Farmers in India are not the only farmers committing suicide due to the stresses of an agricultural lifestyle. The ones committed to feeding and clothing much of the rest of the United States are under enormous pressures, many of which (nature, greed to name two) no one has the power to ameliorate.
The suicide rate for [American] farmers is more than double that of veterans. Former farmer Debbie Weingarten gives an insider’s perspective on farm life – and how to help [The Guardian]
And if that isn't enough, I imagine it's just one more farm to fall into the hands of corporate ag companies.
ReplyDeleteNon-family corporate farms account for 1.36 percent of US farmland area. Family farms (including family corporate farms) account for 96.7 percent of US farms and 89 percent of US farmland area; a USDA study estimated that family farms accounted for 85 percent of US gross farm income in 2011.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_farming
Thanks for the two story sources.
ReplyDeleteI believe agri-corporate criminality hit the US first.
The governments that allow the corporate mafia to take over the food supply do little or nothing to help the farmers the take over had and have destroyed.
In America I wonder if even in face of the destruction of their livelihoods and lives, I wonder if the farmers still voted Republican.
Criminality aside, neither article even attempted to deal with why so many chose suicide. Suicide doesn’t do much for the “loved ones.” Was it fear of homelessness? Jail? What?
It’s a Great Global Shame,
A Pox on the Houses of Monsanto and Syngenta and their government lackies.