Re: Science and Unemployment...
Andrew Cooke (ajc@reaxp01.roe.ac.uk)
Fri, 30 Jun 1995 13:07:55 GMT
In article <3ssa92$k7e@oddball.sjc.MENTORG.COM>,
Mathew Shember <mathews@wv.mentorg.com> wrote:
[...]
>Do you actually think our production does not use irrigation? Try getting out
>of the city more.
>
>Besides what is your point. Yes were are dependent on rain. Your garden of
>eden called India is dependent on rain.
>
>The point is the US production feeds a great portion of the world. India is
>not as self sufficient as you claim.
just correcting a few points:
- much of the us corn production is irrigated from a water
table under the `big flat middle region' of the states
(sorry - i don't know the correct names!). it's running
out. of course, no-one knows when it will fail, but it's
being used up a lot faster than it is being refilled.
- us production feeds much of the world because you dump
surpluses at subsidised prices. this puts local farmers out
of business. most of the starvation on tv is caused by
political problems and confused (by external pressures)
agricultural methods
as always on the net you've got to take my word for this,
and i'd like to hear any corrections. the above is from
what i read in `tears of the crocodile' which was a report
on the un conference in brazil a few years ago. (it's a book
written in the uk by people who lectured my sister in
environmental studies at newcastle - i don't know if it is
available in the usa)
andrew
--
A.Cooke@roe.ac.uk work phone 0131 668 357 home phone/fax 0131 667 0208
institute for astronomy, royal observatory, blackford hill, edinburgh
http://www.roe.ac.uk/ajcwww
|