Food Activists, Sepcial Interest Groups Need to Hold Their Horses
Don’t Stampede Obama for Not Keeping His Promises Just Yet
Barack Obama alluded to Michael Pollan’s letter to the next “Farmer-in-Chief” during his interview with Joe Klein. Â He recognized that our agricultural methods and the way we eat are at the crux of our nation’s health, energy crisis, and security (link). Â Thus, foodies and sustainable food advocates clamored that Obama was surely on their side. Â They wooped it up at the thought of organics and food safety being the main course for Obama’s call to change (link).
There was perhaps even a slight allusion to agricultural practices in his inauguration speech when he remarked that “…each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.” Â This interpetation, however, is dependent on one’s own green champion. Â According to the “Obameter” at PolitiFact.com, Obama’s first initiatives have been off the farm: the weathering of homes and upgrading the grid system.
Scrolling through his other 500 some political promises, one can see that Obama has a lot of big fish to fry, including healthcare reform, money for science, veterans affairs, education…The list goes on and on. Activist groups need to understand that the next four years have become largely a physics problem–only so many big fish can fit in the frying pan at one time.  Think of all the things you wanted Bush to do, then think of some more great policy initiatives.  Obama is trying to make all of that happen with an economy in the fiscal dumps.  Give the man some time, people!
Yes, I think that agricultural policy is a long-term project that needs to get started right away, but it is also obviously a project worthy of many weeks of planning.  So, I, at least, will not begrudge Obama for not creating a completely revamped agriculture policy within the first 72 hours of his administration. The promises for change are there.
Here are some of Obama’s agriculturally-minded promises that PolitiFact.com is tracking (the numbers are purely for conceptual ease, and are not related to Obama’s priorities):
No. 8: Include environmental and labor standards in trade agreements
No. 263: Improve water quality
No. 264: Regulate pollution from major livestock operations
No. 265: Restore the Great Lakes
No. 268: Increase funding for organic and sustainable agriculture
No. 271: Partner with landowners to conserve private lands
No. 272: Encourage farmers to use more renewable energy and be more energy efficient
(agricultural subgroup of campaign promises)
If all that and more will eventually come to fruition, I will gladly wait even the entire four years of his (first?) adminstration. Â Who’s with me?
He's still my Hero
January 26, 2009
Tags: Barack Obama, change, farmers, green, policy Posted in: Politics
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