy

From the nations earliest days, farming has held a crucial place in the American economy and culture. Farmers play an important role in any society, of course, since they feed people. But farming has been particularly valued in the United States. Early in the nations life, farmers were seen as exemplifying economic virtues such as hard work, initiative, and self-sufficiency. Moreover, many Americans — particularly immigrants who may have never held any land and did not have ownership over their own labor or products — found that owning a farm was a ticket into the American economic system. Even people who moved out of farming often used land as a commodity that could easily be bought and sold, opening another avenue for profit. The American Farmers Role in the US Economy The American farmer has generally been quite successful at producing food. Indeed, sometimes his success has created his biggest problem: the agricultural sector has suffered periodic bouts of overproduction that have depressed prices. For long periods, the  government helped smooth out the worst of these episodes. But in recent years, such assistance has declined, reflecting governments desire to cut its own spending, as well as the farm sectors reduced political influence. American farmers owe their ability to produce large yields to a number of factors. For one thing, they work under extremely favorable natural conditions. The American Midwest has some of the richest soil in the world. Rainfall is modest to abundant over most areas of the country; rivers and underground water permit extensive irrigation where it is not. Large capital investments and increasing use of highly trained labor also have contributed to the success of American agriculture. It is not unusual to see todays farmers driving tractors with air-conditioned cabs hitched to very expensive, fast-moving plows, tillers, and harvesters. Biotechnology has led to the development of seeds that are disease- and drought-resistant. Fertilizers and pesticides are commonly used (too commonly, according to some environmentalists). Computers track farm operations, and even space technology is utilized to find the best places to plant and fertilize crops. Whats more, researchers periodically introduce new food products and new methods for raising them, such as artificial ponds to raise fish. Farmers have not repealed some of the fundamental laws of nature, however. They still must contend with forces beyond their control — most notably the weather. Despite its generally benign weather, North America also experiences frequent floods and droughts. Changes in the weather give agriculture its own economic cycles, often unrelated to the general economy. Government Assistance to Farmers Calls for government assistance come when factors work against the farmers success; at times, when different factors converge to push farms over the edge into failure, pleas for help are particularly intense. In the 1930s, for instance, overproduction, bad weather, and the Great Depression combined to present what seemed like insurmountable odds to many American farmers. The government responded with sweeping agricultural reforms — most notably, a system of price supports. This large-scale intervention, which was unprecedented, continued until the late 1990s, when Congress dismantled many of the support programs. By the late 1990s, the U.S. farm economy continued its own cycle of ups and downs, booming in 1996 and 1997, then entering another slump in the subsequent two years. But it was a different farm economy than had existed at the centurys start. --- This article is adapted from the book Outline of the U.S. Economy by Conte and Carr and has been adapted with permission from the U.S. Department of State.

Geoffrey Chaucer s The Canterbury Tales - 867 Words

At the beginning of Geoffrey Chaucer’s â€Å"The Canterbury Tales,† he opens with a description of twenty-nine characters who are going on a pilgrimage to Canterbury. Each character in the story represent a stereotype of a kind of person that would be seen in England during the Fourteenth Century. Every single character is unique, but also embodies physical and behavioral traits that would be common for someone in their profession. He writes each character so they have realistic qualities. However, when viewed more closely, a reader can determine which of these characters have a convincing or questionable personality. Chaucer first sets the mood by providing an overall idea of each character before they tell their stories. The physical and†¦show more content†¦Chaucer states that he is an expert in stealing grain and charging three times the amount, but yet he still has a golden thumb. â€Å"An honest miller hath a golden thumb† is a pun used to ironical ly state that this Miller’s golden thumb comes from the increase in his own profit (Chaucer). The portrait that the Miller draws is based upon the negative stereotypes on the lower-class people during the medieval times. The idea was that these people had more brawn than brains, which he clearly demonstrates in his prologue. Another character that is criticized in the Prologue is the Wife of Bath. Her character is larger than life. She is described as having wide hips, a hat as bigs as a boat, and, just in general, taking up a lot of space in the pilgrimage and in the story as a whole. The Wife dresses in expensive clothes such, Her kerchiefs were finely wove†¦/ I dare to swear those weighed a good ten pounds, /That on a Sunday she wore on her head† (Chaucer). Her physical appearance matches a medieval stereotype of a lustful person. This stereotype was seen in a person who could not control their passions. The Wife falls perfectly in line with this stereotype by telling the other characters how she has had five husbands. Having so many husbands has made her skilled in â€Å"the oldest dance† (Chaucer). With the Wife of Bath, Chaucer is laying out the stereotypical medieval state

Civilized or Uncivilized Free Essays

Civilized or uncivilized Civilization is a limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessities. —-Mark Twain In Montaigne’s essay on Cannibals, those people living in the uncivilized societies are first referred to as â€Å"noble savages†. However, most Europeans, at that time, believed that the people without â€Å"the benefits of Christianity and civilization† can not be regarded as civilized or advanced. We will write a custom essay sample on Civilized or Uncivilized or any similar topic only for you Order Now Montaigne holds his ideas and specifically illustrates the reasons of the social norm that uncivilized people seem barbarous are that they have received little molding from the human intelligence and are very close to their original simplicity. Montaigne also criticizes the barbarian actions of â€Å"civilized† European society such as torturing prisoners. He also branches out topic to valour and believes that true victory lies the prize of valour, not winning itself. Based on the ideas of Montaigne, â€Å"civilized† world is not as perfect as people thought, and motivate readers to rethink what civilization is about. What I learn from that essay is that civilized people may sometimes have extremely uncivilized behaviors, and uncivilized people also have their civilized aspects. For those â€Å"uncivilized† people, in this essay, it is said that two things are the most important of their life which are â€Å"resolution in battle† and â€Å"affection for their wives†. Although their way of life seems limited, they live happily with their way of life. I admit their life are simple, but not uncivilized or barbarian. Their fighting is noble and disinterested because all they want to do is to show their valour which is also what people living in â€Å"civilized† societies want. However, we label them with â€Å"uncivilized† by reference to the laws of reason and social norms created by completely different cultures of us, and keep doing the barbarian behaviors which are not belong to our â€Å"perfect† society such as killing the innocent in order to develop new territories. The action of judging another culture â€Å"uncivilized† actually shows the weakness of â€Å"civilized† society. Therefore, the difference between both sides are not civilized or not, but the different cultures. All those different cultures make this world more colorful. Montaigne uses Plato’s words in this essay to differentiate various societies or ations,which I agree with most part of those words. It is said that â€Å"all things are produced by either nature, or by chance, or by art; the greatest and most beautiful by one or other of the first two, the least and most imperfect by the last†. I agree that things are produced because of those three reasons, but I don’t think any one is better than another, because everything has its own reason of existing. All the different cultures make up of civilization, therefore, as Mark Twain said, civilization is necessities no matter they are necessary or not. How to cite Civilized or Uncivilized, Papers